The Wonders of GPS (Global Positioning Satelites)

Global Positioning

The use of GPS devices has exploded with brand new ideas within the past 5-10 years, some are very handy and incredibly accurate, whilst others are not. Recent breakthrough in technology has given us some amazing mobile phones which carry GPS tracking capabilities such as the Google Android. With various applications, the phone can be wirelessly connected to a local satelite in the Earths upper atmosphere ready for usage. After a journey is complete, the data can be tracked using the google site (Google Latitude) which draws the map where you have been. Useful, but how useful is it for our Transforming Stonehouse Visit?

When conducting the task of GPS Mapping, we had to stick to certain rules which include:

-Turn left at blue signs.
-Turn right at red signs.
-Turn back at black signs.

These rules were not to difficult to follow as Plymouth is plastered with signs everywhere, so moving in different directions really helped the changes in data instead of just walking in a straight line constantly. There were slight inconsistencies with the results from the map (displayed below) which initially put the group off of using GPS Mapping in the final project, but it was worth testing.



Another example of a great piece of technology for similar jobs is this:
Clarion H.M.I. Clarion have designed this epic tool which acts as your normal GPS device for your car, but it is also designed to be taken out and can be used whilst walking around the town trying to find various hard to find destinations. Using the same idea as Google Android, it tracks where the user is going, but actually lets the user see where he/she is actually walking to. Not only this, it can be used as a media device to play music, video whilst on the go. In my opinion only three words describe this: I WANT ONE!

Collaborated Map

Collaborated Map - Group Effort.

This map is the collaborated effort from the group. Combining all of the groups efforts into one single map. By layering the maps together, we have created a super map which is designed to drag everything together to share our ideas in the strategy to find out our main project.

Identifying Key Areas

Today I have created a map displaying the areas of my key thoughts when entering the Stonehouse area. From my initial point of view I have keyed areas from Dangerous/Cautious areas, to the calmer areas where little activity (criminal, social) occur in everyday life.

My initial plot is similar to the older maps that I have created using spray paint ideas to identify quality of buildings and street areas. However in this map I have targetted social/political change and this mainly helps identify which areas are more 'dangerous' to be in as others will not be so bad in terms to social climate and crime rates.

Key in more detail:

Naval = Blue - Peaceful, not so much social climate, richer area and contains the Social club.
Cremyll Street, Durnford Street, Strand St. etc = Green - Cautious, has a mixture of upper and working class.
Union Street and surrounding areas = Red - Dangerous, especially at night. Lower classes, higher crime rates.

I am currently planning on creating a crime level map which can identify key areas of the whole of Stonehouse which has the highest and lowest crime levels.

Stonehouse Visit Part 2

Now the group have visited Stonehouse, we have been able to come up with many ideas concerning the improvement of Stonehouse, Plymouth, United Kingdom. Meanwhile I have been identifying areas of Stonehouse using maps to establish contrasts between rich and poor areas (residential and council homes), identifying transportation routes and finding areas of businesses and facilities. All of these clash and combine, making Stonehouse as we see it today. I decided to draw the map of Stonehouse to easily pinpoint the exact areas the group visited and took data from. I then started to look at Google Earth and Google Maps (even a local map) to basically track where the group has been and to decide if streets had residential or council flats; or if other streets had more businesses or green spaces etc. Using a colour key was useful in helping identifying each area for others to observe.

(Postcard Logo Idea's will be uploaded in a minute!)

Stonehouse

I'm a Devon local, I live in Ivybridge and travel to Plymouth alot for University and for the shopping areas but I've never truly seen what Stonehouse is like. I know quite a bit of history about this area during the 1800's and 1900's (mainly the war years) but recently I have lost touch with this area of Plymouth and it's barely heard of by word of mouth and through the local media. I hear the odd update once in a while but its normally about crime in the area which has increased since Council flats and housing has been put in place. The fact that Military usage in the area is basically non-existant anymore due to the de-establishment of the Dockyard and the movement of the Navy which is now in Portsmouth. However, the local barracks for the Army and Naval personnel still exists and has been standing for hundreds of years.

Location

Above is a Google Map of the central area of Plymouth. I have edited it to display the general area of Stonehouse. My first impression of this area is that it is a fairly large part of Plymouth. Mainly consisting of housing for the working class and some council housing and flats for ones who are struggling. The infamous street: Union Street is also within this area which is known not only for its night life, but for the troubles it has caused over the years with crime and class struggles which happen everyday. From another impression I have found that the Southern parts of Stonehouse seem to be more tidy on the map than whats happening in the north.. This could identify that the richer population of Stonehouse is protected in their own secluded area from the outside, as the middle and lower classes are surrounding them with not 'protection' (walls, fences).

Another thing I have noticed is that the area has two sides which are surrounded by the sea which is ideal for access for shipping and transport. There is a marina to the west of Stonehouse which looks very busy, meaning that local people enjoy boating during the summer seasons and fishing maybe population off the British coast.

Next week the group will be visiting Stonehouse to find out what the area is like. We will be collecting data such as Photographs to help establish the ideas we need to help create a concept of what Stonehouse should be like in the Future.