Shareloc's blog - Navizon's community weblog

Why is Navizon P2P?

Well, that's a great question and I can only thank myself for asking it.
The Peer to Peer nature of Navizon is more an analogy than anything else. Take the file sharing networks like Kazaa, eDonkey or Bittorrent. It only takes one person to buy a CD and make it available on the network for everyone else to be able to listen to it.

With Navizon it's pretty similar only that it's with GPS: it only takes one person to map a city with a GPS for everyone else to benefit from a free software-only positioning system without having to buy a GPS. And it's 100% legal.

So is it really P2P? Well not exactly... If you're a purist you might want to call Navizon a peer produced and collaborative positioning system. But we just thought P2P was easier...

Navizon runs on Windows Mobile devices and can be downloaded for free here.

Better understanding Navizon: the "Home area"

Once you create an account on Navizon, you are automatically assigned a home area (the area defined in the green rectangle when you click on "My user area" in the user's administration panel). This area could be the one you need or we may be slightly off. In that case, you can set your "Home area" yourself. Just define a rectangle corresponding to you area by clicking on the map and then hit "Save as my area".

Q. So what is it?

A. The "home area" is the area where Navizon will download data when you hit sync on the Navizon client. So for instance, let's say I'm in London, I define London as being my area and if there is data previously uploaded by other users, it will be downloaded on your PDA. That way, if you don't have a GPS, Navizon can offer you to find your way in the city (and use all the cool features).

Q. Can I make my area bigger? And if yes how?

A. Yes you can. In order to make your home area bigger you will need to contribute data by using Navizon with a GPS while you navigate your neighborhood. The more data you contribute, the bigger your home area can be.

Q. What if I travel and want to collect data in another city? Do I have to set my "Home area" again.

A. No, the home area is used only for the data that is downloaded on your PDA. For the data that you upload (i.e. the one collected while wardriving with Navizon) it can be from all over the world, it doesn't matter.

That's it for the home area.

Bon voyage with Navizon!