What 3 Words

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

[Neil WyattModerator @neilwyatt]

In principle, a sensible idea, but I worry how many people will share the 'amusing' three words for the location of their home, work or workshop and thereby give anyone, anywhere who wants to track them down their exact location…?

Neil

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

Could be confusing for people living in high rise blocks who would all be in the same grid square.

[David NobleParticipant @davidnoble71990]

I don't understand why, if the app' is sending a three word location, it can't just sent the latitude and longitude.

David

[V8EngParticipant @v8eng]

What is this about please?

[Philip PowellParticipant @philippowell34749]

I think you will find it much easier to relay 3 words for your location than longitude and latitude, it much more accurate too by dividing up the world into 3 metre squares. The emergency services have adopted it as well. Check it out fantastically simple idea.

Phil

[PlasmaParticipant @plasma]

Apparently he tried to get folk interested in grid ref location but it wasnt popular. There are enough words or letters to cover the globe, the letters just represent the map reference.

Good idea and seems useful.

Plasma

[Former MemberParticipant @formermember19781]

[This posting has been removed]

[Brian GParticipant @briang]

Posted by David Noble on 15/08/2019 18:41:45:

I don't understand why, if the app' is sending a three word location, it can't just sent the latitude and longitude.

David

Brevity and reliability.

Think of each word as a number and each 3 metre square of the Earth's surface is represented by a three digit number in base 40000. To achieve the same resolution using latitude and longitude requires many more digits. It is easier, and less error prone to say "nuns, obey, ranked" than "51 degrees, 30 minutes, 7.14 seconds North, 0 degrees. 8 minutes, 25.98 seconds West".

(Evidently less error prone to type too, reading my post before pressing "Add Posting" I realised I had missed a digit.)

Brian

Edit:  Don't worry Neil, I don't have a secret workshop at this location

Edited By Brian G on 15/08/2019 19:37:45

[Michael GilliganParticipant @michaelgilligan61133]

Posted by V8Eng on 15/08/2019 19:13:35:

What is this about please?

?

I wondered that too

**LINK**

https://what3words.com/about-us/

**LINK**

https://what3words.com/privacy/

**LINK**

https://what3words.com/our-story/

Haven't found anything about the business model yet.

MichaelG.

[V8EngParticipant @v8eng]

Thank you 34046 and Michael. Interesting idea might help find parcels delivered to somewhere underneath my garden hedge!

[martin perman 1Participant @martinperman1]

had it on my phone for nearly a year.

Martin P

[JasonBModerator @jasonb]

Do they use words in each specific country's dictionary as for those that cant read and write English spooky.solemn.huggers would simply be a string of letters and if Russian or Chinese for example not even ones in your alphabet?

[Stuart BridgerParticipant @stuartbridger82290]

In my opinion one of the most innovative uses of technology for a long time. Now widely being adopted by the emergency services. It could literally be a lifesaver. Much simpler than an OS grid reference and less error prone than reading out lat/long. Whether your house is difficult to find, (mine doesn't have a number) or you are working in a remote location being able to have a simple 3 word phrase that will precisely locate you is very valuable. It is already widely used in industries such as forestry.

[peak4Participant @peak4]

Posted by JasonB on 15/08/2019 20:41:00:

Do they use words in each specific country's dictionary as for those that cant read and write English spooky.solemn.huggers would simply be a string of letters and if Russian or Chinese for example not even ones in your alphabet?

The answer to your query is HERE ,in part anyway. I can foresee problems using pictographic alphabets for the typed version, in the short term anyway. Did you have any reason for picking Delphi as an example?

It's been around for several years, certainly I used it when we bought the new house in Buxton a little over 3 years ago.

It's actually been adopted nationally by Mongolia, particularly for their mail service.

Bill

Edited By peak4 on 15/08/2019 21:00:10

[Brian GParticipant @briang]

Posted by JasonB on 15/08/2019 20:41:00:

Do they use words in each specific country's dictionary as for those that cant read and write English spooky.solemn.huggers would simply be a string of letters and if Russian or Chinese for example not even ones in your alphabet?

I Just tried changing the language on their website, and the three word address in each example is in the selected language, including simplified Chinese.  https://what3words.com/zh-hans/about-us/

Brian

Edited By Brian G on 15/08/2019 21:06:22

[FatWelshBoyParticipant @fatwelshboy]

I've been using this for a while, simple to use and brilliant for my hobby of Field Target shooting as not many fields in the middle of nowhere have a post code.

[Nigel Graham 2Participant @nigelgraham2]

"… fields in the middle of nowhere…"

I can understand that!

I am in one of the two Yorkshire Dales-based caving-clubs that each run its own annual "Gaping Gill Winch Meet". Gaping Gill is a huge "pot-hole" on the fell, some 2 miles of up-hill walking from the village of Clapham.

Some years ago our insurers wailed that their paper-work wouldn't work without the computer being fed a post-code. Now, surprising as it may seem, Royal Mail had not given the cave such a thing; nor does it deliver post to the flanks of Ingleborough.

The problem was solved by gaining permission to " borrow " a local post-code, I think that of the village shop. It's close enough and after all, to a database it's only 4 letters and 2 digits. It'd probably have worked if they'd typed " AA0 0AA ".

But three words though? I dread to think!

[BazyleParticipant @bazyle]

Have you tried entering the password of a friends wifi into your phone with them peering at the microscopic writing on the bottom of the device mixing up 1 and l and you taping the tiny keyboard? Netgear had the bright idea of making them out of two words, normally a noun and adjective. eg spikey turnip.

Also by using genuine words you can write it down in a semi cryptic fashion with more security. eg ." I was able to pick up the spikey hedgehog by attaching it to a turnip."

[blowlampParticipant @blowlamp]

Where am I…

…The Tea Room.

[John HaineParticipant @johnhaine32865]

I heard that someone was rescued who was trapped in their car after going off the road. Spoke to the rescue services, they talked her through installing the app, she got her location, they found her. Several courier services use it, my brother has his location as a discreet signboard on his garage.

[Speedy Builder5Participant @speedybuilder5]

It would not help a visitor in a different country, perhaps someone on holiday. If you were French, you can't pronounce "th" or 'w' easily, and even 'g' and 'j' get swapped about. For instance the bird name jay is pronounced "gee" (with a soft 'g&#39, zinc is pronounced 'zang'. I would not like to give my position somewhere in China, Russia or the like using that countries language.

[John MCParticipant @johnmc39344]

Recently I had first hand experience of the app working. Out mountain biking we came across a group of walkers, one of them in very obvious distress. Fortunately they had the app on a phone and luckily the local emergency services had just started using it. The emergency services were able to get to the location quickly. These walkers were not local so, would by their own admission would struggle to give an accurate location. Us MTBers being local may also have struggled using local rather than the "official" names for the area and features that the services need.

Needless to say I've installed the app!

John

[peak4Participant @peak4]

I've been wondering what prompted this thread, since it seemingly randomly appeared on The Olympus UK photographic forum at the same time.

Someone I know also messaged me on facebook, remembering I's mentioned it to them several years ago.

It seems there's been a recent news story; Here's a link to the one from the BBC

Voice activation aside, both the app and the website are able to use several languages.

MyTimeMedia's car park entrance would be hungry.else.lucky https://what3words.com/hungry.else.lucky

Selecting a different "what3word address language" as opposed to "Site Language" on the desktop app would allow you to direct your Chinese friend to here; you'll have to cut and paste the following hyperlink yourself as this forum's software doesn't seem to allow embedded Chinese characters in web links

https://what3words.com/锦囊.抽动.摘要

Bill

[Stuart BridgerParticipant @stuartbridger82290]

There has been a lot of publicity recently, several UK fire services have announced support as well as articles on the BBC website

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