🚀 go-pugleaf

I posted an article criticizing Shen's Natural Area Code proposal.
He followed up on my article and commented on other articles.

All of his arguments take leaps at some point or another in order to
justify the use of his NAC codes.  His conclusions to not follow from his
premises, in nearly every case.  I do not have time to dispute every one,
but I have pulled out two here.

SHEN> A mathematic coordinate system is the most efficient way to express a
point and to search the point on a surface, that has been promoting all the
development of whole modern science and technology.  Don't argue!  It has
been the proved fact.

ME> On a SURFACE, o.k., but the proof does not apply to a PLANET.
Shen claims that his system is low cost, but then goes on to explain that
it really needs this extensive computer database at every sorting station
that knows all about the surrounding terrain, etc:

SHEN> A computer sorting machine should include lots of information, such as
the local geographical information, road and street distribution, and post
offices locations, etc, which will determine the optimized transport and
delivery route.  For sorting international mails, a sortng program will take
into account all the information about the countries borders, main airports,
airlines, and some post agreements between countries, etc;

ME> This is a lot of information to maintain and use.  Other systems could
be developed that do not depend on augmentation by detailed information to
get the mail delivered AND to route emergency vehicles, etc.

What would a NAC map really look like?  Why would a single scale map not be
completely covered with NAC codes?  In order to be useful without the common
address, a map would need to have every NAC code for every 50x25 m parcel.

Without all digits of the code (8 for every parcel) I could only get to the
general area.  Then I would need either another scale map to get to the
actual house unless there are NAC signs posted virtually every where and I
had some sense of how to navigate NAC signs!

You couldn't locate places in the west hills of my city unless you had
complete resolution down to each house because of the way streets go through
or do not go through.  As explained above, I don't think that it is
practical to print such detailed maps to support the use of NAC.

Such a set of maps for my own city would be quite thick, and would have more
information than practically needed in order to explicitly locate every
single home or business.  I don't think I should need a satellite or a
portable computer tapped into a data base somewhere in order to locate an
address via NAC code.

Further, houses, buildings and roads are not built on exact NAC points. I
can't see this working for the various size parcels and the overlap
situations that might come up.  Who gets what NAC Code!!?!?!

Shen seems to think that NAC codes will help locate folks in need of rescue
in the rural areas.  Unlikely.  Let's say that I am out in the country and
just went off the road.  I have a cell phone with me.  What do I do?  Walk
to the nearest NAC sign and call it in?  If we have NAC signs every 25 or 50
meters -- no problem.. or is it?  Do I not understand where people would
come up with NAC codes out of thin air.

This proposal looks as if it were produced by a second-year computer science
student who has learned about compression and quadrature.  Just because
Latitude and Longitude can be compressed into 8 or so digits does not mean
that we must try to use them to locate places on a fractal like surface --
too much overhead in translating from code to the terrain.  Other naming
systems can deal with the real nature of the earth -- millions of wonderful
nooks and crannies, homes down dead-end lanes, places in the country.  NAC
codes are a technical nightmare, and they have no chance of being used for
the purposes stated.  It sounds useful but it really isn't.

John
-- 
"What's ahead?"