After finishing the post on augmented reality today, I realized that my webcam could use an upgrade but didn't know where to get one in downtown Boston. You'd expect Google Maps to know such stuff (I did, and tried "where can i buy webcam"), because it knows about other things like sushi restaurants, but it really doesn't. The closest thing was an OfficeMax ad, but Google itself gave me a listing for a Sheraton for some reason.
Yet, Google already "knows":
- my default location (it's the only part it got right).
- that Best Buy, for example, is an electronics store with an address nearby.
- that Best Buy sells webcams.
Room for improvement, I guess.
As for the camera, I did get one. When I saw the OfficeMax ad, I remembered there was one just up the street (score one for AdSense, I thought). I went there, and it actually turned out to be a Staples.
Is it partly up to the people who sell webcams to tag their business with the things they sell? For best Buy, this isn't practical, but for local guy, Joe's Webcam Emporium, it's critical because more people will begin searching for actual locations.
ReplyDeleteInteresting. How do you tag your business?
ReplyDelete