[whatwg] geolocation constraints Re: Proposal for a web application descriptor

[Karl Dubost]

Le 4 mai 2011 à 23:13, Charles McCathieNevile a écrit :
> given something as simple as twitter's geolocation request I *sometimes* allow it to know where I am and sometimes don't.

Geolocation is something really interesting in terms of UI, technology and social impacts. We can deal with many levels of opacity [1]. I'm reacting to the "as simple as twitter's geolocation request"

# Full Privacy aware geolocation systems (only you know)

* paper map, 
* downloaded digital map (ex: OffMaps based on Openstreetmap)
* street signs, 
* GPS (the device computes your position from the satellite signals)
* etc.

# Systems with disclosure, broadcasting (someone else know)

* asking someone
* cell towers
* IP
* address form

There are needs, in some circumstances, to

* give a different location than the real ones
* give an area more than a point (I'm in this city or in this square, not necessary centered)
* not give any locations at all
* record geolocation but disclose it later (I was in this area 2 days ago)


One of the biggest issues I have with online geolocation providers is that your "online signature" (cookies, Fingerprint, IP) helps to collapse the geolocation information of different information contexts with little control on that. To be clearer, imagine the following:

	For this site, I authorize the geolocation with this provider
	but when accessing this other site, I want to use a different
	provider, and this other I want to use a local provider that 
	I created myself by collecting wifi references. 

(sorry for the slightly out of topic, but I find it less simpler than my old paper maps currently ;) )




-- 
Karl Dubost - http://dev.opera.com/
Developer Relations & Tools, Opera Software