Filed under: iPhone, App Store, iPod touch, App Review
Pocket Sherpa for iPhone has promise
PocketSherpa [itunes link] is an interesting idea for a travel app, but it should be used with caution.When you download the free app, you'll be asked to sign up with an email address and a password. When that is done you can click on any place in the world, and have a good chance of getting a contact there you can ask questions of and get some really good local advice. I tried some out of the way places (at least for me) and found lots of people offering good information. In Bristol, U.K. for example, there were 24 people offering advice and 20 people offering to show me around.
There were contacts in Newfoundland, and in the Sudan. The developers claim 25,000 travel guides, and 30,000 experts at more than 7,000 destinations.
There is also a list of newspapers, so you can read the local news before you go, but the list is not extensive and has a North American bias.
The app supports a public Q&A list for many of the locations, so you can get a feel for where you are going without initiating the messaging function.
I'm also worried about the security of the searchers and the local guides. While you can keep your communications to just email, many of the experts are offering goods and services like driving you around. There is no way for those people to be vetted, and by the same token an unscrupulous user could do harm to one of the experts.
PocketSherpa is a really good idea, but I think there are some red flags about the creators being a broker for physical people-to-people encounters.
It's free, so take a look at it and see if it fulfills your needs, but also see if you agree that you would need to be really cautious with direct physical contact.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
phy said 7:26PM on 10-06-2009
...and if you want to remember some hiking or trekking or nice trip in your holiday, go with EasyTrails GPS! There is also a Lite (free) version!
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alansky said 7:58PM on 10-06-2009
The face-to-face part does sound like an invitation to disaster. Scary, actually. For some people, there could be a totally unfounded tendency to trust the other person because of the remote contact. Can you spell "sheep ready for shearing"?
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kiltbear64 said 8:50PM on 10-06-2009
Heh, and I was going in the opposite direction: how is this any different than any other face to face meeting.
I guess the big thing is that the person offering the service doesn't have to invest in any bricks & mortar, so that self selection is gone.
Jordan said 9:24PM on 10-06-2009
how is this any different than any other face to face meeting?
For one thing, the visitor to the region is clearly at a disadvantage, since his unfamiliarity with the place is a given. The app almost creates a queue of marks for the enterprising scam artist.
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milkmage said 10:28PM on 10-06-2009
TUAW - can you please block huangzhixian52?
or are shopping tours a feature of Pocket Sherpa?
back on topic -
"I'm also worried about the security of the searchers and the local guides. While you can keep your communications to just email, many of the experts are offering goods and services like driving you around. There is no way for those people to be vetted, and by the same token an unscrupulous user could do harm to one of the experts. "
at some point you need to meet these people face to face. you feel sketched out, you walk away.. this is from their FAQ:
Is using Localyte.com safe?
You can use Localyte.com to connect with local people and get their advice without meeting them in person.
The great majority of people in the world have good intentions. However, travelers and tourists can be targets of crime or scams. If you do wish to meet a Localyte or use a service they may offer, Localyte.com provides several ways to better know who you are meeting:
You can read what the Localyte writes about themselves, their home location, and their services
You can easily see the answers they've provided to other Traveler's questions
You can read reviews from other Travelers, and contact travelers who have worked with the Localyte before
You can talk directly with the Localyte
After a Localyte helps you, we hope you will write a short honest review to help future Travelers.
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IQ said 2:18AM on 10-07-2009
Agreed. My first though when I read "There is no way for those people to be vetted, and by the same token an unscrupulous user could do harm to one of the experts." was WELCOME TO THE REAL WORLD. When you're out traveling tyou have to take into account that people might try to get to your money somehow or another - wether your using some localyte-like service or not does not change that! And if you're afraid to deal with anyone that's not vetted on beforehand, you should probably stay at home.