Nowadays, most people consider it a supremely brilliant idea to have a GPS tracking system in their cars and computers, both valuable possessions — at face value and in terms of the functions they serve. Being so universally prized, both tend to be the objects of calamitous hijackings. That’s why when the streets get tough, the folks traversing through them must similarly summoning forth their tenacious and least unflinching natures. Part of that unbridled new stance can involve taking precautionary defensive measures, like the setting up of anti-theft mechanisms for what they don’t want attacked.
Losing long-worked-on files or irreplaceable digital picture files can be a fantastically devastating blow– enough to knock the wind out of anybody who’s more than marginally invested in their work. In the face of such a bleak panorama, is it any wonder that the newest GPS tracking device on the market rather quickly becomes a super hot commodity? Not at all. GPSing a lost car or computer is a heck of a lot simpler than piecing together the dispersed puzzle of physical clues left behind at the scene of the crime. No doubt one must be grateful that it’s not exactly a matter of life or death, but losing sight of either a computer or a car will most certainly be cause for a singeing ache (in the psyche and in the wallet).
Of course, keeping track of valuable objects is only one of the varied uses of GPS technology. Cell phone GPS tracking schemes have been used for such perfunctory objectives like keeping tabs on where teenage children go off to when they’re out of sight and other such exigencies — these famously include gathering up evidence against a spouse during the strange period right before a divorce. And although it’s not greatly advisable to get a cell phone for your pet, for the furrier members of the household one can get a tracking GPS system without a speaking mechanism, camera, or obligatory unlimited texting plan. A GPS on a pet is actually one of the most popular uses for the technology. True world coordinates will always beat the canvassing of any neighborhood with black and white posters titled “Lost Dog.”

Sam Walters is a writer living in Los Angeles. Her writing appears in print and online.