[aprssig] Injecting Traffic Incident Objects (Yes! (and no))

[Robert Bruninga]

On Injecting traffic incidents as APRS objects.

I did this in several iterations over the years.  It can be a good idea.  Or
a TERRIBLE idea depending on how it is done, and depending on local
loading....

> The state of Virginia publishes... traffic incidents.. to be useful as
> APRS objects.
> I have written a rudimentary parser to inject these into APRS.

> 1) the propriety , would this somehow be against the 'vision' of APRS?

Its PERFECT and should be on RF, that is where the APRS mobiles need to see
it.

> 2) has this been tried before and deemed to be a bad idea?

Ive tried it many times over the years and that is why we have a WRECK
symbol

> 3) Would it better to inject APRSIS or RF?  If RF should I consider a
> longer path than WIDE2?

ON RF, but ONLY with a single digi path.  No one wants spam coming in from
out of area and each digi is considered "an area" in APRS.

SO the desired way to do this is to compare the location of each incident
and then to compare it to the local digi in THAT area.  And then ONLY use
the path of that single digi.

If  you are in a metro area and get reports on accidents near digis you
cannot hit, then you need to find a partner in the area to also run your
code over on his side of town.

No one wants out of area spam and it is never a good idea to flood ANYTING
to APRS beyond a single hop.  Not only due to the spam issue, and channel
loading issue, but simply because someone in the same digi area is usually
REACHABLE.  Someone sending spam via two hops is not in the local area and
is harder to reach... to pin his coax or whatever...

Of course the rules here in the mid atlantic, (one of the densest APRS nets
in the world) may be different from the middle of Kansas, so use judgment.

Bob