Stop me if this sounds familiar. You’re meeting friends for a Memorial Day beach bash, but then you call them and this happens:
“Where are you?"
“We’re on the beach."
“Yes, I know you’re ‘on the beach.’ That’s because we’re meeting at the beach. We just pulled up and are in the parking lot. Where are you?"
“Ummm…to the left of the life guard stand?"
“Which one? There’s four of them."
“The yellow one? I’m waving."
“I don’t see you. You’re to the left?"
“Ohhh, wait, not your left. My left."
“I still don’t see you."
“Well I guess I’m more to the right of the red life guard stand, really."
Sigh.
Let’s try that again using some different tech.
“Hey, I’m here."
“I’m on the beach already. I’m right here."
“Thanks! I’m heading your way now."
How does Magic Scenario #2 happen? That’s how easy it is to meet up when you share locations with Messages for iOS.
Temporary Location Sharing was introduced in iOS with Find my Friends. It never really took off, though, because Find my Friends itself has always carried a bit of a creepy stalker vibe. The feature disappeared, only to resurface in Messages in iOS 8. But it still hasn’t gained a lot of traction; mostly because no one knows it’s there!
In any Messages chat, click Details to get started. Then select if you want to share your location for an hour (handy for the aforementioned beach scenario), for the rest of the day (like when you’re hanging out at a theme park with your friends), or indefinitely (I’d recommend using this only for close family). You can also send your current location.
When you send or share your location, whoever is in that Messages session with you will see a Map with a GPS dot. They can tap through to get directions to your current location. If you’ve only sent your location, you’ll need to stay put, since that GPS dot will not update like it will with the location sharing options.
After you’ve shared your location, when you click Details again, you’ll see how much longer is left in the share. You can cancel it at any time by clicking Stop Sharing My Location. Remember, only share your location with people that you trust.
So spend less time asking your friends "Where are you?" this holiday weekend and more time chilling out. Happy Memorial Day!
