When I was a kid, our family used to travel a lot. I grew up in central Europe and over the years, we visited most of continental Europe. This was in the early ’90s. Usually, Mom would have a map on her lap and she would tell Dad where to go. To keep me and my little brother entertained, they gave us another map and we would follow along.

We had fun trying to pronounce funny city names and calculating distances that we had travelled that day. Mostly, we had fun travelling in the car. Sometimes, we would get lost though and tension in the car would rise. My brother and I were always trying to help get us unlost. I remember thinking that it would be so cool to have a tiny little car on the map to show you where you were so you’d always know where you were going.

Now, some fifteen years later, GPS units are very common. A dream come true?