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Comment by rhizome | Hacker News Reader

Paper processes are usually terrible, but you're never going to have to battle wi-fi connectivity...

I noticed this point made in the article as well. Are cellular tablets simply out of the question?

The company I work with gives everyone a verizon cell hotspot and an android tablet. These work fine in city areas where this company does a lot of utility work.

But, when you do an install of electric wire towers on a mountain, you might not have cell connectivity. Most apps get by this by saving data locally, and then transmitting on the next connection.

Well of course remote work is going to have its own challenges, but I don't get the feeling that that's what's going on here. So, besides corner cases, is there any reason not to consider cellular tablets in the construction world?

I guess my point is that there are some crews where all their work is remote and subject to spotty cell service. It all depends on the kind of work the company is doing. So, for some companies, it's not a corner case at all, it's a factor in the primary use case.

Job sites, especially those in the throes of major structural construction, are a horrible place if you are seeking consistent wifi or cellular coverage.

Generally: The thick concrete walls, exposed rebar, and intentional and unintentional geometric structural elements combine to form a giant Faraday-esque electromagnetic exclusion zone. Even with wifi repeaters on each floor you aren't assured a connection.

I worked for LATISTA as a product designer and spent a significant amount of time on-site speaking with users about this exact problem. It's getting better, especially with the larger construction management / development firms, but it's not a solved problem (unless your firm spends a significant amount on portable IT infrastructure).

Thank you.

These aren't corner cases. It's everyday experience of any field worker. Basements, shielded building, unreliable cellular, remote locations, etc...

s/wifi/cellular/

Doesn't change much.

Are you saying that cellular and wifi networks are equal in reliability, range, and ease of administration? That's the criteria I'm using.

They don't have to be "equal" in any sense. All that matters is whether they meet some (probably ill-defined) threshold of reliability. In at least some circumstances, neither does, even if cellular gets closer.

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