Great idea for a RAD Studio Beacon App
I was reading an article (from last summer) this morning about how VMware is installing beacons and building apps for use on their Palo Alto corporate campus. This is a great example of the use of beacons and beacon fence to help navigate complex enterprise buildings and corporate/school campuses. I wonder if any RAD Studio developers have built or are thinking about building these types of apps?
Embarcadero has shown several beacon solutions and demos as part of CodeRage, webinars and blog posts. You'll find some of the available resources in the following list.
- http://docwiki.embarcadero.com/RADStudio/Berlin/en/Using_Beacons
- https://www.embarcadero.com/products/beaconfence
- https://community.embarcadero.com/blogs/entry/building-proximity-apps-with-rad-studio
- https://community.embarcadero.com/blogs/entry/developer-skill-sprint-taking-beacons-to-the-next-level
- https://community.embarcadero.com/blogs/entry/beaconfence-and-beacons-tips-from-our-development-team
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRrZubGke8k
- https://community.embarcadero.com/index.php/blogs/entry/what-to-do-with-beacons-before-you-code
- https://community.embarcadero.com/blogs/entry/june-16-rad-server-application-deep-dive-creating-a-complete-department-store-retail-solution
- https://community.embarcadero.com/blogs/entry/beacons-and-delphi-in-amsterdam
The article I am referring to appears in the Tech Republic article, "Can't find a co-worker or a meeting room? At VMware, there's an app for that". The article talks about VMWare installing 2,000 beacons on its 105-acre, 17-building campus in Palo Alto, CA. Sounds cool! Use GPS when you are outside between buildings and then the app can switch to using beacons inside a building.
I think that the world largest independent bookstore is using something like this in it's huge store. It's Powell's in downtown Portland, OR.
Not sure whether they have beacons, but they surely would qualify to use a beacon fence solution to guide the customers through each section, which are currently identified as room colors.