The Importance of Shared Annotations in C2 Systems

With command-and-control systems it is common to have 2 or more people in control of an operation. As soon as there is more than one person in control, communication becomes key to success. Some of the hardest things to communicate are positions and areas. Whether using verbal or written communication methods, it is easy to make mistakes.  

You can attempt to use visible landmarks as reference but that only leads to “just to the right of that barn, no that’s the shed”.  

You can attempt to recite the coordinates out loud but studies show that the average person can only hold 7 digits in working memory. 7 digits of decimal degree only get you 1 km of accuracy; much less than you want for anything precise.  

So, what is our solution? – Shared Annotations!

Shared annotation lets any number of users share important location information between themselves. Point, line, rectangle, circle, and polygons. All of these geometries have customizable outlines and fills, as well as labels and comment sections for text input. But you don’t have to share your creation with everyone right away.

You can create, customize, and edit before choosing to share anything with the team or just keeping them for yourself. Similarly, you don’t have to see everyone else’s shared annotation, you can simply turn off the layer to make sure that your display is cleared of others detritus.

Once shared, these annotations can also be edited by those with appropriate roles to make sure that they are up to date and all the information is correct.  

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