28th June 2012, 12:48 PM
Quote:A lot of modern surveying equipment works out the level of accuracy for you anyway.
But it doesn't explain how to design a survey to avoid compounding these errors.
Quote:Expecting all archaeologists to be expert surveyors is ridiculous
But I think its reasonable to expect people to know that you can set out faster and more accuretely with a total station rather than fannying about with tapes. As long as someone on site knows what they are doing it's OK.
Quote:Bring back theodolites, could use one of them
Total stations are essentially the same, only they measure distances as well and remember things. I've set out with optical squares and surveyed with plane tables, but give me a machine that remembers things any day.