Comment by chrismorgan

> If I ask google maps to plot me a directions from Prague to Brussels it will yield a list of turns that will guide me to my destinations, but by any means I can't claim I've learned topography of Germany in the process.

There are multiple ways you can use such technology, too. If you use Google Maps with its out-of-the-box configuration for turn-by-turn directions, with it oriented in the direction of travel, you won’t learn so much; but if you change it to always display the map north-up, and look at the map it shows you—inferior though it be to good paper maps, in most cases—it’s easier to develop a feel for layouts and geography.