LANDMARK-BASED LOCATION OF USERS

Humans identify location and directions based on visual cues, such as landmarks, rather than a precise coordinate grid. A database of landmarks can be used to determine the location of a user who can merely describe their location in the same manner they would to any human contact. The location of the user can be determined based on the landmarks described in the input, and the areas from which all of those landmarks are visible. Various databases can be used, including text-based and three-dimensional. Similarly, various mechanisms can be used to determine the user's location, including hierarchical approaches, query optimization approaches, and visibility percentage approaches. Ultimately, the user's location can be determined without the need for expensive, dedicated infrastructure, without compromising the user's security, and without subjecting the user to system outages.