Tutorials/Measuring Distance
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[edit] Official Units of Measure
Distances in Minecraft are quite easy to measure. Officially[1], Minecraft uses the metric system, and each block is considered to be 1 cubic meter. To measure long distances, then, simply place a torch or other marker object every ten blocks. Place a second marker at each tenth marker to mark 100 m distances, and at ten of these, you have one kilometer. Try placing a sign at each km, just like road signs in the real world.
[edit] Conserving Markers
If the measurement is being taken above ground, and lighting the entire path is not necessary, place the markers as above. When 100 m is reached, the 10 m markers can be removed and reused for the next 100 m run. This allows for the path to be constructed without having to count 100 blocks at a time, while still allowing the markers on the completed path to be easily followed without using too much material.
[edit] GPS
If you press F3, the Debug screen will give you your present location in X-Y-Z co-ordinates. Measuring distances between two locations or waypoints is as easy as subtraction, if you walk in a cardinal direction. Otherwise you will need to make use of the Distance formula (Here) to solve the distance. Not strictly in-game, though.
[edit] Using the Imperial System.
Some may wish to measure distances in Miles instead of Kilometers.
One Mile converts to 1609.344m. To simplify, consider a Mile to be 1610 Blocks long. So for every 10 Blocks, place a marker. Do this 161 times and you will have about a Mile in total.
[edit] Using Yards
Although one block is 1x1x1 meters, you could pretend that a block is 1x1x1 yard instead. One mile is exactly 1760 yards. Place your initial markers every 16 blocks, and your double markers at every 11 markers rather than every 10. Thus, a double marker measures 16 × 11 = 176 yards, or 1⁄10 of a mile.
[edit] Volume and Surface Area
The formula for the volume of a cube is s3, where s stands for the measurement of one of the cube's side. Since each side of a normal Minecraft block is 1 meter, this would equal 13, which would result in 1m3. It is the same for yards as well
The formula for the surface area of a cube is 6s2, where s stands for the measurement of one of the cube's side. Since each side of a normal individual Minecraft block is 1 meter, this would equal 6x12, which would equal 6x1, which would result in 6m2. Yards apply as well.
The volume could be use to determine the size of a cubic area while surface area can be used to determine the area of a cube. This is useful for things such as house size (considering it's a cube), containers, pools, and etc.
