Welcome to #Ottawa, @Foursquare!
Hey, #Ottawa! Remember at first when we all thought , “I don’t get this Twitter thing”? Well here’s your chance to get that old feeling back.
Foursquare has recently expanded to 50 new cities, including our own. It’s being touted as next year’s Twitter, so now is your chance to be an early adopter. It’s also your chance to get a head start on being the mayor of as many spots as possible.
What is Foursquare?
Foursquare (http://foursquare.com/) is a location-based social media site, a game and a travel guide all in one. You “check in” to a location from a list of nearby places from your mobile device or browser. The person who has checked into a location the most times becomes its “mayor”, and can be ousted as often as someone overtakes their visits. You can also leave shouts, tips and things to do for future visitors, and create “to do” lists for places you’d like to check out in the future. You can earn points and badges when you achieve certain goals, much like in Brownies or Scouts (for example, I earned the “newbie” badge when I checked in for the first time, and “crunked” once I had been to four places in one night). If a location doesn’t already exist, you can create it. Your Foursquare account can also be linked to your Twitter and Facebook accounts to let everyone know when you have checked in, become mayor, or unlocked a badge (don’t worry, these settings are customizable so that you don’t end up spamming everyone).
Stalker’s paradise?
Having grown up in the digital age, aware of the dangers that can be lurking, my second thought after “Neat-o!” was “Gee, that’s kind of creepy.” A newcomer to Foursquare myself, I still have a lot to explore, but I have thrown together a few tips to help you out:
1. You probably shouldn’t update your location if you are alone in a secluded area.
2. Make your icon a picture of you surrounded by a mass of big, burly men and amazonian women… and dogs with really sharp teeth and foaming mouths. Or just choose a non-identifying image.
3. It’s probably not a good idea to add your home address to the list of locations and proceed to “check in” every time you get home.
4. Fake left, then go right. Foursquare allows you to update your location from wherever you are (for now).
5. Update on your way out. If someone is following you, they wouldn’t have enough time to get there and accidentally “bump” into you.
6. You can check in to places with the option of hiding your whereabouts, so it will still count towards your badges and points. Remember – your cyberstalkers are only as good as the information you put out there for them.
The curse of the early adopter
Remember, Foursquare is still new in the area, and much like Twitter, it is only as fun as the friends you surround yourself with. Aren’t you glad you stuck with Twitter past that awkward phase? The more acquaintances you have participating, the more fulfilling it is for all of you. It is also a great opportunity to meet new like-minded individuals who enjoy the same things as you. I strongly suggest that you be patient as Ottawa works out its kinks and builds up its community. So tell all your friends about it, tweet about it, blog about it, and let’s start having fun. As with “real” life, the more you put into your community, the more you will get out of it.
Tags: clumsyhalfninja, social media, Tech
