Facebook, we need an app

[+ICHTHYS]

We need a Facebook app. We need an app that will show our stat box on our page. But even better it will add stories to our news feed that we have found a cache. It could be ICHTHYS went Geocaching on 12/21/08 and found X cache, or ICHTHYS went Geocaching on 12/21/08 and found 12 caches.

 

This would be real cool.

[+intolerable]

You can use coord.info to post to Twitter which in turn can set your status on Facebook. Not to discourage anyone from writing a Facebook/gc app, just thought worth mentioning

[+JPatton]

There's already an app to show your stats.

 

http://apps.facebook.com/geocachestats/

[+ICHTHYS]

There's already an app to show your stats.

 

http://apps.facebook.com/geocachestats/

 

I have that app, it works good. But I want something that also writes stories to your news feed that tells of your caching finds.

[Skippermark]

I use the http://coord.info/ & Twitter thing, which sort of does that. You can show what cache you're going to, what one you just found and then mark them as field notes for easy logging when you get home.

 

I think Jeremy said Groundspeak plans to add more social networking things in the future.

 

I'd like to see some kind of an implementation that's a cross between coord.info and Brightkite where you mark a cache found and then it shows it somehow on Brightkite/Facebook with the map & all.

[+intolerable]

I'd like to see some kind of an implementation that's a cross between coord.info and Brightkite where you mark a cache found and then it shows it somehow on Brightkite/Facebook with the map & all.

 

Something with coord.info and Brightkite would be excellent, especially if coord.info could hand off the proper coordinates to Brightkite. That would be way cooler than sending coord.info info to Twitter.

[+CacheOCD]

You can use coord.info to post to Twitter which in turn can set your status on Facebook. Not to discourage anyone from writing a Facebook/gc app, just thought worth mentioning

 

Sweet! Thanks for sharing this. Now I just need to do my first find

[Skippermark]

Something with coord.info and Brightkite would be excellent, especially if coord.info could hand off the proper coordinates to Brightkite. That would be way cooler than sending coord.info info to Twitter.

Yes, that would be great.

 

Maybe GEOC @GC1234, which would then mark the cache found in the field notes and then forward the info to BK, which would get back to FB. Ideally, if the FB app could show a map of the caches you found that day, kind of with little pins like the cities you've visited app does. Users could set how long it keeps the history, something like that.

 

I'm not a programmer and don't know if this could be done since it would be sending info to and from 3 or 4 different services.

[+intolerable]

Something with coord.info and Brightkite would be excellent, especially if coord.info could hand off the proper coordinates to Brightkite. That would be way cooler than sending coord.info info to Twitter.

Yes, that would be great.

 

Maybe GEOC @GC1234, which would then mark the cache found in the field notes and then forward the info to BK, which would get back to FB. Ideally, if the FB app could show a map of the caches you found that day, kind of with little pins like the cities you've visited app does. Users could set how long it keeps the history, something like that.

 

I'm not a programmer and don't know if this could be done since it would be sending info to and from 3 or 4 different services.

 

I think that for it to work with Brightkite, Groundspeak would have to set it up, like they have for Twitter and fire eagle.

 

Another thing they (Groundspeak) could do is make an RSS feed for our http://www.geocaching.com/my/logs.aspx?s=1 (Caches logged page) pages. If there was a feed for this page, one could simply set up Facebook to import that feed.

[+Prime Suspect]

Another thing they (Groundspeak) could do is make an RSS feed for our http://www.geocaching.com/my/logs.aspx?s=1 (Caches logged page) pages. If there was a feed for this page, one could simply set up Facebook to import that feed.

RSS is designed for one-to-many distribution. Not the right tool for this job, since what you're asking for is basically one-to-one distribution.

[+intolerable]

Another thing they (Groundspeak) could do is make an RSS feed for our http://www.geocaching.com/my/logs.aspx?s=1 (Caches logged page) pages. If there was a feed for this page, one could simply set up Facebook to import that feed.

RSS is designed for one-to-many distribution. Not the right tool for this job, since what you're asking for is basically one-to-one distribution.

 

I see what you're saying, although you could use that same RSS feed to distribute that information to countless other places (blogs, social networks, follow friends, screensavers and other mashups, etc). Could be interesting.

[+briansnat]

oops duplicate post

Edited December 24, 2008 by briansnat

[Skippermark]

I see what you're saying, although you could use that same RSS feed to distribute that information to countless other places (blogs, social networks, follow friends, screensavers and other mashups, etc). Could be interesting.

A lot of people only use Twitter & Brightkite to update their FB status, so if an app could be made for FB directly, that would be cool.

 

It could be a map that users put on their profile page, something the size of the geocoin app. The map could be use Google Maps with little icons showing the caches they found. If someone clicks one of the icons, they would be taken to the cache listing on GC.com. If they hover over it, it could show a little about the cache, maybe the name & it's ratings. There would need to be some settings to limit how much is displayed on the map because you wouldn't want a years worth of caches showing.

 

I like the idea of the RSS feeds, but FB is more graphical than "texty," so I'm not sure if it would be viewed much.

[+intolerable]

I see what you're saying, although you could use that same RSS feed to distribute that information to countless other places (blogs, social networks, follow friends, screensavers and other mashups, etc). Could be interesting.

A lot of people only use Twitter & Brightkite to update their FB status, so if an app could be made for FB directly, that would be cool.

 

It could be a map that users put on their profile page, something the size of the geocoin app. The map could be use Google Maps with little icons showing the caches they found. If someone clicks one of the icons, they would be taken to the cache listing on GC.com. If they hover over it, it could show a little about the cache, maybe the name & it's ratings. There would need to be some settings to limit how much is displayed on the map because you wouldn't want a years worth of caches showing.

 

I like the idea of the RSS feeds, but FB is more graphical than "texty," so I'm not sure if it would be viewed much.

 

Totally agree :-) I just thought of RSS as another possibility. It would be much cooler if there was something specific for Facebook or Brightkite (or both!).

 

I just want all the data available in countless formats (with zero consideration to server resources, of course )

[Skippermark]

Facebook just released their "Facebook Connect" feature which allows websites to share info directly with FB. The possibilities are vast. It could be setup so that when someone logs a find (or logs a field note) on GC, it updates their status on FB. Or, if someone posts a picture to a cache page on GC, it could add a note to their news feed on FB, saying, "Fred just added a picture titled 'Look at that veiw!' to Geocaching.com" and include a link to the picture.

Edited January 2, 2009 by Skippermark

[+Team Outlander]

Facebook just released their "Facebook Connect" feature which allows websites to share info directly with FB. The possibilities are vast. It could be setup so that when someone logs a find (or logs a field note) on GC, it updates their status on FB. Or, if someone posts a picture to a cache page on GC, it could add a note to their news feed on FB, saying, "Fred just added a picture titled 'Look at that veiw!' to Geocaching.com" and include a link to the picture.

 

Netflix just added facebook connect and it works great. I would love to see geocaching.com add this so finds can be published into the "stream"

[smokinwill]

There's already an app to show your stats.

 

http://apps.facebook.com/geocachestats/

 

Thanks for the link

[+mtn-man]

Netflix just added facebook connect and it works great. I would love to see geocaching.com add this so finds can be published into the "stream"

As I said in a similar topic down at the bottom of this same page...

 

Also, if feeds are enabled on this page then a Facebook app could be designed to post updates any time you log a find. Perhaps this app could include settings on whether to include DNFs, Notes, TBs, Benchmarks, or changes to your watchlist or Friends list.

One of my friends on Facebook was on a cache run one weekend recently. They were logging every cache they found via Twitter, so every little micro they found was being posted. Over and over and over. And over. Every ten minutes or so. It got old very quickly and blocked everyone else. I am now blocking their feed. They are still on my friends list, but if I want to see what they are doing, then I will go to their profile instead of having them plug up my News Feed page. Now I can see what everyone else is doing again. I think this would be a bad idea overall. I don't need to see every cache you find immediately. If I want to know, I will go to your profile page here and look at your finds.

[+ICHTHYS]

I don't want to see something that shows every cache that is found. I would like to see something that every 24 hrs puts a post up that says X user found x number of caches today. No finds then no post.

[+Maingray]

I don't want to see something that shows every cache that is found. I would like to see something that every 24 hrs puts a post up that says X user found x number of caches today. No finds then no post.

 

Agreed. A daily "digest" of stats. Found XX yesterday. XX Virtuals, YY traditionals. Average diff: X Av. terrain: X etc/

[+mtn-man]

I don't know about that either really. A query that hits the database daily automatically?

[+nittany dave]

I don't know what effect this would have on the servers. Obviously it would depend in part on how many people installed an app like this to facebook. I'm not against it but if it has any effect, make it count as one of the daily PQs since it is similar to a PQ with strict parameters.

[+mantis7]

I want something that also writes stories to your news feed that tells of your caching finds.

 

This is _exactly_ what I want. An app that shows what finds you made, and also when someone finds your caches....

 

If it could be configurable to maybe check every x amount of time, like once per day at a time you could choose...Or something like that....ANd if you haven't found anything or if no one has found your caches, then it wouldn't post any thing...

 

Also if it could check for notes/added photos that would be really cool.

 

I think the added traffic to the servers from facebook would pay for itself with new members to the website easily...It would be like free advertising...(edit: because a TON of new people are going to be exposed to Geocaching, and with GPSr's being embedded in so many devices....this just seems like a WIN idea)

 

I hope someone makes this soon, I am very, very excited about it.

Edited March 29, 2009 by mantis7

[+RakeInTheCache]

I don't know what effect this would have on the servers. Obviously it would depend in part on how many people installed an app like this to facebook. I'm not against it but if it has any effect, make it count as one of the daily PQs since it is similar to a PQ with strict parameters.

 

Yes I also think this would be a great new feature.

[+coreynjoey]

Hopefully this will me making it's way to the states! live.geocaching.com Check out the Watch Geocaching Live section at the bottom right. Zoom the map out to Germany ;-)