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Do some categories need to be upgraded?


T0SHEA

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Do some categories need to be upgraded?

 

Or does it matter?

 

Some waymarkers are ALL ABOUT THE NUMBERS.

The less that is required the better: No effort required, just fill in the blanks.

 

Some waymarkers are ALL ABOUT QUALITY.

This requires time, effort and research and in some cases presentation.

 

Some do both, or maybe most...

 

The majority of the categories do require some information in the long description, others do not.

 

Should category requirements be upgraded, to include at least a few sentences in the long description?

 

Please keep your comments to a general nature, this thread is not intended to cite particular categories.

Edited by BK-Hunters
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I think all categories which require or relate to a plaque or sign must also (at minimum) include the full text of that plaque or sign (generally speaking). I've seen a number of waymarks where the long description was nothing more than a clear photo of the sign or plaque - no text at all. There's excellent free online software for optical character recognition [1], so getting the text is usually a simple thing to do. That way it is available for web searches and those with disabilities.

 

[1] - I use http://www.onlineocr.net/ and output as a text file. Sometimes I need to make a few corrections and sometimes it largely fails; it really depends on the photo and how much noise there is around the characters. But overall it works well and saves me a lot of typing.

Edited by Bon Echo
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Bon Echo, good point about the text on plaques/signs be included in the long description.

 

We use the same OCR you suggested. If anyone needs assistance in its use, post your request here.

 

Are there other specific areas that may need upgrading?

Edited by BK-Hunters
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I appreciate when folks post not only links to more info, but reproduce that info in the LD. There are lots of links that break over time, and the information relevant to the WM is nice to have. This is my practice, unless I run out of space!

 

Also I like writing about the history and significance of waymarks, when there is some, of course. Not every fast food place needs historical info, unless that history is significant and interesting (first, site of an innovation or well-known event, owned by a famous person, etc).

 

I guess the LDs are often as unique as the waymarkers themselves. I like writing and history, so I gravitate to categories where I can write and do history. :)

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I think all categories which require or relate to a plaque or sign must also (at minimum) include the full text of that plaque or sign (generally speaking). I've seen a number of waymarks where the long description was nothing more than a clear photo of the sign or plaque - no text at all. There's excellent free online software for optical character recognition [1], so getting the text is usually a simple thing to do. That way it is available for web searches and those with disabilities.

 

[1] - I use http://www.onlineocr.net/ and output as a text file. Sometimes I need to make a few corrections and sometimes it largely fails; it really depends on the photo and how much noise there is around the characters. But overall it works well and saves me a lot of typing.

 

Can I just say THANK YOU FOR THIS!!! OMG I had no idea such a thing existed!

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To include sign texts in the description can be an advantage. Some are a great source of information, but others are not as great. It is certainly not wrong to have the text as written text, but I think it is better to leave this decision to the poster.

 

But back to the original question. A waymark with no long description at all is just so lame. I cannot think of any excuse for that. I know that certain categories allow that, and I even happened to end up as an officer in some of them, but I still can't stand it. A waymark without a real description is not really a waymark at all.

 

I do know, that sometimes there is little to no information available. Then you can still describe the location and the environment. This gives you two or three lines and that is enough. I do not expect much, not everyone has the time and the abilities to create such great submissions as BK-Hunters or Math Teacher, just to name two of many. But I want to see at least a couple of lines. They don't even have to be yours, I am even happy with a complete copy and paste content, as long as it is correctly referenced. Links are fine to give access to additional information, but they cannot substitute the text. The main information has to be there.

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fi67, we like the way you think...

 

Recently, we approved a submission in a category that does not require any long description (LD). This waymarker, for this category, does not usually write anything in the LD. However in one of the submissions a ray of sunshine was revealed about an activity that involved the category and the submitter. When reading the LD, I was thrilled to learn a tiny morsel about the waymarker and thought it added interest to the waymark.

 

As you expressed fi67, sometimes it is difficult to find even a word about the waymark you are writing but at least an effort could be made.

 

We often times hit that same brick wall, but seem to manage to say something about the location, personal experience or...perhaps

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