introduction

naming conventions

connectivity issues

HEY: WORK IN PROGRESS! IT'S ALL BITS AND PIECES AT THE MOMENT. FEEDBACK APPRECIATED.

Gowalla, a socal-networking geolocation application is spawning a social community, with its own cultural mores and practices. This document is one fan's guide to this new phenomenon. (I'm in no way affiliated with the company; this is my own labor of love. All logos, screenshots, etc. are and remain the property of Gowalla; all are used without permission.)

What is Gowalla?

Gowalla is a smartphone-based social-network application centered on geolocation actions, checking in and out of "spots" in the real world. It's some sort of "game" overlaid on the rather mundane task of keeping contacts up-to-date with your current location. What the game is, exactly, how to play, and the social conventions and expectations surrounding the game will be explored. (It was different players' interpretation of appropriate actions and the discussion that ensued that spurred me to start this guide.)

Gowalla also has a web-based counterpart, shown at left.

Both sides have access to user-centric actions, such as checking on ones "passport" to see the number of spots checked into or created, "pins" awarded for user activity, virtual items left by other players discovered and obtained in-game, and so on.

Gowalla users who have been promoted to help out in their locations, the Street Team Élite, are also able to edit, merge, and delete spots (typically done when duplicate spots have been created, or the location, category, or descriptions need adjusting).