introduction

naming conventions

connectivity issues

Thoughtfully naming a spot results in the difference between an uninspiring and unengaging notification. If you happen to be near-by, finding out that a friend is at "Apple Store (Downtown SF)" rather than "Apple Store" is significant. The former makes me want to reach out and say "hey, let's get together!"

Consistency helps. I've found that going from the specific to the general has several benefits:

• I prefer "Haight & Ashbury - Muni" to "bus stop Haight & Ashbury".
• When all mass-transit stops are marked in a consistent manner I understand the locations much more quickly.
• Because of Gowalla's screen-size limitations, the right part of a spot name may be elided; having the specific part first makes the notification still useful. Consider "Powell St. Cablecar Turnaround - Muni"; losing the rightmost words isn't tragic.
• Abbreviating words like "Street" to "St." gives more space to the place-names.

Accuracy also helps. I spend a moment ensuring that I create spots with the place-names accurately, as the business owners intended. "Bistro St. Germain" is better, to me, than "Germain". Spot the typographic error in the screenshot? That would prevent someone from finding that spot.

I also take time to include accents in names; if the owners wanted the convey the ambience of "Café Crème Brûlée" then I respect that intention.

Placing a spot into the correct category is a kindness to other players. We don't yet have, and may never get, some sort of top-level "I can't find a good category" option (for others tos edit and slot correctly), so it's worth becoming familiar with the current hierarchy. It's dynamic, so I won't go into it here, as it'd be outdated quickly.