PlaceSpotting – Google Maps geo quiz

Technology

placespotting_20080707.jpg

Martin Fussen tipped us off to PlaceSpotting, a user-contributed geo quiz map mashup. The idea is to create puzzles for your friends to solve by picking an obscure landmark and supplying them with a few hints. Your friends can then zoom around on the map to find the location. If they position the map at the right zoom level and over the location the puzzle is solved. I have to say this is a pretty fun way to learn a bit about the world, especially if you’re in to puzzles and treasure hunts.

You can search and browse a large library of entries that other people have created. There are a significant number of entries in German, and many of the landmarks are within Europe, but there’s nothing stopping you from dropping a few landmarks near the place you call home.

PlaceSpotting

0 thoughts on “PlaceSpotting – Google Maps geo quiz

  1. Phaedrus says:

    #!/bin/bash

    # Seeing as I use a “podcatcher” which
    # does not support variable speed playback,
    # I have writ this script to play my “podcasts”
    # in random order.
    # Each followed by the option to delete.

    # Those “‘s above are indicative of my
    # general distaste of all things “pod”.
    # So there.

    # To prevent ‘for’ from booching on spaces
    IFS=$’nt’

    # Where to work
    PODCASTDIR=/mnt/hdg2/share/podcasts/
    PODCASTLIST=~/.podlist

    # Player of choice
    PLAYER=/usr/bin/mplayer

    # Why … not
    function die()
    {
    echo “$@”
    exit 1
    }

    # Build the list
    find “$PODCASTDIR” -iname “*.mp3” -o -iname “*.ogg” | sort -R > “$PODCASTLIST”

    # Parse and play
    for i in $(cat “$PODCASTLIST”); do

    # Play or puke
    $PLAYER $i || die “Someone set up us the bomb!”

    # Prompt and purge
    echo -e “nWould you like to delete the file you just heard:”
    read -p “$i? ”
    echo $REPLY | grep -qi y && /bin/rm -i “$i” || echo -e “nVery well, moving on.”

    # Prompt and procede
    read -p “Would you like another? ”
    echo $REPLY | grep -qi y && echo -e “nHit me!n” || die “Right on. Until next time.”
    done

    # Inform user of sound shortage
    echo “So, uh…”
    sleep 3
    echo “It seems that you have finished.”
    sleep 1
    echo “Well then.”
    sleep 2
    die “Peace.”

    # I’m pretty sure that posting this here will bork the line breaks, so don’t expect a copy/paste to work as is.
    # I can email the original on request.
    # Some minor language unniceties have been cleaned up for public consumption.
    # Hope somebody can make use of this, or let me know where it might be improved.
    # phaedrus
    # @
    # gmx.com

  2. Dave says:

    I hit the Unix Grymoire all the time when I need to get started with a find, sed, or awk recipe.

    http://www.grymoire.com/Unix/

  3. Anonymous says:

    real simple:

    alias hg=’history|grep’

    so all you would need to do to search through your history for all of the ssh logins would be

    $ hg ssh

    it’s such a simple and useful alias that it bothers me that perhaps there is something similar out there already that I’ve overlooked. All you need to do to find a command that you have already issued is to remember one piece of the string.

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