Google Maps for Finding D&D Players? - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

Google Maps for Finding D&D Players?

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
dieffenbachj
Mar 24, 2010 9:27:25 Just a short idea... Google Maps is rather versatile, and can be programmed into a website via javascript...

I think it would be cool if, in your community profile, there was one subsection ("Nearby Players" or something) where you could enter your ZIP code or latitude/longitude, and check a few boxes ("Looking for 4E DM" "Looking for 3.5 DM" "Looking for D&D Players" "Looking for Magic players" "Running a D&D game currently" and so on), and then a separate page with a map of the world would put all the pins showing where everyone was, what they were looking for, and their community profile address.

The result would be that I could zoom in on any particular location (say, Portland, Maine) and see a dozen or so pips showing where everyone was. And as I'm desperately seeking a DM to run a game for me to play in (I've been DMing for years but damnit, I want to play a gnome wizard|sorcerer) I could just see where everyone who is looking for players is around here.

I think this level of automation and coordination between the D&D community would certainly prove beneficial to those who don't have a local gaming store within travel distance, or if they do, there are no D&D groups there to be found. Instead, we could know there's a guy down the street who wants to play a game, and a DM actively running a campaign in the other direction... and then message them online and join the crowd.
#2
zombie_babies
Mar 24, 2010 9:35:52
Two problems:

One, people lie about their zips when they sign up.

Two, the reason people lie is because they don't want personal information like that out there for strangers to see. If this site started putting my location on a map, I'd be gone immediately.
#3
dieffenbachj
Mar 24, 2010 10:09:36 Notice how I mentioned there being a seperate tab for optionally putting this stuff in.
#4
TelinArtho
Mar 24, 2010 10:15:05 Not to say anything about the issue - I would suggest taking a look into online PbP games. There are many that are run through the PbP Haven andReal Adventures groups located on this forum. If you wanted a wider depth of games - you could look into a site like Crazy Monkey's Asylum.

There are a number of gamer classifieds sites out there as well which would be instrumental in setting up a face-to-face game.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 dieffenbachj Mar 24, 2010 9:27:25	Just a short idea... Google Maps is rather versatile, and can be programmed into a website via javascript... I think it would be cool if, in your community profile, there was one subsection ("Nearby Players" or something) where you could enter your ZIP code or latitude/longitude, and check a few boxes ("Looking for 4E DM" "Looking for 3.5 DM" "Looking for D&D Players" "Looking for Magic players" "Running a D&D game currently" and so on), and then a separate page with a map of the world would put all the pins showing where everyone was, what they were looking for, and their community profile address. The result would be that I could zoom in on any particular location (say, Portland, Maine) and see a dozen or so pips showing where everyone was. And as I'm desperately seeking a DM to run a game for me to play in (I've been DMing for years but damnit, I want to play a gnome wizard\|sorcerer) I could just see where everyone who is looking for players is around here. I think this level of automation and coordination between the D&D community would certainly prove beneficial to those who don't have a local gaming store within travel distance, or if they do, there are no D&D groups there to be found. Instead, we could know there's a guy down the street who wants to play a game, and a DM actively running a campaign in the other direction... and then message them online and join the crowd.
#2 zombie_babies Mar 24, 2010 9:35:52	Two problems: One, people lie about their zips when they sign up. Two, the reason people lie is because they don't want personal information like that out there for strangers to see. If this site started putting my location on a map, I'd be gone immediately.
#3 dieffenbachj Mar 24, 2010 10:09:36	Notice how I mentioned there being a seperate tab for optionally putting this stuff in.
#4 TelinArtho Mar 24, 2010 10:15:05	Not to say anything about the issue - I would suggest taking a look into online PbP games. There are many that are run through the PbP Haven andReal Adventures groups located on this forum. If you wanted a wider depth of games - you could look into a site like Crazy Monkey's Asylum. There are a number of gamer classifieds sites out there as well which would be instrumental in setting up a face-to-face game.