Wanna Wherigo?

[Team Honeybunnies]

If anyone is interested, Pete, labrat_wr has asked if we would run through the new Wherigo in Berlin. We’re open to having some others join us to give it a try, and we’re going to meet at the starting waypoint at 3:00 on Sunday the 6th. Any questions or those planning to come please post here, sorry no linky, at work and no time.

[marc_54140]

Perhaps ……..

[labrat_wr]

linky:

Berlin’s Victorian Home Walking Tour by weathernowcast (GC21HBM)

Disclaimer : Always answering to a higher power.

[CodeJunkie]

Being the owner (weathernowcast) is a personal friend I had to try this. I did it virtually last night using the “emulator”. Very cool. I’ve never done one of these before and don’t have the equipment so it was nice to be able to “emulate” it. I’d be interested to see how this works using “real” equipment.

If I decide to not sit in the woods, I’ll join in as a local resident (lived in Berlin my entire life). This would be a great opportunity to meet some additional cachers as well.

[labrat_wr]

will CamoQueen be along too? the more the merrier!

Disclaimer : Always answering to a higher power.

[CodeJunkie]

@labrat_wr wrote:

will CamoQueen be along too? the more the merrier!

My daughter (camoqueen) will probably stay inside to enjoy the warmth of home. I’m still struggling with “Beyond Center Field” and getting it’s home to stay dry, but will try to get this cache of hers back active for the gathering (even if only on a temporary basis). I believe it’s the only cache in Berlin that’s currently disabled.

[benny7210]

I may join in on the fun also. I have to talk to the social directer first.

[benny7210]

I may join in on the fun also. I have to talk to the social directer first.

[glorkar]

I’d love to. I was just thinking of posting that I was looking for someone to try this with.

[amita17]

Can anyone post a short definition of what wherigo is? From what I have gathered reading the forums, is it some kind of geocache that uses a specific type of GPSr?

Or if it is too complicated to explain briefly, is there a website that is a good resource about it?

[sandlanders]

Certainly tempted by this. Got excited when I saw another tour of Berlin as a cache (did the other one but whiffed on the final for a DNF), but then saw it was Wherigo with us lacking in the necessary equipment. 🙁 Would love to see how this all works, so we’ll keep an eye on the weather and our social calendar.

[cheezehead]

@sandlanders wrote:

Certainly tempted by this. Got excited when I saw another tour of Berlin as a cache (did the other one but whiffed on the final for a DNF), but then saw it was Wherigo with us lacking in the necessary equipment. 🙁 Would love to see how this all works, so we’ll keep an eye on the weather and our social calendar.

Maybe if you ask Santa Clause, he’ll bring you the necessary equipment and you can get put away the old relic.

[weathernowcast]

I hope you enjoy the cache. Now is the time to see Victorian Berlin in its Christmas glory.

[gotta run]

@amita17 wrote:

Can anyone post a short definition of what wherigo is? From what I have gathered reading the forums, is it some kind of geocache that uses a specific type of GPSr?

Or if it is too complicated to explain briefly, is there a website that is a good resource about it?

http://www.wherigo.com

Basically a Wherigo is a virtual game that’s played out in the real, three-dimensional world. So rather than interact with objects and characters solely on a computer screen, you interact with those things that exist virtually at various real locations. i.e., rather than use your mouse to scroll to an area on your screen that contains an object, you might physically walk to a set of coordiantes or a set distance to “find” the object.

That means you need a device that can play a Wherigo game (a game is called a “cartridge” even though it’s not a physical cartridge). Those devices are currently Pocket PCs and a handful of Garmin GPSrs, although I have heard that Garmin is not building Wherigo support into its next models. 😯 .

A Wherigo geocache also involves a cache as part of the game. Typically after you complete the game, you get the coordinates to find the physical cache. Not all Wherigo games involve geocaches, and the “play anywhere” games on the Wherigo site are a good place to start.

I still think this concept is pretty high on the dork-o-meter but the kids get a bang out of them. It’s a little extra wrinkle to the game.

Perhaps as the game evolves it will become more than just completing virtual tasks in the field. I could see it having a natural application for puzzles where you need to physically visit locations in order to obtain the information rather than just Googling it. But I digress…

On the Left Side of the Road...

[Team Honeybunnies]

@gotta run wrote:

@amita17 wrote:

Can anyone post a short definition of what wherigo is? From what I have gathered reading the forums, is it some kind of geocache that uses a specific type of GPSr?

Or if it is too complicated to explain briefly, is there a website that is a good resource about it?

http://www.wherigo.com

Basically a Wherigo is a virtual game that’s played out in the real, three-dimensional world. So rather than interact with objects and characters solely on a computer screen, you interact with those things that exist virtually at various real locations. i.e., rather than use your mouse to scroll to an area on your screen that contains an object, you might physically walk to a set of coordiantes or a set distance to “find” the object.

That means you need a device that can play a Wherigo game (a game is called a “cartridge” even though it’s not a physical cartridge). Those devices are currently Pocket PCs and a handful of Garmin GPSrs, although I have heard that Garmin is not building Wherigo support into its next models. 😯 .

A Wherigo geocache also involves a cache as part of the game. Typically after you complete the game, you get the coordinates to find the physical cache. Not all Wherigo games involve geocaches, and the “play anywhere” games on the Wherigo site are a good place to start.

I still think this concept is pretty high on the dork-o-meter but the kids get a bang out of them. It’s a little extra wrinkle to the game.

Perhaps as the game evolves it will become more than just completing virtual tasks in the field. I could see it having a natural application for puzzles where you need to physically visit locations in order to obtain the information rather than just Googling it. But I digress…

Pretty well sums it up, nice definition. Looks like we just might have a second enabled device if Benny can make it, and did I hear that Marc has one now too? Just make sure to go to the Wherigo site and download the cartridge as it’s not built into the cache description or in the pocket query. One at a time at this point.

My fear with Wherigo is that the learning curve to program the cartridges is so high that the novelty will wear off before it becomes well established. Especially at historic sites I think there could be a lot of mileage in a GPSr tour guide.

While it may not be warm, it should be dry, and everyone’s welcome. Hope to see you there!

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