"near users" for a given coordinate

April 5, 2006 4:20 PM

I'd like to use the "near users" feature to see users near a given coordinate. [more inside]
posted by qvantamon to Feature Requests at 4:20 PM (9 comments total)

Currently, the only (hacky) way to do that is to set your own coordinates to the place you want to check, and then see the users near you. Is there a less hacky way?
posted by qvantamon at 4:21 PM on April 5, 2006

Why would you want to do that? (Not suggesting that your motives are anything but innocent, just wondering.)
posted by jack_mo at 4:35 PM on April 5, 2006

Possibilities:

1.
check coords, note a couple of usernames;
send email -- "hey, I have a question about [geographic region where you apparently live]; have you got a minute?"

2.
bored, so bored -- wonder if any is in Sri Lanka?
posted by cortex at 5:16 PM on April 5, 2006

3.
Travelling soon, (or moving, or applying for colleges, or...) and want to scope out the MeFi prensence in a new city.
posted by nebulawindphone at 5:36 PM on April 5, 2006

How is that hacky? Seems pretty straightforward, actually.
posted by jenovus at 5:48 PM on April 5, 2006

Well, it's a pretty straightforward kluge. It's hacky insofar as the core functionality—seeing who is near an arbitrary point—is present within the sites mechanics but not exposed, as such, as a general feature.

If there's no great effort invovled, why not create a little page to check coords, and link it off of the sidebar?
posted by cortex at 5:52 PM on April 5, 2006

Mathowie already did it. Check thread here.
posted by Roger Dodger at 6:10 PM on April 5, 2006

Actually, I've been updating the google earth file infrequently on my junk server. The file is freshly updated every morning here:

http://www.metafilter.com/metafilter.kml
posted by mathowie (staff) at 7:27 PM on April 5, 2006

Thanks, Roger Dodger, that was more than enough for my curiosity! :)

And although linking to that file from the front page could lead to some bandwidth usage, I think it deserves more than just a lost MeTa thread (maybe a link on http://www.metafilter.com/etc.mefi, at least).
posted by qvantamon at 7:28 PM on April 5, 2006