Go forth and post! November 29, 2024 5:08 AM Subscribe
In a recent MeTa thread, Wobbuffet proposed a bingo type game for the site, to encourage folks to make new posts. This sounds like a good idea for December, so come on inside and help us figure out details before we launch this idea.
To be clear, this is a post to flesh out the idea, see if anything is missing or doesn't work or suggest alternate post ideas. The hope is to launch it Decemeber 1 and put a link in the site banner about it.
Here’s a rough mockup of the bingo card, complete with suggested post ideas for the squares.
Do the "categories" make sense to you? If not, what other categories would you suggest or how would you change the wording?
Do you have any other suggestions?
To be clear, this is a post to flesh out the idea, see if anything is missing or doesn't work or suggest alternate post ideas. The hope is to launch it Decemeber 1 and put a link in the site banner about it.
Here’s a rough mockup of the bingo card, complete with suggested post ideas for the squares.
Do the "categories" make sense to you? If not, what other categories would you suggest or how would you change the wording?
Do you have any other suggestions?
- Complete a row
- Complete a column
- Complete a diagonal
- Complete just the left side
- Complete just the right side
- Complete all the squares
Bingo is lines. Making this a community discussion is just creating busywork and arguments for everyone. Lock this post and put up a card.
posted by bowbeacon at 6:59 AM on November 29 [10 favorites]
posted by bowbeacon at 6:59 AM on November 29 [10 favorites]
Speaking as someone who spent quite a lot of their youth running a weekly bingo game, bingo isn't really limited to lines though the more serious bingo halls tend to do lines and full cards just for ease of administration.
That said, I think if you're looking to give people a single bingo card that they win with their own posts, you don't have to prescribe the win conditions. Let people decide for themselves if they want to try to get a line, two lines, postage stamps, Ts, Xs, picture frames, a small blackout, a full blackout, whatever floats their boat. (Boat is also a win pattern in Bingo, but not a commonly used one.)
The Wild Card post should clearly be in the middle, tho, unless you want to encourage people to make a lot of free threads.
It would be entertaining if people were encouraged to tag their posts with the name of the space they think it fills, so that we could click through and see all the posts about space, or whatever.
posted by jacquilynne at 8:22 AM on November 29 [4 favorites]
That said, I think if you're looking to give people a single bingo card that they win with their own posts, you don't have to prescribe the win conditions. Let people decide for themselves if they want to try to get a line, two lines, postage stamps, Ts, Xs, picture frames, a small blackout, a full blackout, whatever floats their boat. (Boat is also a win pattern in Bingo, but not a commonly used one.)
The Wild Card post should clearly be in the middle, tho, unless you want to encourage people to make a lot of free threads.
It would be entertaining if people were encouraged to tag their posts with the name of the space they think it fills, so that we could click through and see all the posts about space, or whatever.
posted by jacquilynne at 8:22 AM on November 29 [4 favorites]
Keep it simple, categories seem fine, making this not be Christmas-themed would be appreciated by me.
posted by trig at 10:44 AM on November 29 [7 favorites]
posted by trig at 10:44 AM on November 29 [7 favorites]
I'm loving this 'run the site via committee' we have going on.
posted by 922257033c4a0f3cecdbd819a46d626999d1af4a at 10:56 AM on November 29 [1 favorite]
posted by 922257033c4a0f3cecdbd819a46d626999d1af4a at 10:56 AM on November 29 [1 favorite]
Obviously I'm down for this--thank you for making the card, adding some themes, and making sure nothing tripped over foreseeable issues.
posted by Wobbuffet at 11:20 AM on November 29 [1 favorite]
posted by Wobbuffet at 11:20 AM on November 29 [1 favorite]
MetaFilter: Overthinking a plate of beans a bingo game
posted by bowmaniac at 11:40 AM on November 29 [3 favorites]
posted by bowmaniac at 11:40 AM on November 29 [3 favorites]
I like the tag idea for keeping track; tag suggestions are in bold:
- MeFiProjects: Cross-post a MeFi Project
- ZeroToHero: make your first post in any subsite (check your profile for 0's)
- LinkMe: Fulfill a post idea from a comment in a LinkMe post
- DoublesJubilee: rework/update an old post (h/t to taz)
- [username]Inspired: make a post in the style of another MeFite (ex: sci-fi short stories from brainwane, Australian animal news from chariot pulled by cassowaries, retro video games from JHarris)
- .TXT: post a link to a 100% all-text site (zero images)
- ATagIsBorn: create a post centered on a single-word, non-proper-noun tag that has never been used before
- SmallCreators: Link a YouTube/TikTok/Insta/etc. creator with under 1000 subscribers/followers
- GYOB: Link to someone's personal blog or website (ideally self-hosted rather than Substack/Medium/LinkedIn/etc.)
Non-FPP suggestions:
- leave the first comment on a new/uncommented post
- get marked Best Answer in Ask
- invite a new MeFite
- trawl the archives and hit the daily favorite limit (100 per 24 hours iirc)
- share a post or comment you enjoyed to social media
- post a new film to FanFare (though DirtyOldTown has likely beaten you to it)
You can also use MFBC.us to let people generate their own randomized cards.
posted by Rhaomi at 11:42 AM on November 29 [2 favorites]
- MeFiProjects: Cross-post a MeFi Project
- ZeroToHero: make your first post in any subsite (check your profile for 0's)
- LinkMe: Fulfill a post idea from a comment in a LinkMe post
- DoublesJubilee: rework/update an old post (h/t to taz)
- [username]Inspired: make a post in the style of another MeFite (ex: sci-fi short stories from brainwane, Australian animal news from chariot pulled by cassowaries, retro video games from JHarris)
- .TXT: post a link to a 100% all-text site (zero images)
- ATagIsBorn: create a post centered on a single-word, non-proper-noun tag that has never been used before
- SmallCreators: Link a YouTube/TikTok/Insta/etc. creator with under 1000 subscribers/followers
- GYOB: Link to someone's personal blog or website (ideally self-hosted rather than Substack/Medium/LinkedIn/etc.)
Non-FPP suggestions:
- leave the first comment on a new/uncommented post
- get marked Best Answer in Ask
- invite a new MeFite
- trawl the archives and hit the daily favorite limit (100 per 24 hours iirc)
- share a post or comment you enjoyed to social media
- post a new film to FanFare (though DirtyOldTown has likely beaten you to it)
You can also use MFBC.us to let people generate their own randomized cards.
posted by Rhaomi at 11:42 AM on November 29 [2 favorites]
There's some good suggestions in here, shout out to jacquilynne for pointing out the mechanics of Bingo!
Will leave this post up and open for about another 24 hours, then (hopefully, fingers crossed) publish the final post on Sunday morning and link it in the site banner.
posted by Brandon Blatcher (staff) at 4:17 PM on November 29
Will leave this post up and open for about another 24 hours, then (hopefully, fingers crossed) publish the final post on Sunday morning and link it in the site banner.
posted by Brandon Blatcher (staff) at 4:17 PM on November 29
To be fair, for me, unless all the squares are “you listen to too many podcasts,” I won’t fill it….
posted by GenjiandProust at 4:26 PM on November 29
posted by GenjiandProust at 4:26 PM on November 29
Just for contrast, here's a link to the first Metafilter board game.
posted by Lynsey at 4:28 PM on November 29 [3 favorites]
posted by Lynsey at 4:28 PM on November 29 [3 favorites]
i, for one, welcome bingo
posted by HearHere at 6:08 PM on November 29 [3 favorites]
posted by HearHere at 6:08 PM on November 29 [3 favorites]
This looks great! let's move on this!
posted by calgirl at 6:49 PM on November 29 [2 favorites]
posted by calgirl at 6:49 PM on November 29 [2 favorites]
I think this is a great example of an easy win- an idea, double check there are no big gotchas (or small ones- agree free space should be the centre square)
And then yay we can go for it, and no one can say "woah I can't believe no one thought about xyz problematic thing" spawning a meta of doom. Not that it's a problem to point out problematic things! But good to catch before we go "live live".
posted by freethefeet at 11:31 PM on November 29 [3 favorites]
And then yay we can go for it, and no one can say "woah I can't believe no one thought about xyz problematic thing" spawning a meta of doom. Not that it's a problem to point out problematic things! But good to catch before we go "live live".
posted by freethefeet at 11:31 PM on November 29 [3 favorites]
Spotted a typo in the mockup: the 'y' is missing in 'eponysterical'.
posted by demi-octopus at 4:58 AM on November 30
posted by demi-octopus at 4:58 AM on November 30
Ok, fixed a typo, swapped up some categories, and simplified graphics, here's the new version of the card!
posted by Brandon Blatcher (staff) at 5:53 AM on November 30 [2 favorites]
posted by Brandon Blatcher (staff) at 5:53 AM on November 30 [2 favorites]
A few comments on the specific items:
My feeling is that these should be things that the individual can control, so I would leave off things like 'get marked as best answer'.
I also find 'make a post from the music subsite' sort of confusing. I assume you mean reposting something from Music to the Blue. Are there enough being posted on Music that that makes sense as a category? I mean, we can't all post Jingle Rock Bell.
Rework a post and rework a post from 2009 specifically seem very similar. I would keep the more general one.
posted by jacquilynne at 6:42 AM on November 30 [2 favorites]
My feeling is that these should be things that the individual can control, so I would leave off things like 'get marked as best answer'.
I also find 'make a post from the music subsite' sort of confusing. I assume you mean reposting something from Music to the Blue. Are there enough being posted on Music that that makes sense as a category? I mean, we can't all post Jingle Rock Bell.
Rework a post and rework a post from 2009 specifically seem very similar. I would keep the more general one.
posted by jacquilynne at 6:42 AM on November 30 [2 favorites]
I love this! I always feel bummed I do not contribute more FPPs but I often just can't think of anything. A little nudge is very welcome!
posted by supermedusa at 9:16 AM on November 30 [2 favorites]
posted by supermedusa at 9:16 AM on November 30 [2 favorites]
Mod note: Made some changes based on jacquilynne's suggestions. Reworded the one about about the Music subsite 'cause I do think there's plenty enough material there for multiple posts.
New image link
Otherwise, here's the text of the proposed post, corrections welcome:
Hi!
Community member Wobbuffet recently suggested the site play Bingo, so we came up with suggestions on what to put on the board. The Bingo card can be seen/downloaded here and the rules are pretty straightforward.
Complete 5 spots in a row, anyway you like (horizontal, vertical, diagonal). Or expand that do include an X, a T, picture frames, a small blackout, a full blackout, whatever your heart desires! Once you're done, just come here and yell "Bingo" and let us know which squares you did.
When making a post related to this, please tagit as 'MefiBingo2024'
Notes:
posted by Brandon Blatcher (staff) at 10:31 AM on November 30 [2 favorites]
New image link
Otherwise, here's the text of the proposed post, corrections welcome:
Hi!
Community member Wobbuffet recently suggested the site play Bingo, so we came up with suggestions on what to put on the board. The Bingo card can be seen/downloaded here and the rules are pretty straightforward.
Complete 5 spots in a row, anyway you like (horizontal, vertical, diagonal). Or expand that do include an X, a T, picture frames, a small blackout, a full blackout, whatever your heart desires! Once you're done, just come here and yell "Bingo" and let us know which squares you did.
When making a post related to this, please tagit as 'MefiBingo2024'
Notes:
- Here's the Gift Link to invite someone
- Here's the most recent LinkMe post and here's all of them if you'd like more suggestions.
- Eponysterical means posts and comments which are funny in light of the poster's user name (example: brainwane doing a post about neurology or dreams)
- For reworking old posts, You can browse through the archives to find old posts or just click the random button
posted by Brandon Blatcher (staff) at 10:31 AM on November 30 [2 favorites]
"anyway you like" should be "any way"
"expand that do include" should say "to" instead of "do"
"tagit" should say "tag it"
"old posts, You can" should not capitalize "You"
"laid-back" is generally hyphenated
It's also awkward having the actual important link, the bingo card, be the third link in the post. Using an img tag would be a much more seamless experience.
posted by one for the books at 12:16 PM on November 30 [1 favorite]
"expand that do include" should say "to" instead of "do"
"tagit" should say "tag it"
"old posts, You can" should not capitalize "You"
"laid-back" is generally hyphenated
It's also awkward having the actual important link, the bingo card, be the third link in the post. Using an img tag would be a much more seamless experience.
posted by one for the books at 12:16 PM on November 30 [1 favorite]
What's, "I for one, welcome" mean?
posted by tiny frying pan at 3:33 PM on November 30
posted by tiny frying pan at 3:33 PM on November 30
tiny frying pan: A joke from the early Simpsons that's had an extraordinary second life
posted by The Pluto Gangsta at 4:00 PM on November 30 [1 favorite]
posted by The Pluto Gangsta at 4:00 PM on November 30 [1 favorite]
Um, so....what does THAT mean in the context of this posting idea? I think we should make this kind of thing as little in-jokey as possible...
posted by tiny frying pan at 4:03 PM on November 30 [2 favorites]
posted by tiny frying pan at 4:03 PM on November 30 [2 favorites]
An our-new-overlords FPP might be, for example, about a plague of locusts. Or about Boston Dynamics creating an army of biomechanical robot locusts. Or I guess about one extraordinarily large locust with political ambitions, but it'd have to be, you know, really big.
posted by mittens at 4:29 PM on November 30
posted by mittens at 4:29 PM on November 30
The post is live, will put a link in the banner in a few.
posted by Brandon Blatcher (staff) at 5:09 AM on December 1
posted by Brandon Blatcher (staff) at 5:09 AM on December 1
LOL I know I'm not in the In Crowd but okaaaaaaay
posted by tiny frying pan at 5:16 AM on December 1
posted by tiny frying pan at 5:16 AM on December 1
Mod note: Thanks to everyone for all the suggestions and help with putting this together! They all made Wobbuffet's idea just a bit better, so take a bow on that!
posted by Brandon Blatcher (staff) at 5:25 AM on December 1 [1 favorite]
posted by Brandon Blatcher (staff) at 5:25 AM on December 1 [1 favorite]
If it helps tiny frying pan I consider you one of the regulars here!
posted by freethefeet at 1:44 PM on December 1
posted by freethefeet at 1:44 PM on December 1
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posted by sagc at 6:00 AM on November 29 [16 favorites]