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I agree with @ahlir s suggestion.

This topic doesn't display correctly for me in Firefox. It's cut off on the right. I haven't seen that with other current topics. (I thought there should be some whining here. If someone would like to complain that my whining isn't about Tag-O-Rama, and so is in the wrong topic, please feel free. :-) )

+1. You can get the full text by cut and pasting the article into a text editor, but definitely suboptimal. Any ETA on that site overhaul we keep hearing about?

Note: the following is not whining, because I wrote it :-) Stu asked about verifying that a tag pickup is close enough. In particular: "If you have a camera but not a cell phone, how are you supposed to tell when you’re in the right spot?" I've been in that situation before - I started into tag-o-rama before I had a smartphone. If the landmark was not totally obvious, I'd either print out the photo on paper, or sketch the photo and note the salient features. In the past, we've had marginal tag claims that turned out to be miles off. We need to strike a balance between excessive squabbling ("you were off by one foot!") and false tag pickups. I'd draw the line where a neutral person looking at the two photos believes they're different locations. And what constitutes whining? I'd argue that same-day questioning of the validity of a tag pickup, with an enumeration of scene differences, is not whining, while waiting a week and complaining vaguely is whining. And when the complaint comes from a lesser chordate, it's a little harder to take them seriously.

I think we need a new thread: Whining about Tag O Rama Whining And comments to this post should go to whining about Whining about Tag O Rama Whining ....

Piece o' cake: 1. Read hints. 2. Extract hint keywords, Presidential Library and U.S. Naval Academy. 3. To each, prepend "a painting at" and append "pittsburgh". 4. Google these phrases, i.e. + a painting at presidential library pittsburgh + a painting at u.s. naval academy pittsburgh 5. Seventh item in search results is Johno's Studio. duh!

The hints relied on you looking around while riding and noticing interesting stuff like that sign, then making the connection in the context of the game. I go by there not every week or even every month but it's a memorable enough sight to stick (YMMV, etc). The google thing would only have mattered if the sign itself had been the tag. In which case a simple search would have told you where to go. And what fun would that be? Anyway, better luck next time.

Regarding http://localhost/message-board/topic/tag-o-rama-2018/page/3/#post-350999 Referring to the rules http://localhost/message-board/topic/tag-o-rama-4/ If concerned about rules, that post should have been done elsewhere, e.g., in this thread: #7 – No whining. From "#3 – Tag must be findable – don’t make your tag so obscure that no one will find it. Make sure to let folks know what riding conditions are involved to get to your tag," unless the tagger has had brain damage since setting the tag, this implies the tagger is not included in the set of finders...the tagger is the one person that can always find their tag

Players have gone out in extreme conditions, methodically searched street after street, and expended considerable effort, all to advance in a game in which there are no prizes and no winner. You're mighty quick to exclude brain damage. :-) I'd say the rules imply you can't get your own tag, but don't explicitly prohibit it. As for what to do if this ever happens, while rule 7 prohibits whining, rule 2b explicitly authorizes giving other players a load of crap. So we can thus conclude that giving other players a load of crap is not to be considered whining, and is therefore not prohibited.

Looks like I was successful in stirring things up a bit. At least I know you're all awake. However, if our splendid participants let that tag go unclaimed long enuf, I *will* retrieve it myself, and my lawyer's offices open bright and early Tuesday morning. @Iguana... Good to see you're still here. In the past year and a half, you've only fetched one tag, and that via a collaboration with @PH. Yanno, just six more tags and I'll have found more than you, unless you do something about that. Just sayin'... ;^)  

Dude, please don't do that. Just post a really good clue. I don't know where the tag is. It's not obvious. Do us all a favor. Play the game the way it's supposed to be played.

I’m still in the game. Sidelined with the crud all January, buried in work the first half of February. I know where this is. Don’t wait for me to grab it, but it’s not going to last long, once I do get rolling.

There has been much too much whining on the TAG-O-RAMA 2018 list. Even whining about whining. The latest post by @Ahlir really must be the whiner winner... If Mr. @Ahlir is serious, I propose we redefine the box to be my yard...I live in Squirrel Hill and that should satisfy him and will make it more palatable to me as well...and since a good percentage of the few TAG-O-RAM-active people live nearby or know where I live, this should make it more nutritious for quite many/most of the actives, as well as attracting some of those more challenged that @Ahlir...so we may lose some, but then gain some...and I'll put out a water urn and air pump..maybe some homemade brownies..maybe not... There really are a lot of neat things in my yard to tag...I won't give them away--that would be too easy..and cheating...no one ever tells about a tag other than the owner of the tag..you-know-who-yins-are... I'll start a new thread Ahlir-TAG-O-RAMA-2018...but whining about that game MUST be on this thread....else...NO brownies... AND IF Mr. @Ahlir was joking....it really wasn't funny...and still should be on this thread...as whining includes joking and satire, getting-it-off-your-chest, etc... are permitted here...as long as it fits in the entry box...it's all about boxes...

I will concede that there are plenty of interesting things all over Pittsburgh. And yet, this has never stopped players from setting tags like "random house" or "some trees with an interesting burl" or "featureless brick wall." Usually without a clue because it's "so obvious."

Fine whines! But all things considered, I'd rather stick to fine wines. My post wasn't a whine. It was intended in the spirit of a constructive suggestion, mostly in reaction to the (maybe not altogether unreasonable) point "why can't you set some tags in my neighborhood?". The goal was to reflect on yet more ways to get different people playing. So far, the idea of regulars holding off for a day or so seems to help (ok, I've cheated). And setting tags within a reasonable distance from downtown (which I've been trying to do) seems to help. So remember, "no whine before its time".

Having been yelled at and told that the main T-o-R thread is for tag posts *ONLY*, I'm replying here to the discussion other folks posted in the main thread (exasperated sigh). On the validity of JW's pickup of the Bell railroad bridge from a different viewpoint than the original tag... Rule #1 says "get a picture of your bike in the same location (as best as possible)". A strict reading would say it's an invalid pickup. That said, we don't need to read that rule strictly. It was also an expeditious pickup, and moving on was the right thing to do, AFAICT. On the idea of setting easy tags for new people to claim... Most obvious easy tags have already been tagged before. Having been yelled at and told that setting duplicate / repeat tags is verboten, are people willing to set that informal rule aside? On encouraging new players overall... I don't think the problem is that T-o-R is unwelcoming; I think the problem is that we don't get new participants on the forum *as a whole*. BikePGH does nothing to promote it, and buried the link at the bottom of a sub-menu. While I (and perhaps you) think this is the best place for cycling information in town, literally no one but us 10-20 regulars know it exists. I think T-o-R would thrive if the forum as a whole thrives, and that requires some active effort to bring in new people. YMMV.

Also, are we back to not doing hints anymore? Seriously, folks, you don't know how tempted I've been to grab a tag, set it somewhere absolutely unguessable and have the only clue be "you all know where this is." Obvious to you is not obvious to everyone else.

This suggests a new twist to the game...or a new game all together. Rather than give a photo of the location(s) in mind, just give hints. Then anyone interested in getting the tag, goes out and takes pic(s) of their bike at the suspected location. One doesn't offucially get the tag until the original tagger approves the taker. This has a number of benefits...it gets more people riding as there may be ambiguity in the hint that suggest multiple locations..and one can make multiple entries. Indeed, the tagger makes the final decision and might even propose waiting before deciding which entry is interprets the hints best/creatively..and shows it in their photo......and this would encourage others to jump into tge game...

Several times I've considered setting a certain class of objects as a tag and asking "tag any car you find that's this color" or "any sign with the same text" or "any vehicle from this business".

We did have the Wheelset of Fortune game going for a long time. Two people got to select a tagging subject. For example, monumental lions. Then, for a week or so, you took a pic of your bike next to a lion. Multiple entries encouraged but you only got credit for the first. At the end of the week, we put all the entries in a virtual hat, assigned a number to each, then “spun the wheel”, i.e., chose two entries at random. Those got to choose the next tag subject and the closing date, say “July 2 at 23:59”.

Iguana: regarding http://localhost/message-board/topic/tag-o-rama-2019/page/9/#post-366336, Yes, I looked at your Strava today. We’ve been Strava friends for several years. Picture told me probably a warehouse, ~6 story bldg, most likely Strip or Southside. Google oblique satellite view helped, Strava helped. I feel a bit guilty for looking at Strava, but on the other hand doing so helped me move the game forward. If I had confidence that asking for a hint would have helped, I probably would have done that instead. Request: when people ask for a hint, give a helpful hint. If people still haven’t solved it after a couple of days, probably the hint was too obscure. I’ve goofed, too. I’ve had a few too-hard tags of my own. The point of the game is cycling.

I hope you see tge lsmeness and inconsistency of your argunent...sounds like an imoeachabke offence... but if the Senate is OK with it...keep cycling your internet surfing...

The point is to BIcycle...not cycling... and moving the game is not moving a bicycle... Etc... Deaf ears...

I feel like I just had dinner at a friends house, and his whole entire family just had a really big argument right at the table in front of me. So, um, I'm just gonna leave now. You all take care now, ok? Ok.

This is why i don't play Tag o rama anymore. And I'm basically done with this message board -- no support from bike Pittsburgh (both in terms of board maintenance and also not posting anything on here), dwindling number of people posting, lots of spam... So, maybe I'll check in in 6 months to both Tag o rama specifically and the message board in general, but there's something post-apocalyptic about visiting here.

Has Eric been back since October? His 6 month checkup month starts Tomorrow. anyone know how to take the whining discussion posts fromTag-O-Rama and move them to this thread?

moving the discussion is not worth the trouble

 

The rules say "Remember, the point of the game is not to make the clues difficult to figure out. It is about riding, not Googling." Several players have complained about hints and tags becoming too difficult, making the game slow down, and causing a number of people to drop out of the game. Has The Iguana taken this to heart?

The only time my clues weren't figured out was when @heckbert bypassed them and used my Strava trace that clearly showed where I stopped. Too hard? Check the facts. Plenty if clues by (nameless) were pretty bad. And consider the length of time of till claimed tags... not me.. e.g. earlier thus year I think. As far as dropping out is concerned, I think more people aren't involved is because they don't have a chance ...too much competition among 3 or four riders... mostly whiners... it's a game... Actually, more difficult clues might have the effect of leveling the field..but there's the issue of moving faster which is so often whined about... as if it's not so much about riding, but moving the tag.. So I have a proposal.....        

Tag O O E.g. Tag O TheIguanaO Anyone interested in placing a tag creates a thread: Tag O O And places a tag. And cannot place a new tag until it is claimed. Anyone can claim the tag. The owner, @, can use whatever rules, themes, etc. they wish. Even change their box..region..themes... No one can "hold the game up" with a hard tag or delay in placement. Everyone is a tag owner...and multiple tag seeker. No whining about rules needed. If you place hard tags...in odd places...difficult rules...it will stand for awhile. But all the other tags will be open; the game will move. Everyone can be involved. For those few that are competitive, I can see someone trying to get all the open tags from a given time... you know who you are. Or GAMEMOVER: who has been able to post the most tags in their thread... And uf anyone us concerned about keeping track...you probably haven't checked lately, tracking stopped over a year ago I think. For those purists and fundamentalists that need that fix, Tag O Rama could be kept alive... in fact TagOName might resurrect it.... I believe it would...I really DO like the whining.          

The Iguana probably posted his flower pictures http://localhost/message-board/topic/tag-o-rama-2019/page/12/#post-371665 here because he thought this web site was PetalPgh. Anti-whining: The Iguana has been doing better lately at providing solvable pictures+hints that keep the game moving. The Harriet Day / Leone Evans one, for example.

I spoke too soon. When people give verbose hints, the challenge is separating the wheat from the chaff. For example, to find http://localhost/message-board/topic/tag-o-rama-2019/page/12/#post-371834 it appears to me that only a few words from The Iguana were useful: …missing the Buccos? I thought so… so here’s another baseball tag… not in any parks related to Crogan’s daughter. But in a park…though she did have some influence in a nearby park [Mary Croghan Schenley gave the Fort Pitt Blockhouse away]…and this guy ran for President. Ride to fight the virus. I’m sure you have. Indeed, with the warm weather, there have been quite a few foxes… and some cougars as well…. not to be confused with the panthers we typically have in this area… Nein. I can’t attest to the clearness of my hints…that’s a personal matter… I may be able to give another hint. The recent questions have not been very clear…talk of Steve and foxes…??? The above is not a hint…as far as I know. The point is you should focus on conventional wisdom…and center your search there…and maybe you’ll score. Oh, Malcolm… well, why haven’t you gotten the tag… giving Dave a chance?

...calling the kettle black, huh? ...can't wait to throw the first stone? ...And your faulty analysis ignores the nonsense whining that was posted and responded to in kind... Indeed, as usual, with all the drama and complaints, the tag was found.. and there was alot of riding from what whining I heard...which is the point here @Keymaster, your approval is not relevant...  

For those in need of tagging: LAMBLAS Facebook: Look At My Bike Leaning Against Stuff https://www.facebook.com/groups/lamblas/permalink/3179776535401723/

LAMBLAS...  NAMBLA... What going on here? (I don't want to know; just pointing it out.) But let's stay on-topic: red red whine. you make me feel so fine.  

Have you guys lost your minds?   Jeez.