Spotstor FAQ
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Contents |
General Questions About Spotstor
What is Spotstor?
Spotstor is like a personal waypoint bank for storing an sharing geographic data. Spotstor is not a GIS program, but instead allows users to gain control and categorize the data - free from the constraints, screen size, or limitations of their GPS device. Like a bank, users can make deposits (uploading, creating and sharing waypoints). Using that same analogy, the more you put into it (i.e. - sharing your information with others), the more you get out of it in return.
Why was Spotstor Created?
Visit just about any forum for outdoor activities like hiking, bird-watching, fishing, hunting, etc. and inevitably you will see a post that looks something like this:
Joe: "I'm heading up to (insert your place here) with my (insert your relation here) this weekend and was wondering if anyone on this board has any suggestions for places to (hike, fish, hunt, camp, etc.)."
and a reply that looks something like this:
Jim: "Joe, I've got a couple of spots you can check out since I won't be heading back there for a week or to. Send me your email address and I'll send you the waypoints. Good luck."
Nothing is wrong with that, per se, except for all of the legwork that is required for Joe and Jim to share their information. The chain of events looks something like this:
1. Joe asks for help
2. Jim reads the board sometime during the day and replies back.
3. Joe reads the board sometime later during that day or the next and posts his e-mail publicly in the forum (we won't talk about the SPAM issues that presents)
4. Jim goes to his GPS, thumbs around the unit for awhile to pull the coordinates and then types them into an e-mail which he sends to Joe.
5. Joe gets the email, sends a thank-you and then proceeds to do the inverse of what Jim just did.
Enter Spotstor and the chain of events becomes much simpler. Instead of the manual work of typing, writing, and punching coordinates, Jim already has his waypoints stored on Spotstor. He simply asks Jim for his Spotstor screen name, adds him as a buddy, and shares the waypoints. That's it.
Joe can now download the waypoints directly in a format that will work natively on his GPS Unit.
How much does using Spotstor cost?
In short, it's free! The basic functions of the service are and will always be free to the public.
We may, if the demand exists, add features or enhancements at a later date which would require a subscription, however those features would be above and beyond the current set of features offered for free.
How Private is my Waypoint Data?
The data you upload or create with Spotstor is as private (or as public) as you want it to be. Each waypoint is assigned a "lock status" which designates how the data can be used:
1. Public - available to all Spotstor users.
2. Locked - Private only to yourself and not available for sharing with other Spotstor users.
3. Unlocked - Available for sharing with other Spotstor users. The waypoint is private, however until you choose it to be shared with a member of your buddy list. You can do this by clicking the "Sharing >>>" link on your waypoint list.
For questions about privacy from the perspective of Spotstor, itself, you can read the official privacy policy.
Questions About Using Spotstor
What Coordinate Projections does Spotstor Support
All waypoints in Spotstor.com are displayed in the WGS84 projection. This is for three reasons:
1. Most GPS Units are delivered "out-of-the-box" with this projection as the default. This makes it simple and easy for most users to upload their data without any hassles or extra options.
2. Google Maps, which is used for display mapping on many Spotstor.com pages uses WGS84 as their default.
3. Spotstor.com makes use of Microformats throughout the site. The "geo" tag specification only supports WGS84 coordinate projections.
How do I create a new waypoint
Once you are logged in, click on the "Create Point" link at the top of the user navigation. This will allow you to create a waypoint directly, or by scrolling and clicking on the map provided below.
How do I add another Spotstor member to my Buddy List?
You can add other Spotstor members to your buddy list by clicking the "Your Buddies" link in the sidebar - visible when you are logged in. Use the search form to find other members and then drag them from the search results to your Active buddy list.
Once you have finished adding new buddies to your list, click "Save Changes" and any new users you have added will be assigned to your buddy list.
