Anybody playing Pokemon GO?

[alindahl]

What are your thoughts?  I tried it out for a bit and it seemed like a cool concept, although it didn't really remind me very much of my childhood Pokemon obsession.  I started with Charmander and caught a Zubat in our living room and a Weedle while on a walk at lunch.  

 

Very intriguing, but it used up my battery and data like crazy and I wasn't super big on all the permissions required.  They collect too much info for my tastes.

 

Anybody giving this a GO? 

[dkieft]

GO away!

[Blustorm]

I like that the game encourages people to get off the couch and actually go outside. It also encourages some socialization; my younger brother has gone to 3 parks this weekend and met a ton of fellow GO players. 

[Brother Glacius]

I've just started today and even caught one during a meeting at work. :) I only have three though...my neighborhood sucks for pokemon.

[Diomides]

I'm playing it! A lot of the kids on my youth crews are also playing so it is fun seeing which ones everyone has.

[Steel Angel]

I like it. I've got 50 so far. i bought a $5 potable charger and that makes up for the battery drain. one of the local bars is a pokespot. we add lures and drink and caych pokemon. sad yes fun too.

[Guest Mr. Bigglesworth]

I hate it. Now my parks are infested with more folks paying attention to electronic devices and not their kids or their kids are buried in said electronic devices and not running around on the play structures.

 

I don't think it really encourages a more active lifestyle as I have seen more folks on their phones driving and pulling over to locations to try and grab a Pokemon or supplies.

 

Though I did see more larger set people at the parks.

 

Plus those that sign up through Google just gave the maker complete access to their gmail account.

[Jay]

I have to say it's got me out of the house and exploring more and walking more. my kids walk around with me a love when I find something. And it doesn't really require you to stare at your phone because you have to walk around a bit to find different critters.

[alindahl]

It's definitely making waves.  I don't personally know a lot of people playing it around me, but our house has a TON of Pokestops near it.  I don't think I'm going to keep playing it though.  I'm not very big on the whole "tracking literally everything you do and everywhere you go" thing.  Google already does enough of that haha.  The huge amount of data they collect on you and how they are allowed to use it/who they can give it to is kind of scary:

 

http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/nation-now/2016/07/11/while-you-track-pokmon-pokmon-go-tracks-you/86955092/

 

I'm also not big on yet another distraction from reality.  I hate electronics for the most part haha

 

That being said, I enjoyed it the little I played it.  I see a lot of potential for future games.  If they could guarantee a little more privacy I think I would pick it up again.

[Guest Mr. Bigglesworth]

Good article the privacy part can be mitigated a bit if you sign up for a trainer account. Full permissions to your google account is a bit much.

 

I am following the news about this game.

 

1 cool thing is, as they setup more and more pokestops at cultural locations that will come with a mixed feeling. I wouldn't mind more folks going to the Portland art museum, but I don't want to see more people buried in their electronic devices there either.

 

To echo spark, I'm not for how much electronics distract us. I am disappointed that a game is required to inspire exercise. Though it is better than no inspiration.

 

In our household we do regularly family walks without electronics and always have. My 2 yo goes on 3 mile hikes like a champ.

 

Though I have always liked to exercise, I do understand MOST people struggle to. So that is a big kudos to an app that inspires.

 

That is good to hear Jay, as most people I have observed at the parks have been buried in the phone so I figured it requires constant attention.

[Duckman]

That being said, I enjoyed it the little I played it.  I see a lot of potential for future games.  If they could guarantee a little more privacy I think I would pick it up again.

 

The problem with this idea is that people are willing to sign away their personal data without thinking about it so companies are going to continue developing games like it.  There's no incentive to *stop* gathering that information and every financial incentive to keep building games like it.

 

As someone who is terribly over-weight I know that I need the motivation to get out and be active like this.  If it were not for the corporate monsters behind it, I would even be interested in it where I have never been interested in Pokemon before in my life.

[Brother Glacius]

also, you can hit deny for some of the permissions. I created a pokemon trailer account just to be on the safe side. I read an article where it stated that the security hole was not as big as being made out, but it was still bigger than most people wanted.

[Steel Angel]

Shrug i just made a 2nd goole account with nothing on it

[alindahl]

also, you can hit deny for some of the permissions. I created a pokemon trailer account just to be on the safe side. I read an article where it stated that the security hole was not as big as being made out, but it was still bigger than most people wanted.

It's not about hackers, its about the owners of the app actively collecting location data.  They refer to the data they collect on you as a "business asset" which they can sell to other companies for really whatever purposes, usually advertising.  That's what I don't like so much.  Everything else is kind of just frosting on the caution cake.

[Guest Mr. Bigglesworth]

I doubt there is risk giving them permission but it is over the top and unnecessary.

 

The market on data like this is very new and lacks much oversight.

[Duckman]

The market on this kind of data is *not* new.  That's what boggles me.  Go read some of the articles about what big data is capable of.  I'm not a tinfoil-hat bearer or anything but I *do* work with big data and there's a reason I am very careful about what I will allow companies to collect...

 

http://www.forbes.com/sites/kashmirhill/2012/02/16/how-target-figured-out-a-teen-girl-was-pregnant-before-her-father-did/#7df23af234c6

 

That's based on shopping consumption only.  And now people want to hand over a fully trackable and identifiable pattern to their daily and weekly movement?  And the company has told you that they are going to collect it and market it.  I work with medical data which includes a whole bunch of other considerations but if you want a detailed discussion about how big data works and why you might not like it PM me and I'll start a separate thread down in Warpspace (or maybe it belongs in the Realms of Chaos which I have not applied for).

 

I'll be honest...  I have not gone through the application permissions.  I just suggest you think very carefully about *any* application that wants permissions to your e-mail, your GPS, your camera, your image library, your phone logs or your phone itself.

 

And note, once you allow them such permissions there is absolutely no way of retracting them or even tracking what the company is doing with them because as long as they pay for the usage they are not even required to log anywhere that you can see it what data they are transmitting or when.

[Swan-of-War]

We have very detailed records of when and where you poop Duckman.

[Steel Angel]

that's just fowl

[Threejacks]

No raids..no gearing..certainly not enough features for this MMO Elitist douchbag..

 

j/k:)

 

Seriously though,I drive 50-75+ miles throughout the city each day hitting stops in all areas SW,NW,SE and outlying areas.I dont need anymore reasons to "GO" somewhere in town,lol

[Guest]

I've seen lots of illegal parking and trespassing as a result of this game. Very annoying behavior.

[Duckman]

I'm waiting for the violence to break out.  Snopes busted the rumor of the kid going into the bad neighborhood and getting knifed for his phone...  Maybe we can hire all the obnoxious drone pilots to arm their drones and hunt trespassing Pokemon Go players?  Let the battle of the phone apps begin!

[VonVilkee]

So in Washington it isn't trespassing unless clearly marked... So not illegal without signs.

[dalmer]

In Washington State criminal trespass appears to be very simple:

 

"knowingly enters or remains unlawfully..."  but that means licensed, invited or privileged to remain.  What is that?  Well...

 

1.  Signs come into play for unimproved and/or seemingly unused land.  You see an old lot and cross over it... sure, no worries... unless there's a sign.

 

2.  Does the property have a fence?  Counts as a sign even though there's no sign.  Anything fenced doesn't need a sign.

 

3.  Agricultural areas that have cultivation going on... don't need a sign either. 

 

4.  If someplace is both public and non-public, you can't go into the non-public area even though there's no signage... i.e. can't walk into the back at McDonalds. 

 

5.  Or if there's a sign that shows hours of operation... outside of those posted hours is an assumed "no trespassing sign" even though the words "no trespassing" are nowhere to be found.

 

Just for info. 

 

Stay safe,

 

don

[VonVilkee]

Thanks Don! It is nice to see the specifics as they pertain to more urban areas. My understanding was applicable to out and about hiking. The agricultural land piece was especially eye opening.

[Brick Bungalow]

I have no strong feelings about the game itself but it's increased the foot traffic in my store by 20-30%. I sell about fifty poke-plushies a day now. So I guess I'm a fan.