World map

[David N. Snyder]

Scroll down to the bottom of the index (home) page and you will see the map, from ClusterMaps. It will take some time before it updates since it was just added. You can click on the map and see it in real time for the most recent visitors.

[Ytrog]

nice

[Quiet Heart]

I'm not opposed to it, but such a thing should be an option, not a requirement.
There may be some who don't want their location revealed on a mp...and their preference should be respected.


By the way I just haven't selected an avatar yet...that"s why nothing shows now.
There will be as soon as I stop being lazy.

[Ben]

Greetings Quiet Heart

The map doesn't identify individuals - just visitor locations. And given that the location data seems to be generated by IP address location - its not accurate. Particularly as the IP address location will be a major telephony exchange in your city, or ISP head-office or ISP satellite base station. It doesn't track the physical address of your computer.
My current location according to the map is 200km away. Some visitor locations will be thousands of kilometres away from their actual locations others will be closer if they live in a dense urban environment.
kind regards

Ben

[rowyourboat]

Yes! Result! -I think it is very interesting to see the way users are spread out. I certainly didn't expect that many from UK.

There is a smattering of users from Buddhist countries - the other variable I presume is internet access- which probably explains the US. If I didn't know better -it almost look like a 'Buddhist country'!

Thank you, David. I think we have something here that no other Buddhist forum has.

with metta

Matheesha

[Reductor]

Yea! I see my dot. I EXIST.

Pretty neat.

[David2]

Yes! Result! -I think it is very interesting to see the way users are spread out. I certainly didn't expect that many from UK.

There is a smattering of users from Buddhist countries - the other variable I presume is internet access- which probably explains the US. If I didn't know better -it almost look like a 'Buddhist country'!

I think one of the main reasons why USA, UK and Australia are the "first three" is just because English is the main language there.

[Kim O'Hara]

The map is already showing the basic pattern that I expected from my casual knowledge of where people are from, but it will get more accurate (in the sense of better representing our whole membership and their usual level of activity) as time goes by.
Yes, people in English-speaking western countries have automatic advantages in using DW (and the rest of the internet, for that matter) and the US is the biggest of them.

Kim

[Kim O'Hara]

But the map, along with your "North Queensland" location would show where you are...
Unless we have a bunch of other members up there...

True (and thanks for considering my privacy, Mike), but if it bothered me, I could simply change my 'location' to 'Queensland'. I don't think it will be an issue for many members - not many are as isolated as I am. There's an easy solution, anyway: DW could put up an 'Announcement' alerting people to the possibility that map+location could identify them more specifically than they wish and suggesting my kind of change.

Kim

It looks like my server is in Brisbane anyway, which doesn't really surprise me.
It does leave my part of the country dot-free - a dhamma-desert? - like Alaska and most of Africa.


Kim

[Ytrog]

The funny thing is that it registers me as being in a very small town nearby where I actually live

It would have expected it to pick a bigger city nearby, but not a tiny town.

EDIT

Lol, a big 1000+ dot in The Netherlands