User talk:NWoodruff

Hey. What's your opinion on the new page layout? It was suggested on the talk page that the graticule page be rewrote to make it a bit clearer. Do you want me to go ahead and look up all past expeditions in the graticule and link to them at the top, under the ones for January? I just tried to separate the plans from the actual expedition pages. Just thoughts. Thanks. Woodveil 03:49, 1 February 2009 (UTC)

I should have put this on your talk page where you would get a chance to see and respond to it. -Robyn 15:50, 20 April 2009 (UTC)

You suggested that I respond to your user page section. Here's are my comments.

• It's hard to check out what is going on in so many expeditions, so people make assumptions based on skimming and photographs, and you've had some experience with that. Assume and behave that the person is not attacking you (even if your're sure they are!) and just state your case clearly. I suggest reducing the SHOUTING. Why is this man shouting?
• I joined a discussion-in-progress on whether geohashes using cars only should be disqualified. I said no, I didn't think they should be, but that I encourage geohashers to use bicycles. I stand by that. You now indicate that you didn't need that encouragement, but seem to disparage it nonetheless. I don't see why my encouragement would bother you. I'd expect it to make you proud. I find it odd that you responded to the car-use criticism by saying it was impractical to bike in your graticule, when it would have defused the protesters to simply say, "I do bike to geohashes."
• The same not reading everyone's expeditions clearly that led others to believe that you didn't bike have caused you to make a silly statement in the section. "How many of you Geohasher that whine and complain, ride more than 12 miles on a bicycle to your Geohashes?" Twelve miles is about 20 km and if you read a few bicycle geohash reports you'll see that people are typically going at least double that. I expect to ride 45 km to mine today, for example, and I'll probably ride all the way back, too. You can check up on me for that! And most people don't count their commute to and from work as part of the geohash, unless they passed the geohash as a detour on the way to work.
• I responded to comments others e-mailed me, pointing out a geohasher whose expedition report implied that he was gloating over trespassing. I checked it out. A photo showed a no trespassing sign with a caption asking if the sign would stop him, but the expedition report recorded Coordinates reached. Surely you intended to imply trespassing? There's nothing wrong with teasing people--I implied that my car was incinerated in a recent report--but if you lead people to believe you are behaving unlawfully you have to be prepared for censure. Another expedition documented being refused entry to a gated community, but reaching the geohash anyway. The pages have since been edited to show that no trespassing occurred, but the original text is viewable in the history. I spoke up against trespassing as I always do. If you weren't trespassing, then the only thing I impugned was your communications skills, for not making that clearer.
• I did refer to the enthusiasm of a 13-year-old, that being an age when drive to achieve sometimes overwhelms judgment. I noticed it during a game of duck, duck, goose with mixed ages: the little children were fine, the adults were fine, but the one thirteen year old boy played it with an intensity no one else had, and we were afraid he was going to kill one of the kids. I apologize if the comparison offended you. My intention was to give you a point of comparison you could identify with. It's a pretty good age, though. Perhaps thirteen was different for you. It seems that your recent hard work has allowed you to recapture the cycling ability of a young person, too. I'm glad it's tempered by the judgment of a 41-year-old.
• You mentions your "dedication to this totally boring sport." It's not clear whether your detractors say the sport is boring, or you do. It doesn't fit well.
• The write up and photos on your dedication and fitness regime are impressive. I would tweak it slightly to make it less aggressive/defensive. Remember that your page on the wiki is your introduction to all the people who haven't met you yet, and the people who forget which one you are, anyway. If the people to whom you are responding know the past history, why repeat it, and if they've forgotten, why remind them? And why start out your introduction to new people with "the other stuff people said about me was unfair and untrue"? Just say who you are and let people see it. If you like, I will e-mail you a tweaked version tomorrow that I think would work better.

Well, I wrote lots there, hope it helps. Good luck on today's. -Robyn 16:31, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

Thanks, I look forward to your email. --NWoodruff 17:13, 22 April 2009 (UTC)

xkcd centurion achievement‎

Noticed you'd updated the xkcd centurion achievement page with your 13th Saturday meetup. Just wondering about the numbers, though, as I can only see 10 in the list of hashes you've put on your user page. Maybe a few missed out of the list there? -- Benjw 15:12, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

Yea, maybe you did miss Some

 1.  Saturday Aug 02, 2008 
 2.  Saturday Aug 09, 2008 
 3.  Saturday Sep 09, 2008 
 4.  Saturday Oct 18, 2008 
 5.  Saturday Nov 01, 2008 
 6.  Saturday Nov 08, 2008 
 7.  Saturday Jan 31, 2009 
 8.  Saturday Mar 07, 2009 
 9.  Saturday Mar 21, 2009 
10.  Saturday Apr 11, 2009 
11.  Saturday Apr 18, 2009 
12.  Saturday May 02, 2009 

I also think I got ahead of myself this morning by updating it twice. Next Saturday, I would have done a recount and it would be correct.

Cool - those were indeed the twelve Saturdays I saw in your list, but I didn't count 9 August or 8 November because they didn't appear to meet the criteria for the centurion achievement. (And as you say, the 13th was simply a miscount.) -- Benjw 17:06, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

A meetup is still a meetup even if you can't reach the hash point.

I hadn't thought so -- the achievement page says "That is, you either have to be in the right place at the right time, or you have to actually meet someone." -- Benjw 17:12, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

Are you the Centurion police now?

You've asked me that. My reply is below. I'm sorry if you think I'm being censorious or authoritarian about it. I'm simply reading other people's expedition reports and wiki activity, and taking enough of an interest to spot when something is reported inconsistantly. That's why we put stuff on a wiki -- so people can read and, if necessary, add to or edit it. Would you prefer it if people didn't read your edits? -- Benjw 20:21, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

I met someone both times.

Then my apologies for doubting you. However, I hope you can see why I did -- both expedition reports list only a single participant, neither mentions meeting anybody at all, and the 9 August one in particular goes so far as to say "I waited till about 4:30pm local time to see if any one else would show up." If they did, I'm confused about why you then didn't actually mention the fact. Surely an actual meetup is a noteworthy event? It certainly would be for me -- unfortunately there's hardly anyone else in my graticule who actively hashes, and I've only ever met one person at a hash. -- Benjw 20:21, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

Are you the Centurion police now?

Not at all. I hadn't realised we needed police. But I do look at the Recent changes page and I do read pages that other people have edited, because I enjoy seeing what other people get up to. I also know that I find it helpful if other people mention if they notice I've accidentally missed something off a page which I am trying to use as a complete record. Sorry if you don't. -- Benjw 17:06, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

Image categories

Oh, I notice you are uploading photos as well, and I should also say thankyou for putting the meetup categories on your photos! There are a couple of thousand uncategorised images that I'm (very) slowly working through, so I'm very grateful to people who add them when they upload stuff!  :-) -- Benjw 17:15, 4 May 2009 (UTC)