Wikipedia:Wikipedia Takes Manhattan/2009

Watch our Wikis Take Manhattan video from last year's scavenger hunt.

Wikipedia Takes Manhattan / Wikis Take Manhattan 2009 (WTM-3) was a scavenger hunt and free content photography contest coordinated with Columbia University and New York University students and The Open Planning Project, aimed at illustrating Wikipedia and Streetswiki articles covering the wondrous sights of the isle of Manhattan, and all across the Five Boroughs of New York City

Scheduled for Saturday, October 10, 2009, this event was a sequel to last spring's Wikipedia Takes Manhattan (WTM-1) and last fall's Wikis Take Manhattan (WTM-2) event.

Everyone will meet up and check in at one of the two starting points located at Columbia and The Open Planning Project, and after an afternoon of subways, street rambles, photography and free culture goodness, the night will conclude with a party back at The Open Planning Project's fantastic new event space nestled between Chinatown and SoHo.

The day will be sponsored by Free Culture @ Columbia, the Columbia University chapter of Students for Free Culture, in cooperation with the NYU chapter Free Culture @ NYU, The Open Planning Project, Wikimedia New York City and Wikipedia volunteers.

All Wikipedians and non-Wikipedians are invited to participate in teams of up to three (no special knowledge is required at all, just a digital camera and a love of the city).

The easy-to-remember url wikis-take.org, will take you straight to The Open Planning Project's page for the event.

This is the latest of several events worldwide on the Wikipedia Takes The City model.

Watch this space for future possible events. And please watchlist this page.

Also, you should subscribe to the Wikimedia NYC mailing list for the latest updates.

Events of the day

Registration and starting points

Participation will be open to all. Participants will register, with their names and e-mails, and chosen starting point, to compete in three-person teams. If you don't already have a team, we can try to put you in a group, or you can compete in twos or individually if you want. Registration will include granting permission for all photographs to be placed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License.

Register online here: Wikis Take Manhattan registration

However, even if you've pre-registered, you will still have to show up at one of the starting points on the day of the events to check in and receive your information packet, including the finalized goal list and rules.

There will be two starting points: one uptown at Columbia University, and one downtown at The Open Planning Project. The check-in at the two locations will be 1:00 PM.

• Columbia University starting point (uptown): the Sundial in front of Low Memorial Library.
• The Open Planning Project starting point (downtown): 148 Lafayette Street, between Grand & Howard.

A few extra notes for contestants:

• Each team should use only one camera.
• You should start the day with an empty flash card.
• Bring a pen or marker to write with.

Scavenger hunt

The participants will compete to photograph as many sites as possible from a list of goals whose articles lack photographs, or that are missing certain essential photographs. There may also be recognition of excellent photographs of sites not on the list.

• See: Wikipedia:Wikipedia Takes Manhattan/Goals (currently in a rough state)

Photography is to be done the day of the event. We'll post rules later that will ensure this.

Code of conduct

• Respecting personality rights: You should not make persons on the street the focus of your photographs, without their permission. If someone is in the background, or part of a crowd, or happens to be standing in front of a building in an inconspicuous way, it's OK. But, you shouldn't focus on an individual.
• Respecting the rights of artists: Artists have the right to restrict photography of their artwork, such as public statues (this does not apply to architecture, for which there exists a "freedom of panorama" exception under US law). Don't photograph copyrighted public art (created after 1923). If it is necessary to include public art in the frame to photograph something else, the public art should not be the focus of the photograph.
• Respecting the rights of property owners: Property owners have the right to restrict you from taking a photograph while standing on their property. But, you can take any photograph as long as you are standing on public property. If someone asks you to stop, stop.
• Respecting the police: If the police ask you to stop, stop.

Photography advice

• Keep pictures in focus.
• Avoid shadows.
• Show the whole subject in one shot, if possible; avoid cutting off tops of buildings.

Ending party and prizes

The ending party will be held that night at The Open Planning Project, the photographs will be uploaded, and prizes given to the winners. The party will be at 6:30 PM.

Party location: The Open Planning Project, 148 Lafayette Street, between Grand & Howard.

Volunteers will help to upload images our drop.io-donated dropbox at the party, and in verifying the self-scoring of the teams.

The first prize winning team members will get Eye-Fi Share cards, which automatically upload photos from your camera to your computer and to sites like Flickr. And there will also be cool prizes for other top scorers.

Photos

All the photos have been uploaded and can be found here.

Wikipedian volunteers

Wikipedian volunteers are especially encouraged to help with the organizational side of the event, either helping us with check-in during the day, or helping us upload and tally the images at the party at night. Of course, they can "compete" directly if they want as well.

If you want to help with this event (especially if you want to help with check-in during the day), please e-mail User:Pharos with your name and mobile phone number.

Even if you don't intend to compete, if you're coming to the party, you should still register online.

Wikipedians are also encouraged to help with the goal list (and make additional suggestions), as part of the preparation for the event.

Sign-up

This sign-up list is just for fun. The proper place to register your team is here. It's also possible to register the day of, but it will be easier for us if you register beforehand.

You can also join us on Facebook.

If you want to meet other Wikipedians in the morning, your best bet would be to do check-in at TOPP, but feel free to choose Columbia if that's more convenient for you.

Likely

• --Pharos (talk) 19:48, 18 September 2009 (UTC)
• --Part of staff, have to be there.Mitch32^{(The Password is... See here!)} 20:18, 18 September 2009 (UTC)
• Scratch that...greenhorns have to work. Sigh. Might be able to make the afterparty, if non-event participants are welcome. Confirmed - me and two wikigreenhorns will be running madly through the city! keɪɑtɪk flʌfi (talk) 00:22, 30 September 2009 (UTC)
  • Non-photographers are definitely welcome to the afterparty. And if you can make it in the morning sans team, we'll be glad to match you up with some folks!--Pharos (talk) 14:49, 6 October 2009 (UTC)
    • Ok, unless plans change in the next few hours, the hunt is a no-go, but the greenhorns and I will be at the party. See you all there! keɪɑtɪk flʌfi (talk) 16:00, 10 October 2009 (UTC)

* Myself and one other (and possibly a puppy). --Bfigura ^(talk) 03:16, 1 October 2009 (UTC)

• Hope to make party, not sure about hunt. -Reagle (talk) 13:57, 7 October 2009 (UTC)
• Becksguy (talk) 14:26, 7 October 2009 (UTC)
• Looks like my son and I can participate. Daniel Case (talk) 19:41, 9 October 2009 (UTC)
• See ya a couple hours from now, with laptop. Jim.henderson (talk) 17:05, 10 October 2009 (UTC)

Possible

• Possibly. Depends on work. Babylonian Armor (talk) 18:54, 28 September 2009 (UTC)
• @harej 15:16, 1 October 2009 (UTC)

Regrets

• Health problems. Tim Song (talk) 20:00, 18 September 2009 (UTC)
• In the process of apartment hunting and moving StarM 21:55, 4 October 2009 (UTC)
• Same reason as before...plus I have to take the SATs. NHRHS2010 |  Talk to me  02:14, 5 October 2009 (UTC)
• Won't be in New York or Long Island until December 2009. ----DanTD (talk) 16:37, 6 October 2009 (UTC)