Dear Foursquare...
Dear Foursquare,
We've had a torrid little love affair these last couple years, haven't we?
It began when Gowalla went behind my back and screwed around with a good thing hoping to make it better. It wasn't. Then they hooked up with Facebook and were betrayed forever and killed off and left in a ditch like the dirty hooker they were.
So you and I got together.
And it was good.
We went everywhere. We checked in and looked around and dined or shopped and then collected Foursquare, partner, and expertise badges together.
Oh they were good times.
But times also change.
I'm tired of going everywhere with you. I'm annoyed by your random downtimes and slowed-down processing speeds and the constant accusations that I'm not really where I say I am. I'm tired of feeling obligated to check in when I go to Meijer for the third time this week. Who really cares? It's also a bit freaky not being able to tell what are legitimate and what are spam friend requests. Sometimes you don't show enough information for me to be able to know for sure.
It's getting old and I need a break from it all.
Does this mean I'm quitting you entirely? No. I still want us to be friends. Just from a distance. I'll use you when I'm going some place new or that I haven't visited in a while or an old favorite or maybe when I'm using an affiliated app like Untappd. Definitely for vacations, though. You are a great help when it comes to remembering the places that Katie and I have visited for later reference.
I still love you, Foursquare, but I need a break.
It's not you, it's me.
Sincerely,
Me
P.S. GetGlue, you're on notice.
People still use Foursquare?! :P
Posted by: kilax | Friday, 28 June 2013 at 08:49 AM
Hmm... I don't seem to have the problems you describe. I really miss Gowalla's badges, though.
Posted by: Ren | Friday, 28 June 2013 at 09:45 AM
I always wished Gowalla would've sold physical copies of earned badges. I would have bought them.
Posted by: kapgar | Friday, 28 June 2013 at 10:17 AM
You wouldn't believe. It's mad.
Posted by: kapgar | Friday, 28 June 2013 at 02:59 PM
I never quite got into the "checking in" craze. It's funny that when we go to lunch at work, I'm the only one not firing up Foursquare in the restaurant ;-)
Posted by: Kevin Spencer | Saturday, 29 June 2013 at 01:52 PM
That's not really a bad thing.
Posted by: kapgar | Saturday, 29 June 2013 at 05:07 PM
As with Ren, I don't have the problems you have experienced. Foursquare check-ins are one of the things I love about the app. I stopped posting my check-ins to twitter for a long time (someone was very vocal and DM'd me their annoyances about me checking in and cross posting on twitter), but then I found that I really wanted others that were not annoyed to see my check-ins because I would get feedback from some on where I was at.
Foursquare is nice when traveling to a new city and I want to find a place local to my current location.
I do admit to wishing Gowalla would have won, but Facebook fucked that one up. I miss my badges (so much better than the Foursquare ones)
Posted by: Marty Mankins | Sunday, 30 June 2013 at 10:53 PM
So you've never had a zero-point check-in before? I was getting them regularly.
Posted by: kapgar | Monday, 01 July 2013 at 11:31 AM
I have had zero point checkins before, but only when it's been less than a minute since my previous checkin (like walking a mall with multiple stores).
Posted by: Marty Mankins | Monday, 15 July 2013 at 12:20 PM
I've had them when they were my only check-in for an hour.
Posted by: kapgar | Monday, 15 July 2013 at 12:45 PM