Can the UK Wayfarer Community get additional clarification on Trail markers.
thundercracker1-ING
Posts: 90 ✭✭✭
In the UK we have lots of footpaths which are analogous with US trails, we have agreed with clarification from Niantic personnel that in order for the markers to be valid they have to be "Named" trails/paths/walks. This has helped loads, but we are still a community in crisis. Some of us believe that NIA want us to have high standards and promote this to the other wayfarer reviewers. This is hard without something official to fall back on so I am requesting additional clarification for this tidal wave of low quality POIs that are being submitted and have been for months now.
The Uk is a very historical place and the land on the whole has changed and evolved over centuries meaning ownership of land and their boundaries with public rights of way are not simple to traverse. This means that in some places these named trails require a huge amount of guidance for people to successfully follow the complicated routes. Thus we find ourselves in situations as reviewers where there are more that 5 identical markers for the trail within several hundred meters.
Here I provide an example where low quality markers (Stickers on a generic marker disc) are placed at very regular intervals along a short path.
Discs:
Route:
When the named trails hit villages and towns you also see this type of street sign:
We argue all the time about these things and it always comes back to the fact that NIA have given vague non-geographical guidance and who are we to argue if something "meets" this criteria. Some people including myself strive to try and have high standards in what we do as reviewers so that is why I am asking 3 questions here @NianticCasey-ING
1) Are these the intended low quality POIs NIA want in their database as "Trail markers"
Assuming the answer to question 1 is something along the lines of, while these aren't great POIs they do encourage people to explore.
2) Could we get some kind of clarification on acceptable distance for almost identical POIs to be classed as a set and only have one be a POI?
3) Should we use the "Near by" facility in wayfarer to decide if identical POIs belong to a set and mark them as duplicates?
Thanks for your time and I look forward to comments and positive discussion from both reviewers and NIA admin.
Answers
A great question we are in desperate need of an answer for. There’s been a sharp increase in fake attempts, stickers, laminated and even 3D prints to manufacture portals.
Some submitters have struggled with the idea of a trail being named, with the sheer quantity of ‘public footpath’ indicators which are an absolute 1*.
Hopefully we can get an official clarification that we can use to educate and improve the quality of the network.
I really hope this gets an answer, I feel that the guidance is too loose and we are all left to try to work out what Niantic really want in the network. Trail markers are also the easiest point of interest to fake and we are seeing a massive increase in fake markers.
what I really want to see is more comprehensive and thorough guidance on trail markers from NIAOps, what EXACTLY do they believe meets criteria and what would they say definately doesn’t meet criteria as well
It would be good to get answer on the street sign styles, I've had one rejected several times though it isnt on a street but actually on the trail itself and only has the trails name on it
Are these the intended low quality POIs NIA want in their database as "Trail markers"
Objection: leading question.
While this forum discussion is great, I'd also encourage using the Wayspot Clarifications request form.
Maybe some day they'll actually update the published criteria.
Surely if it's a named Trail so eligible regardless of your opinion of what they look like. The first picture is a footpath that will most probably be much older and historical even though there is no trail name. In there own right these public footpaths should also be eligible.
I dont believe that starting to group these markers together will benefit the rural communities that niantic are trying to let have access too. The trail markers are there to guide people along the trail and explore if there surroundings. They are if they are submitted where they should be we should not be penalising rural communities and players.
The distance requirements for niantic are 20m. There are lots of them, but there are often only trail markers in some rural areas. Why shouldn't rural areas be allowed to have POIs because some people don't like them? It's like saying that a city can only have one church because otherwise there's loads of them, that's a ridiculous thing to say and so is increasing the allowed distance for specific types of poi.
The sticker issue has been dealt with; they are as valid as the plastic discs because they last as long and are more convenient/cost effective for councils to use.
If it's a named trail then it's a valid poi, regardless of what method is used to show the named trail.