You can check-in, but you can’t hide.

One question that has cropped up with regards to locative services is whether they alter the way we “experience” places. My initial reaction was a definite negative. My goal with using Foursquare was not to learn about or discover new places, but rather to engage with places I already frequent and connect with people I already know. But the more I use Foursquare, the more I think it really does change the way I think about my location.

First, I find myself occasionally “hiding” from Foursquare. Sometimes I decide that I don’t want anyone to know where I am, like if I am trying to get work done or if I’m lazing around at home. I don’t want people to know when I am available all the time.

Second, I deliberately try not to detail every step of my schedule. I think it’s kind of creepy that people could easily figure out my class schedule and predict my location based on my history of check-ins. But then again, isn’t it equally creepy that I’m checking in at any point, even if it diverges from my regular route? Maybe…

For this same reason I have elected not to add anyone that I don’t know as a friend on Foursquare (though randos have sent requests my way). But even then, more people know my location than I probably care for. Just because we are acquaintances doesn’t mean I want you to know where you can find me. So this raises the question of who am I really trying to connect with on Foursquare?

So I started asking around to try to gauge who actually cares when I check in. For all I know, I could stop using Foursquare entirely and no one would care. I found two people who do genuinely care about my check-ins, and it turns out they are the people I am closest to. One is my best friend at school. We even live together, but we aren’t at home at the same time all that often. She said it’s nice to know when I’m at home and when she can expect me. We also work in the same building, so it is fun to plan intentional run-ins and visit each other at work. Second is my boyfriend. We are in a long-distance relationship right now, and he says that it creates a sense of connection that we lack when we aren’t in the same city anymore. So it turns out that Foursquare can help connect me with the people I am already closest to after all.