Other examples of "Tag and Release" Sites/Projects (Geocaching, Bookcrossing, etc.)?

March 5, 2009 1:57 PM

I was thinking about "tag and release" projects/sites, where you basically leave something for a stranger to find, and came up with four off the top of my head: Geocaching, Disposable cameras on park benches, Bookcrossing, and Photochaining. Are there other examples? Thanks!
posted by Jim Biancolo to computers & internet (11 answers total)

Letterboxing is pretty similar to Geocaching, but is not nearly as new or technological.
posted by aubilenon at 2:05 PM on March 5, 2009

The 1000 Journals Project. Where's George.
posted by jeb at 2:06 PM on March 5, 2009

Moneytrackers - Canada, Australia ---> I've come across bills here in Canada with the website stamped on them for you to go onto a website and log the bill's location/date, it was pretty neat - tracked how money travels around the country.
posted by lizbunny at 2:10 PM on March 5, 2009

Around Boston we (used to) leave mix CDs in the Zipcars. I haven't rented in a while so I don't know if people still do this.
posted by cocoagirl at 2:14 PM on March 5, 2009 [1 favorite]

Postcrossing lets you sign up to receive and send postcards to strangers all over the world. It's not quite as random as the examples you listed, but it has a similar feel.
posted by vytae at 2:28 PM on March 5, 2009

It's not really a "project" as such, but people have often been known to leave their own secrets inserted between the pages of PostSecret books in bookstores and libraries.
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 2:30 PM on March 5, 2009

Time capsules and messages in bottles are a couple of entries in the old fashioned category.
posted by rongorongo at 3:04 PM on March 5, 2009

The Great Internet Migratory Box of Electronics Junk
posted by 7segment at 4:26 PM on March 5, 2009 [1 favorite]

I, too was going to suggest messages in bottles. I found one once, responded to the kid who first sent it off (in a river in Georgia), added my own message, then put it in the Atlantic the next time I visited. Never heard back about it, though.
posted by MrMoonPie at 7:12 PM on March 5, 2009

In terms of design Carl Sagan's plaque as fitted to the Pioneer space probes is interesting - in that its intended audience is extraterrestrial.
posted by rongorongo at 3:24 AM on March 6, 2009

There's a more popular Canadian money tracking system known as WheresWilly.com, as the name of the Prime Minister on the Canadian $5 bill is Sir Wilfred Laurier, hence the name "Willy"... It is the sister site to the American WheresGeorge.com, which is based on George Washington.
posted by Jade Dragon at 5:18 AM on March 6, 2009