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

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

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