The Scaper Map Update Thread

[vikingscaper]

I know that I currently have my other thread about the map project still active but I decided that it was best to create a new thread for updates. So, with that said, here is what I would like to say in this update:

1. I would like to have all submissions for the map to be in no later than December 31st. So, if you know somebody who would like to participate, tell them to head on over to here (http://www.twincitiesscapers.com/map.html) . By establishing this date, I will have a good month to sort the data before I head back to school.

2. I would also like to reinforce what I have been saying about the usage of real names. Real names will not be included in the map and I will also not use you real name to track you down and stalk you since I am not that kind of guy.

3. The map will be international. Even though some of my preliminary figures have only been on the United States, foreign countries will be included as they will help to show the distribution of Farscape fans.

4. Finally, I will attempt to have the map done no later than March 2004. Everything should be a breeze once I am done processing the data so it shouldn't be too hard to get a quality map produced.

I also wnated to say thank you to those of you who have taken a few minutes of their days to fill out their information. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be able to do this.

If there are any further questions, please feel free to PM me or to email me at vikingscaper@yahoo.com

Thank you,

vs

[mjwillia]

No, if it weren't for you - we wouldn't be able to do this! Thank you for all of your hard work!

Can't wait to see the map!

[harveywhispers]

Let me know if I can help with the data sorting.

[Jul]

posted this to the front page for you :D

[Nicola]

Looking forward to seeing it. Vikingscaper rocks! :bounce:

[JrMissToughChick]

Originally posted by Nicola
Looking forward to seeing it. Vikingscaper rocks! :bounce: Couldn't have said it better myself!

~JrMTC~

[grinner]

I think you do say it... as it is in your sig isn't it?

BTW... VikingScaper... unlike the Vikings... ROCKS.

[Shipscat]

Is the link not working or is it just me?

[grinner]

didn't work for me. They might have gone over their bandwidth again...

[harveywhispers]

His link doesn't work. Try the link in my sig, or JrMTC's sig & I'll get it fixed in his post.

[harveywhispers]

Problem resolved! The link in his original post now works.

[I-am-so-Johns-girl]

Thank you vikingscaper! This is such a great idea!:aok: Can't wait to see the map :D How many people have participated?:shrug: Is it enough to get an accurate picture of where we are in the world? ;)

[VBKatLou]

Thanks so much vikingscaper and good luck! Let us know if you need anything.

[grinner]

:cool::aok:

[vikingscaper]

Thanks everybody! I forgot to add that as I finish the databases for the maps, I am planning on posting them so people can see where Scapers are located although it won't be in map form.

On the number of particpants, there have been over 2,000 submissions so I feel that an accurate picture of where we are located throughout the world. I haven't been able to look at the numbers for the past couple of days because we have had relatives take over the room with our computer in it so I haven't been able to access the site. Since the said relatives departed rather abruptly today (it's a long story but you may hear about it over in the OT's) I now have access to the computer.

[grinner]

:woohoo: a story from VikingScaper... Hurrah... three cheers... Huzah huzah huzah

[vikingscaper]

Do you really want to hear the story? If so, I will post it in the OT's.

[grinner]

sure... would be interesting to hear about someone's Christmas time... eh???

Mine was... boring.

[fiona-maria]

VS, you rock totally.*grin*

Looking foward to seeing the map. Over 2,000 submissions? Man, o man, o man! Wow.

Fiona

[vikingscaper]

I just wanted to let everyone know that I believe that I am nearing the halfway point of the data sorting process! There was a total of 82 pages of submissions and I am now to page 41.

[harveywhispers]

vikingscaper originally posted
I just wanted to let everyone know that I believe that I am nearing the halfway point of the data sorting process! There was a total of 82 pages of submissions and I am now to page 41.

'bout time.............

*Just doing my part to keep him humble......:ewink: *

[dktigger]

VS, I was just wondering........can I be a purple colored dot? That is of course, if you haven't already "taken" purple for yourself.

Ha!
Dan

[grinner]

wow... how many names/people per page?

[vikingscaper]

There are 30 people per page.

[grinner]

wow... that is good number of people... what 2500 or so?

[vikingscaper]

Yeah, it comes out to about 2500 but sadly I have noticed some duplicates while going through the data so the number will most likely decrease.

[grinner]

that is still a good deal of people... :cool:

[vikingscaper]

All 82 pages of information are now in spreadsheet form!

[vikingscaper]

That last reply by me was pretty vague, so I will now post a more detailed reply.

As I mentioned, all 82 pages are ready for my sorting pleasure. I will first sort by country and then seperate out the various countries. From there, I will sort the info by state, province, etc. The results from this step will be used to make the final map. I will provide results as they come in.

[PrairieScaper]

I'll be interested to see how many countries are represented. Kudos for your dedication, vs. And data sorting -- better you than me, that's all I can say. :huh:

[vikingscaper]

The sorting shouldn't be too dificult since I know how to operate spreadsheets. Now if I had to do it with pen and paper, I would probably have to check myself into a mental institution.

[vikingscaper]

There are going to be a total 0f 41 countries represented on the map. The countries are as follows:

Australia
Austria
Bangladesh
Belgium
Bermuda
Brazil
Bulgaria
Canada
Denmark
Ecuador
Egypt
Estonia
Finland
France
Germany
Iceland
Ireland
Israel
Japan
Malta
Mexico
Netherlands
New Zealand
Norway
Panama
Peru
Poland
Puerto Rico
Romania
Singapore
Slovenia
South Africa
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
Trinidad
Turkey
United Kingdom
United States
Uzbekistan
Yugoslavia

[akimbo]

Originally posted by vikingscaper
The sorting shouldn't be too dificult since I know how to operate spreadsheets. Now if I had to do it with pen and paper, I would probably have to check myself into a mental institution.
:rollin:

41 countries? :cool:

This is gonna be very, very cool. Thanks for slogging through all those details!

Edited because my typing sucks!

[RescueFarscape]

Originally posted by akimbo

This is gonna be very, very cool. Thanks for slogging through all those details!




Ditto :aok:

[vhsiv]

Originally posted by akimbo
41 countries? Did the frellniks at USA/Skiffy realize how many folks they were alienating, when they cancelled the show?

Probably not.

I hope every one of those Scapers know who Michael Jackson and Barry Diller are. And that Universal and USA are part and parcel of the same big media conglomerate.

I'm not sayin', but...

[Riot Chik]

41 countries. Frelling cool . . .

[PrairieScaper]

41! What a reach FS has! Thanks for the info, vs.

And I'm glad that you're planning a future outside of a mental institution. It's good to have goals. :D

[vikingscaper]

The good thing about some of those countries is that some of them only have a few Scapers. The US, UK, Canada, and Australia have the most.

[Jubi Solo]

I'm no Vikings fan, but your Viking-Smiley-Face is cute as heck!!
Sunday is the big day :).

[JrMissToughChick]

41 cool

[harveywhispers]

Just a note.....vs brought the binder with ALL of the map info to our TC Scapers get together, and we were all in awe of the total amount of data he now has. It was such a powerful moment, when I had the chance to page through and look at 2,000 (+) people who all have this one common point of interest!

[chani]

41 :aok:

that´s a real WOW !! moment :D

and thanks for all the work vikingscaper


love
C.

[grapeshot]

This is truly awesome! Will there be a way to add 'Scapers to it in the future? Or is this a oneshot deal?

[harveywhispers]

He is considering making it an ongoing project, but that would involve the purchase of the software.

[vikingscaper]

As my sister said, I can purchase the mapping software so I can use it at home but the only problem is that it costs $1500. Right now I don't have that kind of money so for right now, I will still use the software at school.

[grapeshot]

$1,500??!!!? THAT'S A LOTTA DOUGH! Have you considered becoming a professional student --- so that we could keep using the software.

Just kidding.

[vikingscaper]

If I get the job that I have applied for (which pays much more than my current job), it should be much easier to save up for the software. No, I have no intentions of becoming a professional student.

[Susana]

Perhaps you should petition the savefarscape.com WMR fund to help with the purchase. I would think this type of information would be very useful to the campaign. Plus, what's the worse that could happen? They say no? And the best? They decided to foot the whole bill.

Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

[VBKatLou]

vikingscaper - are you saying this is a one-shot thing, or can you update on a scheduled basis. By that, I mean if people filled out the page at TC Scaper's site then could you gather that info and make updates say, every 4 - 5 months, or is the software you're talking about connected to the page where you fill out the info?

[janey_13]

Originally posted by VBKatLou
... is the software you're talking about connected to the page where you fill out the info?

The software VK is referring to is connected to the form that was on the TCS website. The form was connect to a simple database and VK exported the info out and into the mapping software.

[vikingscaper]

As I have said, I have access to the mapping software all this semester at school since I will be enrolled in classes. However, since this is my last semester, I won't have access to the computers at school anymore and that means no access to the mapping software. When classes start back up in two weeks, I am going to meet with my advisor to see if he knows of any places where I can get the software cheaper. I really would like to keep this project going on so I will do whatever it takes to do so.

[kechara420]

Originally posted by Susana
Perhaps you should petition the savefarscape.com WMR fund to help with the purchase. This is a good idea. Even if they were only willing to put up part of the money, I'm sure there are many of us who'd be willing to donate as well. Personally, I'd love to see this project continue and would be willing to donate towards getting the software.

[mgraylorn]

vikingscaper, some schools have deals with some software companies so that students can buy the software for a discount, as long as they are still students. Have you checked into that possibility?

There are also several mapping software packages, maybe not with all the features of what you are using, but you might be able to find a package that would do and would cost less.

What software are you using?

[vikingscaper]

I remember last Spring there was a deal on the software through one of the companies that offers discounted software to students. Being my typical stupid self, I didn't order it and now the company doesn't have the software.

[vikingscaper]

Before I had gone through all of the data, I had said that there were almost 2500 participants. Unless if I somehow lost some data, I came up with a total of 2,222 participants. I think that I will look through everything again to make sure that I didn't make any mistakes.

Anyways, here are the some numbers:

Country with the most participants: United States=1,685
Countries that follow:

United Kingdom: 188
Canada: 84
Australia: 66
Germany: 47

I think if I have any errors, it would probably be with the international countries. I will go through my binder of information to see if I may have missed a page.

[Roland]

This is cool viking! :) Thank's for the updates!

[kechara420]

Those are still very respectable numbers! Thanks again for all your hard work on this, vs!!! I look forward to seeing the finished project ...

[Afarscapefan]

Make that forty.

Honey! They shrank the universe! Eat it! Before it disappears.

Hope I don't get banned for raising this issue BUT one of the countries has been twinned! Frelling Kaarvok! Holland-Netherlands. Which is the original and which is the copy?

Er, vikingscaper, after all that hard work. You don't have to start all over again do you?

:(

[vikingscaper]

I fixed the Holland and the Netherlands error. Luckily there was only one person who put down Holland and it just blew right past me when I was going through the data at first.

[vikingscaper]

Actually, we still are at 41 because I forgot to put down one country....Malta.

[Afarscapefan]

Hooray for Malta. That means we are expanding again.

Awesome project vikingscaper:aok:

[vikingscaper]

While I really don't have anything of major importance to update at this point, I feel that I should let everbody know a few things.

First of all, Monday (January 26th) is my first day of classes for the semester. I will attempt to get onto the computers to start to get the maps produced but I may not have enough time to really get going on the maps tomorrow as I have to meet with my advisor and other things. If I do not get anything done tomorrow, I should have enough time throughout the rest of the week to get everything started.

Secondly, I believe that I will do at least one update of the map before the semester is over on May 7th. By doing this, it will allow those who weren't able to get their information in on time to be part of the map.

I will keep everybody updated on the progress of the maps as I am working on them.

vikingscaper

[JrMissToughChick]

Cool!!!

[vikingscaper]

I just thought that I would everyone know something! The Cartography class that I have semester has a section devoted entirely to making maps for the internet! I really wish that I would have taken this class a lot earlier in my college career because there will be a lot of things presented in the class that will make the map far superior!

[Mickie]

Isn't that the way things always seem to work??

Hopefully you'll be able to use the information, even if it does come late.

[mjwillia]

Your map will be awesome anyway!!!

[grinner]

Originally posted by vikingscaper
I just thought that I would everyone know something! The Cartography class that I have semester has a section devoted entirely to making maps for the internet! I really wish that I would have taken this class a lot earlier in my college career because there will be a lot of things presented in the class that will make the map far superior! I thought the map was going to be an ongoing thing for you? Or were you not able to get the software?

[vikingscaper]

Here is the deal! I was waiting to talk to my advisor today after my class and he was talking to another student about purchasing the software. I overheard him saying that the software company may offer student discounts on the desired software. So after I heard that, I emailed the company about the possibility of getting a discount on the software since I am still a student. I haven't received an email back from the company yet.

[dzelika]

if you ask your school bookstore to order it for you (of course with student discount), you can also deduct it from your taxes.

[harveywhispers]

dzelika...

That is just what I told him.

[Sunderflame]

Waiting in wonderment

[vikingscaper]

The software company has finally replied to my email! Here is the dealio: as a student, I can purchase the license for the software for $250 as long as I can prove that I am a current student.

[JrMissToughChick]

Cool

[harveywhispers]

So...you buying that software vs? Just kidding, I already know the answer to that question.


Now, the question becomes.....

How many Scapers would like to see the map project be an ongoing effort?

[Nicola]

Me!

[grinner]

Originally posted by vikingscaper
The software company has finally replied to my email! Here is the dealio: as a student, I can purchase the license for the software for $250 as long as I can prove that I am a current student. can you prove that you are a current student?

[harveywhispers]

Yes, he can prove that he is a current student.

[grinner]

well than, that is one hurdle crossed. Now he needs to rob a bank or something. :D

[harveywhispers]

Thank god he has such a nice sister!

[grinner]

ah... how nice of you. I bet you will make the boy pay in multiple little ways:D

[akimbo]

So would you like a little help clearing that bank robbing hurdle? I'll bet a few of us could pitch in and defray the costs a bit.

[vikingscaper]

It is time again for another update on the map progress.

Yesterday I was able to get half of the US mapped out (I was only able to do half because I have half of the data at school and half at home) and I am ready to start mapping the international portion. I have been toying around with the types of maps that I would like to do and I have determined that dot maps would not accomplish what I want to show as it would be way to cluttered. I have also been working on getting my tables cleaned up so they can be put up on the internet. I have to go now but I will finish the update later.

[UTChick]

You're doing an AWESOME job VS!!!! Thanks for taking it on - it'll be sooo cool to see the finished product!! Thanks again - your work is appreciated!!!:aok: :aok: :aok:

[BlackThorn]

Woohoo! To hear that it's getting close to making the transition from data points to something we can all look at is so exciting!

Thanks for everything, vs!

[vikingscaper]

Today, I spent my break working on the European portion of the map! I was able to get evrything in Europe mapped out and now I have to focus on the Americas, Australia, and the parts of Asia that has Scapers.

[ranger1]

bump! (can't wait to see the finished product!)

[fiona-maria]

You go, VikingScaper!*grin* HarveyWhispers, you are in there too!

Fiona, eagerly awaiting the map

[janey_13]

Hey, Fiona

I like your title :D

[vikingscaper]

A few things to update:

1. I am going to talk to my advisor tomorrow to see if he will type me up a letter so I can buy the software at the student price.

2. I was looking at my maps today and somehow they got frelled up. The good thing is that they won't be too hard to do over.

3. I have an announcement to make about the project but that will come when I am ready to say it ( I have to work out a few things yet before I tell anybody).

In the meantime, I will fix the maps and I will have the raw data available soon!

I forgot to mention that I have yet another secret about the project but like the other secret, I don't want to announce it yet. I will guarantee that it will be very popular!

[janey_13]

Originally posted by vikingscaper
2. I was looking at my maps today and somehow they got frelled up. The good thing is that they won't be too hard to do over.

3. I have an announcement to make about the project but that will come when I am ready to say it ( I have to work out a few things yet before I tell anybody).

In the meantime, I will fix the maps and I will have the raw data available soon!

I forgot to mention that I have yet another secret about the project but like the other secret, I don't want to announce it yet. I will guarantee that it will be very popular!

Don't do that to us! I'm terrible waiting for secrets! :D

[I-am-so-Johns-girl]

Secrets? We don't want no stinking secrets!:shutup: :headbang: :smash: :g2f: :lol
va.....you're too damn cute! ;) :hug2:

[SabaceanBabe]

Secrets, schmecrets. You can tell us, VS. We won't tell anyone. :D

[vikingscaper]

No! I can't tell now because I like to make people wait!

[La Bomba]

Originally posted by vikingscaper
No! I can't tell now because I like to make people wait!

*Whines annoyingly*:(

[vikingscaper]

:elol:

[La Bomba]

*Pouts, sticks out bottom lip, and stamps foot*:mad:

[dzelika]

oh, come on! we'll keep it a secret too.

[vikingscaper]

Today has been a very good day for me, primarily due to a couple of things that happened. First, I found out that I did better on a paper than I had originally thought. The second thing that happened was that FMD reached 6000 members!






I almost forgot something................. the raw map data is now uploaded to the net! There aren't any maps yet but they should be available by the end of next week. To see the data, click here (http://www.twincitiesscapers.com/map.html).

Enjoy!

[lasoiz]

Originally posted by vikingscaper
I almost forgot something................. the raw map data is now uploaded to the net! There aren't any maps yet but they should be available by the end of next week. To see the data, click here (http://www.twincitiesscapers.com/map.html).

Enjoy!

ARGH !! Vikingscaper you forget the Grand Forks commando !! Did you lost us in the middle of the 6000 scapers crowd ? :D


La Soiz’ Special Grand Forks Commando, Twin Cities Scapers Company, SaveFarscape Regiment.

[mjwillia]

That is an unbelieveable amount of work!

Awesome Job!

Great Job!

You are a god!

Thanks!!!!!!

PS... I would love to know who Pip_the_Cat is!

[vikingscaper]

La Soiz, don't worry I haven't forgotten you! The Grand Forks commando will be represented.

[vikingscaper]

I wanted to add that I am planning periodic updates to the data!

[njak]

Can't wait to see it VS!!

[harveywhispers]

Good job vs!! This is the last time I will praise you this month, as any further praise would put us over quota....;)