# Guests and location field **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [January 14, 2009, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guests-and-location-field/481208 "2009-01-14T04:10:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2009, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guests-and-location-field/481208/1 "2009-01-14T04:10:51Z")
I know that the location field is one of the benefits retained for membership, but could it perhaps be taken under consideration to allow this feature for guests as well? It seems to me that a suprising amount of questions and discussions on the boards would be helped out by knowing where someone resides in meatspace. Of course not everyone uses that feature seriously (including myself at times) but I think knowing where someone is, even generally, can help narrow down a lot of answers. If not that’s cool too, just an idea. ---
**Author:** ![Yookeroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yookeroo/32/323_2.png) [@Yookeroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yookeroo)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2009, 7:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guests-and-location-field/481208/2 "2009-01-14T07:55:22Z")
> [@Cluricaun](#): > > I know that the location field is one of the benefits retained for membership, but could it perhaps be taken under consideration to allow this feature for guests as well? It seems to me that a suprising amount of questions and discussions on the boards would be helped out by knowing where someone resides in meatspace. Of course not everyone uses that feature seriously (including myself at times) but I think knowing where someone is, even generally, can help narrow down a lot of answers. > > If not that’s cool too, just an idea. I agree. I don’t even see how this is a benefit for members. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2009, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guests-and-location-field/481208/3 "2009-01-14T14:25:38Z")
Another vote in favor. I was recently checking responses in a thread for locations to see if any of the people posting were from Pennsylvania, and was immensely frustrated since more than half of them were “guests.” Several of them were old-timers, so I had a clue, but I was definitely grumbling. ---
**Author:** ![fachverwirrt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/94ad74/32.png) [@fachverwirrt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fachverwirrt)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2009, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guests-and-location-field/481208/4 "2009-01-14T14:36:17Z")
It would be nice if we could get our post counts, too. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2009, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guests-and-location-field/481208/5 "2009-01-14T14:51:13Z")
**Ed Zotti** recently addressed this in another thread. Here is his reply. > [@Soooo... do you want me to pay or not?](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/soooo-do-you-want-me-to-pay-or-not/480640/10): > > Jerry was of the view that, till ad revenue kicks in (any day now, I’m sure), we should give people some modest incentive to subscribe. So no guest post counts and location for now. Or profile pix either. I agree with others that as a paying member I would like to see Guest have these fields but it sounds like eventually they will. ---
**Author:** ![Yookeroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yookeroo/32/323_2.png) [@Yookeroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yookeroo)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2009, 6:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guests-and-location-field/481208/6 "2009-01-15T06:13:58Z")
> [@Ed\_Zotti](#): > > Jerry was of the view that, till ad revenue kicks in (any day now, I’m sure), we should give people some modest incentive to subscribe. So no guest post counts and location for now. This is just stupid. Knowing location and post counts is beneficial to those of us reading someone’s posts. It’s not incentive to pay. I know my own location and have a general idea of how often I post. Being able to show this info is helpful to those reading my posts. not being able to show this puts me out not at all. The incentives are backwards. Being able to see location and post counts (only after paying) would make much better incentives. ---
**Author:** ![seodoa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4af34b/32.png) [@seodoa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/seodoa)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2009, 7:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guests-and-location-field/481208/7 "2009-01-15T07:12:45Z")
You can just look at their profile and it appears there, whether they are a paying subscriber or not. That always has seemed a little silly to me. It doesn’t really hinder the guest at all because he can still use the feature. It does, however, annoy everyone else who has to individually open profiles to see location info. (post count means very little to me, but I can see how some people would like to see it) ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2009, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guests-and-location-field/481208/8 "2009-01-15T14:06:09Z")
> [@seodoa](#): > > You can just look at their profile and it appears there, whether they are a paying subscriber or not. That always has seemed a little silly to me. Not for everyone – I think it’s only people who had an acct. before PTP. I know that many new guests have no info at all in their profiles. ---
**Author:** ![seodoa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4af34b/32.png) [@seodoa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/seodoa)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2009, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guests-and-location-field/481208/9 "2009-01-15T14:21:24Z")
> [@twickster](#): > > Not for everyone – I think it’s only people who had an acct. before PTP. I know that many new guests have no info at all in their profiles. I don’t think this is true. I think the new guests with no info just didn’t write anything in. Allow me to cite [this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/member.php) guest profile registered in Nov 2008. ETA: Also, before I bought my subscription, nobody had any trouble reading my location in my profile. AETA: Sorry for using you like this, **Karyn** ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2009, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guests-and-location-field/481208/10 "2009-01-15T16:28:29Z")
> [@seodoa](#): > > I don’t think this is true. I think the new guests with no info just didn’t write anything in. Guess you’re right – and that I’ve proven once again what happens when you assume. ---
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2009, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guests-and-location-field/481208/11 "2009-01-16T04:00:36Z")
I didn’t realize it was a “benefit” for members. :rolleyes: Does this mean that my sig is against the rules? ---
**Author:** ![seodoa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4af34b/32.png) [@seodoa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/seodoa)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2009, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guests-and-location-field/481208/12 "2009-01-16T04:44:10Z")
Sir, I’m going to have to ask you to put down the sig and step away.