Where I've Been is in the crowded travel category of Facebook Applications, but developer Craig Ulliott has managed to climb to the top of the heap with an outstanding user interface. The premise of the application is not revolutionary: Remember once upon a time the guy who had a ten foot map of the world on his wall with pins in it for every where he had been? This is the Facebookization of that concept. You start with a grey map of the world, then click on the places you have visited, lived in, or want to visit. The map is color coded with your choices. It sounds silly, and simple but its actually pretty fun to watch your map come to life. The map appears on your profile page, where others can see where you've been. (Edit: You have to actually click on the map appearing on someone's profile to see where they have been)
Sweet Parts:
The user interface is clearly what separates Ulliott's application from the many others out there (TravBuddy, Locations, ect). Not only is the map visually very appealing once you throw some color on it, the "click, click, click" manner of changing the map is very intuitive, and plenty fast. Since I last saw the application the UI is much improved, and includes a cool zoom feature. There are now even more countries, and plans for states in additional places (Brazil and Russia).
Not As Sweet:
The map has been buggy at times. I have had my maps erased and forced to start over on more than one occasion. Its like writing a long email and having your computer freeze. You end up just sending a three sentence email instead of retyping. It seems more stable now. I think Ulliott was having hosting issues before that might have caused the problems. Looks like he has resolved that.
Monetization Possibility:
There is no advertising right now, or from what I can tell sponsorship. Ulliott posted on the developer board a few weeks ago pleading for help or suggestions on hosting. It seems he was facing $400 per month hosting bills and like many FB Platform developers was just doing this for fun. He put up a donation box that is gone now, so perhaps he has worked something out. His application has grown 1,000% since then. It would appear that an application like this would be a natural partnership for a web travel service like Expedia, Orbitz, or STA Travel, but especially an upstart travel company or maybe a niche marketer for a particular local (regional airlines, hotels, ect).
Is it Contagious:
Apparently so! The application is at just under 1.5 million users making it one of the 20 most popular applications on the Facebook Platform, and as noted earlier, the most popular application in the travel category. Its also spreading very quickly as evidenced by the Appaholic graph. It is interesting that the application is growing as fast as it is since it does not really involve much in the way of interaction among users. Its just an expression of the owner...a profile decoration if you will. Clearly its popular because it is so well done, and because it taps in to that need people have to tell something about themselves. Where we have been, and perhaps where we are going next is a popular past-time., especially among frequent travelers. (Credit Appaholic for the graph)
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Edit: Today the guys over at Inside Facebook have posted a summary of several of the Facebook travel applications including Where I've Been. They came to the same conclusion we did, Where I've Been is the clubhouse leader among the current travel apps. Updated 7/14/07
Is It Contagious reviews Facebook Applications and Services. It is written by Nic Franklin
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By Nic Franklin
