Gotta put this in my “strange but strangely compelling” file…. you can go to http://www.lkozma.net/wpv/index.html and get a Google Map with constantly-changing icons marking anonymous users, where they are around the world, and the pages they’re editing.

The map icons show the pages being edited with a link, summary (if the person editing posted one), location, and when the edit was made. I just sat there and looked for a while — I saw several countries represented and all kinds of topics.

I like tools like this because they put a nice element of randomness in my brain — pages and topics presented with no context or introduction. It’s like a mint for my skull.

Wow, I worked too late today I think. Anyway, this map does not show all Wikipedia edits — only anonymous edits, which have IP addresses. Not all anonymous edits are included (or else the map would be flickering with all the edits constantly going on) and the location may not be absolutely correct. Check out the FAQ for more details. Now I’m going to go stare at the screen for a while…