Comments on: Calculate your neighborhood’s Walk Score http://ajkandy.wordpress.com/2008/05/13/calculate-your-neighborhoods-walk-score/ everything in its right place. Fri, 22 Aug 2008 00:18:20 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=MU hourly 1 By: ad http://ajkandy.wordpress.com/2008/05/13/calculate-your-neighborhoods-walk-score/#comment-139 ad Wed, 09 Jul 2008 14:46:46 +0000 http://ajkandy.wordpress.com/?p=59#comment-139 Whoo-hoo! 82/100! If it's on the IntraWeb, it must be true. Whoo-hoo! 82/100!
If it’s on the IntraWeb, it must be true.

]]> By: Cameron http://ajkandy.wordpress.com/2008/05/13/calculate-your-neighborhoods-walk-score/#comment-117 Cameron Tue, 20 May 2008 17:47:17 +0000 http://ajkandy.wordpress.com/?p=59#comment-117 AJ, our old hood scores a 28.. AJ, our old hood scores a 28..

]]> By: mare http://ajkandy.wordpress.com/2008/05/13/calculate-your-neighborhoods-walk-score/#comment-110 mare Fri, 16 May 2008 04:15:10 +0000 http://ajkandy.wordpress.com/?p=59#comment-110 Another problem is that Québec businesses often have a really bad web presence. Either they have no site at all or just a business card site with a PDF folder, only in French and made 6 years ago. Another problem is that Québec businesses often have a really bad web presence. Either they have no site at all or just a business card site with a PDF folder, only in French and made 6 years ago.

]]> By: ajkandy http://ajkandy.wordpress.com/2008/05/13/calculate-your-neighborhoods-walk-score/#comment-108 ajkandy Wed, 14 May 2008 15:47:21 +0000 http://ajkandy.wordpress.com/?p=59#comment-108 Hm! Well that I think falls under the limitations of where it's pulling its data from. I guess you can't believe everything you read on the Internets...or maybe Google needs to learn to read French to enhance its database of businesses up here. Hm! Well that I think falls under the limitations of where it’s pulling its data from. I guess you can’t believe everything you read on the Internets…or maybe Google needs to learn to read French to enhance its database of businesses up here.

]]> By: Blork http://ajkandy.wordpress.com/2008/05/13/calculate-your-neighborhoods-walk-score/#comment-104 Blork Wed, 14 May 2008 02:43:25 +0000 http://ajkandy.wordpress.com/?p=59#comment-104 Well, most of the stuff I list is less than a kilometre from Chez Nous, which I consider to be walkable. It's true that the density is low here but my issue is with the fact that the mashup completely ignored all those businesses. Obviously it's not on the same level as the Plateau or Mile-End, but the mashup was listing grocery stores 10 and 12 km away, but not the Provigo that's a seven minute walk away. It was also listing cafes and restaurants that would take an hour to get to by bus, but not the one that's half a km away! (It's an independent, whereas the mashup sure snagged the Starbucks and Tim Hortonses.) Well, most of the stuff I list is less than a kilometre from Chez Nous, which I consider to be walkable. It’s true that the density is low here but my issue is with the fact that the mashup completely ignored all those businesses.

Obviously it’s not on the same level as the Plateau or Mile-End, but the mashup was listing grocery stores 10 and 12 km away, but not the Provigo that’s a seven minute walk away. It was also listing cafes and restaurants that would take an hour to get to by bus, but not the one that’s half a km away! (It’s an independent, whereas the mashup sure snagged the Starbucks and Tim Hortonses.)

]]> By: ajkandy http://ajkandy.wordpress.com/2008/05/13/calculate-your-neighborhoods-walk-score/#comment-103 ajkandy Tue, 13 May 2008 22:40:13 +0000 http://ajkandy.wordpress.com/?p=59#comment-103 It does seem that if the place in question has low or poor Googlerank, or no phone book / Yellow Pages listings, then they're less likely to get indexed. There seem to be some lessons in 'ambient findability' here. I wonder how many 'missing' businesses were hoodwinked into having all-Flash websites or have old sites where the text is all image-based? There's nothing wrong with having a basic 'businesscard site' -- it just has to be properly indexable and have text that search engine spiders can classify. As to your neighborhood's low score, I'm surprised that you are surprised. <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=10+Forant&sll=45.539286,-73.478944&sspn=0.011783,0.023732&ie=UTF8&ll=45.541405,-73.479073&spn=0.011783,0.023732&t=h&z=16&iwloc=cent" rel="nofollow">The immediate neighborhood for blocks around is solidly suburban single-family residential</a> with a smattering of low-rise apartments, and it's framed at the corner of two very wide and busy boulevards / highways. If they're judging this by the 5-minute-walk-radius rule, i.e. approximately 3 football fields' radius given a human average walking speed of 3mph, then there doesn't seem to be very much in the way of commerce and services around your home, besides schools and parks. My neighborhood is somewhat similar (plus, it's semi-industrial in bits) but it's saved solely by all the businesses on Notre-Dame, for what it's worth! It does seem that if the place in question has low or poor Googlerank, or no phone book / Yellow Pages listings, then they’re less likely to get indexed.

There seem to be some lessons in ‘ambient findability’ here. I wonder how many ‘missing’ businesses were hoodwinked into having all-Flash websites or have old sites where the text is all image-based?

There’s nothing wrong with having a basic ‘businesscard site’ — it just has to be properly indexable and have text that search engine spiders can classify.

As to your neighborhood’s low score, I’m surprised that you are surprised. The immediate neighborhood for blocks around is solidly suburban single-family residential with a smattering of low-rise apartments, and it’s framed at the corner of two very wide and busy boulevards / highways.

If they’re judging this by the 5-minute-walk-radius rule, i.e. approximately 3 football fields’ radius given a human average walking speed of 3mph, then there doesn’t seem to be very much in the way of commerce and services around your home, besides schools and parks.

My neighborhood is somewhat similar (plus, it’s semi-industrial in bits) but it’s saved solely by all the businesses on Notre-Dame, for what it’s worth!

]]> By: Blork http://ajkandy.wordpress.com/2008/05/13/calculate-your-neighborhoods-walk-score/#comment-102 Blork Tue, 13 May 2008 21:23:24 +0000 http://ajkandy.wordpress.com/?p=59#comment-102 Apparently not. Let me try again: You get what you pay for with free mashups like this. While I didn't expect my 'hood to score very highly, its ranking of 20/100 is misleading. The mashup missed a ton of stuff, including: - Two major grocery stores (Loblaw's and Provigo) - A huge "natural products" store (Avril) - A depanneur that specializes in Quebec microbrews and imported beers - A cremerie that serves Coaticook ice cream - A cafe that pulls perhaps the best espresso on the south shore - An entire shopping center that has a Wal-mart (bleh, yet how could they miss it?) a Chez Cora, a Canadian Tire, and other such things - Several banks - An awesome park that has ski trails, tobogganing hill, and live deer roaming freely. All that, and more, is a few minutes' walk from my house, yet none of it shows up on the mashup. Apparently not. Let me try again:

You get what you pay for with free mashups like this. While I didn’t expect my ‘hood to score very highly, its ranking of 20/100 is misleading.

The mashup missed a ton of stuff, including:

- Two major grocery stores (Loblaw’s and Provigo)
- A huge “natural products” store (Avril)
- A depanneur that specializes in Quebec microbrews and imported beers
- A cremerie that serves Coaticook ice cream
- A cafe that pulls perhaps the best espresso on the south shore
- An entire shopping center that has a Wal-mart (bleh, yet how could they miss it?) a Chez Cora, a Canadian Tire, and other such things
- Several banks
- An awesome park that has ski trails, tobogganing hill, and live deer roaming freely.

All that, and more, is a few minutes’ walk from my house, yet none of it shows up on the mashup.

]]> By: ajkandy http://ajkandy.wordpress.com/2008/05/13/calculate-your-neighborhoods-walk-score/#comment-100 ajkandy Tue, 13 May 2008 20:50:00 +0000 http://ajkandy.wordpress.com/?p=59#comment-100 98? Wow. yeah, it's hard to beat older cities for that. I agree, it's likely language barrier issues that prevent proper classification for Montreal. I'd otherwise expect my hood to be in the 70s at least. 98? Wow. yeah, it’s hard to beat older cities for that. I agree, it’s likely language barrier issues that prevent proper classification for Montreal. I’d otherwise expect my hood to be in the 70s at least.

]]> By: zura http://ajkandy.wordpress.com/2008/05/13/calculate-your-neighborhoods-walk-score/#comment-99 zura Tue, 13 May 2008 20:30:38 +0000 http://ajkandy.wordpress.com/?p=59#comment-99 Oh interesting, though I am a couple streets over <a href="http://www.walkscore.com/get-score.php?street=595+rue+richmond%2C+montreal%2C+qc&go=Go" rel="nofollow">I'm at 62/100.</a> Oh interesting, though I am a couple streets over I’m at 62/100.

]]> By: Frank http://ajkandy.wordpress.com/2008/05/13/calculate-your-neighborhoods-walk-score/#comment-98 Frank Tue, 13 May 2008 18:10:22 +0000 http://ajkandy.wordpress.com/?p=59#comment-98 The house I grew up in got a score of 75 and our previous residence in Chicago got a 98. Though our place here only gets a 38. On the upside, my office gets a 68. Maybe I should install a bed. I'd venture a guess that addresses in the US will get higher scores since the places that add to the score are likely better documented. The house I grew up in got a score of 75 and our previous residence in Chicago got a 98. Though our place here only gets a 38. On the upside, my office gets a 68. Maybe I should install a bed.

I’d venture a guess that addresses in the US will get higher scores since the places that add to the score are likely better documented.

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