Arlington National Cemetery wants people to stop catching Pikachu on its hallowed ground; Washington Post, 7/12/16

Thomas Gibbons-Neff, Washington Post; Arlington National Cemetery wants people to stop catching Pikachu on its hallowed ground:

"“We do not consider playing ‘Pokémon Go’ to be appropriate decorum on the grounds of [Arlington National Cemetery]. We ask all visitors to refrain from such activity,” the cemetery’s Twitter account said Tuesday afternoon...

Arlington National Cemetery is the final resting place for more than 400,000 veterans and their families, according to the cemetery’s website. The cemetery holds funeral services Monday through Saturday at a rate of 3,000 per year. Many of the fallen from the United States’ recent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are buried in Section 60, their graves often adorned with their photos, notes from loved ones and empty beer bottles left by comrades.

The cemetery, in addition to discouraging Pokémon Go playing, also frowns upon running, bicycle riding and horseplay throughout its grounds."

Holocaust Museum to visitors: Please stop catching Pokémon here; Washington Post, 7/12/16

Andrea Peterson, Washington Post; Holocaust Museum to visitors: Please stop catching Pokémon here:

""Playing the game is not appropriate in the museum, which is a memorial to the victims of Nazism," Andrew Hollinger, the museum's communications director, told The Post. "We are trying to find out if we can get the museum excluded from the game."

The Holocaust Museum's plight highlights how apps that layer a digital world on top of the real one can create awkward situations, especially since the owners of the physical locations often cannot weigh in on how their spaces are being used...

Hollinger stressed that the museum is generally pro-technology and encourages visitors to use social media to share how their experiences with the exhibits moved them. "But this game falls very much outside that," he said."

Everything Librarians Need To Know About Pokemon Go!; Where We're Going, We Don't Need Shelves, July 2016

Where We're Going, We Don't Need Shelves; Everything Librarians Need To Know About Pokemon Go! :

[Kip Currier: Though the blogger's enthusiasm for welcoming Pokemon Go players to libraries is admirable, nothing in the post mentions ANY of the significant Pokemon Go privacy concerns that have been identified.]

"What does any of this have to do with libraries?

In the Pokemon Video Games, players catch and train Pokemon in order to compete at Gyms. Pokemon Gyms, in the Pokemon Universe, are places where trainers can compete and battle for prestige, earn badges, and make their Pokemon bigger, badder, and better.

In Pokemon Go, Gyms are attached to free, safe, public places that all players can get to.

This means us, the libraries.

Thousands of libraries across the country have been made virtual Gyms, and this has already caused an increase of foot traffic for our buildings, attracting teens and young adults who may not typically be library patrons. Personally, I believe this is a huge blessing. It opens doors for new patrons, it gives librarians the ability to make connections with a section of our demographics we don’t normally get the chance to talk to, and it gives us the opportunity to do some really, really fun programs and displays.

So what do I do with this information?

- Firstly, get the app! You can get it on any Android or Apple IOS smartphone. If you don’t have one, or aren’t comfortable with technology, grab a coworker who is and explore it together. You don’t need to be a fan of Pokemon or a fan of video games to explore and get an idea of what it looks like. It’s also important for you to find out if your library is a Gym or a Pokestop."

Girls Keep Out: Female Video Gamers Face Vile Abuse, Threats; Associated Press via New York Times, 3/12/16

Associated Press via New York Times; Girls Keep Out: Female Video Gamers Face Vile Abuse, Threats:

"IGDA's Edwards acknowledges that dealing with harassment is a difficult challenge. "You're dealing with minors versus adults," she says. "You're dealing with free speech issues. It's a struggle for companies to figure out exactly how to approach it."

And while Riot-style moderation might limit harassment, it's unlikely to solve the problem on its own. "This is a social and cultural problem, not a technological one," says Dmitri Williams, CEO of game analytics firm Ninja Metrics."