Josh McMillan's dashboard

How is "Fred is in 94608" supposed to help me? Am I supposed to know what that means? Where is 94608? Using zip codes creates more problems than it solves. People can't easily understand zip codes, unless you're a postal worker that is. As illustrated above, the zip code has no meaning to anyone not familiar with it. In fact, zip codes causes more confusion, and thus harm to the service, than a simple distance.

mkb, you raise an interesting point regarding determining distance via your location. Maybe the easiest way to solve the problem would be to display a "Nearest City" level to people who are not signed in, yet those who are signed in recieve the "Distance from your location" level. Or maybe something totally different could be used. But please, don't use zip codes!

I both agree and disagree with you on this subject. On one hand, I find the City privacy level a bit laughable seeing as how I live in the country and a "City" privacy level doesn't do me much good. On the other hand I don't like the thought of adding a privacy level for this or that. Once you start adding privacy levels, as with anything, where do you put a stop to it?

But now that I rethink the issue, I have pretty much the same thoughts as you, with one difference :) Don't add another level, just change the City privacy level to a distance level (something like 10miles, 5miles, 1mile).

I don't see the need to create another privacy level. The three privacy levels that exist now, Hidden, City, & Exact, cover the basic privacy needs of everyone. Why add another level just so that you can see where your friends are? IF they wanted you to know where they were they would have set the checkin to public.