Since we introduced Kurator almost 4 months ago, our user-generated places system has been getting filled with well-curated data. Also it has been continually improved based on our plans and your suggestions.

We just released another update that improves the process of adding and verifying new places and awarding points to users. To get you updated on the many improvements, here is a simple FAQ.

Who can add places?
Any user can – Yup, no more barriers for new users. Now anyone can add, and it all goes to the Kurators for verification.

How do I add new cities and regions?
Use the searchbox to find any city or region in the world. If it’s not yet on Koprol, you can find it under ‘Add a place from Yahoo! Geo’. Just click ‘Add’ and it will immediately be active on Koprol without needing verification from Kurators.

How do I add new places that are not in Yahoo! Geo?
Use the searchbox to find a specific place, like a building, restaurant or shop. If it’s not yet on Koprol, you can click ‘Add New Place’ on the bottom of the page. You are required to fill in the name, category and address. Optionally you can fill all fields for better chance to get approval.

Where are the ‘parent place’?
Aha, old school user eh? We don’t use parent places anymore. All venues are now put directly under the city level. Just make sure you point correctly on the map.

How does a new place gets live?
After added by a creator, each place gets verified by a few eligible Kurators. Each Kurator will either edit and approve the entry, or reject if it’s a duplicate or bogus. If more Kurators approve of a new place, it will be sent back to the creator for final approval. If more Kurators reject, it gets dumped.

The creator gets to approve again?
Yes, after going through edits by the Kurators, each place is shown to the creator for final approval. If the edits are correct, the creator can approve and the place immediately gets live. If the edits are bad, the creator can reject and resubmit.

Can I verify on mobile?
No. Kurators can only verify new places on the full site.

How do I become a Kurator?
You have to get a certain amount of points. You get the points whenever you add a new place and it gets approved by the Kurators. So add lots of new, correct, accurate places if you want a chance to be a Kurator.

When do I get points and lose points?
You get points if you contribute good things, like when a place you added gets live, when a place you approve gets live, when a place you reject fails verification, etc.
You lose points if your contributions are not well received, like when a place you added fails verification, when a place you approve are rejected by others, when a place you reject gets approved by others, etc.
The amount of points is hidden to avoid users gaming the system as we are still making improvements to the algorithm.

Can I be dropped from being a Kurator?
Yes, it’s possible. You lose points when your new places gets rejected or when you verify incorrectly. If your total point goes below a secret threshold, you will not be a Kurator anymore. However you can still go back to be a Kurator again if you add correct places and get points.

Which places does a Kurator verify first?
Each Kurator gets to verify places that are near first. When there are no new places nearby, we offer them to verify places in other cities, and eventually other countries, to help out those in countries that don’t have many Kurators.

What to look for when verifying a place?
A good Kurator checks the validity of the place, accuracy of data, accuracy of the map location, and make sure there are no duplicates. There is a new tool at the bottom of the verification page to check for possible duplicates.

What do I do if I find a duplicate?
First, calm down and don’t panic. We a have a new report tool! Just go to one of the duplicate, and click ‘Report a duplicate’. You will need to type in the Place ID and the exact name of its duplicate. Your input will later be used by our system to merge the duplicates.

More questions, ask @kurator

Koprollers, we’re happy to introduce our biggest feature in the last few months. You’ve been able to suggest new places into Koprol, and wait for our approval. Now you can approve them yourself! Yes, we are giving the power to manage Koprol’s places to special users called Kurators.

Koprol is about verified places
Adding places is easy, but we don’t want to give you duplicates and bogus venues. We want valid places so it's easier to discover people around you. Now when places are being added, the Kurators collectively verify and edit them. This ensures you get better choice of places to check in to. What's fun, on each new place you can see who is responsible for creating and approving it.

Sample place page: hey, who approved this?

Become a Kurator
Anyone can be a Kurator. All you need to do is add new places and get enough of them approved by current Kurators. Once you reach a certain threshold you automatically become a Kurator and be able to verify new places. If you are successful at verifying, eventually you'll get to the next level and be able to edit the map and information of those new places.

Sample verification page: so is this a valid place?

Secret Formula
Users have different levels of privileges based on a secret algorithm that studies the quality of their activities like adding places, verifying places, writing reviews, etc. Those who get approved a lot and verify correctly will get more access to editing. Meanwhile, people who add invalid places and verify incorrectly will eventually be demoted down. The algorithm will be tweaked from week to week to get the best formula and award your contributions.

Add any place in the world!
One more good news. We used to have only 200 cities in Koprol, right? Well now you can add to any city in the world. Thanks to Yahoo! Geo Technologies, you can find millions of places in the world, including specific neighborhoods, and add specific venues.

Discover new & interesting places
The combination of Yahoo! Geo Technologies and our Kurator system is another big step in the direction of our mission to help people discover and share interesting places in the world. Go try it now! Search a place on Koprol. If we don’t have it you will see an ‘Add New Place’ button. Get enough places approved and you can be a Kurator

To learn more about Kurator, ask @kurator