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About Spotobe

So What Is Spotobe?

Whether you're looking to visit Central Pennsylvania, move here or already live here, bookmark this site to keep up with what's going on in the region. Spotobe aggregates all the events—from concerts to exhibitions to hockey games, and much more—so you can view all your options in one convenient place.

In other words, if there's a spot to be, you will find out about it on Spotobe.

You can even save your favorite spots, so each time you come back, you'll have a shortcut to the venues, attractions and restaurants that you want to remember. Be sure to check back often, as it's constantly being updated with new and exciting things to do, people to meet and places to see!

Frequently Asked Questions

General Questions

  1. Q: What does Spotobe mean?
    A: Spotobe is short for "the spot to be." We're not here to place judgments on what's hot and what's not; we just do our best to report on all area events and happenings. It's up to you to decide what's worth checking out.
  2. Q: Is there a charge to register with Spotobe?
    A: NO! This site is completely free; it's intended to help locals, visitors and prospective residents find all the great things to do and see here in Central Pennsylvania.
  3. Q: What do you do with my registration information?
    A: We absolutely respect your privacy. We do not sell or rent your email address. Please review our privacy policy to see the lengths we go to, just to ensure a safe and private user experience on Spotobe.

Events

  1. Q: I'm having trouble finding the type of events I want. Is there a trick to searching events?
    A: We've tried really hard to make it easy to search for events on Spotobe. Here are a few tips:
    • Check both the "upcoming" and "ongoing" sections. Upcoming events occur only once or for fewer than seven consecutive days. Ongoing events—like a museum exhibit—run for seven days or longer. Events have been split into these two types so that when you search by date, you don't see the same event over and over. However, you will want to search both sections to find everything happening on any given day.
    • Use the map tool. It's a quick way around searching upcoming events. When you open the area map, you can use the scroll bar at the top to select a date range, and you'll see everything happening within the selected radius of your ZIP code. See Map questions below for more information.
    • Try some different search terms. Every event in the Spotobe system contains multiple "tags" that describe the event fully. Tagging creates a smarter search so that even when an event title isn't perfectly clear, you should still be able to locate it. For example, a Hershey Bears hockey game title might just say Ottawa at Hershey. Since it's tagged with words like "hockey," "ice hockey," "ice," "sports," "Giant Center" and "winter," any of those search terms will return the Ottawa at Hershey game.
  2. Q: What are related event searches?
    A: Related event searches produce events that are similar to the one you're viewing. It's our way of suggesting more spots that might be of interest to you.
  3. Q: How do I reset my search?
    A: Look for a gray circle with an "x" in it at the far right of the search bar. Click this to clear what's there and start a new search.
  4. Q: How can I be updated about upcoming events?
    A: Click the "subscribe" link at the bottom of the site to set up your own custom RSS feed. You can choose what kind of events you want and even how far in the future you want to be notified. See the Subscribe section below for more in-depth information.
  5. Q: Can I filter results within a particular events category?
    A: Click on a category, then type some text in the search field above the events. Presto! Your results will be filtered by relevant tags and keywords.
  6. Q: How do I unselect an event category while searching?
    A: If you've selected a category, you'll see a large red "X" next to it. When you are done with the category, just click the red "X" and you'll see events in all categories again.

Locations

  1. Q: I'm having trouble finding the type of locations I want. Do you have any tips for searching locations?
    A: We've tried really hard to make it easy to search for locations on Spotobe. We realized that restaurant names don't always clearly identify what type of food is served and general categories don't always describe what type of restaurant it is (e.g., Does it have a bar or patio seating? Is it family-friendly?).

    That's why every location in the Spotobe system contains multiple "tags" to describe the location more fully, such as, "Italian," "pasta," patio seating," "bar" and "non-smoking." Tagging creates a smarter search so that even when a location name doesn't tell you enough, you should still be able to find the types of places you're looking for.
  2. Q: What are related location searches?
    A: Related location searches produce locations that are similar to the one you're viewing. It's our way of suggesting more spots that might be of interest to you.
  3. Q: How do I reset my search?
    A: Look for a gray circle with an "x" in it at the far right of the search bar. Click this to clear what's there and start a new search.
  4. Q: Can I filter results within a particular location category?
    A: Click on a category, then type some text in the search field above the events. Presto! Your results will be filtered by relevant tags and keywords.
  5. Q: How do I unselect a location category while searching?
    A: If you've selected a category, you'll see a large red "X" next to it. When you are done with the category, just click the red "X" and you'll see locations in all categories again.

My Spots

  1. Q: What are "My Spots"?
    A: "My Spots" is the short way of saying "my favorite-things-to-do-and-best-places-to-be lists." We thought that maybe since you were spending your valuable time finding events and locations that interest you, you might want to save them. Then, next time you log in you'll be able to find what you like without starting your search all over. Plus, you can make multiple lists, share your lists or a single event or location with family and friends, and download items on your My Spots list to your calendar or address book quickly and easily.
  2. Q: Can I send a list to more than one person at a time?
    A: Of course. Just use a semi-colon to separate each email address.
  3. Q: Oops! I deleted my list accidentally. Can you get it back for me?
    A: So you ignored the warning messages. Sorry to say, but those are there because we cannot retrieve a list once you've deleted it. Don't fret, you can make a new list in no time!
  4. Q: What do the "E" and "L" circles mean next to the category icon?
    A: Nothing tricky—those just help identity whether an item is an Event (E) or Location (L).
  5. Q: How do I create a new list?
    A: Creating a new list is easy. When you're logged in and looking at your My Spots page, just click "New List" at the top of the current list. A new list will open. Name it and get busy finding favorites to add to it.
  6. Q: Can anyone see my list(s)?
    A: Each list has its own URL with a unique code identifier, making it difficult for someone to stumble upon your list. That said, theoretically anyone can see your list. Rest assured, your email address is kept private, and we currently provide no way for anyone to search for lists. If we do incorporate some of this functionality in the future, we'll always keep your privacy concerns at the forefront.

Area Map

  1. Q: What does the area map do?
    A: The area map gives you a birds-eye view of what's happening in your area. Just slide the timeline picker and watch events appear! You can zoom in and out with the tool in the upper right and click on an event at any time to get more details.

Subscribe

  1. Q: What does "subscribe" mean?
    A: You may recognize the orange icon from many of your favorite websites and blogs. It's the universal "feed" icon, representing content in any format — text, photos, audio, video. You can use a feed reader to subscribe for free and read, listen or view content.
  2. Q: Why is this a good thing?
    A: Technology advancements in online publishing have made it really easy to keep track of your favorite websites and blogs, without having to check each site manually or clutter your email inbox. You can now streamline your online experience by subscribing to specific content feeds, combining this information in one place to be read when you're ready. Subscribing to feeds makes it possible to review a large amount of online content in a very short time.
  3. Q: So who publishes feeds anyway?
    A: A lot of the big names on the web offer content feeds including USATODAY.com, BBC News Headlines, ABCNews, CNET, Yahoo!, Amazon.com, and eBay. Additionally, millions of people who write content on the Internet publish feeds to keep themselves better connected to their readers.
  4. Q: That's great, so how do I start consuming feeds?
    A: To get started, you'll need a feed reader. Feed readers come in two different flavors: software applications you install on your computer or web-based services you access through your web browser. Both types allow you to subscribe to and read syndicated content from various external sources in one consolidated view. Most are free; some you must purchase. Sometimes they're referred to as feed aggregators, or simply, aggregators. In some cases, you may want software that is targeted towards specialized types of content. For instance, you may want to use specialized software for event feeds that integrates with your calendaring program like Outlook for PC or iCal for Mac. Check the list below for some of our recommendations.

    Web-based Feed Readers Software-based Feed Readers Calendar Software
    • Apple iCal
      For Macintosh OSX users, iCal comes pre-loaded and offers calendar subscriptions with a color-coded interface. To subscribe, open iCal and choose "Calendar" from the menu bar. Then choose the "Subscribe" option. Enter the iCalendar URL from above and click "Subscribe".
    • Microsoft Outlook (requires an add-on such as Remote Calendars)
      Microsoft Outlook is a popular collaboration tool and is part of the Microsoft Office suite of software products. However, it does not have built in subscription support. For that you will need to look to a software product called Remote Calendars. Its free, but requires you to install it.

Miscellaneous

  1. Q: I still have questions. How can I get in touch with someone at Spotobe?
    A: If you can't find an answer to your question here in the FAQ section, please feel free to contact us and ask. Please be patient with us, though, as we are not yet staffed to handle a large volume of inquiries.
  2. Q: I want to list an event. How can I get it on Spotobe?
    A: Spotobe was designed to allow area businesses, organizations and government agencies to publish events. If you fall into one of these categories, you can apply for access to post your events in our system. If you do not fall into one of these categories, or if your events happen very infrequently, you can submit events by email to the Spotobe editor. Note: We need all the juicy details our fabulous users expect. So, if you're submitting an event, be sure to include the title, location, time, description and cost, along with your contact information. That’s the bare minimum; the more information you can provide, the more valuable the listing will be to your fellow spotobeings. Please note: in order to meet the needs of our members and our goals for the site, all events are posted at the discretion of our editor. What that means is: We can’t promise that every submission will go on the site as written — or at all — but we’ll do our best.
  3. Q: I want to list my location. How can I get it on Spotobe?
    A: The same rules apply here (see above re: submitting events). To get your location listed, you need to give us plenty of information, including the location’s name, address, telephone number, website and a description. Again, the more information you give us, the better the listing will be. IMPORTANT NOTE: Our goal is to deliver an insider's guide to Central PA and, therefore, we retain editorial control of the content on Spotobe. What that means is: The more "real" and interesting your submission is, the more likely it will be posted intact. We can’t promise to publish every submission verbatim, nor can we promise that every submission will be posted. (For instance, "we challenge you to find better wings anywhere around" is infinitely better than "the best wings on the planet." Keep it real and you'll have no problem.)