KinectUs FAQs
What is KinectUs™?
KinectUs™ is an on-demand social app that allows you to find others who are nearby and up for the same activity right now – like have lunch, meet for coffee, or go for a run – all while protecting your privacy.Who is KinectUs™ for?
Everyone! KinectUs™ is ideal for socially active individuals, new residents, young professionals, travelers, groups seeking to better connect members (alumni networks, running clubs, business groups, etc.), colleges and companies seeking to strengthen internal networks, just to name a few. Anybody who wants to connect for a social activity can benefit from using KinectUs™.What is the benefit of using KinectUs™?
Let's say it is Friday night and you are up for seeing a movie. You could call or text all of your contacts one by one, but that could take a lot of time (and you wouldn't have the opportunity to meet new people). You could use social media to post a message, but then everyone in your network would know and you might get a response from someone you just don't want to see right now.KinectUs™ does all the work for you and allows you to easily search for friends and others who are nearby and up for the same thing right now. And it allows you to be 'socially selective' by allowing you to choose only those people you want to see right now. If any of them choose you too, then you are instantly connected.
Simple, efficient and keeps you in control.
What activities does KinectUs™ currently coordinate?
KinectUs™ coordinates a variety of social activities including:Sip (meet for coffee)
Eat (grab something to eat)
Drink (have a cocktail)
Watch (catch a movie)
Listen (listen to live music)
Learn (visit a museum or attend a cultural event)
Run (find a running partner)
Play (play tennis, basketball, etc.)
Anything (any of the activities, or chat to come up with another one)
Can you explain in simple terms how "mutual selection" works?
Social relationships are complex. Let's face it – sometimes you want to meet up with someone, and sometimes you don't (even close friends). It might depend on what activity you want to do, who is with you, where you are, or how long it has been since you saw someone. You might be up for a coffee with Bob right now, but you might not want to see a movie with him later.KinectUs™ allows you to browse profiles and select only those users you would be up for meeting for a particular activity right now; if any of those users also choose you then you are connected in a chat session so you can make plans. This 'mutual selection' requirement ensures that both users are up for meeting for an activity right now
Each time you use KinectUs you can select who you want to see based on how you feel right now.
Why do some of my icons turn blue in the menu?
This feature lets you know if someone is interested in meeting for an activity. If someone sees you in their search results and anonymously selects you for an activity, the activity icon in your menu will turn blue (and a blue indicator bar will also appear at the top of the menu). True to KinectUs™ privacy protection, the person is not revealed to you just yet. But if you search that activity and select that person, you will be instantly connected with them and provided a chat session to make your plans.What are "Notifications" in my profile area?
If you are anonymously selected by someone for an activity, icons in your menu will always turn blue (see "Why do some of my icons turn blue in the menu?") If you’d like, you can also receive a message notification that someone has anonymously selected you. How often you get a message can be customized in your profile area. Set it to “All”, and every time someone anonymously selects you you will receive a message. Set it to “None”, you will never receive a message (but icons still turn blue). Set it to "First", and you will only receive a notification the first time one of the icons turns blue after the menu has reset*.*The menu is 'reset' when no icons remain blue. Each icon individually turns 'off' when it is searched or after a period of time has elapsed and it has expired.
How does KinectUs™ protect my privacy?
- Browse privately - only those who mutually select each for an activity are connected to chat.
- All successful connections automatically expire in approximately 24 hours.
- Locations are not displayed on maps.
- Profiles include minimal content and displayed distances and search times are only generalized.
- KinectUs™ does not post to your social media account.
- Leveraging privacy principles called “K-Anonymity” search results may occasionally include people who are not actually around and up for the same activity right now.
What is K-Anonymity? Why are profiles of people who are not actually around or up for the same activity right now occasionally mixed in my search results?
Our first priority is to protect everyone's privacy. If a friend sees your profile in their search results we don't want them to be 100% certain you are actually nearby and up for a particular activity. Why?- You just might not want a particular person knowing that you are nearby and want to go dancing right now.
- If you both are 100% certain that you are both nearby, you might feel undue pressure to select them (even if you just don't want to see that person right now).
- If you both are 100% certain that you are both nearby, if you don't select that friend they might feel rejected if they choose you but you don't choose them in return.
So while our goal is promote more real social interactions with friends, we do so in a manner that protects everyone's privacy. This approach is based on established privacy research principles called "K-Anonymity". You can perform a Web search to learn more.