Phrase Detectives - The AnaWiki annotation game

FAQ: General

What is the purpose of the game?
Who should play the game?
I haven't played the game this week, how have I managed to score points?
What happens when I refer a friend?
Will the interface be available in other languages?
Will there be text in other languages?
Where did the site design come from?
I have a question, who can I contact?

FAQ: Submitting text

How do I submit my text?
What type of text can I submit?
What is the best format for the text?
How long should the text be?
I'm not sure if I should submit my text, what if it's wrong?
What happens to my text once you accept it?

FAQ: General

What is the purpose of the game?
Phrase Detectives is a "Game with a Purpose", meaning that the data we collect will be used to help improve computer systems. The data will be used to train anaphora resolution systems that can be used to improve text summarisation and search engine indexing, which will ultimately lead to a better Web experience for you.

Who should play the game?
The game is aimed at English speakers of all ages. Read the instructions and complete the training tasks to get a good idea of what you need to do.
You can also adjust your profile settings to match the level of texts you will be given. If you are a native English speaker then "medium" is usually the best setting.

I haven't played the game this week, how have I managed to score points?
You are awarded "agreement points" whenever another detective agrees with your decisions, which means you score points even when you're not playing!

What happens when I refer a friend?
When you refer a friend you will score extra points every time they go up a level.

Will the interface be available in other languages?
Yes, this is planned for 2009.

Will there be text in other languages?
Yes, this is planned for 2009.

Where did the site design come from?
The overall design was by Jon Chamberlain, using characters from iStockphoto. The medal icons were kindly provided by Larwick.

Who can I contact?
We appreciate feedback from the game, both positive and negative, which can be sent through the feedback page or to jchamb@essex.ac.uk
Get in contact

FAQ: Submitting text

How do I submit my text?
Send a sample of your text by email to jchamb@essex.ac.uk

What type of text can I submit?
You are welcome to submit stories, essays, reviews, blogs, web text etc. In fact almost anything that is in electronic format that has a theme and could be investigated.

What is the best format for the text?
Ideally the text should be in an unformatted .txt file in ASCII, however we can convert text from Microsoft Word or Open Office.

How long should the text be?
Each text should be at least more than 4 paragraphs, with no upper limit. We may want to just use a portion or selection of what you send us but we will keep you informed of what we decide.

I'm not sure if I should submit my text, what if it's wrong?
Each submitted text is reviewed for suitability for the game and we will provide feedback as to whether we can use it. unfortunately we can not provide detailed feedback on the content of the text.

What happens to my text once you accept it?
If your text is suitable we will contact you with a disclaimer giving us permission to use your text, as well as details as to what we will use. Once we have your permission we will process the text and add it to the game.
Get in contact

FAQ: Name the Culprit

I've made a mistake, how can I correct it?
Why do I get points for answers that are wrong?
Why can't I select the phrase I want to?
How can I get to the text at the beginning of the document?
Why are the hidden phrases so difficult to select?
Why doesn't the hidden phrase I select highlight immediately?

FAQ: Detectives Conference

What are agreement points?
I agreed with the previous detective's decision. Why didn't I get many points?
I disagreed with the previous detective's decision, why do I have to redo the decision?

FAQ: Prizes

What is the monthly prize?
What is the weekly prize?
How do I claim my prize?
Can I claim the prize in an alternative currency?

FAQ: Name the Culprit

I've made a mistake, how can I correct it?
The game is designed to filter out incorrect decisions by anonymously asking other detectives what they think. If you have made a mistake your decision will eventually be disregarded.

Why do I get points for answers that are wrong?
Your best answers will earn you more points the more that other detectives agree with you, potentially up to 10 times more, so putting the answers you think are right will earn you the most points in the long run.

Why can't I select the phrase I want to?
The most likely reason is that the automatic processing that detects the words and phrases has gone wrong and detected the wrong things. It may also be because some phrases are embedded in other phrases. You can write a comment about the phrase and skip to the next one if you can not select an appropriate referring phrase.

How can I get to the text at the beginning of the document?
Part of the game experience is to provide a "restricted context", by which we mean we only give you a set amount of text before and after the phrase. If you can't select the phrase because it has gone outside of this range then please write a comment and skip to the next phrase.

Why are the hidden phrases so difficult to select?
Unfortunately some texts have very in-depth phrases which means there are numerous embedded phrases to choose from. We are working on better ways to present this in the future.

Why doesn't the hidden phrase I select highlight immediately?
This is a bug in the game that we are fixing.
Get in contact

FAQ: Detectives Conference

What are agreement points?
If the phrase has several different decisions then other detectives will be asked what they think in Detectives Conference. If they agree with you then you will be awarded an agreement points.

I agreed with the previous detective's decision. Why didn't I get many points?
In this case it is likely that the decision was not agreed with by many other detectives. You score more points the more your decisions agree with other detectives.

I disagreed with the previous detective's decision, why do I have to redo the decision?
We would like you to correct the decision, this will score you agreement points in the future if detectives agree with you.
Get in contact

FAQ: Prizes

What is the monthly prize?
We are offering Amazon vouchers (£75, £50 and £25) for the 3 highest scorers in December 2008.

What is the weekly prize?
We will select an annotation at random made during the week and award a £15 Amazon voucher. The more decisions you make the greater chance you have of winning.

How do I claim my prize?
The prize will be emailed to the winner. You must include your email address when you register to claim the prize.

Can I claim the prize in an alternative currency?
Yes, please email us with your requirements if you are the winner.
Get in contact

Back to game