TypeRacer
Type of site | Multiplayer online game |
|---|---|
| Founder(s) | Alex Epshteyn |
| URL | play |
| Commercial | Yes |
| Registration | Free |
| Launched | March 2008 |
| Current status | Online |
TypeRacer is a multiplayer online browser-based typing game. It was launched in March 2008 and claims to be the first multiplayer typing game on the web.[1]
History
TypeRacer was launched by programmer Alex Epshteyn, working on his own, using the OpenSocial API and the Google Web Toolkit.[2] Epshteyn was inspired by teaching himself to touch type with a shareware Windows program that lacked a multiplayer mode. He describes himself as not a hardcore gamer, and had never played other multiplayer typing games such as The Typing of the Dead. He has, however, since been contacted by a former Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing engineer, who expressed approval of TypeRacer.[3] Epshteyn holds a Master's degree in Computer Science from UMass Amherst and was an intern at Google in 2005.[4]
TypeRacer was listed among PC Magazine's Top 100 Undiscovered Web Sites of 2008.[5]
Overview
Site users compete by racing miniature cars that advance as the users type short passages that are 20 to 100 words long.[6] Accuracy is required; any typing errors in words have to be fixed before continuing with the race.[7] The typing passages come from popular songs, films and books, such as Monty Python and the Holy Grail, A Clockwork Orange, and Stephen Colbert's I Am America (And So Can You!),[8][9] and can be contributed by users.[10] Some users that achieve typing speeds over 200 wpm have been suspected of being robots, or otherwise cheating, which TypeRacer has taken repeated measures to restrict.[11] The protection is requiring users that get over 100 wpm in a race to do a CAPTCHA. If they pass, then they have to perform a score that is 25% higher than the attained CAPTCHA speed to activate the CAPTCHA test once more.
References
- ^ About TypeRacer, official site. Retrieved November 1, 2010.
- ^ "Featured Projects on Google Code: TypeRacer", July 08, 2008. Retrieved November 1, 2010.
- ^ "The Story Behind The Addictive Web-Game 'TypeRacer,' A Competitive Mavis Beacon", by Patrick Klepek, MTV, May 8, 2008. Retrieved November 1, 2010.
- ^ "Making Polls Social", Alex Epshteyn, Google Social Web blog post for Google Friend Connect, April 21, 2009. Retrieved November 1, 2010.
- ^ "The Top 100 Undiscovered Web Sites", by Kyle Monson and Eric Griffith, November 11, 2008, PC Magazine. Retrieved November 1, 2010.
- ^ "Website of the Day: Typeracer", GeekSugar, May 5, 2008. Retrieved November 1, 2010.
- ^ "TypeRacer tests your typing skills, patience", by Josh Lowensohn, April 25, 2008, CNET News. Retrieved November 1, 2010.
- ^ "How sharp are your typing skills?", by Whitney Matheson, Pop Candy, USAToday, May 12, 2008. Retrieved November 1, 2010.
- ^ "Forget ‘Speed Racer’: The Sport of the Future Is TypeRacing", by Nick Confalone, New York Magazine, May 8, 2008. Retrieved November 1, 2010.
- ^ "Contribute a Quote to TypeRacer", official form. Retrieved November 1, 2010.
- ^ "Encouraging Honest Competition", February 7, 2009; "New Speedometer And Improved Cheat Protection", May 19, 2008; "No More Cheating", May 18, 2008: all from The TypeRacer Blog, Alex Epshteyn. Retrieved November 1, 2010.