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I will be sending out a bigger announcement, but I thought I would send a quick note until I have the time to put a larger message together. Today I finished a permit alert system - you can be alerted when a sold-out permit becomes available. To set up an alert, enter Explore mode on the map. Click on the applicable entry point/campsite. At the bottom of the screen, you will see a small snapshot of the permits. Click on the snapshot to open up the entire calendar. Find the day that you are looking for and click on it. That will open up the permit alert screen. Fill out the fields and press the button. If/when the permit opens up, you will receive an email and a message on the site. (I will be working on incorporating text messages, too.) The permit display is for everyone. The permit alerts are only for paid memberships. Map Enthusiasts can have 1 permit alert, premium can have 5, and outfitters can have unlimited. There are probably a few other things that I have to explain, but I only have time for this quick note. I am open to suggestions on how best to display the permits and the permit alerts.
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Just wanted to say that the permit alert feature has already paid dividends!!! The flurried maelstrom of permits getting instantly gobbled up had left us without a desired permit in mid August. I reserved another EP just to fill in the breach but, it was not ideal. Today I noted that a permit for the original EP had opened up in the desired time frame. Ironically, 1 of only 3 currently remaining for the summer reservation season. I immediately made the reservation & cancelled the other permit this morning! Thank you Paddle Planner!!! A question I have regarding this benefit: Often times I have some flexibility on dates, and moving the entry date forward or backwards a day or two wouldn't be a dealbreaker. Just curious how this would work for the alerts? So, for example, if we used 4 days around a given weekend (for example - Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday) for one specific EP alert, would that example then constitute having used up 4 (each day requested) of the alloted 5 checks we are given? Or.... Anyways, thanks again. Really enjoying the new features and certainly appreciate all the work that you've put in. Well done.
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 1 user thanked TuscaroraBorealis for this useful post.
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Thanks: 98 times
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Originally Posted by: TuscaroraBorealis  Just wanted to say that the permit alert feature has already paid dividends!!! The flurried maelstrom of permits getting instantly gobbled up had left us without a desired permit in mid August. I reserved another EP just to fill in the breach but, it was not ideal. Today I noted that a permit for the original EP had opened up in the desired time frame. Ironically, 1 of only 3 currently remaining for the summer reservation season. I immediately made the reservation & cancelled the other permit this morning! Thank you Paddle Planner!!! A question I have regarding this benefit: Often times I have some flexibility on dates, and moving the entry date forward or backwards a day or two wouldn't be a dealbreaker. Just curious how this would work for the alerts? So, for example, if we used 4 days around a given weekend (for example - Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday) for one specific EP alert, would that example then constitute having used up 4 (each day requested) of the alloted 5 checks we are given? Or.... Anyways, thanks again. Really enjoying the new features and certainly appreciate all the work that you've put in. Well done. Right now you have to use one alert for each day you want to be alerted for. So that weekend - yes, you would use up four of the 5 alerts. I have considered making it a "flexible" date. Question - did you receive an email saying that the permit was open? I can't find anything saying that you were alerted.
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Technically, I guess I wasn't officially alerted. Because, when I first was poking around with the new features and entering my date(s), I noticed that one was available so, I didn't actually even have to wait to be alerted. The rest is history. I seriously doubt I would've known (or even regularly checked) had it not been for this new feature.
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1 user thanked TuscaroraBorealis for this useful post.
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Ben, does this allow us to watch for any entry point to open up on a specific date or just one specific entry point on that date? For example, if I know I want to enter with the mob on July 4th, can I watch to see if anything opens up that day anywhere in the wilderness? Or am I limited to watching one EP, up to 5 depending on subscription level? I guess what I'm saying is sometimes the date is more important to me than the entry point, which is probably the opposite of what TB said when he said he has flexibility on dates for a specific EP! I might flip my Morgan EP on 8/25 if I was aware of something more intriguing that opens up elsewhere. Regardless of your answer, I agree with TB's sentiment that this new functionality is super cool and I found the PP calendar easy to understand and browse as I looked at EPs.
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Right now the alert is for a specific EP (or campsite) for a specific date. In other words, it watches one permit. Both of these options, flexible date and flexible entry point, are intriguing. I'll work on adding both of the options and think about which memberships to add them to.
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1 user thanked Ben Strege for this useful post.
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Along this same vein of thought, I am going to work on a visual representation of what is available on a certain date. Somehow highlighting on the map the entry points/campsites that are open on that day. I have not figured out exactly how to do the "highlighting," so any suggestions would be welcome 
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I added what both of you wanted - flexible dates and flexible locations. Hopefully it is self-explanatory when you open up the permit alert creation screen, but in summary: The flexible date will also search the day before and the day after. The flexible location allows you to choose multiple entry points/campsites within the same area (BWCA, Algonquin, Voyageurs, etc.). The flexible dates and locations can be used together, so you can create a lot of alerts with "one" alert. With the flexible date and an Expedition Leader membership, you could search a 15-day timeframe by setting up the alerts correctly.
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Thanks: 34 times
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Originally Posted by: Ben Strege I added what both of you wanted - flexible dates and flexible locations. Hopefully it is self-explanatory when you open up the permit alert creation screen, but in summary: The flexible date will also search the day before and the day after. The flexible location allows you to choose multiple entry points/campsites within the same area (BWCA, Algonquin, Voyageurs, etc.). The flexible dates and locations can be used together, so you can create a lot of alerts with "one" alert. With the flexible date and an Expedition Leader membership, you could search a 15-day timeframe by setting up the alerts correctly. THANKS!!
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