glossary
Coarse area
The circle is the point. Not a pin. Not a guess we forgot to tighten. A rounded area on purpose.
The object on the map
Open help areas are drawn as coarse circles. At a glance, Home can count them. Helpers judge distance from that blur plus a category. That is enough to decide “I am at West Acres and can jump a car” without handing someone a street number.
How matching uses it
When both people have shared matching location, offers stay within about 10 km of the requester’s rounded area. The system uses that rounded area — not a pin on you. No-location requests can still be considered; they simply do not contribute a circle.
Coarse area versus approximate location
Approximate location is the privacy rule: other people do not get a pin by default. Coarse area is the thing the rule produces — the ~500 m region itself. Precision finding on supported iPhones is a different, dual-opt-in tool after accept. Do not mix the three up.
Questions people actually ask
Is the coarse area my GPS point with a circle drawn around it for show?
Live help is shown as the coarse area, not a pin. Matching uses the rounded area. Treat the blur as the data, not a decoration on top of a secret pin.
Can I tighten the circle myself?
Exact location is opt-in after a helper accepts, and only with that person. The open map stays coarse.
What does ~500 m mean in Fargo?
Neighborhood-scale. Enough to say “near NDSU” or “near West Acres,” not enough to mark a stall in a ramp.
Keep going
glossary
Approximate location
Live help on Help Me shows as an approximate area of about 500 meters, not a pin on you. Precise location moves only after accept and consent.
glossary
Matching
Help Me matching privately offers a request to eligible approved helpers who are online, suitable, recently active, and not blocked — not a public feed.
glossary
The live map
The Help Me live map is where Fargo–Moorhead help happens. Request help or go online as a helper. Open asks show as approximate areas.
glossary
Nearby Interaction
Help Me precision finding uses Apple Nearby Interaction on supported iPhones, and only when both people opt in after a helper accepts.
trust
Safety, said plainly
Approximate location, approved helpers only, private chat, public meeting places, and report/block tools. Help Me is not 911.
product
How Help Me works
Ask in a sentence. Approved helpers nearby see it. One accepts. You chat privately and meet in public. Four steps — that is the entire ask.
Help Me is a community app for adults in Fargo–Moorhead. It is not a K–12 student program, not a youth chat, and not campus police.