Edit Map Screensaver
The Edit Map screensaver pings every edit streaming across the Wikipedias on a world map at the home of its language — a real-time pulse of the encyclopedia being written, from Wikimedia's stream. It's free, runs in your browser, and ESC exits.
How the Edit Map screensaver works
The saver connects to Wikimedia's live EventStreams feed, the real-time firehose of every edit across the Wikipedias.
Each edit pings on a world map at the home region of its language — German edits over central Europe, Japanese over Japan, and so on.
Bigger edits ping larger, brand-new pages glow a different colour, and a running tally counts the busiest languages.
It streams continuously and needs no pipeline — the connection is read straight from your browser.
A worked example
Pings ripple across the map second by second — a cluster over Europe for DE and FR, a burst over JA in Japan, scattered EN pings across North America — the live tally naming the busiest languages.
Settings & tips
- Wikipedia only filters out sister projects like Wiktionary.
- Background sets the map backdrop.
- Pings are placed by the edit's language, not the editor's exact location.
Frequently asked questions
- Is it really live?
- Yes. It's Wikimedia's EventStreams feed, so each ping is a real edit happening on a Wikipedia right now.
- How are edits placed on the map?
- By the language of the wiki — each language pings at its home region, since the stream doesn't give an editor's exact location.
- How is this different from Wikipedia Live Edits?
- That one is a scrolling text list; Edit Map plots the same stream geographically as pings on a world map.
- Does it need a key or pipeline?
- No. The stream is key-less and CORS-enabled, so the saver reads it directly in your browser.
- Is it free?
- Yes — free, no download, in your browser.