"The notes can be public or private, shared with an individual, a group or everyone," Fake explained on her blog. "They can be organized into sets, such as, say, the 'Tales from the Road: KISS’s 1974 Hotter Than Hell Tour,' 'Best Spots for Butterfly Hunting,' 'Every place that you told me that you loved me, circa 2008' or 'Find me a Nearby Toilet NOW.'"
Users who are participating in the invite-only private beta can follow people, places and "sets" of notes. Eventually they'll be able to receive push notifications from yet-to-be-built native apps.
"Part of why making Pinwheel is so fun, is so exploding with possibility," Fake says, "is that a note, like a photo, can be a container for all kinds of things. It is the perfect social object. Stories, advice, jokes, diatribes, information, memories, facts, advertisements, love letters, grocery lists and manifestos can all be put into a note."
Notes can also, Pinwheel hopes, be easily monetized through a sponsored content model. A realtor has, for instance, started leaving sponsored notes on Pinwheel's map about properties for sale.
Fake is best known for co-founding Flickr, which was purchased by Yahoo in 2005. Most recently she co-founded Hunch, a personalized recommendation engine that was acquired by eBay last year.
