hopmedic

I couldn't agree more with the past several posts. 1. I do believe that more than one post has been removed, as I have received more than one email, and clicked into it only to find nothing new. If posts were removed for legit reasons, fine, but we have no way of knowing what those reasons are, and again, given that the transparency here rivals that of the White House, you must understand our cynicism. 2. Sandy did assure us that work was being done, and a release would be soon, but your post now seems to call her a liar. Which is it? 3. Blah blah blah - I could go on, but I just looked at the clock. Let me say quickly that I have little faith in GS. If you want to know why, scroll up on this thread and you will see one of the reasons. Oh - and yeah - you have no business implementing new web features, with a team that apparently can't work on two things at once due to size of the team, until the things that people pay for actually work. That makes no business sense at all. IF you had any good morals, you'd pull the app from the marketplace until it is fixed, instead of luring more and more people into downloading it. If you don't pull it, it just shows us that money is the primary focus, and that we really don't matter.

The next release will be pre-mango. So it's now the start of "next month". Any news on when the new (and hopefully working!) version will be released? I'm laying odds it will be after the Mango launch. But it *won't* use any Mango features.

Wow, I totaly do not aggree with your assessment. I must say that it is not perfect (you can see this by my many requests on the support forum), but it does work. You can search for nearby caches, download you PQs, save search results, use your GPS to find GZ using a map or compass, log your finds. Everything else is "extras". And why would ATT refund your money when you paid Microsoft? I would disagree with you. If this person had the same experience I had when initially installing it, he has no reason to believe that it works at all. Only because I tried repeatedly, did I get it to work. As it is, it works when it wants to, so I don't even bother. This software should never have been released to the public. It is obvious that it didn't spend time in beta testing. -Rich Windows Phone Developer Hey, you are a Windows Phone Developer? Cool. Have you considered building a WP7 app using the soon to be available API? I think that every phone OS needs several options. If you do consider, I would be glad to through ideas around with you. I asked for an API years ago, when I started writing my own app for Windows Mobile, and when I posted a question on the boards, it was pointed out to me that I was violating the TOS. I shelved it, in the hopes that an API would come soon, but got turned off by Groundspeak's apparent value of money over customer. It is something I will consider, though I don't do much caching anymore. Honestly, if this app worked with regularity, I would probably do so more often, since the app allows caching without preplanning. I may do a GC app, but not going to commit at this time. If I do, I'll post for ideas. And if I do, I'll be FAR more responsive than Groundspeak. My first app has been on the market 2 months tomorrow, and has had 4 updates. My second app has had a feature added before it was a month old, and my third app is 2 weeks old with one update in the works. I'm unemployed, so I'm trying to chip away at unemployment one app at a time. Well there is a API now that you can request access for. Curently it is not live, just for development, but it is supposed to go live any time now. Yeah, I've known about it for a while. I don't know the right people to get into it now, and have just lost my spark for Groundspeak.

Wow, I totaly do not aggree with your assessment. I must say that it is not perfect (you can see this by my many requests on the support forum), but it does work. You can search for nearby caches, download you PQs, save search results, use your GPS to find GZ using a map or compass, log your finds. Everything else is "extras". And why would ATT refund your money when you paid Microsoft? I would disagree with you. If this person had the same experience I had when initially installing it, he has no reason to believe that it works at all. Only because I tried repeatedly, did I get it to work. As it is, it works when it wants to, so I don't even bother. This software should never have been released to the public. It is obvious that it didn't spend time in beta testing. -Rich Windows Phone Developer Hey, you are a Windows Phone Developer? Cool. Have you considered building a WP7 app using the soon to be available API? I think that every phone OS needs several options. If you do consider, I would be glad to through ideas around with you. I asked for an API years ago, when I started writing my own app for Windows Mobile, and when I posted a question on the boards, it was pointed out to me that I was violating the TOS. I shelved it, in the hopes that an API would come soon, but got turned off by Groundspeak's apparent value of money over customer. It is something I will consider, though I don't do much caching anymore. Honestly, if this app worked with regularity, I would probably do so more often, since the app allows caching without preplanning. I may do a GC app, but not going to commit at this time. If I do, I'll post for ideas. And if I do, I'll be FAR more responsive than Groundspeak. My first app has been on the market 2 months tomorrow, and has had 4 updates. My second app has had a feature added before it was a month old, and my third app is 2 weeks old with one update in the works. I'm unemployed, so I'm trying to chip away at unemployment one app at a time.

Wow, I totaly do not aggree with your assessment. I must say that it is not perfect (you can see this by my many requests on the support forum), but it does work. You can search for nearby caches, download you PQs, save search results, use your GPS to find GZ using a map or compass, log your finds. Everything else is "extras". And why would ATT refund your money when you paid Microsoft? I would disagree with you. If this person had the same experience I had when initially installing it, he has no reason to believe that it works at all. Only because I tried repeatedly, did I get it to work. As it is, it works when it wants to, so I don't even bother. This software should never have been released to the public. It is obvious that it didn't spend time in beta testing. -Rich Windows Phone Developer

Probably the feature we'd like the most is that the app work. Thanks for the update.

Agreed. I have two apps in Windows Phone Marketplace, and both have code in them that allows the user to email me the error stack should an error occur. Today is the first time I have gotten such an email, and I have already fixed the problem. Both apps also have an email button to send me an email directly, both for reporting problems, and for suggesting changes. I am in the process of implementing one of those suggestions now, and will implement one other later this evening, and once that is done, I will be submitting the update to Marketplace for testing and review. I am just some guy who is coding from home. If I can be this responsive, there is no excuse for a corporation like Groundspeak to be at LEAST as responsive. I assume that since you're a company, you're paying someone to write the code. I assume that those persons are professionals. Why doesn't this company act in a professional manner? Me? I've made a grand total of just under $40 in Marketplace. You made more than that from just the people who complained on this thread. If I can respond for my $40, surely Groundspeak can respond for the hundreds/thousands that they're making in Marketplace.

THANK YOU! You know, just that little bit of information would have prevented many hard feelings had it been given to us back when we started complaining about this. FYI.

Agreed. I reported my own post in order to draw attention to this thread, since there seems to be no one paying attention to it.

Well, with much communication on this thread, and none of it from Groundspeak, I have very close to zero faith that they will be doing anything soon to solve the problem. I have reached the point that I may not renew my premium membership that I have had since 2006 (if I remember right). This is ridiculous.

My hope is for the API to become public soon, then third party devs will be able to write their own creations. If I have time, I'll be one of them.

Personally, I think Groundspeak is no longer about geocaching, and is completely about money. $9.99 for an app that doesn't work and forums that get no response???

Mine started working (I happened to try it again), so the problem had to be on the server end. However, I cannot argue with you, mouthsmasher, having read this and other threads as well. It is the most expensive app I've seen, and the only one in that price range, and yes, not very well supported from what I've seen. I am a developer, published my first WP7 app 11 days ago, and I have already published one update, and have a second update submitted, and will be published as soon as Microsoft approves it. Groundspeak's support is seriously lacking. It seems Groundspeak isn't as much about geocaching as it is about money anymore.

I know you're asking about Android, but I'll throw this out there for you to ponder anyway... I've been QUITE impressed with the couple of Windows Phones that I've played with, and now own. You'd be doing yourself a disservice if you don't at least look at them before buying an Android or iPhone. I'm hooked on mine.

I'm having the same problem now. The app worked on the Samsung Focus I had, but I switched to Verizon today, and when I installed it on my new Trophy after erasing everything from the Focus, I can't log in. It acts like it's working, but after allowing access, the user field is blank.

These are good points. I won't agree with the last one - server load - because we can only speculate on that one. Yes, numbers will increase, but data size sent per query will decrease - you are looking at mobile devices, afterall, and users will want faster download times, and therefore smaller amounts of data. The overall load could go either way, and to argue otherwise is IMHO, pointless. As for business model, I'm not a business man, so I'm not going to try to say I know anything about it. I will say that my thoughts are that Google gets its money from ads, yes, and GS from ads, subscriptions, and trackables. Again, not knowing any more than that, I would think that they would benefit more from the increased numbers that would be generated when people find a geocaching app while doing a search to find what neat apps are out there for their phone. I may be right, I may be wrong. But that is my impression. I had not considered contractual obligations, and this is a good point. Myself, I would be surprised if Trimble would have a say. What I would wonder, though, is if there is a free open API out there, would it cause users to migrate from Trimble, and therefore destroy a revenue stream for GS. Again, speculation since we don't know the contract. Personally, I would be happy without an API, IF there were a decent WinMo application that was legal. Again, I'm not looking to violate terms of use - I just want to use the equipment that I choose to use, which is now a WinMo phone. As with all others who like the spontanaety that is allowed by Tom's app, I would enjoy that same spontenaety, and would probably cache more often. It is the preplanning that can be a pain.

I would not mind being a part of such a project. Time is what I'm short on right now, but I would love to do something like this. I do wonder about the irony of there being no public API for geocaching.com, and yet they make such extensive use of Google's public APIs.

+1 +2 +3. If this is a US based organisation.. A law suit usually can create some interests + changes. Just some bizarre accusations like "Obscured Monopoly against Microsoft" or some sort.... U know what I mean. +4 +5 +6

I am not Groundspeak, nor am I a big company or anything. I'm just a guy who works for a big company... But I don't understand the logic behind this. Wouldn't this make Geocaching (their bread and butter) more accessible? If someone like me (has a WinMo Phone) does a search to see what neat apps are out there for his phone, and finds one for GC, doesn't that increase their exposure to the world, and thereby more subscribers? Was that thought not at least considered in making the decision to create an iPhone app? I'm not looking to take over Groundspeak. I just want to make it more accessible - or perhaps help someone else in doing so. Someone from Groundspeak, please comment.

There are several applications out there that use pocket queries, so I would be duplicating their efforts. Is there a way to become a trusted partner? I have not personally seen the iPhone application, as I am on my third WinMo phone, and my wife just bought her first, but what I used to do was drive around with my laptop tethered to my phone, until I got close enough to walk, then get out of the car, find the cache, go back to the car and log my find. I would like to be able to do all this without the laptop. I know I can use the wap website, and in fact I can use the full site on Opera Mobile, but it would be far more convenient to do like the banned software does (which I would expect the iPhone application does) and have it pull the data from the site (without violating terms), integrate with Google Maps, and the phone's GPS, and be able to log all in one app, carrying only one device. Anyone from Groundspeak have any comments for me?

I am a fairly unpolished developer, have done some mobile development in a manufacturing setting, and would like to try my hand at developing a Geocaching application for Windows Mobile devices. I realize that there is a WinMo app out there that does not meet the terms of use, but I do not know why, nor how I can access the web site from within an application, without violating the terms. Are there APIs out there that can be accessed without violating the terms? Is there development support somewhere to assist with questions I may have accessing those APIs? Thanks, Rich

Given the above, an API or webservice is a better alternative. What I was looking to do when I said that my program scrapes isn't that it does anything automated. It doesn't go out searching and filling up its own database. It loads the web page for the waypoint that I put into it manually, and grabs the information I want and displays it for me. The next step would be to send it to MSN Direct so my GPSr can get it wirelessly without having to hand enter the coordinates (which I would have to convert otherwise to xx.xxxxx format). The idea doesn't work anyway, because I can't send authentication info, which is needed to get the coordinates - the most important part. It would be great if Groundspeak would give developers an API that we could use to take advantage of the latest in communication advances. I can get movie times, news, weather, and even gas prices displayed on my GPSr but I can't get a GeoCache without hooking it to a wire or entering coordinates manually. Oh, and just so you know, I'm not using the GPS in my phone because the powers that be at Sprint decided that I didn't need to have access to that functionality unless I paid for the service they offer. Yeah, that's nice....

This would be great - and goes along with the topic I posted yesterday http://forums.Groundspeak.com/GC/index.php...wtopic=199015... I've made a small app for Windows Mobile phone, and will adapt it to SmartPhone if I ever get it working, but for now I don't know how to send login info so all I get back for location is question marks. Everything else I want is there, but you can't do much without location... What I want to do is get info from GC (right now I'm scraping from the web page of the cache) and send to MSN Direct to my car GPS (Nuvi 780). Oh - and I want to be able to do it from my phone when I get the email for a new cache in the area. So, I want to be able to do it only using the waypoint (and login info, of course).

I've got an idea thanks to my new Garmin nuvi 780 (upgraded due to theft of the 660). It has the MSN Direct receiver, so I can send map points from maps.live.com to the unit without even bringing it into the house. I use the nuvi to drive to the cache sites, and the 60CSx to find them. Anyway, here's the scenario... You get the e-mail on your phone that there's a new cache in town. Wouldn't it be nice to be able to open a small application, put the waypoint into it, and have it bring up the information scraped from the cache page, for your review, and then have a second button to tap that will send it to your GPSr via MSN Direct? Well, the MSN direct part can be done with no problem it would appear. Where I'm having a problem is in authenticating the geocaching.com account. I have to authenticate, or there are no coordinates returned. The wap.geocaching.com doesn't require authentication to see location, but I'm sure they'll fix that, and that isn't as simple to search, since the waypoint isn't part of the url. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated. Thanks! Rich

I have to agree. Bum is a very derogatory term, and people who have less than you or me aren't necessarily bad, evil, or bums. I haven't been as down and out as that, but I've been pretty low in my life, but I picked myself back up, dusted myself off, and currently have it pretty good.