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I'm getting ready to buy a screen protector for my brand new Garmin unit. I remembered seeing an ad on Geocaching.com from a company that sold these, and I wanted the click-thru to come from Geocaching.com, so I clicked a few pages to bring up the ad. It took a while, and, while I was clicking, I wondered why there isn't a page with links to GC.com's current advertisers. It would make it easier for someone who wants to support the site by patronizing advertisers, but it would be out of everyone else's way. Seems like a win-win addition to the site.

I've just finished reading the 'elitism' thread on the general forum. The 'elitists' seems to be complaining about three things: (1) The shifting emphasis toward the number of finds; (2) The sheer density of caches; and (3) What they perceive to be the lackluster quality of many caches--not much creativity or cleverness. Now, to a newbie like myself, few caches are lackluster. I can struggle for ages to find a cache that more experienced cachers rate an easy find! But that's me. Anyway, maybe the 'elitists' have a point. Maybe the sport/pastime needs a way to screen caches, so that people who don't really care about the stats (I would fall into that group) can select from only the most interesting ones? I can understand that quality ratings from 1 to 5 might not be workable, or even a good idea. If that's the case, then why not create some sort of 'Exceptional Cache' award that the really good caches can be awarded by vote of those who find it? If twenty, or forty, or whatever number of people vote your cache for the award, you get it, and your cache is flagged in the database. Or maybe the more who vote for your cache as a great one, the higher your award. If the subject hasn't been beaten to death recently, I'd be interested to hear what others think. If I'm covering old ground, I apologize. Ringo Starr tells how, in the early days, he would write what he thought was a really great song and take it in to the other Beatles. They'd all have a laugh, because it invariably turned out that he'd just re-written some old standard. So, if I'm beating a dead horse, at least I'm in good company.

An interesting thread for a newbie like me. Actually, it makes me feel a lot better. I was feeling kinda insecure, because I've made fewer than a dozen finds, after doing this for nearly a month. That's mainly because I enjoy a walk in the woods to an interesting place, so those are the caches I look for. It adds a great dimension to a weekend hike! What I'm hearing is, the 'elitists' say it's okay if you don't have hundreds of finds--the game is in the hunt and the cleverness of the hide, not the stats.

Yeah, but that only applies if a copyright notice appears on the picture (front or back). As a processor, you can't duplicate any picture with the "© 2007 by John Smith", but you are protected from liability if there is no notice on the picture. Most pros put the notice on the back, so that it can't be clipped off. The real problem occurs when a customer brings in a picture that's been dry-mounted to a board. I take the position that you are covered, unless you have reason to know the picture is copyrighted. And quality alone isn't enough to put you on notice. But some processors I know simply refuse to duplicate mounted pictures, because the mounting may hide a copyright notice.

Over on alt.satellite.gps.garmin, the word is the unlock policy has not changed: http://groups.google.com/group/alt.satelli...e07965fc4?hl=en

Thanks. What I meant was that the software is locked to one unit per unlock code. If I understand the response, I can delete the software from one unit before I sell it and use the same unlock code to install it on the upgrade unit I'm purchasing, without using the second unlock code (assuming I have one). Is that correct?

Upgrade to an Intel Mac and run Parallels--it won't hurt that much!

Check the satellite page for the current accuracy of the unit. But 30 ft. is a pretty normal deviation.

"I dropped my car keys here yesterday. Would you help me find them?" That sends 'em runnin'.

I've been following the uproar over Garmin's changes to their MapSource unlock policy. I don't own any MapSource products that require unlock codes, so what I'm wondering is this: Can I transfer a MapSource registration from one unit to another? For example, if I upgrade from an eTrex to a 60 Csx, can I remove the MapSource registration from the eTrex before I sell it, and reinstall it on the 60 Csx? Thanks.

Don't know that I'd recommend doing that--too easy to lose the unit. If ypur unit supports an external antenna, you can get a Gilsson antenna for about $20 (check Amazon.com) that sticks magnetically to the roof of your car.

I spent a few minutes looking for the user FAQs for the Geocaching.com site, but I couldn't find them. I thought I'd pass this along for the Groundspeak staff.

Unit has been sold.

I've got some feedback I thought Groundspeak's sales department might want. Before I signed up as a premium member, I had been using the site for about a week, and for that entire time, I couldn't figure out what a 'pocket query' was. I was also very unsure about the value added by a premium membership. I finally decided to take a chance and subscribe for a year; then I immediately went to see what the heck a pocket query was. It easily justifies the subscription price. Had I been able to see a screenshot of the pocket query setup page, or get an example of what I could do with a pocket query, I would have signed up for a subscription the first day. For non-premium members who may not know, a 'pocket query' allows you to query the Geocaching.com database using a simple fill-in query form. Query results are returned as one big .loc or .gpx file that can be loaded into topo software, and the query can be set to run periodically (say, every Tuesday) until cancelled.

IMHO, automobile navigation and geocaching are different applications, and I've never found a unit that does a good job at both. You could get almost any mapping GPS (such as the Garmin eTrex mappers, or the Garmin 60) and purchase street maps for them. By the time you've purchased the street maps, the auto mount, and the car power adapter, you are halfway to a dedicated auto navigator. And most handheld units seem to lack the voice-guided navigation that I've found essential in the car. So, that's what I did. I got a good, basic NavMan auto navigator for the car. Then I got a separate GPS handheld for hiking and geocaching. There are several good brands of handhelds out there--the common denominator is whether the unit has the SIRF III chipset. SIRF III units are more sensitive than other units, which means that you will be able to get a better fix and get it more quickly, particularly in challenging conditions like heavy forest cover, or the bottom of a deep canyon. That can make a difference when geocaching, particularly if the cache is hidden in a woods with fallen and hollow trees every few feet. It can mean the difference between getting a fix that's accurate to within six feet, and getting one that's accurate to within twenty or thirty feet. As to a particular unit, I'd recommend the Garmin 60 Csx. It's one of the most popular units in use today. I'm a newbie at this myself, and I suspect that pinpoint accuracy may not be critical to old hands at this game. They seem to be able to smell out the location of even the tiniest caches! But I've found that a good fix really improves the results of my searches. Hope that helps!

I have a nearly-new (one-month old) Garmin eTrex Vista for Sale: $200. In perfoect operating condition--I'm upgrading. Includes the handheld GPS unit, USB cable, lanyard, mount adapter, and the software CD-ROM. And I'll throw in the carrying case with belt clip, which lists for $15. I will provide the purchaser with a copy of my purchase receipt for the unit. Payment by check or money order; I'll ship the unit when the money order cashes or the check clears. If you live in Chicagoland, you can bring me cash and I'll deliver on the spot. Otherwise, please add $7.50 for shipping (UPS) and insurance. If you are interested, contact me through the profile page here on Geocaching.com.