Jinkeez

I posted this in an earlier thread, and I think it's a pretty good idea--- I've always thought it would have made a lot of sense to have a solar recharger-equipped unit. Ideally, I guess, it could have a small nicad, nimh, or liion battery that is constantly being replenished by a small solar cell, but still accept plain old batteries, too. Thus, the solar-rechargable feature would serve to augument the standard battery life and perhaps even run without batteries in an emergency, and on overcast days or at night, the standard AA batts could be changed out normally if they run out of power.

I did the update yesterday and found 3 caches today with my Vista, so the 2.26 update seems problem-free at first glance.

Sorry to hear about your brush with sumac... Here are some links that might be helpful to you in the future, though: This Poison Ivy/Oak/Sumac FAQ seems to have some good information in it. Poison Ivy: Poison Oak: Poison Sumac:

Let me preface my opinion by stating that I haven't been caching for too long, I have never placed a cache, I'm not in your area, so I probably won't get to participate in finding your cache, and I don't know what types of caches the folks in your local community prefer, or even what the terrain and geography is like there. The first cache I went looking for was the one closest to home, so I'm guessing you live pretty close to your first find, too. I looked at the list other nearby caches in that area, and the vast majority of them are 1/1. Now, I love caching and I'll go looking for those 1/1's all day, but your area seems like it's ready for something different..! I think you should go for it and place the 5/3 right off the bat. You can always set the cachers' expectations in your description of the cache. Make sure they know what they're in for--Tell them that it will be a long and arduous path upon which their mental capacity will be taxed to the very limit... Tell them that when they look down and see only one set of footprints, it's because Jesus was carrying them to the third stage of the cache. Tell them that the rivers will run red with the blood of those who failed to find the cache, and that the wailing of their women is still heard across the land. Not only will they know exactly what they're getting into, but they'll appreciate it even more when they actually find the cache! And they won't be the only ones with a feeling of triumph and success in their hearts. YOU will feel it, too. You'll be able to be proud of the fact that you designed a really solid, challenging cache, and you'll be proud of the fellow cachers who manage to find it. There are plenty of 2's and 3's in your area, my friend... Go forth, and place a 5/3 cache so totally cool, that people will come in from out of state to hunt for it. (insert swell of patriotic music here)A cache that will make us all proud. A cache that will bring us together. A cache that will change the very face of our sport! You have the tools! You have the knowledge! You have the support and adoration of your fellow cachers! YOU WILL NOT FAIL! [This message was edited by Jinkeez on April 16, 2002 at 10:13 AM.]

I haven't looked at GPS units in a while since I'm pretty happy with my Garmin at this point, but I've always thought it would have made a lot of sense to have a solar recharger-equipped unit. Ideally, I guess, it could have a small nicad or lion battery that is constantly being replenished by a small solar cell, but still accept plain old batteries, too. Thus, the solar-rechargable feature would serve to augument the battery life and perhaps even run without batteries in an emergency. The cheeseball geek in me would like to see units that are capable of communicating with each other (bluetooth? 900Mhz? 2.4Ghz?). Imagine how interesting it would be to pick up signals from other cachers in the area, unless they're operating in "privacy mode" or some such, or being able to transmit waypoints and coords to your buddy from a distance in order to meet up at a specific location. I'm not sure how viable that would be, considering that transmitting any sort of signal through dense woods probably wouldn't go very far, but still... It'd be kinda cool, wouldn't it?

I haven't looked at GPS units in a while since I'm pretty happy with my Garmin at this point, but I've always thought it would have made a lot of sense to have a solar recharger-equipped unit. Ideally, I guess, it could have a small nicad or lion battery that is constantly being replenished by a small solar cell, but still accept plain old batteries, too. Thus, the solar-rechargable feature would serve to augument the battery life and perhaps even run without batteries in an emergency. The cheeseball geek in me would like to see units that are capable of communicating with each other (bluetooth? 900Mhz? 2.4Ghz?). Imagine how interesting it would be to pick up signals from other cachers in the area, unless they're operating in "privacy mode" or some such, or being able to transmit waypoints and coords to your buddy from a distance in order to meet up at a specific location. I'm not sure how viable that would be, considering that transmitting any sort of signal through dense woods probably wouldn't go very far, but still... It'd be kinda cool, wouldn't it?