NordicMan
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Posts posted by NordicMan
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All of the above tips are awesome, take note of them!
And after you're confident you have decent coordinates saved of your cache location, hide something/anything at that spot. Then..
..hand your GPS (or give the coordinates) to a friend and ask them to find your hidden object. If you're traveling with them at the time do not coach them at all, & see if they can successfully use your coordinates. That would be a good final confidence-building test of accuracy.
If you can't find somebody to assist, the YOU should "pretend" to find your own hidden object using just your saved coordinates. Hope that helps
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I've never seen a handheld GPS for sale in China. I've been there a dozen times and have kept my eyes open.
From what I've read I thought GPS usage in China isn't a commonly allowed thing especially for foreigners. Kinda the same like in Cuba.
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I was out group geocaching with 3 other people this weekend, out device inventory consisted of 3 Oregon 450's and 1 Oregon 300. It was interesting to notice that the devices distance-to-target were almost never in agreement with each other
We weren't monitoring the "EPE" reading too much we were more interested in the actual distance to target we were going to. Especially when the target was still more than 100 meters away the devices would vary from 5 to 10 meters.
We were only after about 1/2 dozen caches that day & we all found at least 1 each so, at the end of the day all the devices were doing faithful duty
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What is a memory map GPS?
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A few months ago I was "really really eager" to buy the Nexus 7 because it had pretty awesome features for the price. but... I couldn't get over the disappointment of it not having expandable memory (no micro-SD card), no rear camera, and other things like no HDMI output.
So instead I bought a 7" Samsung Galaxy tab 7.0 Plus, and couldn't be happier with it! It's kinda similar to the currently more popular 7" Galaxy tab 2. Yes it is available with 4G/LTE if you want it, but I chose to simply tether it to my smartphone while away from home and save some money.
The 7" Galaxy Tab 2's are available for waaaay under $200.
Also a KILLER bonus with the Galaxy Tabs is they have built-in infrared, so they can be used as a universal remote at home to control your TV/Stereo/ etc! The Nexus 7 can't do that.
Food for thought!
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It works pretty good on the Android version
Navigate to Geocache --> Directions takes you straight to Google nav & voice guidance
What if you installed an alternative navigation app on your iPhone maybe that would help?
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I'll +1 the Locus Pro recommendation it's GREAT for Android/Geocaching. You can download as many PQ's to the phone/tablet as you want and you can also save map segments for offline use.
We used that combo the last time we went to Cuba. GPS's are a no-no there (!) but we thought we'd risk using the built-in one in my Android phone. With Locus Pro showing all the Geo's on the off-line maps it was a breeze finding a few Geos! We had to wait to get back home to log them though
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From within the app I can easily call up a saved Pocket Query "Caches I have found" & even show the results on the map.
Like that?
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As for travelling around Cuba with a GPS I don't know if you'll be able to find maps will you?
You can get routable Cuba street maps for your Garmin here
http://garmin.openstreetmap.nl/
Be advised that while those maps are routable they aren't "searchable" if they're anything like the ones I grabbed for Canada. Meaning, you can't search for "123 Somestreet" then route to it, because it'll come back with "street not found" Instead you can pan over to 123 Somestreet, stick your pointer where you want to go, & hit go. It'll then road route you there.
I'm certainly going to bring my GPS equipped Android smartphone with me & I'm pretty confident they won't care about that. But I'd LOVE to bring my Oregon 450 even more! Especially because it's more rugged & just plain more handy outdoors. I still haven't figured out what Cuba's CURRENT policy is on standalone GPSr's
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OK so where is this "Canadian Cuban Embassy" that we can ask for a permit? We're going to Varadero next month & I see there are now 50 Geocaches all over Cuba, around 10 on the Varadero peninsula itself.
We're also looking forward to traveling around Cuba, and having a GPS would be so sweet for that too, that's probably a bigger enticement to bring the GPS more than just for the Geocaching.
Most of the responses I get from Google queries are several years old, and I'm under the impression there have been some recent changes to Cuban policies. Are standalone GPS receivers OK in Cuba "now?"
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You can use Locus Pro & download offline maps, & dump pocket queries into it.
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What computer/OS are you using to get the files to your home? What steps do you do to get the files? There must be some sort of glitch happening in the file retrieval, as that is just too much of a coincidence that *every* Gamin GPS you've had has the same problem..
The root cause must be somewhere inside your PC
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How do you use your GPSr? In winter I keep mine in an inside coat pocket which keeps the device/batteries warm, yet it still seems to receive GPS signals no problem through the coat.
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It sounds like you already have all the devices you need. Use your Android phone to reference all the Geocaches around you, then once you decide on one to try you just transfer the coordinates to your "Garmin Explorist Gc"
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Well don't feel bad about using C:Geo, as there is really no way for a casual visitor strolling into the app store to know about any of these TOU issues. Originally the creator of C:Geo was even using the official Groundspeak logos, without approval. At least he stopped doing that.
The "offical app" is pretty good. And for free there are ones like GeoBeagle that work nicely too.
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www.RadioWorld.ca is also a great place to shop for good prices on GPS receivers in Canada!
In the Garmin line, the new Etrex 20 ("coming soon") is the cheapest paperless GPSr listed at just $200. The Dakota 10 lists at $265, GPSmap62 is $279 CDN
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Don't buy a Smartphone "just for Geocaching" if you don't already have one, they aren't cheap & data plans nickel & dime you to death.
If you do want a Smartphone for other reasons then get one. After that you can *also* use it for geocaching
they all have apps available. But if you really want one that is more optimized for Geocaching check out something like the Motorola Defy. It's waterproof dust proof & in general is way more rugged than a typical smartphone.
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What type of GPS receiver are you using to try & find those elusive caches? Smartphones aren't as accurate as (modern) dedicated handheld GPSr's, so they can often lead to additional frustration.
Also like Keelmann said try to stick to finding larger containers first. Micros/nanos can be really tough to find, even if you're starring directly at it
Also check the previous finders logs.. how long has it been since the last person found that cache? -
Hi & welcome to Geocaching
~10 meters accuracy is probably a good average precision for dedicated handheld GPSr's, but most Smartphones are much worse, because the manufacturers of Smartphones know 99% of their customers just want the GPS receiver to be good enough to find a gas station/ATM/etc.
No there isn't anything you can download to make your Evo more accurate. You ~might~ help it's precision buy buying an external bluetooth GPS receiver, but if you're going to do that then why not just buy a separate dedicated GPSr?
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I've been playing with an augmented reality plug-in to the Locus Android app... and if those glasses could assist in that function then I can visualize (no pun intended
) walking around and "seeing" the Geocaches all around me.. Hands free Geocaching! -
It's a sign for a tree plantation, and it seems clear enough, since most people who seriously tried were able to guess. Some people prefer to take any excuse to bash Quebec. "Clarity act" indeed
... one of the most ridiculous law Canadian politicians ever came up with, and it really has nothing to do with this thread or with geocaching.Usually those signs are smaller than "normal" road signs, as they are directed to ATV/snowmobiles users. There is not much in the picture to let me guess the size of the sign, but it doesn't seem to be in the proper position for a road sign.
Thanks for the tips. The signs were identical in size to any other yield sign I've seen before, and the 1/2 dozen signs I saw were all placed in about the same manner. But..
A. We too thought it was maybe tree plantation related, yet we looked around & couldn't see any such activity going on...
B. Why do we need to be warned of such an activity?
C. To your point about the clarity act.. I tried in vain to answer my own question by seeking official Quebec transportation websites but couldn't find that sign anywhere
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Consider getting a 7" Android tablet for Geocaching? I've been using a 7" Viewsonic Viewpad for about a month now & really loving it! Sure it isn't rugged or waterproof, but I got it for $300 new & it's GPSr accuracy is quite good. It even has a 3-axis compass & is awesome to watch Geocaches go by in augmented reality mode using Lucus Pro software (..just ~$5 for that!)
And if you don't already have a tablet you may discover (like I did!) you'll suddenly have dozens of other neat uses for the little gadget! I stress the word "little" as it is quite smaller than something like an iPad, & is quite easy to carry in 1 hand.
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Fanny pack works great for me
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I don't use GSAK much myself although it is a very useful program!
If you want to start off "easy", just plug your Oregon to you computer using USB, then simply copy the .gpx pocket query file (unzipped if it is zipped) and copy it to the /Garmin/GPX folder inside the Oregon. Voila, you're done!
Unplug the Oregon start it up & check in the Geocaching tab!
[edit: wow 3 replies in the same minute
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... one of the most ridiculous law Canadian politicians ever came up with, and it really has nothing to do with this thread or with geocaching.
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Geocaching App for iPhone3
in How do I...?
Posted · Edited by NordicMan
I didn't think Apple/iTunes allows software to be "side-loaded" onto iProducts(?)
Even if Groundspeak had a version of the app that was compatible with your older iOS, how would you install it? I would think you'd have to jailbreak the phone, and that's a kinda extreme task just to use it for Geocaching.
Also not to burst your bubble but, from what I've heard every newer version of iPhone came with dramatically better GPSr accuracy.. so the older iPhone 3 GPS signal reception & accuracy might be really frustrating to use if you get it working at all..