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Uncopyrighted

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Posts posted by Uncopyrighted

  1. I use GSAK to manage my statistics. This tool gives me all the flexibility I need to choose which souvenir I want to display on my profile and how.

    GSAK is a great tool and does lots of things, but AFAIK there is no API by which GSAK lets you control what Grounspeak souvenirs appear in your profile.

     

    What GSAK does have, through the BadgeGen macro, is the ability to create some HTML of badges/souvenirs that you can paste into your profile.

     

    Statistics, badges, and many other features first appeared in third party tools like GSAK. The tools gave users the ultimate flexiblity in setting up what statistics they want to display in the profile - including the option to just view your statistics privately and not have to share them with everyone online. When others started to see the nice statistic and badges some people had in their profiles, they started asking for these abilities to be made native to Geocaching.com. Some sain that GSAK is too hard to learn how to use, or that it only works on Windows. Others felt that official Groundspeak statistic/souvenirs would encourage more participation.

     

    It usually isn't hard for Groundspeak to add the capability. Sometimes they acquire the underlying code from one of the third party developers and integrate into the website, othertimes (if I use the common expression for this, Keystone will give me a timeout, so I'll just say) they write their own code. The Groundspeak version is never as flexible as the original options. Ultimately people complain about this lack of flexibility, but many others will simply ignore the new Groundspeak feature and continue to paste the old solutions in there profiles.

     

    I think DeepPurple may be referring to the SouvenirStats.gsk macro (http://gsak.net/board/index.php?showtopic=21576&st=0entry194721) which allows you to download your souvenirs through and api call, check which ones you want to show up and the macro will generate HTML code to insert into your BadgeGen/FindStatsGen code to display select souvenirs on your main profile page. There is no way to prevent souvenirs from showing up on the souvenir tab, but you can choose to have some or all displayed on your main profile tab.

  2. Great app... I've been waiting for one of these for quite some time. A couple things I'd love to see:

     

    - Integration with Geocaching API - log caches without exiting App, filter out benchmarks which have already been logged on Geocaching.com

    - Filter benchmarks based on type (benchmark disk, structure (tower, steeple), control rod, etc)

    - Ability to include a photo with log

     

    Keep up the great work!

  3. It's a GREAT idea.

     

    I doubt it'll ever happen. In order for Groundspeak to have access (and/or permissions) to use APPLE maps - there has to be some sort of deal/contract/or monetary payoff to get that feature. $$$$

     

    It's not just a matter of programming the APP, it would have to be a 'Business Entity' (so to speak). Apple is very very proprietary.

     

    And lets not forget about the Android market. They would want their choices (which wouldn't include Apple maps) but would include their own mapping system (?? which I'm not familiar with). The point being....more business entities.

     

    GeoBucket for iPhone already does this. The coordinates are pushed to the native Apple maps app without any problems. There is no reason the official Geocaching App can't do this.

  4. Geotrail... I think the word you are looking for is "series." Here are a few similar Geocaching terms that can be easily confused:

     

    Geotrail - (n) (1) Damage to natural habitat caused by excessive Geocaching traffic. (2) Trail or path created by Geocachers en route to find a Geocache, used in conjunction with Geosenses to identify best route to a Geocache and minimize future damage to habitat. A preliminary Geotrail is usually established shortly after the F2F.

     

    Power Trail - (n) A large collection of Geocaches placed with the intention of finding all caches in one pass along the route. Usually 100 or more caches placed at the minimum distance (0.1 miles) apart, but smaller lines of caches can be consider a power trail it the cache to cache route is obvious. Usually placed with the intention of boosting cache find statistics.

     

    Series - (n) Small collection of Geocaches that form a set or theme. Completing a series may, in some situations, qualify the Geocacher to locate a puzzle or pick up a Geocoin.

  5. Also in Oregon:

    Newberg Old Fashioned Festival Geocoin Challenge

    Event has passed, but coins still remain. Find 6 specific caches in Newberg. See event page for details.

     

    Villages of Mt. Hood Geocoin Challenge

    Geocoin Challenge starts on August 13th, 10 caches will be posted at that time. You will probably need to find 10 caches in Mt. Hood Territory, 5-7 of which from a specific list. Also, this coin is glass.

     

    2011 Estacada Geocoin Challenge

    Find 10 caches in Estacada, at least 6 from the list. Only a handful of coins remain.

     

    2012 Sandy Geocoin Challenge

    Find 10 caches in Sandy, at least 5 from the list

     

    Also... your link to the Mt. Hood Territory is broken. I assume you mean Villages of Mt. Hood: Government Camp. That is the only challenge on the mountain that is currently active. Here is a link to one of the caches for that challenge: Government Camp Geocoin Challenge

  6. Funny you should mention that...

     

    See Tracking Code Policy in the Help Center.

     

    I hadn't seen that before but it looks like it's primarily for creating trackable geocoins. Although I've seen some trackable geocoins that look nothing like a "coin" it sounds like what the OP is looking for is the ability to create some other type of item (perhaps their own custom t-shirt design) and include a "official tracking code" on it. If one could just purchase a tracking code I imagine that almost any swag like item could be turned into a trackable item that is somewhat in between a geocoin and a travel bug. I also could see that it could create some confusion if someone found an item in a cache that did not have a travel bug attached to it, but it was actually trackable with an official tracking code.

     

    I see this a lot. People buy coins that they want to keep in their collection, but send the number out engraved on something else, or send out a photocopy of the coin. People also have bought travel bugs and engraved the code on something else, so they don't have to have the tag attached to their item.

  7. So a fellow cacher (new to Geocaching) asked me a question, and it seems to be a little ethical dilemma. Just wondering what you would do. So here's the story.

     

    This cacher picked up a travel bug from a cache and got it home to find out that its mission was to go to that cache that it was sitting in. The cache belongs to the TB owner. It seemed pretty straightforward to me, just bring the TB back to the cache. But after doing a little research on the situation, I'm not so sure anymore. The cacher emailed the cache/TB owner, but didn't get a reply (2 weeks have passed). Prior to the cacher picking up the TB, it had been sitting in its mission destination cache for 2 weeks. It turns out, the cache/TB owner had some kind of dispute with Groundspeak back in 2009 and they said on their profile page that because of this, they no longer Geocache. Why they've continued to pay 3 years of premium dues is beyond me. I also emailed the TB/cache owner a few weeks ago asking if I could adopt some of their caches. No reply. Of the 80 or so caches placed by the CO, only about 12 remain since they are slowly getting muggled and archived. If the cacher that found the TB returned it to its mission destination cache then it would stand a greater chance of getting lost or muggled, or someone else would pick it up and move it without reading the mission. If he moves it along then more people can enjoy the TB. Should the cacher just put the TB in whatever cache he feels like for others to enjoy, or should he leave it in the mission destination cache?

     

    Thanks for your input!

  8. This does the trick for me. A rather heavy procedure, but it works better than my Mio 168... :unsure:

     

    Well, there's an easier way.

     

    I installed DesktopWIG (a java Wherigo player) and GPSGate. Just plug the GPSr in the USB port and turn it on. Then start DesktopWIG and you can now tie it to the GPSr through a TCP socket. You're ready to start playing.

     

    If you want to simulate walking, just use the simulator part of GPSGate.

     

    Thanks for the info! I spent WAAAY too long trying to get the Pcoket PC Emulator to install Wherigo. This method worked quickly and easily. Thanks again!!!

  9. When I first heard about the Facebook update I loved it. Then I tried it and hated it. I like being able to login with Faceobok, but I hated the generic status updates. Especially when I would go on a caching run and all my posts would look the same (and take up a lot of space on my timeline). Now I love it again. I had suggested early on that the Facebook update included the text on the log... I'm glad to see it does now.

     

    Thank you Groundspeak. Keep up the great work!

  10. There have got to be work-arounds! What if you got a free website, like (and I'm making this up) www.34j85.com and put THAT number (as an address) on your travel bug, then hope that people will quickly open that website and post a note about finding and moving the bug? I bet that would work! And if you're willing to pay a $10 or so annual fee you can probably set up several bug pages on one site: like the site is named something simple and the page within the site is the TB number. Like: "www.trinkettrailersbugs/34j85"

     

    I wouldn't mind logging into a site to post a note that I found or moved the bug -- I mean you won't be able to show where it is on Geocaching.com, but that might not matter!

     

    There are free websites and people do not typically bother to log those travelers at those sites. That and the fact the the traveler will not be listed on the gc.com cache page those items tend to get lost quite easily.

     

    I second that. I have seen several other coins and tags that are trackable on other sites, but I never bother logging them. When I see one of these, I usually have a disappointed reaction, like "this is cool, too bad it's not trackable." In fact, I was pretty disappointed when I purchased the Geocaching Video with exclusive interviews with big players, and found out that the coin that came with it was trackable on some site I'd never heard of (i.e. basically, it was not trackable). The biggest non-Geocaching trackable site I've seen is Pathtags. Maybe one day I'll track something on there... just because their tags are pretty cool. If you use a non-Geocaching site to track your tag, don't expect it to log much action and be prepared to lose it quickly.

  11. It seems like it would not be hard to add an RSS feed to the My Logs section.

     

    With this, one would be able to see all their friends' updates in an RSS feed reader.

     

    Also, if feeds are enabled on this page then a Facebook app could be designed to post updates any time you log a find. Perhaps this app could include settings on whether to include DNFs, Notes, TBs, Benchmarks, or changes to your watchlist or Friends list.

     

    Ideally, Geocaching.com would develop this app and enable it with a simple "Link to Facebook" like other popular sites have done (Livestrong.com, Netflix.com, etc), but with RSS feeds on the appropriate page any script kiddie could whip something up pretty quickly.

     

    It would be legen...dary.

  12. - Geocaches can't be less than 500' apart.

    - The Earth's land area is about 1603176820000000 square feet.

    - Optimal coverage is a hexagonal honeycomb mesh.

    - The area of each hexagon is about 866025 sqare feet.

     

    If caches were places as densely as possible without breaking the 500' requirement, then we would have about 1,851,000,000 active Geocaches!

     

    However, by the time you found a decent portion of these caches we'd have started placing them on the moon and other planets!!

  13. You're visiting a new town for a few days where there area literally thousands of caches to choose from... and there is no way you'll be able to find them all. You're a seasoned cacher, so 5 star difficulties don't phase you... in fact, you welcome the challenge. You also like the easy ones, if they take you to a beautiful park or are a clever hide.

     

    You need a better way to decide which caches you will hunt for.

     

    Fortunately for you, dozens of people have found this cache before you.

     

    This is where it gets interesting... introducing the GeoCache Rating System (GCRS)

     

    When someone logs a cache, they may also rate it (on a scale of 1-5) on their impressions of the cache on several qualities:

    - uniqueness/cleverness/quality of container/hide/camo (this could be 3 separate questions)

    - beauty/draw/interest of surrounding area

    - quality of swag (some caches run practically empty)

    - their impression of the difficulty

    - their impression of the terrain

     

    The first three metrics can be used to give the cache a score (perhaps the user could define the weight of each metric, or the score could look something like "3/5/4"). The other D and T metrics can be used to identify caches the might be mis-labeled... and concensus can help drive the D/T ratings - or at least give cachers an idea what everyone else really thought.

     

    Also, if a cache-owner sees that his/her swag score is low, they might be encouraged to add some goodies.

     

    -------------------

    Logistics:

     

    This could be done without modifying the GPX format (which I image is a logistical nightmare... if I'm wrong on this, then by all means, add some fields to the GPX file). All we need is a couple combo-boxes on the log cache page that allow users to optionally rate the cache on several aspects (by default the values would be blank, so not to affect averages. I image not everyone would want to rate caches, so their non-input should not effect overall scores). These rating selections would then be translated into text that is appended to the end of the cache log.

     

    Now... whenever you want to set up a PQ or filters, you can select caches by their 'quality' rating. You may want to find only the caches that were the most well-recieved, without reading the logs of every single cache.

     

    What do you guys think?

     

    ...I think from now on I'll add something like this to the end of my own log entries, and hopefully geocaching.com will implement something as well.

  14. I found a website that listed the coords to a bunch of otherwise unknown natural springs here in Florida, and started hiding caches at them. One of these springs is located in the middle of a pristine river, just made for paddling, and I planned an underwater cache for that one. About 50 yards upstream, is a small island that I wanted to check out, and as I nosed my 'yak onto shore, I got pummeled by bunches of very angry hornets. I flipped my boat to get away from them, and lost the ability to use my right arm for about an hour. This made paddling upstream back to my truck an interesting trip to say the least.

     

    When the swelling went down, my first inclination was to mount a full frontal assault to wipe them out. A bit of reflection made me realize that, in this case, I was the intruder, and the hornets were just doing their job, protecting their home.

     

    Although the location is amazing, I opted not to put a cache there, 'cuz I didn't want anybody else to suffer the same experience.

    (I did, however, make it a Waymark.) :rolleyes:

    My vote? Leave the bees alone. If you're worried about folks getting stung, move the cache. :)

     

    Lol... this is awesome. I would SO place a cache there. Crank up the D/T and check the "Dangerous Area" attribute. I laughed at a post above about not mentioning the bees, but I think you should be fair and list it if you really need to disturb them to get the cache.

     

    Special equipment required, including a bee suit. Leave a warning for anyone that is allergic. This could be a lot of fun!

     

    There is an attribute for snakes and ticks... I think there should be one for bees too. Maybe put a cache at a bee farm, and you have to open one of the hives to get the cache. Sweet honey cache!

  15. Some of the coolest things I have found are (in no particular order):

     

    1. A pair of binoculars

    2. An electronic Sudoku game

    3. Pathtags (non-trackable, so I don't feel bad holding on to them for a while)

    4. Custom geocoins, not just with cacher-creator's name, but themed around their name (e.g. Jayel57 looks like a Heintz 57 logo).

    5. Live animals... that's always exciting (usually just spiders, but hamsters would be cool too)

    6. Where's George dollar bills and state quarters

    7. Foreign money and coins

    8. Surprises... smething spring-loaded that pops out at me

    9. Geocaching.com stuff (a GC.com shirt, & a GC.com water bottle)

    10. And lastly... a dry logbook.... preferrably one that has never been found or signed before. I especially like the official geocaching.com logbooks.

  16. (TheTexasGringo @ Oct 14 2008, 03:13 PM)

     

    ***The referenced cache is in Murphy, TX. It's well known that the local LEOs are a little............................overzealous, shall we say?***

     

    Here is an article about the Suspicious device they found in Murphy, Texas.

     

    http://www.murphymessenger.com/articles/49...-IN-MURPHY.html

     

    This should go in the "Geocaching In The News" Hall of Fame.

  17. ...If they text us cache info, they won't get paid when we don't see the ads!

     

    Are you kidding me? If GC.com offered text messages, they would generate a lot more revenue than they could from ad displays. Ad space on the internet is cheap (a small fraction of a cent per display), text messages (especially if they also incorporate ads) can generate a couple cents per text (if free), or more if they charge a premium. There is a big market in sending horoscopes, jokes, sports scores, etc via text because they get a cut from the carrier.

  18. I was using TMobile up until about a month ago... I would set up notifications to email me when new caches are published and I utilized a nice (albeit, not highly publicized) feature TMobile offers... SMS email. It comes with every SMS plan and does not cost extra. You can use your phone number as the email address, with tmomail.com as the domain (e.g. 1234567890@tmomail.com). Now I use an iPhone with AT&T and get my GMail on my phone... but hopefully you will still find this useful. If you are not on TMobile, maybe your carrier has something similar.

  19. What is the best "search term" to use in the iTunes Store to find this application when it is eventually released? I'm now using "geocaching". Is that sufficient? I'm assuming it is.

     

    I search for "geocach" (with no 'e'). That way, I see all apps that use "geocaching" "geocacher" "geocache" or "geocaches" in the description (I'd like to know when other, smaller, developers release apps too). I've tried just searching for "cach" - which may turn up other relevant results for geocaching programs, but I find that that introduces too many junk results.

  20. One of my favorite stats is counties. I try to visit a new county each month. I figure pretty soon that will give me a reason to visit some pretty far away places.

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