apogee

Cornix Free map: http://rwsmaps.griffel.se/ Sorry for the necrophilia, but I was searching for help for an upcoming trip to Japan and found this topic. I installed rws's maps and had no trouble displaying them in MapSource and uploading partitions to my Etrex Legend. I'm not complaining about free software, but there appear to be a couple limitations and I want to make sure I haven't overlooked anything regarding usage. First, the find function appears to be disabled. I can't search for points of interest either within MapSource or on the GPSr itself. Second, the level of detail is pretty low, comparable to the US basemap. The topo map is fine, but there's no street grid. Again, I'm not trying to be critical. I only ask in case there's some interface program I should be using other than MapSource. The issue is perhaps moot, in my case. I already found and ordered UUD's Japan Navigation Map for Garmin before I came here, based on the reviews, the level of detail in the maps and presumed search capability using Romaji place names. It's nice to have the free alternative, though.

I noticed something similar for my autorouting, but it seems to depend on the number of waypoints rather than the type of road. Short routes are displayed correctly on highways, rural roads and side streets. When the number of turns gets large [>16 or so], routes are displayed as straight line segments between waypoints, no matter what the road type. I thought it was a software glitch, so I make multiple routes to get around it. Is this only a problem with Metroguide V5? Did V4 behave correctly?

I don't know about the 60c, but Metroguide can upload turn by turn directions to the Legend. That GPSr seems to have issues when a route doubles back on itself, however. For some reason it wants to take a "shortcut" in the reverse direction.

10% eh? I'm surprised even that many bother to read the forums. Do you think it might have something to do with the attitude here? I do.

Why thank you for adding to this discussion, Mr. bons. I find your inciteful and fair-minded contribution most helpful. As to why I haven't hidden any caches of my own - well, I kind of had the idea that gaining experience by first finding others' hides was a good idea - but I bow to your greater understanding. After all, experience is what counts, right? And how could the opinion of one who's been here so short a time compare with that of someone with such seniority? I had better keep a respectful silence in the presence of a learned geocaching master such as yourself. How foolish it was of me to think that offering an opinion about hiding caches would be useful to potential cache owners in a Getting Started forum, since those who truly make geocaching the sport it is today would know better already, nicht wahr? [thanks for your compliment in advance, tlg]

You need to keep in mind how bureaucracies operate. If someone were to make an inquiry about the need for a walking permit in a city park, the agency in charge would come back with a set of regulations and a fee system. That's how they make their living, finding new areas to expand their authority and generate revenue. In the days when people relied less on government to run their lives and took responsibility for their own actions, things were handled just as well and without the red tape.

Not to bash them, but there's a reason why Fry's gets mixed reviews. First, the sales staff gets, shall we say, the bare minimum training possible. A good one might be able to help you find the nearest register. Second, the store's liberal no-questions-asked return policy results in restocking defective merchandise. If you buy a big ticket item, be sure to examine it for repackaging. It may have been sold and returned several times already.

I'm still new at this, but I've noticed a problem with some cache placements. Many locations are well chosen in term of natural beauty and interest, but the actual hiding spot is a disappointment. Some people favor the needle in a haystack approach and place the container in an area of dense overgrowth or among random rocks. When you are surrounded by acres of natural growth and given clues like under the bush near the path, it can take hours to clear the underbrush without doing a lot of damage to it and your hands. Perhaps it's reasonable when you're working with a team, but it's not much fun for a lone searcher, especially when you have to contend with thorns, insects and muggles. The most enjoyable finds for me have been those involving a mental challenge rather than brute force. Anyone can throw a box into a debris field and make it tough to find. It takes more work to create a unique and identifiable hide that is located by observation and detective work. Here are a couple examples to show what I mean. The first was a microcache in an urban park. The container had been cleverly disguised to look like a drainage pipe built into the base of a statue. A great idea and a challenging hunt! The other cache [rated a 2/1.5] was a black film canister hidden under a piece of bark at the base of a tree. Because of the heavy tree cover, the search area was very large. There were dozens of possible trees, most surrounded by heavy vegetation. After an hour of forcing my way past thorns, poison oak and other obstacles, I simply gave up and have no intention of going back. That kind of search is no fun at all. So I'd like to ask everyone who's planning a new placement to put a little effort behind it. It's easy to come up with a bush-whacking situation. It's harder to do a clever concealment, but more satisfying for people who'd rather use their heads rather than their hands.

Hey, just add a little topsoil and coffee grounds and you have a bait can!

I took my Legend [first GPSr] out of the box and twenty minutes later had my first geocache in hand. I do find it intuitive to use and rarely need to refer to the manual. On the other hand, keep in mind that the average consumer seems to have trouble programming a VCR...

I ordered an eTrex Legend and Metroguide from offroute. The GPSr came with the latest firmware and had no defects. However, offroute sent me the following email. I waited two weeks, asked again and got the same story. It would be another two weeks before Garmin started shipping. Because I needed map software for an imminent trip, I emailed Garmin to get its current status. Garmin replied I ordered it from a discount retailer (who also had plenty in stock). Don't know if offroute just had a communication problem or they were giving me the runaround, but it tarnished my experience with them.

Er, to whom are you sending a message when you trade garbage for garbage? The cache owner didn't put it there to begin with. The person who left it there isn't coming back. So what's your point? If you don't feel like cleaning or upgrading the cache, fine. Just close the box and walk away.

When you post a reply, look under the Clickable Smilies box and you'll find a link marked BB Code Help. This is supposed to be kept up to date to reflect the current BB configuration. Some boards automatically update such information whenever a configuration change occurs.

A couple software tips... Mapsource is good for editing track data. Note that you can sort by number of points by clicking on the column header, then select the first item, shift-click on the last to be deleted and get rid of the noise all at once. Most versions of Windows [if that's what you use] support active window capture with the print screen and alt-print screen keys. You can paste the result in almost any graphics program with an edit/paste function. Perhaps this is how you did it with Paint!, but I thought it was worth mentioning.

I don't know if this will be of any help, but I recently discovered that Garmin produces an entire line of Japanese GPSr's and MapSource software. From what I can tell, Japanese City Select is comparable to English versions. They also have other Asian maps. The labels are in kanji, of course, but the main highways are numbered [in Japan]. I've sent an email to Garmin's Asian marketing support asking about compatibility and availability in the US. I'm thinking of getting the maps for a future trip to the Far East. See http://www.valley.ne.jp/~kazuo/gps/usage/gps5j/gps5j.htm for some screen shots.

Let me add another Legend success story on the issue of reception under cover. I turned my receiver on inside the house last night to upload a map route. This room has windows on two sides, but the closer one is covered by a 4' metal awning. Both windows had drawn shades and blinds. To my surprise, the unit still managed to acquire satellite lock! The three sources it found were at high elevation, although the house has a wooden floor and roof overhead. The signals were probably being reradiated from somewhere, but the Garmin still managed to identify my location with reasonable accuracy. [it does even better outdoors! ] I just received my MetroGuide USA software and have been having fun trying it out. Today I'm taking a 16-waypoint route and will give it a good test. Even though the memory is limited to 8MB, I found that sufficient to load most of the SF Bay Area street maps.

Loosening the screws may not be the best solution for avoiding cracks. The defect may be due to weaknesses in the case, rather than overtorquing. If the crack pattern appears to radiate from the screw holes at different angles, then yes, try retorquing. Otherwise, the cracks may be caused by inadequate joining of the case and chassis, and loosening the screws may actually aggravate the problem. If the screws are tapered, backing them out will result in a less secure connection which may cause them to fall out at some point.

Now that you know the mechanics of posting pictures, just remember that you are supposed to have permission from the image host owner before doing it. Hotlinking to other sites is considered stealing bandwidth by some and some sites actively block it. If you can upload the picture to a GC gallery and reference it there, that's one way to avoid the issue.

Thanks for the great links! It appears that Garmin does sell Japanese Mapsource products and perhaps even a Japanese version V or Legend. I'll inquire with the company to see if they're available for purchase in the US. My friend, actually the brother of my Japanese girlfriend, doesn't understand much English so it would help to have menuing in his native language. His primary uses would be as a guide for running marathons and location finder for camping. We had hoped to buy the GPSr in the US and have his sister take it home after we meet in Hawaii. That would avoid the high import tax and customs duties for a new unit. I'll have to find out if these receivers are made for export only, and if not, whether an American model will play with Japanese software. At least I have a good lead to follow now.

Whoever said public land belonged to the people? It belongs to the lawyers!

One problem I seem to have with Visualizer - and it's a great tool, btw - is creating a map for two waypoints close together. No matter how I adjust the Margin:, Show waypoints: and Single-point map width: parameters, it draws a thin rectangular box with one waypoint at the top and the other at the bottom. If only a single waypoint is entered, a normal map is displayed. The only workaround I've found is to create additional waypoints to define the map perimeter.

Oh, I don't know. Perhaps because I'm new to the game, I keep hoping to find buried treasure. If more players would actually leave something of value, I think it would add to the fun, particularly for kids who enjoy surprises. I think some of you old-timers have become too jaded.

The language system is different, but not that hard to implement. Japanese cell phones have capabilities beyond their Western counterparts. The amount of memory it takes to add Kanji/katakana/hiragana support to English Windows is only a few megabytes. I was hoping that one of the GPS manufacturers had developed a unit for the largely untapped Japanese market. It would be less important to translate street names for maps, since most residential streets in Japan are unmarked anyway. A simple street grid should suffice for urban navigation.

Does anyone know of a US-made mapping GPSr that includes options for Japanese language and an Asian basemap? I'd like to send one as gift to a friend in Japan. My eTrex can be configured for 14 languages, but not Japanese. Thanks!

Thanks to Strapped-4-Cache and everyone else for the suggestions. I'm just down the road from the USGS office in Menlo Park (CA), so I may stop by their gift shop and see if they have any patches or clothing items. The bottom line seems to be blend in with your surroundings and make it appear you're doing something other than geocaching.