Ranz

I played with the fake stump idea for a while. Got them looking pretty natural but temperature was a problem. The flatened top would expand and contract throughout the day. To me, it was a give away. I had some Bondo and some window screen laying around and I was able to come up with some pretty real looking hollow rocks. Nothing that big yet, I'm still experimenting, but it's promising enough that I am going to try and place one in June that will be hiding an ammo can. Might be worth someone else looking into.

I used a GPS-315 until I got my MeriGold. My Wife still uses it and is very happy with it. We have a serial cable that we use to download waypoints with EasyGPS or ExpertGPS. There are also several completely free programs that allow you to upload/download waypoints, routes, and tracks. One good example is Magellan Waypoint Editor by Mark Crossley. DataSend will not give you much beyond that and in my oppinion is not worth the price with so much other good stuff available. Get the data cable. In fact, I use the combo data/power cable with a AC auto adaptor plugged into the wall. I makes programming much easier. Then download any software you feel you need. The 315 is a great unit with many third party options available. DataSend, with the exception of being able to reload your city information, does not offer anything that you can't get for free.

Magellan Mapsend is the only application that will load maps to a Magellan GPS. Garmin Mapsource is the only application that will load maps to a Garmin GPS. I am not really familiar with Lawrence but I assume that the same applies. Some new and very exspensive units allow you to load TOPO maps and someday maybe both Magellan and Garmin will wise up and allow third parties to produce mapping software. Until then, at least they are both being stupid so it's an equal playing field.

Magellan Mapsend is the only application that will load maps to a Magellan GPS. Garmin Mapsource is the only application that will load maps to a Garmin GPS. I am not really familiar with Lawrence but I assume that the same applies. Some new and very exspensive units allow you to load TOPO maps and someday maybe both Magellan and Garmin will wise up and allow third parties to produce mapping software. Until then, at least they are both being stupid so it's an equal playing field.

One of the great things about Geocaching is that you can get as simple as you want, but there is much more under the surface if you choose to dig. Lot's of people just Geocache. No frills, just a walk in the woods or a short drive. Sign the log and you're done. If you choose the explore the technology involved or some of the other aspects of Geocaching then there is a ton of information and help available. It enhances my experience because I enjoy that kind of thing but I would have found just as many caches with a point-and-go approach. It's all great fun to me but that's me. Try it. If it doesn't turn your crank then stop. As with most things in life, it's not so much what it is, but what you make of it. Oops! Soapbox collapsed so I have to go now. If you decide in favor, happy caching;

Do me a favor and take the coords you used and treat them like they were NAD-27. Covert them to WGS84 and see if they end up in the right area. That's the only reason I question it. It seems like quite a coincidence that they line up for me after the conversion. quote:Originally posted by jef:I checked the one nearest my house in Berkeley using both the indicated NAD-83 datum and the usual WGS-84. Both times I was off by about 120 feet, in the same direction. I don't think it's a datum issue. The rounding problem that Jeremy posted about sounds more likely.

These coords seem a lot closer to NAD-27. Here's my post on the subject. http://opentopic.Groundspeak.com/0/OpenTopic?a=tpc&s=1750973553&f=5790959854&m=8800904954

I did a personal look for two bench marks in my area (utah) today. In both cases the area in the description and the posted coords were about 150' off. The posted coords were East/SouthEast. So when I got home I started checking a few with mapping software. I brought up the topo maps and satellite photos for a couple near where I live. Same result of the actual location being over 150' West of the waypoint. I had seen this before when using NAD-27 maps so I took the coords and assumed they were NAD-27 and converted them to WGS84. Once converted the waypoint landed in the described area. I confirmed the calculation with a known (found) marker in my area. (Designation C 173) When I took the posted coords as NAD-27 and converted to WGS84 the waypoint hit the mark on the dot. With the coords as-is it ends up on the other side of the street (East). Has anyone else run into this problem? Is NAD-83 off of WGS84 that much in my area? [This message was edited by Ranz on June 10, 2002 at 04:59 AM.]

I am a magellanite but I have read many posts and I know that the etrex is one of the most popular GPSs for Geocaching. If the coords are off it could be for several reasons. One, the datum may be set wrong on the GPS. It's easily changed and should be WGS84. Two, how far off is off? Is it 30' feet or 300 feet? All GPS's will get you close but they are not exact and will vary a little based on which satellites you're tracking, weather, tree cover, terrain, etc. 30 to 60 feet is not unusual. Check the Garmin website for updates. I'm sure they are keeping up on the unit. It has a large following. Last but not least...Welcome aboard!!!

Some of the Meridians shipped had an assembly defect. A yellow wire is crossing the path of the SD card preventing insertion. It is a simple matter to correct it yourself if you don't mind opening the case. If that bothers you, you will have to send it in for a free repair.

If it's a choice between the Venture and the 310, take the Venture. I use and prefer Magellans but the 310 is a pretty basic unit. It does not have many of the features the Venture has. 315 or higher would give the Venture some competition but not the 310.

Definitely go with Mapsend TOPO. Magellan MapSend is the only software that will load maps to the Meridian and TOPO offers the best bang for the buck for the series (in my humble opinion). For uploading/downloading waypoints, routes, and tracks, there are a lot of nice packages out there. From free to pretty darned expensive. I use USAphotomaps (free), Delorme TOPO ($99), ExpertGPS ($59, but EasyGPS is free), and GPSTrackMaker (free). All of these are great additions to the Meridian or most other GPS's and really help in getting the most from your GPS activities.

The cache form is only active for 30 or 40 minutes. If it took longer to submit the page I am pretty sure it just goes to nowhere.

The Cable will work fine. I used a 315 cable on my MeriGold up until just a couple of days ago. The power input requirements for this series of Magellans appears to be the same.

The Cable will work fine. I used a 315 cable on my MeriGold up until just a couple of days ago. The power input requirements for this series of Magellans appears to be the same.

I received one this morning. Norton caught it right away and it was not on the account I use for Geocaching. I am pretty careful about where my email address is listed and I have not been hit through email before. Something is out there grabbing the harder addresses right now. Best defense is to keep your virus detection up to date. As the doctor said to the mother who's son swallowed a dime. "This too shall pass."

As much as I hate to be classified in any category, I guess I am a Geocaching fundamentalist. I have not logged locationless or virtual caches, and probably won't. If I head out with a location in the GPS, find the items listed at that location, and sign the log (If there is one), then I post a find. From another perspective I can see where they could have a place in Geocaching. Example: I am lucky enough to have the physical ability to seek almost any cache posted. Not everyone can say that. Geocaching is a great sport and should not be limited to people who can hike, climb, swim, or whatever. These cache types allow physically challenged people to participate. While they are not for me, I wouldn't want to restrict Geocaching for anyone else. Lets face it. There are not a lot of handicap friendly caches out there. Until we can come up with a better alternative that allows everyone to play, the locationless and the virtual caches help fill that void. I don't choose to seek them but I have no issues with those that do. Whatever their reason.

I just received permission to place a cache in one of my city's recreation areas. It should be online this weekend pending Geocaching.com approval. First, I placed a phone call to the Layton City Parks and Recreation Director, leaving a brief message of my request. He returned my call that afternoon and we had a good conversation concerning my plans. He had not heard of geocaching but was very open minded and gave me verbal permission based on our conversation. I followed up with an email confirming our conversation, including satellite images of the target area and pictures of the container I intended to use (in this case an ammo can). The email also contained links to the geocaching FAQ, links to other caches in the area, and a link to my profile. I explained some of the misconceptions about geocaching and assured the director that I would maintain responsibility for the cache and surrounding area. He responded within a day with written permission, advising me that they could not be held responsible if the cache was plundered by kids playing in the area and such. We all know that comes with the territory. I'd be glad to send you the correspondence on this request but I don't want to post it here. The information it provides gives the location, placement, and container description, which would take any challenge out of the hunt. Send me your email address if you would like the info.

quote:Originally posted by RAD Dad: I have a Sony Clie' Palm device, and I would like to hook it up to my Garmin Legend.....can I do it? The thing is, my Garmin Legend hooks up to serial connections, and my Sony Clie' connects to my computer via a USB conection. I know that you can get Garmin adapters with bare wires at one end to customize a hook up, but would this work with a device that connects via USB? Any techies out there know? ummmm....not sure what to say here....so ummm, well errrr, uhhhh, well I guess that's it. The Clie has both a USB and serial interface. There are a couple of web pages that show how to make a cable, and I have found one place that sells them for about $24.00. If you would like my info let me know and I will try to dig it up. I was researching to hook my wife's 315 to her Clie and she decided that it worked great as a stand alone so I stopped the project.

It may have been placed on a whim but it looks like the hider had good motives and kept to the spirit of the game. Nothing was defaced or disturbed from what I can tell. Based on what I have read and the pictures I viewed, If I had found it, I'd post it proudly.

Works pretty well on my Smartphone using Vagabond. It is a lot simpler and faster than going through the whole process to get to a page. I certainly agree that it should be included on Geocaching.com. From the other posts I have been reading Jeremy is working on some mobile solutions. Right now though, we are the exception, not the rule. I fully expect a useable solution but know that mobile access is not number 1 on the priority list. Thanks for the great app! I hope it is incorporated into the site, and that it becomes a standard tool in geocaching.coms mobile tool box. Ranz

What kind of GPS is it? This would tell me if it has a quadrifier or patch antenna. Where are you trying to use it when you are not getting signal? GPS's are line-of-sight devices, meaning they work best if their view of the sky is not obstructed. Heavy tree cover, indoor use, tall buildings or hills all have an effect on performance. The level of effect they have is also related to the antenna type. I can imagine that level of performance under certain circumstances but generally speaking, if you are out in the open you should see at least five or six satellites. They may not max out the bars on signal strength but that is not a important as the number you acquire. Ranz

On a recent caching run http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.asp?ID=2935 I was too busy watching my target to pay full attention to my speed. The speed limit in the area was posted 30mph, while the road size, area, and conditions would imply that it should be 35-40mph. That's just an opinion and if I had been more observant it wouldn't have mattered. End result: I received a ticket for 42 in a 30. I was pretty sure I wasn't going that fast but how could I argue. As I said, I wasn't paying enough attention. When I got home I realized that my trusty MeriGold had a complete record of that journey, from my house to the cache. I loaded the tracklog into GPSTrackMaker and ran the numbers. The program told me that my average speed on that section of road was 29.1mph. I did some additional math to factor acceleration to speed and deceleration to stop and my cruising speed on that road turned out to be just under 35mph. The speed I thought I was going in the first place. Armed with this information and knowing that a ticket for 12 over the speed limit would report to my insurance company, I pled not guilty. The pretrial hearing was today and the prosecutor called me in to disclose the evidence against me. I explained my position without going into detail. He was intrigued and said that if I gave him a little information he might be willing to bring the violation to under 10 over the limit. Maybe I shouldn't have but I was not anxious to go to trial so I laid it all out for him. I showed him the actual tracklog from the GPS. I showed him an overlay of that log on a satellite image and I showed him a close-up of the area where I was pulled over. I was honest with him and told him what I thought my actual speed was, and I showed him the calculations that gave me that result. He was absolutely blown away! He said that a part of him really wanted to take this to trial just to see how it turned out because nobody had ever taken this approach on a speeding offence before. But the evidence had convinced him that my case was valid and that if I would plead guilty to 35mph he would write everything down to the minimums. I agreed. When we got in front of the judge he turned in my papers and told the judge that I was pleading to a lessor charge. He then spoke to the court telling everyone that this defendant is the first one not to dispute the radar evidence, his evidence is just better. I guess if I had gone to trial I stood a good chance of getting off altogether, but I was in all likelihood going 35 and I should have been more attentive. So I got what I deserved but thanks to my GPS, only what I deserved. I also gave the prosecutor and the court a highlight in an otherwise grueling day. America, What a Country.....

What you do is load all four files at once, then got to the window tile option. From there you drag and drop from the other files into a single file. That's the only way I have found to do it short of editing the XML and concatenating the files. Believe me, the first way is easier.

I usually just open a new mail window and write my post there. Then I spell check it, copy, and paste it into the forum. It works for spelling but sometimes my typing gets ahead of my brain so my syntax is a bit whacked. Most times (I hope) I catch it when it posts and I edit it to correct the errors.