wildlifewriter

The last cache I submitted was appoved in (from submission to appearing on the site) nine minutes. A point which may have had nothing to with this, is: on the "Note to Reviewer" section, I included info relating to every question that a Reviewer could possibly have asked about the cache... ... and some that he/she wouldn't even have asked. -Wlw.

It's an open secret that the first on the scene were Team Ullium & Wildlifewriter. In our own defence, it should be noted that... (i) It didn't take us (Bill) 45 minutes to find it, or anything like. (ii) The whole site happened to be under two feet of snow. (iii) We were constantly distracted by an unwashed and unshaven dosser who capered about, uttering cries of "See yew, gwan a heuchtie whapit' frang ye gowks..." and similar, in the barbaric dialect of that benighted region. It's a wonder we managed to find it at all. -Wlw

A great effort by HH - lucid and and articulate, with all the points covered - drystane dikes included. As Ian says, you can listen to the whole program during this week (and it's very interesting). For those that can't, there might be an edited MP3 version HERE. 2.8Mb (copyright © BBC Radio Scotland.) This recording is a bit variable in quality as it was done in something of a rush - I'll try to improve the quality over the weekend. -Wlw.

The contour "maps" are selectable in tiles, in the same way as other Mapsource-compatible data. The memory committed for each tile varies - it depends on the density of information on each tile. This makes sense if you think about it. For example: the tile for central Wales is 4.08Mb. A tile of the same extent, but covering the Cambridgeshire fens, is only 630Kb. I don't know how much user memory is available on the GPSIII+ Hth, Wlw.

Shots in the dark: That sounds like a Windoze98 error message. The .reg file is for XP. OR... The .reg file is corrupted OR... You didn't UnZip the file properly, before importing it. -Wlw.

Fair enough - I thought it was sort of an intelligence test or something. If you want humour for the Forums, Simply Paul or myself would be happy to supply professional specially-written material - and our charges are very reasonable. Well, his are anyway... -Wlw.

What I would do is: ask why you ask the question in the first place... ... because I think you have a pretty good idea already, why the signs are there. -Wlw.

Yes. No. -Wlw.

You need to download the file "essentials.zip", as well. This contains the .reg, and some other bits that you'll need to make the whole thing work - hence the filename... -Wlw.

I should assure the Forum that there is almost certainly no connection between Mr. Booth and myself. Admittedly, one can see a passing resemblance in the photographs, but this may be because I am coloured whereas he is black and white. Let me take this opportunity of wishing Mr. Booth continued success for the future. I am familiar with his previous work, and I thought he was particularly good as Polly the waitress in Fawlty Towers. -Wlw.

Looks as if the distance (radius) to be searched is limited to 50 miles. That's not much good where I live. -Wlw.

At least he has the virtue of being consistent. Ever since I started geocaching, the attitude from TPTB has always been "If you don't like the way this listing site is run, the are other ones that you can use." This might strike you as being fundamentally wrong - but it's a perfectly viable way to run a business. Many successful businesses are run with this philosophy, and it has a surprising number of advantages, commercially. The unusual thing about GC.com is the number of customers who claim to be dissatisfied with the way it's run - but still continue to use it. This doesn't tell you much about the business - but it tells you a lot about some of the customers. -Wlw.

'Fraid he's right, Dave... ...I just went through the Terms & Conditions document - and there's no mention of kissing butts anywhere in there. But seriously: it does seems as if JI is under bit of strain, these days - perhaps he should go and have a nice comfy lie down... ... on his wallet. -Wlw.

Aye... If Bill and Angela hadn't been there, I'd STILL be looking for it... -Wlw.

...and your point is.... what, exactly? -Wlw

Congratulations on your technological and numerical advancement. -Wlw

A great effort in overcoming such problems to reach 300. Well done, Bill. -Wlw.

For the sake of accuracy, I should point out that Klaus does not really have a phobia related to nettles. A phobia is a form of mental illess, whereas he simply has an aversion - both to the concept of nettles, and the possible consequences of coming into contact with them. I feel the same way about small children, clowns, holiday caches, and Jeremy Clarkson. -Wlw.

Cache containers can be difficult to open with one hand. Jamming them between knee and plaster cast sometimes works... About the rescued TB: if anyone knows RobandTiina, I'd really like to contact them before releasing it. Tried a PM but they haven't logged into the site for a while. -Wlw.

The owner may have become inactive, or just lost interest in the cache. (Many do.) For this reason, it's perfectly permissible for someone else to log an SBA ticket. But just because an SBA exists doesn't mean that the cache will be archived automatcally. Reviewers will use their skill, judgement and experience (and - possibly - The Force) to decide if such action is warranted. The odd DNF at a remote and difficult cache is only to be expected - five DNFs at a D1/T2, and it's probably absent... -Wlw.

I know that... ...but you weren't supposed to tell everyone. -Wlw.

It's holiday time in the good ole' USA of America... ... if the site has to keel over, it'll keel over this weekend. Keep a note of your logs, folks - Tuesday's not that far away. -Wlw.

MiniWee: I just read what your post said before you edited it. If a Reviewer abused his/her position in the way you describe, then that Reviewer has to resign. You should send any evidence of this to Groundspeak, directly. -Wlw.

Anyway, congrats to the person on 20 points for the month. He amassed these points by: (i) visiting the cache site, and proving it was 'missing'; and (ii) visiting the location a second time, to reinstate it with new box, log and swaps at the request of the cache owner. He deserves every single point, because the cache is 280 Km from his home (each way) - over some of the worst roads in God's creation. Well done... -Wlw.

You don't know that the Reviewer was involved. I agree with C-R (above) that it seems unlikely - especially as the cache in question HAS been approved. The fact is: any experienced cacher could have had the WJTB on a "watchlist" - and therefore would have known that it had been dropped in a new pending cache. To send a message pretending to be one of the Reviewers, would have been the work of a moment. Viewed from afar (Ireland), the whole affair reflects little credit on any of those involved... -Wlw.