Team MEMILA
-
Posts
71 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Posts posted by Team MEMILA
-
-
I agree that it's a one time thing for this scenario. My background has been heavily focused on user interface/user experience, so I'm probably a bit overly focused on UI issues.
It also comes up for me whenever I plan a multi-state roadtrip. User experience could be improved substantially, but no biggie.
-
Canada is an option to select, which is geographically bigger than the U.S. Even Russia, the largest country in the world geographically, can be selected. Very odd that the U.S. cannot be selected since those larger countries can be.
Geographical area isn't the criteria used for that list; it's the number of caches in each country. Russia only has 391 caches in the entire country, while there are single towns in the US that have more caches than that.
That's fine and makes sense, but for some use cases it would help. For example, I'd like a pocket query for all caches hidden within the first year of geocaching in the United States. There it would be helpful to select US once rather than 50 individual states. Or, a query for all virtuals. Two groups of caches I focus on. But, I realize I'm unique in that. So ...
There are other UI approaches to address this. Let the user pick US and then filter the States section to only list US states. Could be helpful for many queries as the states/provinces list is unwieldy.
Or, maintaining current list allow users to add things from one list to another on the right as they select them. Solves the issue of being able to see everything selected and avoid problem of a mis-click that deselects what had been selected.
There are many ways to make the UI better suited to the multi-selection issue with states. I run into this all the time because I take many road trips.
-
From a performance perspective, this is a much improved update. There's the handful of bugs others have mentioned (some very serious), but best performing release to date. Bravo!
What I can't figure out is why one of the most basic iPhone operations is still not included - swipe to delete. It should be possible to swipe to delete caches as well as cache lists. It's standard, expected behavior in an iPhone app and a huge time saver.
Secondarily, as others have mentioned, the method by which you view in external maps is very cumbersome. Tap button, Safari launches, wait for it to present button to open Google Maps app, then tap that.
Additionally, a setting allowing you to choose the External Maps app would be welcomed. I for one don't want to use the Google Maps app. I would prefer to use the Apple Maps app as I've never had any issues with it and it is better integrated into the system (for obvious reasons). I realize others would prefer Google, so that's what maps a simple setting desirable (and implementable in less than 10 minutes).
-
I think Canada works the same way.
Canada is an option to select, which is geographically bigger than the U.S. Even Russia, the largest country in the world geographically, can be selected. Very odd that the U.S. cannot be selected since those larger countries can be.
-
I never include caches that are not on the trail as part of the HOTM. Nylund's Grave is not on the trail. That's almost a park and grab in comparison.
I didn't know the caveat. ;-)
I figured if someone was going to go all the way out there, they might want to visit it. It's an interesting spot as the forest encroaches on the grave area.
-
Wanted to note that there are actually 3 virtuals there in addition to the Ozette River Steam Donkey for those that haven't done any of them. They are:
Nylund's Grave GC7186
Roose Homestead GC16A6
Ahlstrom's Homestead GCGJGG
The last one holds the distinction of being the furthest west geocache in the contiguous United States.
I wish I could join the adventure, but I'm in Michigan until I secure my next job. Have an amazing trip!
- Mike (Team MEMILA)
-
I nearly ended up doing this hike the Saturday before, but I didn't have cash on me. I'm glad I joined this great group for the hike. It was a fantastic time and I collected some interesting trash on the way back, like a stuffed teddy bear, shoe, tiki torch, exactly one packing peanut, and other things.
Like AndrewRJ, I ended up sunburned as well. First time that's happened since I moved to Washington just over a year ago; I was starting to think it wasn't possible.
After the hike I headed to Sol Duc to log the Earthcache and virtual there. Then, found a park and ride to "nap" in until the following morning when I continued on 101 finding a few traditional caches along with virtuals and Earthcaches. It was a great weekend to be on the peninsula. Logs yet to come ...
I also learned why only 6 people have ever logged a find on this virtual:
http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?guid=fcafbb91-c531-4c76-bf1b-0dce8df4a58f
I made it across Willaby Creek, which was flowing more like a river, but within .24 of the cache the trail was obliterated by blow down and overgrowth several years in the making. I wasn't dressed to bushwhack through it, it was 5 pm and I was alone. Recipe for disaster, so I turned back to return another day (assuming I find a new job in Washington and stay here).
Thanks to GrievousAngel and Totem Lake for organizing this hike, which got me back out to the peninsula doing what I love. Hoping very much to be able to join the May one ... if I'm still here.
-
I've decided that I'm in for this HOTM too. Looking forward to it.
In addition to the two Earthcaches and the virtual, there's also a traditional near the parking lot:
-
I got a 2011 Nissan Xterra to replace a 2009 Nissan Maxima as my geocaching vehicle. I liked the Maxima for everything other than geocaching here in Washington. It couldn't take me to places like this:
http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_details.aspx?guid=06bc66df-62d9-4e2b-a052-280f08bdd13d
I love everything about the Xterra as a cache mobile except for the gas mileage. But since I don't drive much during the week since moving to Washington, it evens out. I've slept in it a few times, including on my way back from finding the cache Southern Idaho's First (GC5C) last month. It has 4WD and very good ground clearance. It's not a Jeep, but it fits my needs.
-
Thanks for the tips on the snowshoes! Since I'm flying to Michigan tomorrow morning and then back late Friday, getting something around here will be difficult or impossible for the hike. I may search for something while in Michigan, time permitting. If not, I'll have to skip this month.
I took a short hike on Birdhouse Trail to find GC37HFF yesterday. Snow there was only about 4 inches deep at the maximum, but it's a good distance from the pass still and the altitude isn't very high. Looking forward to getting out in the snow some more.
-
I'd like to join, but get back from Michigan late the night before and don't have snowshoes (yet). So, I may be there.
-
I'm fairly new to the area having arrived in late March, but am thinking about joining this hike tomorrow morning.
-
A DNF was logged on Iron Horse (GC79) today and it hadn't been found since before the APE Cache disappeared. Wonder if it's been taken too?
In fact, none of the caches along that stretch have been found recently. Some with multiple DNFs going back a few days before Mission 9 disappeared. Was the whole area cleared out?
-
Depends on I you look at. Through December 31, 2010 I had only cached in Michigan and hit 3000 finds. Since then, because of a job hunt and relocation to Washington state, I've now cached in 13 more states. My total for Michigan (where I lived until late March and still revisit) is 3107. My total for Washington is 407. For states I've never lived in, Utah and Oregon are currently tied at 30.
-
If you attempt to setup a notification with a radius of 50 miles, it is converted to 49.7096953789867 miles. Not a show stopper by any means, but thought someone might want to be aware of this.
-
Does the "28T" shown on the one I posted about mean anything? I'm quickly becoming more interested in benchmarks and am realizing there is much to learn if I want to make the leap from stumbling upon them to actively.
The "T" normally stands for "Traverse", "TT" means "Transit Traverse" and the "ET" is "Electronic Traverse".
28 is the series number.
For example, on the mark I found, the stamping denotes ET 4 (Electronic Traverse #4), EAK(Surveyor's Initials), 1963 (Date of Monumentation).
You can contact the USGS in Rolla, Mo. for more information on your station. All their data on bench marks is contained in filing cabinets.
~ Mitch ~
Thank you for that information.
-
Does the "28T" shown on the one I posted about mean anything? I'm quickly becoming more interested in benchmarks and am realizing there is much to learn if I want to make the leap from stumbling upon them to actively.
-
I did not record the latitude and longitude of the benchmark because I wasn't really searching for them, but it was seen on my route between these caches if I recall correctly: GCKCEV and GC1F07. I was on the way to Crisp Point and as mentioned, I've not really been a benchmark hunter in the past.
I just read the "Why Not?" section referenced. Thanks for that link.
It seems I'm going to go the route of downloading county benchmark information directly and converting it to GPX using BMGPX so that I have it with me on future adventures.
I was surprised to be the first one to log this mark online:
You can't miss it if you drive past.
-
While in Michigan's Upper Peninsula this past weekend, I found a few benchmarks that I was able to locate in the geocaching.com database of benchmarks and subsequently log. A fourth one, however, I have not been able to find in their database. I'm curious about it and what type it might be, but I haven't found a picture of one that looks quite like it. There was a witness post near it, which is what led me to the find. We weren't actively searching for them.
I'm including a picture as a reference. If anybody has any insight, I would appreciate it. I'm not an active benchmark hunter, but make occasional finds by chance or curiosity. Thanks in advance.
-
I'm going to miss the county maps the most. I like the INATN implementation much better than what I've seen elsewhere.
I've been searching some fruitlessly to find a database of coordinates defining state county boundaries. With that information replicate the county mapping functionality is attainable.
-
It's mostly working for me now, but icons are missing all over the place. For example, cannot see anything but puzzles and events on a map. Traditionals, etc. do not show up.
-
The site has been acting up for a few hours at least. It seems to be dead in the water now for me. I'm having the same problems you've described.
-
I own a Garmin Venture Cx and I was changing the settings on it to see how it would behave. I noticed that the WAAS setting was disabled so I enabled it. How will this effect my GPS? Does it make a difference? I haven't really noticed anything different about it since I enable this feature.
Two resources:
http://www8.garmin.com/aboutGPS/waas.html (brief overview)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wide_Area_Augmentation_System (loads more information)
-
Same is happening for me. Sometimes blank page. Occasionally a page with a few caches will come up, but then when I attempt to scroll around nothing else appears.
Challenge Caches
in User Insights
Posted
What do you like most about challenge caches?
Short answer is found in the definition of the word itself - "a task or situation that tests someone's abilities." I like tasks that test me.
Challenges are probably the key thing that have kept my interest in geocaching the last 2-3 years. While I still enjoy finding traditional caches in the woods after a hike, I find that I personally like bigger goals to throw myself at. For example, I'm currently working on finding the 100 oldest geocaches in Michigan and to date have found 99 of them. Not all are required to qualify for challenge, but I like to REALLY complete any challenge I take on.
I'd be incredibly disappointed if challenges went away or were somehow further restricted disallowing the creativity of the caching community. If cachers don't like them, they can ignore them just like I do with the vast majority of micro park and grabs popping up everywhere.
What do you not like about challenge caches?
Inability to quickly find them in a pocket query, etc. I used to keep a bookmark list of all challenge caches in Michigan up to date, but it got tedious. Maybe now is a good time to update it.
What would you like to see changed about challenge caches?
Make them easier to find in pocket queries, etc.
If you could describe your favorite challenge cache type, what would it be?
Challenges that require a real commitment to complete. Especially those that require substantial travel, whether in my home state or further afield. I'm always up for a road trip. I completed the double Jasmer in 2013 and hope to qualify for what would be a triple Jasmer yet this year.
What types of challenge caches do you avoid?
I'm not a big fan of streak type challenges. Those feel like a chore to me.