Lovejoy and Tinker

You'll find others Like, you will probably have to miss out on most if not all multis, which can be really fun to do. You know, where you find a location then get coordinates (or clues to coordinates) which lead you from place to place and ultimately to the cache. I'm not sure how you would do one of those as there would be no way to plot those coordinates onto a hard printed google map. But like I said, if you are having fun then play the game however you want. Sans GPS would certainly be more challenging, and if that's the challenge you like to set yourself.... The only issue I can see is that knowing the GPS position of a cache, and therefore a reasonably narrow search area, you know roughly where to look and where not to look. This information is often useful so you know not to look too far outside that search area where your searching may cause damage. You can usually rule out certain locations as being too far from where the GPS is pointing. Without a GPS you may be tempted to stray quite a way from the actual location and search areas where the CO, landowner or whoever would rather you weren't poking around. So bear that in mind and read the cache pages carefully to look for any additional info such as "The cache is not in the wall, so please don't pull moss from the wall". If the wall is 50 feet from where your arrow is pointing then chances are you would be nowhere near the wall anyway, but with no gps to tell you that, you could easily end up searching the wall. Would be interested to know how you get on with your day's map caching.

Now he'll never find it

You've never cached in a dense forest then, where the clue is "Under a cut log" Or out on a moorland hillside where the clue is "Under a rock", and there is a sea of rocks. Even with a reasonable GPS indication these can often take a while to search all the said items within a reasonable radius. On google satellite view, all those rocks look very much the same. Good luck and most importantly have fun

If you want just the contents of the PQ moved onto your GPS via GSAK then the easiest way I have found to do it is: When you import the PQ GPX file into GSAK, in the dialog box, check the box that says "Set user flag" and also check the box that says "Clear all user flags first" (You can import the GPX file again to get it to set the flags if you have already imported it) Then use the GSAK saved built in filter for "User Flag (GSAK default)" Now you should have just the contents of your PQ showing in GSAK. Now export to your GPS and it will send over just the filtered, flagged caches, which will be the contents of your original PQ. Hope that helps and that I have understood what you are trying to do.

I've never tried this but I think it might work.... If you have a device that can record field notes, generate a field note at GZ at the actual time you make the find. Then when you get home, instead of logging the find on the cache page, upload your field note. Then submit the field note to link it to a log. The field note contains a time stamp (which can be edited in the fieldnotes.txt file if you want, so if you forget to do it at GZ you could generate the field note at home then edit the time on it to match the actual time you found the cache) I think the website will order logs on the cache page by not only date but also the time stamp. When you log straight on the website you don't have an opportunity to set the time, only the date, so I assume the time is set by the website based on the actual time you make your online log. So my theory is this: if you get to your computer to log a FTF and someone has logged a cache already, by using the fieldnote generated at GZ, your log should be entered onto the cache page ahead of the person that logged before you. Because their log will be timed later than yours as they can't be logging their find at a time earlier than you actually found the cache. As I say just a theory, and I know it's not important to have all the logs in order on the cache page. But if you want your FTF log to be first on the cache page it might be worth a try. I've never done it, but I might try it on our next one, just to see if my theory works or not.

ao318 is correct. The second file, the one with the wpts in its name, contains all the additional waypoints for caches in the main gpx file. These are called 'child' waypoints and are any waypoints (sets of coordinates) that are included in the cache but are not the main 'posted' coordinates. Pocket queries deliver both files, zipped up in a zip file. If you are loading the information into GSAK database or onto your gps, then you need to take both files. GSAK will open the zip file and import both files - you don't need to unzip it first. I'm not sure about GPS devices, though I believe some will let you put the zip file on them and sort everything out for you. Otherwise, extract both files as you have done and pop them both onto your gps. The unit will automatically link the waypoints in the wpts file with the caches in the main file. You don't have to do anything to link them together. As long as both files are there in the same directory it will be sorted out for you.

I was getting an 'error on page' problem last evening when I was trying to grab a gpx file from a cache page. It was a bit hit and miss and would work every now and then in between error messages. Didn't see anyone else reporting it though so don't know if it was a common problem.

As MrsB has said. Then have a read through this page so you can become an expert at handling trackables for next time

Firefox. Add on "Multi Links" allows you to select links to open in Tabs or Windows. Greasemonkey script "GC VIP List" allows you to have friends listed as VIP's, and links to their log. Bear and Ragged, Stalker in Training... That's creepy No, I have VIP list too but it's broken by GC Tidy. If I run the two together the load more logs works and loads all the logs but does not highlight vip logs which are in the additional logs once they are loaded. I agree though, when it was working it was a much quicker way of getting to people's logs.

Don't know which model Treo you have, but the hotsync cables don't seem to be very expensive.

Hi, Don't know which browser you are using but I'll take odds on the fact it's a browser problem and not a website problem. Try deleting your browser cache and then delete all your gc.com cookies (except for your username and password cookies). The shut down and restart your browser. If you are using firefox and need to know more about how to do this get back to me and I will talk you through it. Any other browser and you might need someone else to help as I am only familiar with Firefox these days. Hope that helps a bit Cheers Lovejoy

Hi Dave, Your 2nd question is the easiest, a NM log will not count as a find. if you are logging a NM, you have to also log a 'found it'. As for whether you should log a 2nd NM, personally I would consider how long it has been since the first NM log. If it's a matter of a week or three I probably wouldn't log a second. If it's been months, or there have been a lot of visitors since the 1st NM log then I probably would pop another on there so it flags up to the CO again. But you might get differing replies on that part of your question as different people will do things differently. Hope that helps Lovejoy

...or just a more convenient way of delivering information that (as it has already been pointed out) is already readily available on the website. Anyone stalking me would get very bored very soon I think Remember when the find count was removed form the friends page? Loads of folk wanted it back. Yet that info was available too with just a few clicks of the mouse. I see this as being about the way information is delivered and presented. And as long as the stalker and stalkee are consenting adults there shouldn't be any objection from anyone. (I can't believe I just used the word 'stalkee', sorry)

To be fair to the OP I don't think he's using a map to find or hide a cache. He just found a cache which he thought was a bit further away from the posted coordinates than is normally considered an acceptable limit, and is using the various maps to roughly show the coordinates against the actual cache location. While the maps may not be accurate, he indicated that his readings made the cache about 60 feet from the published coordinates. Someone else posted that the CO is using an iPhone which may or may not be causing a problem. There are certainly plenty of threads on here suggesting that an iPhone is not suitable for hiding caches. I don't know whether that's right or not, but it seems odd that so may people think an iPhone gives coordinates too far off for placing a cache, yet here is one that is apparently 60 feet off and most people seem ok with that and are telling the OP to widen his search when at GZ, not rely on his GPS and trust the COs iPhone coordinates more than an online map. I don't think it is a huge deal in this case as after 5 or 10 minutes of searching the clue would be used, and in this case it is a useful one that would allow you to find the cache regardless of the soft coordinates. We do tend to check our cache hides on google maps once we have obtained coordinates - not to verify complete accuracy, but just as a check to make sure we haven't made a schoolboy error, despite taking average readings from 2 devices at GZ. A quick look on google maps makes sure we haven't transposed some digits or used the parking coordinates instead of GZ coordinates (as we nearly did on our first hide). If we hid a cache next to a building, and google maps shows it 20 yards into an adjacent field then that would set alarm bells ringing and we'd check our numbers or even go back to GZ to take more readings. In this case, if the CO did check the map it may be that he considered the variance to be acceptable, especially given the specific nature of the hint.

You can also easily see activity on a cache by looking at the cache page on a regular basis, but is it handier to have it on a watch list and receive an email every time something is logged on it. Just saves checking on a regular basis to keep up to date. I like the idea of having the same feature for friends - on an opt in basis of course. I like reading my friends logs and seeing what caches they enjoyed. And while we do get to talk about them it would be good to receive their logs when they log them. I also like seeing their photos on their logs when we have been out together (in case they manage to get a compromising shot of me up a tree for example), so a link to their logs on the email would be good for that. The issue with looking up their finds by clicking on their cache names is that takes you to a list of their found caches, which you then have to click on each individual cache and scroll down till you find their log, which sometimes means loading all logs for that cache if it has had a busy day. I agree it would be nice to be able to get the logs in the same way as you do for caches on a watch list, with links to the caches, the individual log and the user profile. I know it can be done other ways, but a user watchlist would just be more convenient. And if everyone agrees, I don't see the problem.

Looking at the google satellite view, and assuming google is spot on in that location.... If the cache was at the far (right) end of the bridge then that does seem to be a bit more than the usual margin of error. If it was at the end of the bridge nearest the indicator then it's a bit better and tree cover might have hampered readings. Just wondering if the CO took parking coordinates (as per his 2 other caches), not used them but got them transposed with the cache coordinates. Does the marker coincide with the place you park the car? As others have said, at least the hint was useful and would have indicated nearer the location, accepting that a bridge has 2 ends

I predict one of them has they have both been found already

By the way, if you want to generate stats from GSAK and you have days to wait before you can run the MY FINDS query again, there is a way. If all the caches you have found are in your GSAK database, just locate them, right click on them, and change the status to 'found' You can then generate your stats, no need to wait for the MY FINDS query. If your finds are not already in GSAK then you may still be able to generate stats without the 'special' query. As you have alreay found out, the only caches excluded from a normal PQ are archived ones. So as long as you haven't found any caches that have subsequently been archived since you ran a query into GSAK, a normal PQ will update GSAK with all your finds since the last update. (Hope this is making sense) Finally, you may not want to run the MY FINDS query if you have just been out and done a couple of caches one evening, but if you are like me you might want to run your stats. Once you have logged your finds, just go to the cache page and pick up the GPX file for that cache. You can then import that as a single cache into GSAK which will add it to the database and show it as found, ready to run your stats. I do that sometimes if we go caching mid week and tend to leave the MY FINDS query for a Sunday evening as we tend to do most of our caching on a Sunday.

You can't do that with a standard pocket query. You have to use the MY FINDS query, which is a special one that includes any archived caches. You will find it on the PQ page - just scroll down and you will see it there, just click the button on the right. You can only generate a MY FINDS query every 7 days. Hope that helps

Depends how good your coordinates are or whether they get blown up first (Please take that comment in the good humoured way it is intended - I read your other threads)

Come on, someone must have a DB9 they're not using I can pay in FTFs. I have 34 to trade

In the e-mail it says the reason why you are getting a notification of a log. If it's about a watching lists, it says so. Ok, it was just a suggestion. Must be something else.

What type of container have you hidden?

I suppose I could have swapped mine for a real pic of me instead of the 'real' Lovejoy. That would've been quite very scary. But children read these forums

MrsB, a blood orange for halloween. Like it.