The Hornet

Hey John, good to know you’re still around. I don’t cache much these days and can’t be bothered with all the fancy stuff we used to use. I only came here today as I was a bit miffed that a vintage virtual cache of mine (and favourite of many) has just been archived. ? Hey ho.

Amazing! After some years of not bothering with caching I decided to have a quick look to see how things were going, only to find Dave's post about being forced out. "Old Timers" will know our joint history and I was immensely saddened, Dave, to see how you have been treated after many years unpaid service to the hobby. What you describe matches my own thoughts and fears of how Groundspeak had been developing and absolutely confirms how I had come to feel about what used to be a fantastic hobby. At one time it was a niche pastime created by enthusiasts, run by enthusiasts for the benefit of enthusiasts. Now it is very different and for me at least it has lost its attraction. I still have little enthusiasm for taking up the hobby again. That being said many people still get a lot of enjoyment out of it so good for them, I hope they can enjoy it as much as I once did. At the time I resigned (in not too dissimilar circumstances to you) I expressed the thought that maybe the time had come for the business model to change from one supported by enthusiastic volunteers to one more reliant on paid staff who would be better placed to adhere to corporate diktatspolicies. From what I can see now that is even more my feeling. So Dave, sorry to see how you have been treated. You have my admiration for sticking with it for so long. It's an unfortunate coincidence that I should happen to log on for the first time in nearly 3 years only to find out what has just happened. Peter

Hello Hornet. (Brian?)Long time no meet. And it was your turn to buy the beer. Yes there is an addon for the iPad that allows one to plug in USB and SD cards. (got one). As for taking the iPad caching... I don't think so. Plus I don't have 3G on mine. Still open for options. Peter actually, but no worries. My turn to buy the beer?? Surely not..... Interesting sounding addon, I must check it out.

The iPad doesn't support USB but as long as your PC can load caches onto your GPS you should be fine. Yes an all in one unit is nice but you could always use the iPad along with one of the many caching apps to store offline PQ's or even access the online database if you have a 3G/wifi signal. The large screen lends itself well to viewing cache pages although of course it is more delicate than most GPSrs so you would need to be careful with it.

Yes it does matter, if it's on private property then the landowner should have a choice if they want it there or not. It's not just about a hidden box, it's about people looking for it and the way they look for it. Not all geocachers care about the impact their actions have on other people. In theory, yes. But being practical as long as the location is publicly accessible then common sense should be the determining factor. In my experience over the past 10 years of being involved to a greater or lesser extent with geocaching I would argue that the vast majority of cachers DO care about their impact, probably a lot more than regular members of public who happen to pass cache locations.

As a long time G.O.G. Could I first suggest you consider what John (Pharisee) is trying to get over in his own inimical way. if you are wanting to set your own geocache why not try and make it a little bit special or different? Try and find a location just a little bit more interesting than others you have visited. Try and use a container that is more pleasurable to find than some you have found. Try and write a cache page just a little more original and better researched than some you have read. What I am trying to suggest is try to ADD to the geocaching experience rather than just following the herd. As for permission, this has been a matter of contention ever since I started and definitely during my time as a reviewer. My take on it, when I had responsibility for interpreting the rules (laughingly still called "guidelines") was very much the common sense approach. I knew full well that many (most?) caches I published didn't have express permission but at the end of the day did it really matter that an ammo box in a hollow tree stump existed? Or a Tupperware box hidden behind a tree in a hedge? Or even a magnetic micro behind a street sign (sorry John ) ? No of course not. Conversely an ammo box placed within view of the gate of an army camp would start alarm bells ringing, or a sandwich box overlooked by CCTV in the financial heart of a major city, or a film pot under a stone at the base of a war memorial. these I would probably ask questions about. Whether common sense is allowable these days though is a moot point. I fear it is not. But give it a go and see how you get on and report back.

In KY? How about covering yourself in KY Jelly?!

Dear saraya, welcome to the wonderful world of this forum. To my mind you are just the sort of person we committed geocachers hope to encounter. You are concerned, interested and motivated enough to come here to check that your actions were not misconstrued. I for one salute you. You willby now have noticed a regular trend in this (and possibly other) forum for someone to come along and be contrary. Please don't be put off, most catchers are decent people and mostly harmless.

So they are going to replace stiles that fat people can't get over with err Narrow Gaps instead Hehehe! And judging by some of the "outrage" expressed I'm almost surprised that no-one has complained about the term "fat". Given the PC flying around these days perhaps we should call these lumps "spatially challenged" p.s. Do you see the smileys?! Yes its a joke, maybe in poor taste but most of the best jokes are.

Canoeing - if you click the link Aye!! Had Richard Madely puzzled on Radio 2 just now. Never heard of it.

Maybe the Spokes have a point!! (linky)

Just read in this morning's paper that the National Trust are starting a campaign called "50 things to do before you are 11 3/4". It aims to encourage children to get out and explore the natural world. Guess what they have listed as number 49?!!

Excellent Andy! Just goes to show there ARE good people around who are prepared to put themselves out for the benefit of a complete stranger.

Fair enough, I couldn't argue with that point of view. I think we both agree that risk aside, a pylon is probably not a "quality" cache location.

I wouldn't worry too much Andy. The very fact that the GPSr is lost means that you are NOT with it and therefore the likelihood is that you are somewhere else i.e. quite possibly home! Anyway, was it insured? And it's a great opportunity to treat yourself to a nice new toy.

Interestingly I have just re-read the various definitions of cache types ( !!!). When I started out 10 years ago a Traditional cache was findable, and loggable, using purely the coordinates. That was the purest form of geocaching. Obviously things have changed since then as the current definitions only talk about finding the cache containers. No mention is made about getting into them to access the logbook. So by the current definition of a Traditional, if you can find the box using the published coordinates that's all that is needed to qualify. So in this case the reviewer is technically correct. I personally think it is wrong but, hey!, nobody ever said life was fair.

Ah! Common sense, that increasingly scarce resource I am delighted you take your responsibility as a parent seriously. Unfortunately there are all too many today who believe it is someone else's responsibility to monitor and supervise their children's activities. Such as Geocaching reviewers. As a parent it is YOU who should warn your children of those dangers you mention (and I am sure you do). That doesn't mean the rest of us shouldn't utilise cache locations that involve a small element of risk.

You could always delay logging until you get home, that way nobody would know you are away caching.

Unfortunately these days risk analysis seems to have evolved into: Possibility of "something" happening: extremely low; Consequence of it happening: serious; Risk: Serious; Answer: Say no Possibility of "something" happening: high; Consequence of it happening: trivial; Risk: Serious; Answer: Say no Possibility of "something" happening: unknown; Consequence of it happening: unknown; Risk: Serious; Answer: Say no Whatever happened to: Possibility of "something" happening: moderate; Consequence of it happening: moderate; Risk: Serious; Answer: Say no; Otherwise the risk is acceptable so say "Yes" This is not just in Geocaching, it's an unfortunate fact of life nowadays.

What Keehote says. It would never have passed muster as a traditional when I was reviewing but I guess the game changes. There are sooooooo many caches around now take keehote's advice - move on and find the next one

Not totally correct. Maybe with a "vanilla" iPad but if you "Jailbreak" it you can use ANY bluetooth GPS. I sometimes use a BT-338 with my iPad (or iPod touch) but these days I usually tether the built in GPS in my iPhone to my iPad via bluetooth. Only trouble is that not everybody wants to 'Jailbreak' their iPhone. I just find it annoying that Apple put so many restrictions on the iToys. To me that's just another reason not to buy iAnything. All fair enough comments. However once I buy a piece of equipment it belongs to me. In the case of the Apple kit I dislike their attitude that I can only do with it what they will allow me to, so I get round that by Jailbreaking. I have yet to find anything I can't do now that I could before I did the Jailbreaking and of course I can do so much more. As I said, I dislike Apple's attitude to its users but I do like the functionality of their kit and much of the available software so this method gives me a good compromise. At the end of the day the choice is yours.

How about using your iPhone as a portable WiFi hotspot with your laptop? Works well for me when I don't have a regular WiFi signal.

I set a cache a few years ago in my garden hedge which was specifically designed to get people to pop in for a cuppa and a chat. Even though it has been archived on GC.COM I still get the occasional visitor from another listing. My experience had been 100% positive and I have met nothing but very nice people so I would encourage you to give the idea a try, I think you will be pleasantly surprised by the people you will meet.

Not totally correct. Maybe with a "vanilla" iPad but if you "Jailbreak" it you can use ANY bluetooth GPS. I sometimes use a BT-338 with my iPad (or iPod touch) but these days I usually tether the built in GPS in my iPhone to my iPad via bluetooth.

A pencil!