Docapi

Dang, that is a great deal! I would be interested, but after spending $200 on a new Garmin V this morning, I think the wife would kill me if I bought anything else right now.

Resellerratings.com

So basically, what you are saying is "It is possible for other things to be used to hurt people, so I think it is OK for me to leave a ready to use, easily concealable weapon out for anybody (inmates included) to find" I noticed today that they have PAPER in the prison! According to an earlier post, paer cuts are dangerous. I guess that already have weapons in the prison then. Since that is the case, I guess we should just give up. Next time you drive by a prison, go ahead and throw some knives, guns, and hand grenades over the fence- there are already things there that could be used as weapons, so a few more things won't make any difference. Besides, it would be really cool.

ROFL!!!

If it did happen, how would you have heard about it? First of all, Geocaching just isn't that well known. Most prison officials wouldn't know about geocaching, and it would not be the first thing they would think of if they found a knife. Second, If we find a knife, we don't know where it came from. Third, we don't make a public announcement when we find a weapon. If it has happened, it is pretty unlikely that we (geocachers) would know about it. Who cares what the odds are? It COULD happpen. Are you really willing to take a chance on somebody's spouse or parent getting hurt or killed just because you think a knife would be a neato swag item? Sure, I could get struck by lightning standing over a cache. But I am not about to stand over the cache in a thunderstorm holding a metal rod, either. Even if I did, that would be the chance I take with MY safety, not somebody else's. As I see it the arguments on each side run something like this: Con: A work crew inmate could get it and either use it themselves or give it to another inmate to hurt somebody with. A child could get hold of it and possibly hurt themselves or somebody else. Pro: Knives are really cool swag items. I am sorry, but to me the "cool" factor just isn't enough to justify the chance of somebody getting hurt, however small the odds may be.

You are right. The discussion has strayed somewhat from your origional topic. I apologise for that. In my first post, I was trying to point ouit that there is a difference between a tool that is given to an inmate that we know about and are able to account for at all times, and a knife that we don't know about. Kinda kills that whole "what are the odds of a prisoner finding a cache" theory, doesn't it?

Would you reather be attacked with a Knife, or a McToy? Using that logic, then Guns, dynamite and hand grenades should be allowed as well.

True, there is definitely the potential for an inmate to find other things that could be made into weapons. I guess that that would make it OK for us to leave weapons in caches then, if we follow that logic. As long as we are at it, we should start leaving guns there, too. Why not? They might find something that could be used as a weapon anyways. We should probably fight to get rid of DWI laws as well. People still drink and drive. Underage drinking? Why bother- kids can get booze other places. Illegal drugs? What is the point- anybody can find some drugs if they want to. Jees, are we so hard up for cache swag that we feel we have to put things in caches that have the potential to kill somebody? Yes, they could find other things that could be used as weapons. There is nothing anybody can do about that. That is the risk that I take as a Correctional officer. Knives in caches, however, we CAN do something about, and I am offended that you have so little concern for my safety that you are willing to place weapons in a place where they could potentially be used on me. My job is dangerous enough without arming the inmates. There are so many other things that can be used as swag. Are you really so self-centered that yuou are willing to take the chance of putting a weapon in an inmates hands, just because you think that knives would be "cool swag"?

At least in my state they are non violent offenders, with good prison records and usually close to release. That or they are working off DWI, drug related or other relatively minor offenses and not actually inmates. Nor would shards of broken glass be, which are far, far more likely that they will get their hands on. The inmate work crew issue is really a silly one. What are the chances of an inmate (A) finding a cache, ( B ) that has a knife in it and then ( C ) risking their hard worked for "good behavior" status by taking it. If someone knows of one instance of an inmate picking up a knife in a geocache and sneaking it into a prison, I stand corrected. Shards of glass, however dangerous they may be we can do nothing about. Leaving weapons in caches we can. A broken shard of glass is also a lot tougher to "secrete" in a hiding place on their body that cannot be seen in the end of shift strip search. A. Pretty good, considering that a large number of the work crews are put to work in county and state forest and parks areas, piching up trash, clearing trails, etc. The same type of places that geocachers are drant to to place caches. B. Pretty slim, the way the rules are now. If the rules were changed to allow knives, howerver, I I would have to think that those $2 folding knives might become pretty popular. C. About the same as the odds of them breaking the law and losing their freedom in the first place. (they are criminals- remember?)

I don't know the reasonings for your workplace, so I can't comment on that, but I can give you my views on the Knives in caches from a Correctional Officers perspective. Yes, outside work crew inmates will be given tools to do there jobs. However, we know what tools have been given out, and who they are given to. The inmates that are selected to be on outside work crews are selected according to their behaviour history. If we feel that they are likely to become chain saw killers, then they don't get on the crew. When they are done for the day, all the tools are collected and inventoried, down to the smallest detail. If something is missing from the inventory, nobody moves until the item is found. A knife picked up from a cache would not be on the inventory, so we would not know they have it. They could easily get it into the prison at the end of the day. Inmates- and Female inmates in particular- have some er... "ingenious" ways of secreting contraband on their person. Even if the inmate that finds it had no desire to use it- due to their history- that doesn't mean that their cellmate or another inmate down the hall won't. To an inmate EVERYTHING is currency. Extra clothing, food, postage stamps, you name it. A knife would be worth a virtual fortune in a prison. An inmate on a work crew finding a knife may have no desire to use it themselves, but knowing what it would be worth to another inmate would almost definitely smuggle it into the prison for sale. The inmate that gets it would be more likely to use it- either on a fellow inmate, or on a staff member. The point is, the chain saw we know about and are able to protect ourselves. A smugglerd in knife is bad juju. Coyote Red: Nope, no cavity searches. They are only used if there is very strong evidence of contraband, and have to be approved by the warden. We might have a cavity search every few months, if that.

There is no cost to access the sattelites. As far as GPSr's go, it all depends on what you are looking for. If you are looking to go as cheap as possible, a used magellan gps 315 like I use can be found on E-bay for about $50. No maps, but it will connect to the PC to upload waypoints. You can make a PC cable yourself for little or nothing. As far as new, the cheapest one that I am aware of is the Lowrance IfinderGo. About $70 new. It has a basemap, and it is unknown at this time if it will connect to your PC. The Garmin E-trex can be found new for about $90. No maps, will connect to the PC, but you will have to buy a cable seperately. The Garmin Etrex legend can be found for around $140. Has maps, is connectable to the PC, and comes with the cable. The Legend is the one that is probably the best choice as far as value/cost for a beginner unit.

I got a reply- The description is pretty misleading. At least I found out before I bid.

I sent an E-mail, but haven't got a reply. The auction ends in 2 hours. The way it is listed -with bullets before each line- really leads me to believe that the software must be included, especially since it is in the middle of the list with all the other features. If not, the listing would be almost intentionally misleading. To me, if it was just that it worked with Mapcreate, then it should say "used with" or "works with" optional mapcreate software. Am I being realistic here, or am I way off base? It might be that the software is added into the auction, not as part of the origional package. If so, I can live with that, I would probably upgrade the memory card anyways and I already have a card reader.

I am looking at an Ifinder on Ebay. The aution title calls it an IFinder, but in the descrition it lists: Am I right in thinking that it must be the "Plus" package? From what I can tell, the Mapcreate software only comes in the plus package.

The pisture piqued my curiosity, so I Sent it to my work e-mail to do some research. BTW, I am a correctional Officer in WI. I showed the picture to 2 of the staff Disruptive Groups experts, and also to one of my Inmate workers that I know is a Gang member, all at seperate times and asked them what they saw in the picture. The responses were all the same. From the left, the first boy is showing a "C" formed with his fingers on the top held together, and his thumb extended- a common Crips sign. The 2nd boy is Showing an "A", for Atlanta, where the Crips are based. The third boy is showing another Crips sign. The Crips colors are Red and Blue, as worn by 2 of the boys. There is some significance to the Tank tops, but I don't remember what that was. Obviously, they knew what they were doing. It doesn't neccesarily mean that they are Crips members, but it is not just innocent fun. If they are not members, they are playing with fire- this type of "silly fun time" could end up getting them killed.

From the Geocachin Glossary: From the FAQ: To me it is pretty clear- all caches must have a logbook, at minimum. The only exception is a "virtual cache" where there is no cache. These are generally not approved any more.

If you are 0-4, I would have to think that either you have the map Datum set wrong, or you are drying to do caches that are too difficult for you (for now). I don't know where you are from, but I would suggest trying to meet up with a local cacher and seeing if they might be interested in taking you out and "showing you the ropes". You could compare readings and see if your GPS is pointing you the right direction, and after finding a couple you would get a feel for the hiding spots. Chech out the Regional forums down below, most states have some sort of geocaching association now. That would be a good place to find a mentor. Also, if there is an "event" cache coming up, that would be a great chance to meet some local cachers and get a better idea of the sport. Edit: I type too slow!

Here is there profile on Resellerratings.com BuyERetail Page

Another thing to check is if you have a PDA that is using a serial port. I found that my PDA will take over the serial port and not allow the 315 to communicate. If you have a palm, check the settings on your hotsync program and make sure that "serial port" is unchecked in the connections list. I have no idea about ppc.

My 315 communicates with Gsak just fine with my homemade cable set up just like the picture. I checked my GSAK settings, and I am set at Brand: Magellan Communications port: Com1 Port speed: 9600 maximum waypoinst for GPS: 500 I also have the Baud Rate in the 315 set up to 9600

Woo hoo! I Got all the way through Lateral Thinking. Now I will have to make a weekend trip to go find the cache itself. I'm so proud of me right now

I am stuck at step 3, too.

Is there a way to run a pocket query for these kinds of caches? Id like to load them into my PDA, give me something to do when i'm bored at work.

I just bought a Palm IIIC on Ebay for 29.95 plus 10.00 shipping. It comes with the docking cradle, so I can hook it up to my PC. I already have GSAK, what other programs/accessories will I need? I would like to get a mapping program of some type, what are your recommendations? After searching around, it seems that some of the mapping programs will not work with the OS on the IIIc, I would prefer topo maps if possible. I guess what I would like to be able to do is to download the pocket Query onto the IIIc and my GPS315, then use the IIIc to use the maps to drive to the area, then see on a topo where the landmark is. Then, get out the 315 and use that to navigate to the cache. I could use the IIIC to see the cache page, and see some of the latrest logs and the hint, if I get stumped. Once I find the cache, i would then use the IIIC and enter in my log while going to the next cache. Once I get home, the logs would be there to post on the site. Is this all possible? What do I need to get or do?

Jefem24, Here is the link for ya. Magellan 315 Update link Azaruk, When I was making game cameras we called that the "magic dust" Once that magic dust gets out, nothing seems to work any more. I would always try to catch it and put it back in, but it seems that once it gets out there just isn't anything you can do about it.