Blaidd-Drwg

Well, this thread should be closed now. Eric (Tresokies) and I hit 30 caches during the run. Of course, there were a few DNFs, but overall the trip was a great success. Look for future cache trips here. I'm already considering a couple of other areas. Ardmore and Wichita Falls. Ardmore looks to have more and would present a good days trip from OKC, hitting all of the caches down the I35 corridor. As another side note, I'll try to arrange the next one on a weekend, preferably Saturday. If anyone ever puts together a road trip, I'm available and would most likely love to participate.

OK, last chance to sign up. If you think you can make it, drop me a line so we'll know who to wait for.

The group is geocacheok on Yahoo groups. The url is http://groups.yahoo.com/group/geocacheok/

I don't know how you made your payment, but back in November I used PayPal and received an email with a subject of Subscription Receipt for Groundspeak Premium Member. This is the email that has the S number

I agree with Kai Team. I've used a Vista for over a year now and have had few problems. If you can explain exactly what you want to do, I bet many of the forum readers can help.

OK, I've tried three different Palms (IIIxe, Tungsten E, and Tungsten T5). I had problems with the IIIxe due to black and white display and poor contrast, making it difficult to read outdoors. The Tungsten E worked great with most software. I've used Plucker and Cachemate on the E with no problems. The problem with my E came when I tried to us Delorme Street Atlas 2005 Handheld. The processor of the E just didn't seem to have enought horsepower to run SAH. The Tungsten T5 which cost over your target amount has a processor than runs about 4 times as fast as the E. SAH runs well on it, and the T5 also has bluetooth, should you wish to use one of the many BT GPSr. My recommendation is to bite the bullet and after defineing your needs (read desires) get what you want, price be d***.

I've carried 3 different model of Garmins through security, multiple times without any ill effects. They also don't even get a second look by the TSA folks. So feel perfectly safe carrying your GPSr in your carryon

OK, first Datum has nothing to do with scale. Think of Datum as a starting point for all measurements in Northing, Easting and Altitude (X,Y,Z). A NAD 27 location will be off from a WGS 84 location by about 250 meters. If you have your GPSr set to NAD 27 and enter the location as seen on a cache page, then you will be entering a wrong location. Changing your GPSr after entering the location will just compound the location. So YES, once you realize you've had your GPS set to the wrong datum when you entered the location, you should re-enter the location with the correct datum set. The Datum must match the location. As for running out of UTM, I don't know what you mean. There is a UTM location for the entire earth, exluding the poles. But the correct format for Lat/Long is ddd mm.mmm and is how it is displayed on cache pages. All locations on cache pages are in WGS84 Datum. I hope this answers your questions.

I agree that the codes are not descriptive howeve they match what is loaded in my GPS V. Loading smartnames just takes up too much real estate in the GPS. I also use Mapsource when out in the field and have the codes set up to give me the vitals which includes the GCXXXX code (sans the GC), anything else just gets to busy on the maps. Having said all this, i am always looking for better ways so am open to hear how others have their exports to Maps and GPSr's set-up.

Using a Vista, I've just left the WAAS turned off. I don't believe that the benifit is worth any extra time. To date, I haven't noticed that I'm off by a large amount consistantly from the locations posted on the cache pages. IMO given any GPSr, even my little yellow etrex, I can get close enough to figure the hiding location.

Clyde, 5.0 is great. I've gotten a big kick out of the cache density feature. My question, as a registered owner, I downloaded 5.0, and then today I get notified that there is an update 5.0.1. Is there truely any difference, or is this just registered user vs. non-registered?

OK, before anyone mentions it, I know that 30 December is a Thursday, but I'm hoping that with it being the holidays some folks will be off. I'm trying to put together a group to cache from the Anadarko area over to Tom Sneed Lake. Currently, we are talking about setting off from Anadarko at about 0800 to 0830. Exact track and caches are still open to discussion. If anyone is interested, drop me a line or log your interest here. Mike Team Madog

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Let me start off by saying that I really enjoy using GSAK and can't ever see myself doing without it. Now for the question. I recently purchased a copy of Street Atlas Handheld 2005. When I select export a file from GSAK to Steet Atlas, the only option is a txt file. SAH 2005 requires a SAF file extension. Is there a planned system improvement to use the SAF extension in GSAK? Or as is very possible, am I just missing the boat and there is already a method of transfering points from GSAK to SAH2005? Thanks Clyde and keep up the great work.

My $.02 Based on the fact that I use GSAK to review caches before visiting them, I would write the logger and suggest that he log the cache as a DNF, or at a minimum change his log to a note. The found log results in a misguiding indicator to future cachers. The only truely useful log for this type is DNF. With the geocaching website set up as it is now, a subscriber can now review not only their found caches, but also their DNFs, which I found out this weekend much to my embarrassment. I couldn't believe that I was running about 10% DNF. Again, contact the logger and suggest strongly that a DNF is appropriate. If he changes it to a log, then live with it. If he leaves it as a found, delete it. The idea of a suspense will help to clarify his time to make a change before the truth is forced on him.

Retired from the Army in 1995 (Still getting that retirement check, Yee Haa, which barely keeps up with my caching needs). Served in exciting places like Bragg, Campbell, Germany, Korea, Sill, Knox and Benning, with many short trips elsewhere. I still get to play with the Army equipment periodically as I now work for the Army as a Civil Service type.

They do make great shotgun targets. They look really spectacular when thrown in the air and hit squarely.

Just my $.02. I recently attended one of our statewide events. During the Event, there were three separate games, each of which had it's own cache page. Most folks logged once for each game they participated in, even though there were about 20 caches in each event. Most of these would easily been approved as permanent caches, with only a couple being too close to others. In my mind, logging an event cache multiple times to comment on each cache there is just running up numbers. But again, it's just my opinion.

I use a Vista also and I've never seen a day where due to cloud cover that I only got two sats. I have seen where it has taken 20 plus minutes for a standard yellow etrex to build the satellite diary and generate a location. This occurs after moving a long distance. I don't remember the first time I turned my systems on in the states, but if I had a new GPSr, I would just let it set for 30 minutes with a clear view of the sky and see if it gets a lock.

Actually, like has been pointed out above, these things do exist in the military. Say that you are an observer for artillery fires. In your vehicle you have a GPS to determine your location, a laser range finder with a north seeking gyro, and a computer. The GPS tells you where you are at the present time. The north seeking gyro maintains your direction of aim to a known north direction. The laser range finder in conjunction with its' mount and the gyro determines a distance, from you to the target, the vertical angle (how much you are looking up or downhill) and the direction. The computer takes the outputs from the laser station and in conjunction with the GPS info determines where the target is. Now the downhill side of this is that the military plugger weighs about 5 pounds, the laser is another 50 or so, and the computers weigh anything from 35 pounds to 13000 pounds of the vehicle with the built in targeting station. Of course the benefit of these vehicles is that they can go about anywhere.

OK, so your now a premium member and have found where to create PQs. Go there and create a PQ for your area. Mark it to run on todays date. Then the next line down says 'Only run this query once' . Mark that box and complete your query form and submit. You will normally receive the PQ within minutes. You can then use it in GSAK .

Well, I'll keep mine in my pocket. I, too, want to meet fellow cachers

I suspect the connector you are seeing on your laptop is a video out connector. Changing the gender and connecting your GPSr there will not work, if it is indeed a video out. If this is a fairly new laptop, go with the USB to Serial adapter cable. Radio Shack sells them, as well as other places. On my laptop, when I use the adapter cable, my GPSr is seen as being on COM5.

Living here in lovely Oklahoma, I use TOPO USA, v5.0. It does support the exporting of maps to a PDA, but I don't care for this way. I like to have a paper map which will show a much larger area. Topo, when ran on a PC allows you to zoom in and out, showing greater detail as you zoom in. Much like the MetroMap website. Enjoy your visit to the states. Hopefully by the time you get here, the elections will be over and you will be able to hear something besides political news. Of course it could be like our last election, with things in limbo for another month.

I've told my wife about this, and we'll fight off the jet lag and attend if this is on the 11th. As for jokes about the american elections, I'll admit to voting for the winner, or will it be the loser. Who knows? Can't wait for that pint!!!! It'll be interesting to see if this is like our local caching organization. We hold monthly meetings and it's always interesting to see how long we go before the PDAs and GPSrs come out for comparison.