shorbird

No, I am not clicking on the "Login With Facebook" button. When I enter a benchmark PID and click on the "GO" button directly to the right of the PID(NOT the Facebook button), I am instantly presented with a full-page "Login to Facebook" screen.

Beginning today, whenever I visit the geocaching website, I am instantly directed to a Facebook Login page. I did not ask for that page and I do not want it. Help!!

Here's one from Washington State from 1944: TR0548

When benchmarking on the fly, you can't beat BenchMap. I recently tried it out on vacation and it worked very effectively. For heavy-duty benchmarking from home, I use paper datasheets and a three-ring binder. Works well for adding notes and adjusted coordinates for later posting. Of course, paper is the only way to go when there's no Internet access(deep in the mountains, etc.).

I wonder if the NGS has moved some of their data fields for the records that you checked. As of two days ago, all of my datasheets had been updated by the NGS up until March 24.

With KY3483, all 4 disks had a portion of the date stamped in that way.

Thanks, Jim. Keep up the good work.

Many thanks to the NGS and Malcolm Archer-Shee for the presentation about DSWorld. The webinar was very interesting and comprehensive.

Using Internet Explorer and Windows 7, pictures will not upload to benchmark logs today. A click on the upload button goes to the page to select a picture. Clicking the browse button then results in...nothing. Next day--pictures are now uploading! Thanks!!

The following article appeared in today's Washington Post: FCC to pull plug on Falcone’s LightSquared By Cecilia Kang Federal officials on Tuesday struck a major blow to satellite venture LightSquared, saying the government plans to revoke initial permission it granted for the company to operate as a mainstream high-speed wireless network. In a major reversal, the Federal Communications Commission said it plans to “suspend indefinitely” LightSquared’s conditional waiver to operate as a ground-based broadband network after a new government report said there didn’t immediately appear to be a way for the network to avoid interference with global positioning systems. The FCC’s decision is expected to all but end LightSquared’s aspirations to provide mobile broadband services via satellite airwaves -- a plan that was touted from its inception by FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski. Under his tenure, the FCC granted the company a key conditional waiver in January 2011 that was meant to help fast-track the network. The decision has drawn massive protest from the military, John Deere, and weather forecasters who rely on GPS systems. Congressional Republicans have also launched investigations into the FCC’s controversial decision. On Tuesday, the FCC said its decision was based on a report that day by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). The NTIA said its analysis of tests on the network showed “there is no practical way to mitigate the potential interference at this time” with global positioning devices. LightSquared on Tuesday said it disagreed with the NTIA’s findings and said the government body used flawed testing data in its analysis. “LightSquared recognizes, however, that this is just one step in the process, and it remains committed to working toward a resolution,” the company said in a statement. The company didn’t immediately respond to requests for comments on the FCC decision. But experts doubt any resolution will be achieved before LightSquared runs out of money and partners, such as Sprint Nextel, decide to turn away from the proposed satellite network that hasn’t yet been built. LightSquared was created by hedge fund billionaire Philip Falcone’s investment fund, Harbinger Capital, with a commitment of $14 billion. The fund has lost much of its value, according to reports. The firm, which blames GPS devices for interference problems, said it has enough cash for the foreseeable future. It was a model project — a privately funded business that would carry out Genachowski’s plans to create more competition to giants AT&T and Verizon Wireless. But the satellite venture struggled with financing as regulatory scrutiny of the network grew. Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) asked if the FCC was paying special favors to the company and asked for all correspondence between officials and the firm. Genachowski’s office refused, saying Grassley’s Judiciary Subcommittee doesn’t oversee the FCC. Meanwhile, government aviation and military officials sounded alarms that LightSquared’s network would interfere with everything from landing gear to weather prediction systems. The FAA predicted multiple deaths could occur if the network was launched. The FCC said it would abandon its January 2011 waiver, effectively setting LightSquared back nearly two years to when it was founded. The FCC said that on Wednesday it would begin to take comments on the agency’s plans and the NTIA’s findings on LightSquared’s interference. Still, the FCC on Tuesday defended its decision. “LightSquared’s proposal to provide ground-based mobile service offered the potential to unleash new spectrum for mobile broadband and enhance competition,” FCC spokeswoman Tammy Sun said in a statement.

Good to see a couple of more updates. The NGS must have done some major update work after February 1, as I have seen datasheets updated from January recoveries since that date. Next time there should be more of a change. Thanks again for the updates.

Paul, I hope that the situation you have mentioned does not herald the decline of benchmark hunting. The Groundspeak relegation of the benchmark link to the bottom of the home page is not a good thing, but we will work around it. The picture sizes on the geocaching website have been returned to their previous size, which is a good thing. The NGS is still enthusiastic about our participation. I have been in correspondence with Dave Doyle, and he still sounds very upbeat about our participation. We never know when the NGS will update the datasheets, but when I checked the other day, datasheets had been updated at least through January 2 of this year. We now have DSWorld for submission of pictures and recovery reports to the NGS, and there is a Webinar about DSWorld on Thursday, February 16 at 1:00 p.m. Let's see some participation in that! I love hunting for benchmarks, and I will continue hunting, with enthusiasm!

Jim, Many thanks again for your maps and numbers. Guess we'll need to wait for next time for the NGS to catch up with us.

Try to google benchmarks, trig points, and similar terms. Since Kuwait was a British Protectorate for many years, perhaps the Royal Geodetic Society(or whatever its name is, I forget) has set some marks there. Also, Kuwait itself may have set some benchmarks. Good luck!

Jim, thanks for the updated maps, and for the new maps and numbers! Your work definitely helps to keep things interesting around here!

I like the new percentage maps and stats! Thanks for coming up with them. For the new colors on absolute numbers on the maps(>500 and > 1,000), I see them on the initial, smaller maps, but they disappear when I go to enlarge the maps. Thanks again for the new maps and stats!! You are keeping us all sharper with these refinements.

Glad to see that the NGS has updated the datasheets so soon! Thanks again for compiling all of this information for us and then producing the maps and numbers. Your efforts are greatly appreciated!

A few weeks ago, one of our users mentioned writing a benchmarking app for Android cellphones. Has anyone tried it, and how has it been working? Are there any restrictions on which phones it can be used on? I have heard that one carrier is blocking all third-party apps on the Samsung Captivate. Any comments appreciated!

Jim, it's great to see those updates, both the data and the maps. Thanks again.

Dave, Some of us always include the PID in our picture captions. Hope that this can assist you. shorbird

I wonder why they are so far behind with the updates? The most recent datasheet updates for me were in May.

I can't imagine a more satisfying way to put some miles on your new truck!

Many benchmarks I have found have no recent reports, yet the area is festooned with orange ribbons as evidence of recent use. When I first began to look for benchmarks, I would leave the ones which had been covered with dirt open to the air for easier recovery by the next person. Then I discovered more and more vandalized marks and I decided to start covering them up after I had found them. There are plenty of marks right out in the open which have never been logged.

Maybe we're overwhelming them with all of our reports. Let's hope that they catch up in September.

Here's an interesting chiseled square from the Ross County Courthouse in Chillicothe, OH. This is JY0461.