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Pelamore

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Everything posted by Pelamore

  1. Just to be clear, I'm not scolding short entries, just trying to encourage longer ones. After all, everyone has the right to play the game as they see fit within the rules. And there is NO rule on how long your log entry is. I too have done caches without very much to write about, and therefore don't write much at all. But other times I've had an adventure, and choose to share that adventure with others.
  2. I myself have been guilty of this, the one line entries for the find on Geocaching.com. Maybe the hunt wasn't very interesting, maybe you were tired when you logged the find, maybe you just aren't a writer. But one sentence? I recently placed my first cache, and the log of the only finder so far was great. But it made me think of all the entries I see in other caches like "TFTH TNLNSL" and little more. Quick park and grabs aside, if an owner like me spends weeks planning a cache, hours placing it, and in some cases money for supplies and starting swag, don't they deserve more then one line? I'm not in any way "Angry" at one liners, certainly not. I would just like to encourage more creative and thought out postings. I try to write detailed, without spoilers, entries for my postings. A few paragraphs, even if it's just about the weather that day or an interesting flower you saw along the way can go along way to improving the interest of other cachers and the satisfaction of the owner, IMO. To me, reading the logs of the other cachers adds to the joy of the hunt. I get to not only find the cache, but see the tree another cacher climbed just for fun and posted the picture (Rogue, yes that's you), the spot someone saw a Rattlesnake, maybe I'll get lucky and find the glasses/compass/etc that so-and-so said they lost on the trail. It makes the hunt more interesting, and I find it helps to get to know the other cachers in your area. A "one-liner" gives none of that to the next guy. When I choose my next target, the previous logs are a key factor. Not only do they give me hints to conditions and challenges, but shows that others enjoyed it enough to take the time to write some funny or interesting stories about their adventure. So, my advise? Write, and write, and write. I love reading them, and I'm sure many others do to.
  3. Well, let's boil this down. For a Caching Unit you NEED 1 Replaceable battery. Terrible to have a built in rechargable run out when hunting for that cache. 2 Waterproof! I can't stress this enough. This may be less of an issue in some places, but I live in Florida, and it rains just about everyday. 3 Magnetic Compass. I know many cache without a magnetic compass function. But I find it extremely useful. As far as I know, if you don't have a Magnetic Compass in you GPSr it calculates where your going by tracking your past movements. When you are circling and area near the cache, those readings get kinda screwy. IMO 4 Mapping, or atleast a graphic display of a track log. Many many times I have circled an area looking for a path to the cache to avoid bushwhacking, and used the Tracklog "Breadcrumb Trail" to plan my next move. Plus, you can easily follow the track back out if you get turned around. As far as Car Units. I rarely use my GPSr that way. As long as it can calculate routes on the fly, I'm happy.
  4. Wow, small world. Clan Riffster Did Wickham Park East! That was my first find, and to date I have only done 4! Hehe As far as prize, I realize that there would have to be a "Trophy" involved. A unique item, cash, etc.
  5. I knew that since it wouldn't be on Geocaching.com people wouldn't get a"Find" added to there count. I wasn't, and still am not, sure how important those counts are to people. Is it the find, or the hunt? If you found a vacuum sealed card with Coords to a non-geocaching.com cache, would you guys hunt it? Would you feel good that you and only you ever will find it, or would the victory be hollow since you had nowhere to display your success?
  6. I was thinking, driving between caches. What if I hide a bunch of small Caches with unique items or cash (small amount). Each cache is single use. I place a sealed card in normal caches that gives coords/clues to the cache. Then the person finds it, and gets the prize. Although Geocaching seems to be about the log and multiple people finding the same spot. These would be more a single shot thing. One person finds, and no one else ever will. I don't see this as a Geocaching.com posted thing, simply because it's single use. More a Bonus for the person finding the card and the cache. Is this allowed? Does it sound fun? Suggestions? Ideas?
  7. IMO, several things can be at work here. 1- Most GPSr have a radius of accuracy. This can be from 5 feet (I don't trust that though) to 30ft or even more. It updates your position at regular intervals, if 2 locations don't agree, it "Jumps" to the new one. If the first location is 30 feet behind your actual position, and the new is 30 feet in front, you get a 60 ft jump. 2- Tree cover or even street lamps can interfere with the signal. If it looses the satellites for a few seconds, it won't tell you, just jump to the new position when it gets one. 3- Each position is a complicated Mathematical equation. Depending on how often your unit does this equation you might "Jump". Check for "Power Saver" options that may be reducing the Calcualtions per minute to save batteries. 4- Heat. Computers, and GPSr's are small computers, they slow down in heat. 5- I guess it's possible that a low res map might have limited "Spots" for the unit to say you are at. You would have to experiment with this to find out. 6- If you are tracking your position through a "Track Log", remember that your unit might be rationing the postions. Dropping a track point every 150m for example.
  8. I'm no PhD, but I think you are in trouble. The XM is broacasting a radio signal, the GPS satelites are broadcasting radio signals. Your GPSr is confused. Many devices that transmit to your radio (Like XM Receivers) have the option to change the frequency they use. Look into that, it may be as simple as changing that frequency with a switch on the device. Even if you aren't using that feature, it may still be broadcasting if it does. All radio transmitters suffer what I call "Signal Drift". It is supposed to broadcast on 99.1 for example, but also floods other frequencies just above and below. The general rule is smaller broadcaster more drift, closer more drift. You are getting both, hehe. You can try placing a piece of Aluminum foil between them to deflect some of the drifted signals. If your GPSr supports it, consider an external antenna for it, to increase the distance and reduce the drift it receives.
  9. I used a Etrex Vista for years general use, wasn't Geocaching yet. But I got my Etrex Vista C a few days ago, and headed out to do some Biking. Got lost on the way to the park DOH! Figured I'd test the "Routing" function. WOW! WOW! WOW! Entered the address (i remembered it thank goodness) and after a few seconds of "Calculating", it gave me turn by turn mapping. It even zoomed out for long stretches, and Zoomed in close to turns. It also gives an Audible alarm as you approach a turn. I missed the final turn of course. And saw that the Etrex Vista C was Calculating again. It had realized I missed the turn, recalculated the Route, and suggested a place to make a U-Turn! I'm sure many in car units have similar if not better features, but in a unit that small (About the size of a cell phone) I'm VERY happy. I've read that the Vista C is Light Years ahead of the Vista, and that is absolutely true! Plus a USB connection for Map and Waypoint transfers reduces 60 minute Map set transfers with Vista on Serial Cable to 2 minute transfers on Vista C. The USB Cable (included with unit) even powers the unit while connected. Garmin sells a Cable that plugs into you Cigarette Lighter so the Unit can work without draining Batteries on long trips. Shop around, and you can get the Unit for under $300, and the Software for about $110. I got the unit from Sam's Club Online for $275, other places had it for $350! Well, that's my 2 cents. Hehe
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