MartyFouts

quote:Originally posted by Steve Bukosky: What I did say elsewhere is that these hunts are not true geocaching as there is no cache involved! I suggested that perhaps they be treated like hunting benchmarks and kept seperate from true caching regarding totals. I'm surprised how many people who say they don't care about competition have been upset by this and similar discussion. Ok, thats why I suggested seperating virtuals and locationless hunts. I wouldn't mind lumping them all together but then having two totals. One a runnning total that we have now and then a point total based on something like the number assigned to difficulty. Doesn't hurt anybody other than those that can't see to let some of us have some good natured fun. Steve Bukosky N9BGH Waukesha Wisconsin The problem here, Steve, is that you're the one who's trying to break up the "good natured fun". If ones uses phrases like "true geocaching"; starts pontificating on whether virtual caches are "true" or not; and makes comments about how everyone is competitive; one should not be suprised that others are willing to disagree openly. 'geocaching' is a label, not a definition. And it labels the hobby where we look for things using a GPS. There *is* a _real_ cache at a well done virtual -- it's the information you find there. If you *really* want competitive caching, then take it up with the guy who does the leaderboard -- that's where the counting you want to change is done, not here. And frankly, I don't find anything "good natured" about being lectured to about what is or isn't "true" geocaching. People who are opposing you think that what *they* are doing is good natured fun, and is what the site's all about and that *you* are the one who wants to change the hobby into something else. Maybe if you understood that you wouldn't be surprised. So, again, my suggestion is that if what you want is 'good natured', you stop using phrases like 'true geocaching' and you take up issues of scores and such with the leaderboard folk rather than the geocaching.com folk

quote:Originally posted by Steve Bukosky: What I did say elsewhere is that these hunts are not true geocaching as there is no cache involved! I suggested that perhaps they be treated like hunting benchmarks and kept seperate from true caching regarding totals. I'm surprised how many people who say they don't care about competition have been upset by this and similar discussion. Ok, thats why I suggested seperating virtuals and locationless hunts. I wouldn't mind lumping them all together but then having two totals. One a runnning total that we have now and then a point total based on something like the number assigned to difficulty. Doesn't hurt anybody other than those that can't see to let some of us have some good natured fun. Steve Bukosky N9BGH Waukesha Wisconsin The problem here, Steve, is that you're the one who's trying to break up the "good natured fun". If ones uses phrases like "true geocaching"; starts pontificating on whether virtual caches are "true" or not; and makes comments about how everyone is competitive; one should not be suprised that others are willing to disagree openly. 'geocaching' is a label, not a definition. And it labels the hobby where we look for things using a GPS. There *is* a _real_ cache at a well done virtual -- it's the information you find there. If you *really* want competitive caching, then take it up with the guy who does the leaderboard -- that's where the counting you want to change is done, not here. And frankly, I don't find anything "good natured" about being lectured to about what is or isn't "true" geocaching. People who are opposing you think that what *they* are doing is good natured fun, and is what the site's all about and that *you* are the one who wants to change the hobby into something else. Maybe if you understood that you wouldn't be surprised. So, again, my suggestion is that if what you want is 'good natured', you stop using phrases like 'true geocaching' and you take up issues of scores and such with the leaderboard folk rather than the geocaching.com folk

quote:Originally posted by welch: quote:Originally posted by GPThespians: but we have found the best containers to find stuff in are the green ammo boxes. other than painting them yourself, have you ever gotten an ammo can that wasn't green? yes. see www.scepter.com

quote:Originally posted by welch: quote:Originally posted by GPThespians: but we have found the best containers to find stuff in are the green ammo boxes. other than painting them yourself, have you ever gotten an ammo can that wasn't green? yes. see www.scepter.com

1. It is the nature of GPS that consumer units may give different readings at the same location. The final search at the cache site is just part of the hobby. You should always start with the assumption that you will have to search a circle around the coordinates looking for the cache. If you get very different coordinates at the actual cache, post your coordinates as part of your log -- there's even a place on the log form just for that. 2. It's up to the cache hider how difficult it should be to find the cache. As long as they indicate the difficulty in the cache description it's OK. Thursday my find streak was broken by not one but four caches that were labeled as 4 on the difficulty scale. There will always be some people who can hide things more cleverly than I can find them. That, too, is just part of the hobby. Oh, and in at least three, possibly all four, of the cases a metal detector wouldn't have helped.

quote:Originally posted by skydiver: quote:Originally posted by Marty Fouts: i want a list of TBs that, every few monts, I go through to check the progress on. Why not just bookmark the bugs pages? --------------------------------------- Friends don't let friends NOT geocache. --------------------------------------- I don't always access the site from the same computer.

I think you're just seeing the bell cover at work. There's been a rush of placements around here as well, and a lot of them are 1/1 grab-and-go caches, but enough of them are puzzle and theme caches to keep the area interesting. On the other hand, what constitutes a good cache location is another one of those topics that have a wide range of opinions.

quote:Originally posted by Marty Fouts:Oh. Good. Another competition to ignore. Maybe we can ask Jeremy to put the Q in our profiles so everyone can comment on it. I'd give mine here, but I don't know, off hand, how many posts I've made. oh. wait. now i know the ratio, because the # is on the bottom of my last post. it's 139/192. too bad i can't remember how to divide. does this mean i get to make a bunch of posts before i have to go geocaching again? tune in tomorrow for an update

quote:Originally posted by Marty Fouts:Oh. Good. Another competition to ignore. Maybe we can ask Jeremy to put the Q in our profiles so everyone can comment on it. I'd give mine here, but I don't know, off hand, how many posts I've made. oh. wait. now i know the ratio, because the # is on the bottom of my last post. it's 139/192. too bad i can't remember how to divide. does this mean i get to make a bunch of posts before i have to go geocaching again? tune in tomorrow for an update

Oh. Good. Another competition to ignore. Maybe we can ask Jeremy to put the Q in our profiles so everyone can comment on it. I'd give mine here, but I don't know, off hand, how many posts I've made.

Oh. Good. Another competition to ignore. Maybe we can ask Jeremy to put the Q in our profiles so everyone can comment on it. I'd give mine here, but I don't know, off hand, how many posts I've made.

Sometimes I cache alone. Then I concentrate on caches that are going to provide an excuse for interesting hikes or are interesting puzzles. I carry Tonka minature toy trucks as trade goods for those caches, and have often just left the truck, more as a signature item than as a trade good. The more caches I visit the fewer I look through. Sometimes I'll trade the truck for something that looks appropriate for a kid-friendly cache. Often I just drop those items in the kid-friendly caches when I hit them. Sometimes I cache with my 10 year old granddaughter. Then I concentrate on caches that she's likely to be able to find and that I hope are kid-friendly. She carries her own trade goods but sometimes there's more in the cache that she's interested in than she's got trade stuff for, so then I'll trade. The sort of things I look for are the signature items. These have more sentimental value than monetary value. One of my favorite items to date is one of Iron Chef's "Spoon of Great Justice". I hope to have my own signature item soon, because I find them much more fun than any trade item. To each his own.

quote:Originally posted by datum:The number by your name gives a relative indication of how active and involved you are in Geocaching. It no longer carries the clout of a well earned find, as in the early days. So…it’s probably better to think of that number as an activity number. Now with the dilution of the virtual and locationless (so called) -cache- it’s easy to pump up your number. If that’s what you choose to do. With some you may not have to leave your computer to complete. Apparently that is OK with (at least) a few individuals. On top of that is the easy vs harder thing…which I won’t even get into. When viewed as an activity number, there is no one to impress but yourself. Those that tend to stretch their imagination and log a find...when it was only a visit will no longer upset you. Only you know what was involved to obtain your number and it may amaze you. Others will only be amazed by the amount of time you have on your hands to pursue your hobby. I don't know why it is that people think that virtual or locationless caches are any easier than the vast majority of 1/1 grab-and-go caches. Takes longer, and more thought, to do my virtual than it does to do three of the last four caches I did, including a supposed 3/3... If you don't like 'em, don't do 'em, but they can run the same range of difficulty as any other kind of cache.

quote:Originally posted by welch: just because something is working for you doesn't mean your using it correctly. but if jeremy doesnt care how you "keep tabs" on a bug, who am i to second guess his lack of concern. just because something is working for me doesn't mean I'm not using it correctly. (why do I think I'm in the middle of reading 1984 here?) There's nothing for jeremy to be concerned about. Find a bug, log it. works as advertised.

quote:Originally posted by welch: just because something is working for you doesn't mean your using it correctly. but if jeremy doesnt care how you "keep tabs" on a bug, who am i to second guess his lack of concern. just because something is working for me doesn't mean I'm not using it correctly. (why do I think I'm in the middle of reading 1984 here?) There's nothing for jeremy to be concerned about. Find a bug, log it. works as advertised.

quote:Originally posted by Goblin:The problem with this is that someone after you, maybe even the same day, may really take the bug and put it in another cache. If that person makes his entry before you then when you make your entry that you found it and put it back it shows as being in the cache were you SAW it but it ain't there no mo'. And the cache where it really is will not show it nor will that cache have an entry that you took it. I say if you ain't going to move it don't log it. that's a bug in how the web site operates, and it can happen even if you moved the bug legitimately. suppose I go to cache A and get a bug called Lady. Then I put Lady bug in cache B on the same day. Meanwhile, someone else picks up Lady bug from B and moves it to C. Now I go to the web site, log that I've got Lady bug and then do my log for cache A. While I'm editing that, the other cacher logs that they found Lady bug in B and that they put it in C. . . It's the downside of near real time database updates.

quote:Originally posted by welch: quote:Originally posted by Marty Fouts: no. i don't want that. i want a list of TBs that, every few monts, I go through to check the progress on. I'm not interested in every movement of every bug on my list. Only in occassionaly checking to see where they are and how they are doing. Same with caches I've visited. Sometimes I go back and see how they are doing, but I do not want email everytime someone visits them. Email everytime someone visits one of my caches is more than enough. ah... then you can get a small note book and write down all the numbers/names of bugs you want to check on later. if you have an idea for a new feature, you should suggest it in the Geocaching.com Discussion forum. http://www.scubaboard.com/images/smilies/whack.gif or i can log them all and let the site do the boring work of keeping track for me. oh. wait. isn't this where i came in. I don't have an idea for a new feature. the current feature works just fine for my purposes.

quote:Originally posted by welch: quote:Originally posted by Marty Fouts: no. i don't want that. i want a list of TBs that, every few monts, I go through to check the progress on. I'm not interested in every movement of every bug on my list. Only in occassionaly checking to see where they are and how they are doing. Same with caches I've visited. Sometimes I go back and see how they are doing, but I do not want email everytime someone visits them. Email everytime someone visits one of my caches is more than enough. ah... then you can get a small note book and write down all the numbers/names of bugs you want to check on later. if you have an idea for a new feature, you should suggest it in the Geocaching.com Discussion forum. http://www.scubaboard.com/images/smilies/whack.gif or i can log them all and let the site do the boring work of keeping track for me. oh. wait. isn't this where i came in. I don't have an idea for a new feature. the current feature works just fine for my purposes.

quote:Originally posted by mrcpu: quote:Originally posted by Marty Fouts: 1 doesn't solve subsetting. 2 is what i'm working on. and no, subsetting shouldn't be done at the query level. not unless queries are responded to instantly, which they aren't. My point is, if you use the upcoming gpx file just to get the cache id and then go to pathetique via plucker, you are comitting and act of sheer madness!! The data is all there inside the GPX. Rob Mobile Cache Command um yeah, that would be madness. it's also not what i plan to do. i don't know if the final format should be a plucker db or not, but my plan is to have my own ap on the pc do the sorting/subsetting/reformatting and then have a palm/os conduit move the data to the visor. i don't know which reader i want to use on the visor yet, so i haven't figured out what the final output will be.

quote:Originally posted by mrcpu: quote:Originally posted by Marty Fouts: 1 doesn't solve subsetting. 2 is what i'm working on. and no, subsetting shouldn't be done at the query level. not unless queries are responded to instantly, which they aren't. My point is, if you use the upcoming gpx file just to get the cache id and then go to pathetique via plucker, you are comitting and act of sheer madness!! The data is all there inside the GPX. Rob Mobile Cache Command um yeah, that would be madness. it's also not what i plan to do. i don't know if the final format should be a plucker db or not, but my plan is to have my own ap on the pc do the sorting/subsetting/reformatting and then have a palm/os conduit move the data to the visor. i don't know which reader i want to use on the visor yet, so i haven't figured out what the final output will be.

quote:Originally posted by welch: quote:Originally posted by Marty Fouts: because there are a lot of them and i only want to check on them occassionaly. i'd rather "watch" those thing that i'm actively interested in at the moment. ?? what? if you put them on your watch list you get an email everytime someone logs it. isn't that what you want?? http://www.scubaboard.com/images/smilies/whack.gif no. i don't want that. i want a list of TBs that, every few monts, I go through to check the progress on. I'm not interested in every movement of every bug on my list. Only in occassionaly checking to see where they are and how they are doing. Same with caches I've visited. Sometimes I go back and see how they are doing, but I do not want email everytime someone visits them. Email everytime someone visits one of my caches is more than enough.

quote:Originally posted by Feros Family:a Game would be for fun...a sport would be to WIN! I call it a Game/sport. It's fun..and I like to win the "prize" a cache find. We have been all over the state of TN, 50% of KY, Northern Alabama and a few other states in which we found a real (box type) cache. We have fun as a family, lets us see sights we would never have seen, before we started caching. Just yesterday I drove across an old rustic hand made by stones dadgum, (I was in awwwh) in Northern middle TN, on my way to cache. I also like the sport...soon we will be #1 in KY (trip planning), We were (at one time) #1 in TN, Alabama may take a bit, but it is not out of reach. Now before I leave for S. Korea, We will regain some ground...than pause for a year, than LOOK OUT GA, HERE WE COME! WEBLING- just a side note - My dad (Geo Dee) was so happy when he showed up as #1 in TX, for that short time, he even emailed me. That old man don't like to use email! Hmm... I've always thought of game versus sport the opposite way from you, but either definition will do. I don't like to think of the trade items as prizes because, after all, we're supposed to trade something of equal or greater value for them. I'd rather think of them as trade items.

quote:Originally posted by bykenut:How about: and here's one that would take a lot of traveling and organization: - first 100 geocaching picnics Was great meeting you at the picnic this past weekend, Marty! Oooh... I like that one. Maybe I'll make that a life goal. Especially if they all turn out to be like this weekend's was. It was great meeting you, too. My granddaughter is still talking about finding your Niles cache.

quote:Originally posted by bykenut:How about: and here's one that would take a lot of traveling and organization: - first 100 geocaching picnics Was great meeting you at the picnic this past weekend, Marty! Oooh... I like that one. Maybe I'll make that a life goal. Especially if they all turn out to be like this weekend's was. It was great meeting you, too. My granddaughter is still talking about finding your Niles cache.

quote:Originally posted by welch:why dont you "watch" the bug? quote:Originally posted by Marty Fouts:I'd like the site to keep track of the travel bugs I've seen, so I like "found", but I don't care about stats. http://www.scubaboard.com/images/smilies/whack.gif because there are a lot of them and i only want to check on them occassionaly. i'd rather "watch" those thing that i'm actively interested in at the moment.