Kouros

I'll mark this one up as a "Been There, Done That" Oh wait, wrong site... ------ An it harm none, do what ye will

quote:Originally posted by Kanto:I assume Letterboxing has been around longer than Geocaching. Letterboxing has been around far longer than caching - almost a hundred and fifty years longer. You can read up on its history here. quote:Has Letterboxing taken as much flak as Geocaching seems to have? Letterboxing tends to get more criticism than Geocaching from those concerned about the impact it has upon the countryside, as there are no databases that actively record the locations of all the boxes - there are some that record a number of them, but not all. There are no guidelines like we have on GC.com (apart from the hiders common sense), and some boxes have been known to have been buried - a big no no in the caching circle. There are numerous differences between caching and letterboxing, apart from the obvious. Due to the nature of clues being used as a means to hunt the box, Ammo boxes are frowned upon - this stems from the game originating in Dartmoor, where the British miltary carry out many practices, and to prevent an intrepid boxer from opening a live ammo container. There are no official bodies that represent Letterboxing - although the 100 Club does assist in promoting environmental awareness while letterboxing - it is worth being aware, however, that in order to join 100 Club, you must first find 100 letterboxes. But some of the criticisms levelled at Geocaching were never a problem for letterboxing. Because letterboxing was often spread through word of mouth, it was never made the concern of authorities. Ironically, because Geocaching gives that information for the entire world to see, it is criticised for precisely the same activity. Unfair, perhaps, but such is life. You might be interested to know that Dartmoor, the home of Letterboxing, officially recognises that pastime but as yet does not extend that recognition to Geocaching. ------ An it harm none, do what ye will [This message was edited by Kouros on August 02, 2003 at 07:00 AM.]

quote:Originally posted by SimonG:If you're a charter member, they promise to leave the telly. But no computer to log the cache you were out hunting while they looted the house? But that's evil!! ------ An it harm none, do what ye will

Entschuldigungen für meinen schlechten Deutschen im voraus. Sie müssen einen Spielraum-Wanze Umbau von der Unterseite von diese Seite kaufen. Wenn Sie die Wanze erhalten, erhalten Sie auch einen Aktivierung Code - Sie können das in die Web site anmelden, und sie wird dann als Ihre geloggt. Legen Sie die Wanze in einen cache, und geht er weg! ------ An it harm none, do what ye will

quote:Originally posted by Chris n Maria:That's really worrying! Fancy people knowing I might be out at sometime on a Tuesday...hang on a sec lets think about this - almost everyone I know leaves there house at some point on a tuesday. Well that is helpful info then Heh. Exactly. If it broke it down to "Chris leaves the house at 10:43 to get the car out the garage, and Maria follows a few moments later. They are out caching for six hours (not including lunch), and return home at 18:00 to find their house ransacked on a weekly basis" I could see there being a problem. Personally, I prefer to spend more time worrying if I actually left that Tamagotchi in the cache or not, as I claimed I did in the log... ------ An it harm none, do what ye will

quote:Originally posted by Criminal: quote:It's somewhat of a fallacy to think that what we do, or do not do, has no impact on what surrounds us, and ultimately ourselves. I said that? No, and I didn't mean to attribute it to you. Actually, now I've reread your first post, I actually think I may fully agree with what you say, rather than only partially. I think I read your original post as more black/white than it really is. My bad. ------ An it harm none, do what ye will

"I find only some similarity to that spoken by Criminal within myself" Why? It's somewhat of a fallacy to think that what we do, or do not do, has no impact on what surrounds us, and ultimately ourselves. If we endlessly pollute our air, we will eventually cause plants and animals to dies, weakening our eco system, and eventually doing some serious harm to ourselves. No doubt, no matter what we do, something will survive, but we won't. This is somewhat of an extreme, and something that we won't experience in our grandchildren's lifetimes, let alone our own. It's all about personal survival - have respect for the things around us, because otherwise it will come round to bite us on the ***. I eat meat. I like the way it tastes, but prefer the taste when it has been raised on Organic food and in an open environment, rather than cooped up in boxes or warehouses. However - things are often taken to extremes. Why, for example, should we not play on the grass? Why should I not ride my mountain bike in the forest? - Actually, this is something that really gets my goat, as no one has ever explained this to me. Any offers? ------ An it harm none, do what ye will

dadgum good show! If I'm honest, sometimes I forget to CITO when I'm not caching. I don't know what it is - perhaps I just associate trashing out with caching. That said, I have had a few funny looks from people when I've stopped in the middle of the HIgh Street, picked up some litter, thrown it in the bin, and carried on walking. I have to admit to feeling a little smug if I manage to pick up some litter thats been dropped by someone - and the dropper sees me clean it up for them. More often than not their face shows their guilt up perfectly. Shallow, I know, but entertaining, all the same. ------ An it harm none, do what ye will

quote:Originally posted by Chris n Maria:I am obviously being completly dim here. How exactly does our profile help a thief ? Before I begin - bear in mind that I've altered some details, as I don't want to give the game away to anyone who "has a bright idea" (read: dumb silly notion that will wind you up with a spell in prison or broken limbs if we ever catch you), but the reasoning behind it is sound. The information I present is inaccurate, and a lot harder to come by than my post might suggest, as I think it would be unethical to spell out precisely how to find someones private details on the internet. If anything sounds false, it is, but hopefully Chris and Maria will get the gist about where I am getting the info from. I suppose you could surmise that you are commonly out on Tuesdays, especially in August, which may leave you with an empty house in Loughton at that time. However, it fails to take into consideration a number of variables: 1. Is anyone left at home? 2. Just where the heck is your house anyway? 3. What time you leave, and what time you come back 4. Whether you do this every Tuesday, every other Tuesday, or once a month. For the sake of argument, we'll presume you live alone, and no one tends your house while you are caching. Your neighbours haven't got a clear view of your house from their windows, and are therefore unlikely to notice anyone breaking in. But we are still left with the problem of finding your house. We might be able to do this if your GCUK page gave any indications about your surname - which it doesn't. Through the magic of the Internet, I followed several links and eventually found that out. I pulled your rough location off these forums. This assumes that the thief will know to check these forums for your location, but lets assume that they do. A quick BT.com enquiry pops up two Initials that match your name and location (presuming that the phone is under Chris, not Maria). This also assumes that you are not ex-directory, but as Land Ranger says, some directories ignore that anyway. The information also handily provides your address. I could check out both houses, preferrably on Tuesdays, to see whether or not you leave to go caching, and if you do, pay you a "little visit". Or, I could just phone you up and if you answer, say "I've got the wrong number" - if you don't, I'll then drop round. To be completely frank, that was probably flawed - I've made a lot of leaps of faith there, and no doubt one or two mistakes. But with respect to Land Ranger, that sort of investigation is entirely feasible. And I'd never even tried that before. But it sure seems like a lot of work - especially when (as a burglar) I could simply watch your road until someone (you?) goes out with all their family, preferrably with a holiday packed car, and nip in then. Ultimately, it's a really roundabout way of doing things, and easily cured by either a) Having an "Opt-Out" policy on GCUK (which is almost unworkable, considering that most UK cachers probably don't know they have a profile there), or Not linking your personal site to your profile on GC.com ------ An it harm none, do what ye will [This message was edited by Kouros on July 29, 2003 at 10:21 AM.]

quote:Originally posted by The Land Ranger:The successful criminal is the one who plans more carefully. He knows that you are most likely to be out until long after he has gone. He conducts a thorough search of your home and takes the most treasured and valuable possessions, like granddads wartime meadals and your stamp collection. He might even load up his/your car in your garage before just driving away with everything you hold most dear. Out of interest - what do you do when you go to work? Is there always someone at your house while you're there? Another something to think about - the "opportunistic" thief is not always as cack-handed as you describe. I can't remember the name of the show, but it was on BBC reently, and had a couple of ex-professional theives who broke into a couple of random houses (with the owners consent) to demonstrate how easy it was. These people picked a house by ascertaining if it was empty, and were in and out in a matter of minutes. In all cases, they stole a lot more than just "nick your visible and more easily carried goodies and the £30 you had hidden in the cookie jar" - they took several thousand pounds worth of equipment, and highlighted that although it would be sold on on the cheap, they wouldn't care. They took the valuable possessions - the ones with monetary value - not emotional. No thief would steal the latter. Why would they want it if it's of no value to them? They stole jewellery, garden equipment, telephones, tv's, dvds, savings, bank details, credit cards, keys, etc. etc. One time, they took the car, too - and loaded it with everything of value within the house. They weren't sure the owners wouldn't be back at 4:45 precisely - they were in and out within minutes, so they didn't need to worry. Like you say. They weren't organised. They were careful, sure. They were professional, they knew not to leave fingerprints, or foot prints, and to enter and leave where they couldn't be seen by neighbours. But ignoring all that - they may be caught. But after the event, what do you care if they get caught? It's too late - you've had your goods stolen, and probably sold it on. Theft is ugly, nasty, and horrid, but there's no reason to be paranoid about it. Someone is just as likely to pick on you because your house is empty than to have watched you for weeks to ascertain your habits. But if you're so worried about theft, I suggest that you consider upgrading your home security. ------ An it harm none, do what ye will

quote:Originally posted by Judy&Dick:I'll bet you are fun at parties! Can I take you up on that bet? ------ An it harm none, do what ye will

Have just made a (somewhat brief) visit to the site, to see what the parking regulations were... Well, crumbs! HCC are really going for it with both barrels, aren't they! Well done all involved! ------ An it harm none, do what ye will

quote:Originally posted by Dan Wilson:Hope you all have fun & that I get another chance to meet your ugly mugs sooner than later In all seriousness, Dan, hope you get well soon. ------ An it harm none, do what ye will

One for the 80's children... ------ An it harm none, do what ye will

quote:Originally posted by The Wombles:It would be good to see this cache back in circulation again. The leave it unhindered was kinda a joke, but I do have another, more serious question... where should it go? Where I found it (it was a nice location, and the nearest cache was a fair way away) or back where it came from? ------ An it harm none, do what ye will

Found a cache today. No real surprise, I guess (unless you count my DNF logs, of course) except to say that I never meant to. Guess I better start from the beginning. We (Sarah and I) went out for a walk the other day, to watch the sunset. We walked up Cheesefoot Hill, in Winchester (near this cache) and were merrily walking along the path (in the opposite direction of that cache, about .3 of a mile away). But we came along a blue tupperware box. It was just lying in the middle of the path. "Is that a cache?" Sarah joked, so I went to investigate. Well, surprisingly enough, it was. I'd never seen it on a nearest cache list before, and was somewhat taken aback that it was so badly hidden. Curiosity got the better of me, and I read through the logs. Back in February 2002, Tim and June were the first finders, and the first few logs were normal enough. But as they progressed, they got odder and odder - the last five or so logs (in succession) were by non-Geocachers. People who had stumbled across the cache quite by accident. I left the cache (a bit better hidden) as I didn't know whether or not it had been transferred to a different website, and headed off home. Yet at home, I couldn't find the cache listed on any site. It had long been archived. After a quick chat with T&J, we discovered the cache was this one - and that it had originally been placed around three miles away. So, what now? I've contacted the original placer (to no avail). Do I adopt it? Claim it as an obscure find? Or let it continue is amazing journey unhindered? ------ An it harm none, do what ye will

quote:Originally posted by Team Crystal Miners:If you want your film canisters to be noticed, just slap a TravelBug tag on them. I did that, and oddly enough, something different happened. In the first cache it visited, people avoided the entire cache for a few weeks (it was anew cache, and visited at least once a week up until then - since it was removed, visitors have been frequent again). In the second cache, it seems to have fallen in TB oblivion, where visitors have been since, and none have picked it up. Even stranger, there is another TB there (albeit part of TB football game) that no one seems to want either. I would go and rescue it (OK, it's only been there a few weeks) but it's a cache I've tried tqice to find, and can't locate for the life of me. ------ An it harm none, do what ye will

quote:Originally posted by Omally:This means any experienced cachers who turn up may well be called upon to lead GeoMuggles on a merry dance thru the woods to show them exactly how to find caches properly. Is everyone up for that? I'd be up for that. ------ An it harm none, do what ye will

Mine is fairly dull. I sometimes pretend that I named myself after the Greek statue, and sometimes I lower myself to pretending that I named myself after the aftershave. But I didn't. I named myself after a pair of shoes. At the time when I first needed a screen name (for something completely different) I was working in a shoe shop. All shoes were called various different names, all for no particular reason whatsoever, and one style was called "Kouros". I like it, so I used it. Always have ever since. ------ An it harm none, do what ye will

Oh, man. With those sporadic caps, that thief is so "l33t". No surprise the cache has already been archived, I suppose. ------ An it harm none, do what ye will

quote:Originally posted by Icenians:I have to apologies for this thread and my dig at the guidelines above. This was written last night after a few too many. I wouldn't sweat it too much if I were you, Icenians - heck, I know I've said things I regret while being stone cold sober. Still, it's nice that this thread gave everyone the opportunity to see the good progress that GAGB has made. ------ An it harm none, do what ye will

quote:Originally posted by Mancunian Pyrocacher:I sent a email addressed to Jeremy asking if there was a possibility of him posting a message about this cache event, and whether he's read it or not, I for one am happy with the reply. Indeed, it is always worth getting the other side of the story. I felt more than a little guilty about jumping to a conclusion, which is why I asked bigkid to post here. However, I can't help but wonder why the event had to be so brand specific. Surely, it's one thing to say that VW organised the event, and quite another to say you can't take part unless you do so in a VW. Just MHO, of course, and I do have a tendency to mouth off... Another niggling point is this, and I may well be alone in this feeling: I paid my $30 not so long ago, and it does feel a little odd that, although I'm paying for a service (albeit paying voluntarily for a 'free' service), there are still going to be fairly blatant advertisements. Guess it must be a cultural difference thing, or maybe just a personal one. I never felt too keen on paying for cable or satellite, when I knew I would be watching advertisements a quarter of the time. This isn't the same thing, I know, but still. Perhaps even after more than a year into the game, I had just been a little naive about the site - especially the guidelines suggesting that commercial caches weren't allowed. That all said and done, I do heartily agree with Gaz, Suni, Jack & Kashi, when they say save us from popups. A well organised event by a company is better than that - but it's only a small step from the VW event (which was exclusive anyway) to another company organising one where you had to buy their product at the event in order to take part. Just my thoughts. ------ An it harm none, do what ye will

quote:Originally posted by welch:Because to me that thing looks like a yield sign. Which means you want me to stop and let the trolls cross? It's a warning sign - a slightly modified warning for a humpback bridge, a bridge that, lets say a troll, might live under. ------ An it harm none, do what ye will

quote:Originally posted by Icenians:The guidelines to get a cache on HCC land means you can know place a cache on any off the footpaths so long as you get permission from the landowner. And if you ask the land manager at any of their countryside sites you can place a cache there as well. Doesn't this go back to the earlier discussions about what constitues HCC land? Seems to me that these new guidelines clarify this debate. Caches that are on HCC land are fine, but on other rights of way, permission would be needed from the landowner. So although HCC has given permission for caches on *their* land - which is a step forward, regardless of your sarcastic comment - we do still need to gain permission for caches which are not on their land. Of course, it makes sense that HCC would want to make sure that Geocaching does not compromise the management of their site, and have therefore introduced the guideline that T&J talk of. Unless I've missed an important point, of course. Please, Icenians, if I have, could you elaborate further? ------ An it harm none, do what ye will

Bit of a shame that got approved, IMHO. I don't think it should have been. I think it's more likely to be an anomaly, rather than a sign of things to come. If it happens again, or more regularly, I'd be worried. Whereabouts was it discussed before, anyway? ------ An it harm none, do what ye will