ePeterso2

I am frustrated by cache hiders who use metal containers for caches near the beach. I have found two so far whose lids I cannot remove due to rust! For one of those containers, it is no longer possible to even distinguish between the lid and the base, the corrosion is so bad. I mean, Thanks For The Cache, But Sheesh!

Does this mean that new cache submissions like this will be allowed? -eP

I'm sure that it's worded as "data" for a great many reasons. A properly coded malicious data file (MP3, JPEG, etc.) could exploit a buffer overrun in code that lacks sufficient bounds checks. Any program you run to open the data file could leave your system vulnerable (and that applies to all OSes, not just Windows).

Most browsers cache (save) their images and other files. So they're being downloaded by default, even if you don't actively do it yourself.

Was that cache that was 350' away from the other two a virtual? Since there was no physical container, they were allowed to be closer to other caches than the 0.1 mi limit. Also, if a cache was placed in an area marked as "KEEP OUT" or "NO TRESPASSING", that is most likely a violation of the guidelines (if it's in a posted-keep-out place that pedestrians are normally allowed, chances are that the hider did not obtain adequate permission first). You might want to report that with a Needs Maintenance or even a Needs Archived note. -eP

Excellent! Thanks for the tip ... Not sure why this isn't just integrated into GC.com, though ... -eP

I just got FTF on a particular cache, and I noticed that it says: Logged Visits: 4. But it's one publication, one find, and two notes ... that doesn't seem like four visits. Plus, there's another cache nearby me with a lot of moving pieces that require posting of notes to the cache page. There have been 5-10 real finds, but almost 300 "logged visits". What would be nice is to have the cache page report the number of finds as well as the number of logs, like this: Logged Visits: 4. Finds: 1. Or, better still: Log Entries: 4. Finds: 1 Can/will this be done? -eP

So, why not report it as a waymark? Here's the category ... http://www.Waymarking.com/cat/details.aspx...d8-d40b19fd3914 There is nothing in the category within 200 miles of San Diego ... why not be the first to report one? -eP

There is a similar cache nearby me (GCTG4C) that started with a set of 12 game pieces, each of which had a clue to the final location. Those pieces were to be placed only in caches, and each piece had a GIANT RED TAG on it clearly indicating its purpose and rules for movement. Since that cache was published less than a year ago, half of those pieces have disappeared, a few in caches that were muggled. Many people pick them up without reading the tag. Some folks pick them up but never log them with a note on the main cache page. Then the next person who wants the piece has to track it down by digging through a bunch of logs and hoping that the person who took it still has it. A set of replacement pieces was sent out, each of which has a TB tag on it. Those are a *LOT* easier to monitor than the non-TB pieces, and they tend to circulate more since they're easier to find. But even still, four of the TB pieces went missing and had to be replaced. It's a lot of fun to solve a cache like that, and it can work. I would strongly recommend making your pieces into TBs instead of regular trade items. Be prepared to place backup copies of your pieces into circulation and to monitor them to make sure none has gone missing.

I heard that the instructions to enroll for platinum membership are printed on special platinum TB tags attached to random items currently in circulation ...

Maybe the OP just means that he was given unactivated coins as a door prize, and now that he's activated and released them they aren't moving? I'd email the holder politely and ask what's up. Chances are he may have just forgotten that he has it. I would also think that you should never set a coin or TB loose in the world that you aren't completely prepared to never ever see again.

I found a "personal pleasure device for women" (hot pink) very close to a cache I visited today. Its presence at that location was highly odd ... on limestone boulders on a steep canal bank in the middle of the Everglades. I can only assume it was left there as trash ... I cannot conceive of a situation in which it would be used as intended at that location (except by a masochist or a thrill seeker ... or both).

Here's one I own, which features a padlock and a puzzle: http://www.geocaching.com/seek/cache_detai...45-870a88c50bff

A phrase I've heard used in other similar but unrelated contexts seems appropriate to rephrase here. Not everyone can find or even should be able to find every cache. This is not a bad thing ... diversity is a big part of what makes this game fun. There's always some real cost involved in finding a cache: snacks, gasoline, trade items, specialized training, aerobic conditioning, passport with Brazilian visa, airlift rescue for when you get stuck or lost, and (yes) park entrance fees. I see absolutely nothing wrong nor contradictory about the state park service promoting geocaching in a state park, regardless of whether there's an entrance fee or not. Complaining about having to pay $5 to get into the park is missing the big picture.

Do you live in a glass house? And if you do, do you throw stones? And also if you do, how do you get dressed without getting complaints from the neighbors? (Unless, of course, the neighbors like the show?)

I can't imagine that the revenue from cache seekers is in anyway a significant number for the park. I imagine that the number of cachers in the park is several orders of magnitude smaller than the number of other visitors.

The server's not down, it's just very very depressed. Life ... don't talk to it about life.

Wikipedia is your friend in this regard. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cipher

Amen. And I'd add to that the following: a BRANCH is neither a LOG nor a STUMP.

The idea of a process-heavy reviewer/mentor system sounds like too much work for not enough benefit. What has been proposed so far seems to rely upon mystery people that don't exist and organizations that likely aren't able or willing to fund such an increased level of review, mentoring, certification, verification, etc. I've seen other professional organizations that cater to both adults and children end up dissolving or fracturing when such rule-laden approaches have been put in place. (Odyssey of the Mind is one of them, for those that are familiar with that.) All of that time, effort, and money would be better spent as other cachers have said - conducting geocaching clinics, running forums, setting up local assocations, etc. Please, no mandatory mentoring requirements. -eP PS: Maintaining a list of anything or anyone is great as long as the list owner continues to maintain it or hands it off to someone willing to do so. But there are lots of abandoned lists of things out there on the internet ...

I love this technique. This is an awesome example of how parasitism arises in nature. -eP

I would be happy to host an online forum for puzzle cache authors and seekers alike, if there's interest here. I'd love to exchange puzzle construction ideas with folks as well as work collaboratively in solving them. A separate forum would let us keep spoilers out of these, the main GC forums. -eP

Valley of the Ten Thousand Smokes (and, no, this is not a mall specializing in cigarettes) hasn't been found for 4.5 years. And it's a virt, no less! -eP

I'm not sure that this is correct. It's correct. I had planned to place a cache in a particular park, but never got around to it. When someone else began dropping caches in that park, the reviewer sent me a note saying "I hope you're not too fond of this location. I know you haven't submitted it yet, but your cache keeps popping up in my proximity searches."

Unsubmitted caches show up on reviewers' proximity searches. Have there been a bunch of caches approved near where your coordinates are? Maybe your reviewer archived it because it was annoying to him/her.