me_chris

You could buy a cheap 3 volt solar panel and rig it to work with you gps... Or, if you use a Magellan that recharges off of a laptop, get a 5 volt panel and rig it with a USB port... Hmm.. interesting idea...

There is software - Adobe Contribute - that allows multiple authors to update web-content without needing knowledge of HTML or any web-authoring technologies... Perhaps something like that might be beneficial?

I have used it to route lost family members to where they need to be over the phone, and this week I am using it for some actually quite evil purposes... I moonlight on the side for a market research company (you know, telemarketing, mass mailings, the works... I don't really do any of the calling or mailing, but I help get it going. I really feel evil when I'm working for "the man", but the pay is phenomenal) anyway... this week I am doing an address research project for them that involves visiting several addresses and verifying their existence, etc.... The GPSr comes in quite handy for that. Sure, its not as noble as making a route for a national guard unit or rescuing people, but... I suppose I am using my GPSr to help people receive all of the holiday mass mailings that they would otherwise miss out on?

Honestly, I know there is a lot of angst against certain types of caches and such, but I really like all caches... Yes, even the unimaginative ones... I like caching because it gets me to see places in a different way - even if it is just another magnetic key hider on a guardrail or a pill bottle under a lamppost, they are still fun for me. Of course I prefer an ammo box in the woods, but I like any cache. I do get a bit disappointed if I hike for 3 miles and bushwhack only to find a micro in the woods... but, I probably will still enjoy the hike and laugh about the sillyness of the cache :-)

A quick google search turned up this paper enigma: Is this the one mentioned in the earlier message? It looks like this might be the way to go - people can print this out and build it before hunting the cache... Thanks everyone for the advice!

Alright, I am working on a multi cache, and I want to add a bit of a puzzle in there as well to make it interesting... So, I would like to encode the final clue using Enigma, and then the steps of the multi would give the geocacher the Rotor and Plug settings of the enigma machine so that they can then decode the clue and find the final... I know not everyone has an enigma machine lying around, and since they can only rarely be bought at auction for somewhere between $10,000 and $40,000 (yup, i researched it... I am a total WWII nut and would LOVE to have one) I found this Enigma Simulator on the internet... My problem is... in order to be able to decode the clue on-site a person would either have to own an enigma machine and lug it with them, or bring a laptop with internet access with them... I was thinking they could have someone at home with internet access and call them with the rotor and plug settings? Is there a way to make it easy for people to decode the clue once they find the settings, or is this whole thing just a dumb idea? :-) The best I can think of it to call someone at home - is there some other way to do this? (short of buying everyone an enigma machine of course...)

Sorry to hear that...

works great... if you are ok with taking your PSP into the woods... I would rather take my Palm Zire 21 that I bought for 9.99 on Ebay and leave my PSP and my Palm T|X at home... I do however use a similar process to get ebooks onto my PSP.

Seems like someone posts this topic about once a week

Sweet! I'll have a new cache to look for the next time I'm visiting my sister and her family I've done the art garden one twice, since it was archived and then rehidden in the same place. ...if it ever stops raining here so I can go place it

Here is my usual geocaching/hiking gear. Of course, for urban grabs it is basically a cellphone, my geocaching pda, and my GPSr... Pictured: Nikon D50 digital SLR Bladder from my Camelbak M.U.L.E. that also holds all of the gear in the picture Single piece steel survival knife with paracord wrapped around handle 16-LED flashlight - waterproof Hand sanitizer (you never know...) Smith and Wesson Extreme Ops Tanto folder - this one is always on me First aid kit with some added goodies like a couple of "space blankets" Swiss Army knife (stays in the pack) - has saw, pliers, tweezers, etc... Usually a ziploc with some sort of high-carb snack (cinnamon toast crunch in this case) Magnesium fire starter and flint striker combo Lighter (just in case there is plenty of easy tinder around and I dont want to mess with the magnesium) Magellan eXplorist 500 GPSr Palm Zire 21 (purchased especially for geocaching since I dont want to take my Palm T|X into the woods) Not Pictured: Garmin Geko (yellow) backup GPSr Lensatic Compass Topo maps CamelBak M.U.L.E. pack that holds everything I normally take this stuff along only on geocaches that involve hikes into forests and such - but those are my favorite ones so I tend to do a lot of them. Like I said before, for an urban micro or something it is usually just my PDA, cellphone, GPSr, and my Smith and Wesson knife (but only because I always carry it) Edit for spelling...

Hahahahahaha! I about fell over laughing when I read this... Been there, done that... multiple times, with no GPSr or anything... :-) Never found one this way though.... yet...

Technically university grounds (especially a state university) is "land set aside for public use" - so, it fits into the guidelines right? I have a couple of caches placed on the campus of Aurora University, in Aurora, IL and I am planning on a huge multi for the campus of Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, IL. As a staff member, I have spoken with our campus police and they did not know what geocaching was. When I explained it, one of them said "ah.. like high tech orineteering..." and that was that. There are a few (4) active caches on campus but only one has permission since it is the only one that is located in a less-public area (an art garden). So, I don't see any problems with it - and really, like some others have said, you would be hard pressed to find a campus WITHOUT at least one cache... :-)

I have a dual-monitor system (laptop running internal and external LCDs) for web development, etc... Just convenient to expand your desktop real-estate. Anyway, here is my command center. Take one grad student, add finals week, plus a building full of 350 freshmen to take care of... and you get the mess that is my desk... [Click image to see larger version if anyones interested] The eMachines dinosaur on the left is running FreeNAS with 2 500gb drives and serves sortof like a digital attic... The LCD monitor is running the extended desktop of the laptop in the pic... Also visible are two travel bugs (including a red jeep), and probably TONS of other random things scattered throughout the workspace...

Nevermind... my post was about guns... didnt read the warnings before posting... I'll post a pic of my gear soon once I get a chance to take one. EDIT to remove my 2 cents on making guns illegal so that criminals wont use them to commit crimes which are also illegal.

Ummm, talking to a muggle is embarassing because we use that term, and you think they'd like "enemy" better??? You should see their reactions when I call them Flarkelzorts... Seriously though, when using the term muggles while talking to muggles, it works because they instantly know the meaning behind it.

Not sure.... But I'm glad to be able to download GPX files again :-) If TPTB did fix something, then thanks! Mods, feel free to close this one :-)

Interesting - according to the forums, I am still a premium member... though on geocaching.com, I am not?

Just wondering what's up here? Am I missing something somewhere? I have a premium subscription (monthly) and according to PayPal it is active... According to the Geocaching.com website though, I am a basic member (though I was a premium member yesterday)... And, if I go to "upgrade" my account and put my subscription ID in the box, it says that I have already activated my subscription... But it still thinks I am a basic member? Not really sure what's going on here... Any thoughts?

Leatherman Charge AL - Serrated blade, Clip Point Blade, Saw, Pliers, etc... GREAT geocaching tool - I want one for christmas too please... :-) No, really - I want one for christmas... Edit to add picture

Ah... point well taken. It is wise to consider one's source before freaking out about some new news... I wonder how Al Qaeda caused the blackout? And... I wonder if aliens are responsible for the recent jump in gas prices?

I don't know what will come of this - but possibly the next really big war will be fought in space as well huh? Maybe thats going too far - however, I can see a country destroying foreign satellites as something that may lead to war... What about their satellites that orbit over other countries?

I know he is only 11 - but a good folding knife is really the most useful thing anybody can carry, especially if caching in the woods. I was given my first knife by my grandfather when I was about 6, and really, if taught to use them properly and with respect, a kid can have a knife when hiking :-)

Arent we all? I had no idea geocaching existed until I stumbled on it through the all knowing Google... I checked out the geocaching.com website and realized that I had been living LITERALLY like 200 yards from a cache for the past 3 years without knowing it was there.... I have been hopelessly hooked ever since.

I thought about that but dont you think that mettal dog tag would rust? Not if you get an aluminum dog tag... :-) Or stainless steel.