Whats the purpose of logging in?

[flfirefighter]

Waiting at this moment for my first GPS to arrive via UPS for kayaking, driving etc. A week ago never heard of geocaching. I understand the excitment one may get seeking a cache and look forward to it, but please tell me what's the deal with logging in your find? Why does this matter? Also, other then posting it on your own profile where would you post that you found it? Just curious is all..........

 

Thanks

Edited October 10, 2006 by flfirefighter

[+Moore9KSUcats]

As a cache placer, we really enjoy reading what others think of our cache. We try to make it a memorable hide, by bringing you to a really neat spot, or by doing something creative with the cache container itself. When we get the notification of a log, and read the log from the finder, some of those logs really make our day!

 

That being said, we also prefer finding caches like the ones we place. Yes, we do find micros from time to time, especially when traveling, or when it is Texas hot out, but for a good cache day, we enjoy getting out and exploring parks, not parking lots.

 

Sample logs from some of our recent hides:

 

FTF! Another great camo job from Moore9KSUcats. FEAR is still my favorite, but this one is really well done too. I am sure I stared at the stupid thing several times before my eye caught on. We also had the pleasure of meeting GTBevo at the site. TNLN.

 

Kguys found: April 15th, 2006 @ 12:20pm - Our most enjoyable cache ever. I believe man is instinctively fearful of certain shapes including the snake, the spider, the shark, etc. Moore9KSUcats deserves several GeoCache Merit Badge Awards for this one. I think we made it within the first five to find, so ... Took: After Bite, Left: Purple Compass. Log-reader-alert: Don't miss this one!!!

 

We sure went around in circles on this one. Hubby got a nice cactus spine in his hand during the search.

Really nice little wild park that we knew nothing about and wife is on the G'town Parks Board! Made for a great Mother's Day outing after thunderstorms.

 

Logs like these are why we hide caches!

 

Malia

[+Bad_CRC]

• leaving a comment to help the next cacher like: "watch out for the bees"
  
• Letting the owner know the cache might be missing
  
• thanking the owner for buying, setting up, and placing the cache
  
• reminding yourself of the experience weeks or months later
  
• keeping a running list of the caches you've been to
  

[+DaveA]

Agree with what the others have said, but from my view there are direct benefits to *you* for logging (some have been mentioned already), but the primary reason is because it is the right thing to do.

 

Not logging your find (or your did not find) is analagous to going out to dinner, the food is fine, the service is fine, but you leave no tip thinking "What's in it for me?". Well, not having spit in your food the next time you go there is one direct benefit , but the main reason is because you know the server works for tips and that tips are expected before you walk in the door and order.

 

The same thing is expected by cache placers. It is simply the right thing to do. Logs are their tips. It is your way of saying "I couldn't be doing this if you hadn't taken the trouble to put this here for me, Thanks!"

[+briansnat]

Since the cache owner spent the time, effort and money to place a cache, I figure the least I can do is let him know that I found it and enjoyed the hunt. The online logs are the easiest way to do this.

[+Moore9KSUcats]

We lurked on the website for several months before buying a GPSr. We had so much fun reading the logs from the finders. There were some very enjoyable logs! It made us start to think about what caches we wanted to find, and people we hoped to meet someday.

[Neos2]

If you decide to become a premium member you can use tools to run searches for geocaches that you have not found yet --of course, that means that you have to have "check them off" the list by logging to the cache page.

[+GreyingJay]

Not logging your find (or your did not find) is analagous to going out to dinner, the food is fine, the service is fine, but you leave no tip thinking "What's in it for me?". Well, not having spit in your food the next time you go there is one direct benefit , but the main reason is because you know the server works for tips and that tips are expected before you walk in the door and order.

 

You could also think of it from a different angle, that geocaching is (for me at least) a social activity. Ironic considering that geocachers don't often cross paths, generally speaking, but it's social nonetheless.

 

When was the last time you went out for dinner by yourself (fast food doesn't count)? Right, probably not very recently. My primary reason for eating out at a restaurant is because I'm with friends or family or a date, and we're enjoying the shared experience, not just the food.

 

Logging your find, telling your story, reading other people's stories, is all part of the shared experience. It's not just about the find.

[+emb021]

Logging your finds (and not founds) gives you a record of what you've done.

 

Going back thru your finds, you may recall the fun you had finding them, the tricky hides you overcame, the work in figuring out multis or puzzles or mysteries. And you might also re-live this in how others have found the same ones you did. (I don't upload pictures, so it can be fun to see those that others did)

 

Plus you can check out the TBs you helped move along and see where they are.

 

Going back over your DNFs, you can get updates on caches you might want to retry. I seldom give up on a DNF. There are some I've retried 2-3 times before I succeeded.

 

Heck, I use GSAK to handle uploading stuff to my GPSr. I ALSO make the point to update GSAK with my finds. AND I keep a geocaching log book with all my finds. To me, doing the logs is 'part of the game'. Just as I feel that finding a cache but not signing the log isn't a true find, I feel that not atleast doing so on-line is similiar.

[+gof1]

You should log your finds because it is the reward that others get for going to the trouble to give you something fun to do. If everyone took the why bother attitude of not logging their finds no one would bother hiding caches. That would stop this sport in its tracks. I hide caches because I like to give back to others for the fun they have given me. It would be disappointing to never know if they enjoyed those caches. I would also never know what caches I had placed that people enjoyed and which ones they didn't. Without that feedback I couldn't improve on my hides.

 

To log a find you go to the cache page and click on "Log Your Visit" on the top right of the page.

[+briansnat]

Logging your find, telling your story, reading other people's stories, is all part of the shared experience. It's not just about the find.

 

And I think a big part of the success of this sport. I think the online logs not only give owners instant feedback, but they promote a sense of community.

 

Letterboxing had about a 150 year head start on geocaching. It is a similar sport, but there is no need to purchase expensive electronic equipment, so you would think it would be at least as popular as geocaching. Yet it isn't. I think the lack of online logs in letterboxing is a big part of the reason that it hasn't grown like geocaching.

[Neos2]

emb021 made a good point. I love to go back through my DNFs to read them--there are some funny stories there. Most of them, I have gone back again to find. A few were archived sometime after I was there (sometimes because they really weren't there when I was looking, which makes me feel better!) and a few are still haunting and taunting me to come find them.

[+New England n00b]

One nice feature for you, premium or regular member:

 

When you create a find log, a red check mark is placed next to caches you've found when you do a search by zip code, city or whatever. Caches appear 20 to a page in that list. If you've found say 15 of those, you can easily identify which caches you haven't visited so you can plan your outings.

[+Moore9KSUcats]

Logging your find, telling your story, reading other people's stories, is all part of the shared experience. It's not just about the find.

 

And I think a big part of the success of this sport. I think the online logs not only give owners instant feedback, but they promote a sense of community.

 

Letterboxing had about a 150 year head start on geocaching. It is a similar sport, but there is no need to purchase expensive electronic equipment, so you would think it would be at least as popular as geocaching. Yet it isn't. I think the lack of online logs in letterboxing is a big part of the reason that it hasn't grown like geocaching.

 

We've just started letterboxing. We especially enjoy the creative aspect of carving your own stamps. We started in August with an accidental find in Maryland, and came home to Texas to find most of the ones in Georgetown, and set two boxes of our own.

 

Unfortunately, unless a finder takes the time to write us individually, we have no idea what they thought about our hard work! Yes, there are THEIR stamps in the logbook, but that isn't the same as reading the online logs and chuckling over their comments. With as few letterboxes as there are in the central Texas area (as compared to geocaches), I doubt that we will get as enthralled as we have with geocaching. I agree with what Briansnat said about the lack of online logs and gratification being part of what has kept letterboxing grow so exponentially like geocaching has.

 

Malia

[CoyoteRed]

Also, other then posting it on your own profile where would you post that you found it?

 

Unless I missed it, this part of the query has not been addressed.

 

In order to log a visit, go the cache page of the cache you found and in the upper right of the page is a menu. Click "log your visit." That's where you can write about your experiences with the cache.

 

As for the necessity of logging online, I'm going to part company with my comrades. Feedback is an important part of the hobby, but not a requirement. It's good form to report problems with the cache or the hunt. It's also good form to write about your experiences especially on caches you enjoyed.

 

However, as is pointed out many folks spend good money and effort to place a cache, but some do not. A cache that was a waste of my time gets about as much consideration in return, even up to the point of not logging it. There are plenty of caches I've not logged. It would be a waste of time and I figure I've wasted more than enough on it already.

 

As for the comparison of letterboxing and geocaching, I think the factors are a bit more complicated that mere online logging. You know, like the ease of creating a cache, advertising, competitive undertones, etc. I've got letterboxes and I don't know if they've been found unless someone emails me or when I go check on it. It gets found by plenty, so I'm not worried about it.

[+kemp_family]

I could not wait to get to a computer to log our experiences with our first finds. We do not read the logs before we head out. When we added ours and finally read the others, it was almost as good as the actual find. I cannot imagine a life without online logs.

Edited October 12, 2006 by kemp_family

[+Kryten]

Each time that you log a find, your score increases by one, no log = no score.

[+emb021]

 

Letterboxing had about a 150 year head start on geocaching. It is a similar sport, but there is no need to purchase expensive electronic equipment, so you would think it would be at least as popular as geocaching. Yet it isn't. I think the lack of online logs in letterboxing is a big part of the reason that it hasn't grown like geocaching.

 

As someone who also letterboxes, I can only kinda agree.

 

I don't think the lack of on-line logs is a reason it hasn't grown.

 

HOWEVER, I find the lack of on-line logs annoying. It took them awhile to add even the ability to log that you found or did not find a letterbox, and I'm sure there are several LBers who don't even bother doing that. I find the lack of giving more expressive log (ie tell your experience) and the fact that many in the LBing community are AGAINST this even more annoying.

 

Why?

 

Logs, whether finds or dnfs are useful for both the owner and fellow searchers.

 

The owner is kept appraised as to the status of the cache (people find it with few problems- good. people reporting a lot of failures- not good)

 

As someone looking for a cache, seeing that people have been successful, especially within the last month, lets me know everything is probably ok. If no one has even tried in the last year, I have to wonder the status of things.

 

Who wants to spend time going to the site of a cache (and the time looking), only to find that the cache is gone and has been gone for months?? But since no one gave any indication of this, you've wasted your time. I had this happen too many times with LBing. With GC, in most cases if something went wrong with a cache, it happened fairly recently (ie in the last week), and I just hadn't check things out on-line.

 

So. Even if you don't plan on writting logs, at least log a Find or DNF!