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Pocket Queries: Raising the 500 limit


TheCarterFamily

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I currently have to set up multiple overlapping PQs to get the coverage that I would like, meaning three 500-result PQs actually results in far less than 1500 caches...

Not if you do it with a single radius breaking the data up by date placed (as has been mentioned). I can get the 2,492 active caches within 47.5 miles of my home coordinates in 5 PQs with no overlap. This GSAK macro for date placed helps keep everything fresh.

 

Looking at the above scenario, there are actually 2,495 active caches within 47.5 miles of my home. With the "date placed" subdivision, because there are multiple caches placed on single days, my last PQ would have returned 501 (there were three placed on May 28). So instead, my PQ would undershoot it to give me 498.

 

Admittedly, you may not be able to use a radius, but that's where the route feature might come in handy.

 

But where is this thread going?

 

Jeremy has indicated that he's not going to increase the limit in the foreseeable future. I'd love to be able to download all caches within 250 miles of my home and have 24,147 caches in my GSAK database. I'm sure many others would like the same, but I just don't see it happening no matter how many people ask.

 

Also, by keeping the PQ generator at the 500 limit, there may be added benefits to this that we're not aware of. For example, the reason might be not clogging up the PQ Mailer with large attachments. My largest PQ from my last set came in at 578KB zipped, but a complete zip of five PQ's data in a single file would have been 2.74MB. :o

 

I'm just very skeptical that the increase will happen.

 

Jeremy has been very clear on this issue. But just on the chance that he might become more flexible on this...

 

I like the idea of a flexible 2,500 per day but with some minimum per PQ to keep the total maximum # of PQ requests reasonable.

 

If a PQ larger than 500 is ever allowed, make it mandatory that it be zipped. Keep the unzipped option only for smaller quantities.

 

No mater what we get we always want more. We must be human.

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Most GPS these days support up to 1000 waypoints.

 

Is there any possibility of getting the pocket query limit raised from the 500 to 1000 or higher?

 

Count me in on this one. The 500 limit is antiquated.

 

I agree that the 500 limit is antiquiated. This "game" has grown over the years and the PQ's need to grow with it.

 

Rather than limiting the number of PQs that can be downloaded, why not limit the total number of caches downloaded per day? At the moment it is 2500 caches. (5 x 5).

 

So set a 2500 cache limit, and if I download as 5 x 500, 10 x 250 or 1 x 2500, I haven't gotten any more or less data, but I have had some flexibility.

 

Cached

 

This might just be a good fix for the problem. Why can't the PQs be set up this way? I know that I have to overlap my circles to get all the caches for my area and it takes four to five PQs to do it with duplicating the same cache to make sure I get all the caches. As for the date method, I am not sure what you are talking about, but I will try to check it out.

 

For now I just hope that I do not need to go beyond that area in one day, as I do not "plan" what I am doing in advance. I usually go, or make a call to some other "cachers" in my area. We usally have all the caches between us, but having a better way of getting those 2500 waypoints per day will be great.

 

Why would I need to update my PQs with that much data or for that many caches you say. Well it is like this, I am not sure which way I will go caching from day to day or week to week. If my database is not "up to date" then I might try to find a cache that went missing or has been archived since my last PQ run (which has happened). And if I used up my five PQs with the "loss" of overlapping then I might not have all the info needed to go caching. By making it a total number of 2500 waypoints/caches, or letting us get 1000 per PQ it will make things easier to play the "game".

 

As for the use of using a mobile phone for caching, charge those members an additional charge to get those features (any way I heard that those mobile phones are not that accurate, is that right?). The phone company charges a monthly fee for that service, so why doesn't GC.com. Not everyone has a mobile phone with those features, but I would think that everyone here has a GPSr. These are the people that are using the PQs, not the ones on the mobile phones, right?

 

Are we not (the premium members) paying for this service, then we should have a say. Not just a blanket "NO" that has been posted here. Why is this not a good idea? Let us know the reasons other then the standard "I said so". As for those with slower dial up internet service, let them continue with the 5 PQs or PQs with less caches in them. That is their problem not all of us, but they can update their internet service to include the faster downloads.

 

Just my 2 cents. Don't usually post to the forums, but this one - I just had to back up this request for bigger PQs.

Edited by fo2gra4
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I came across this thread while looking round to see if the 500 limit could be increased, and it seems that the thread has been done to death and it ain't gonna happen. For me the 500 limit returns the furthest cache at just under 20 miles away, to extend this range will require numerous (about 6) PQs which would all overlap, which seems to be unnecessary.

 

How about a compromise where the PQ could have a minimum distance as well as a maximum? that way I could for example have a PQ to do everything from 0-19 miles, another for 19-30, another for 30-40 etc. which would seem a much more efficient way of covering my home region.

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I guess I'm one of a unique minority. ;)

When planning a 300 cache + weekend, I always run out of queries.

It's happened a dozen times at least.

 

I have to pull my queries from a couple of days, because I cannot get the depth/distance from just 5 queries.

I'm certain as the cache density increases, this issue will also increase.

I can see everyone now....holding their heads with their hands, and saying "no way...that guy is crazy"....but it happens often.

 

example - today I'm trying to finish my route along the 99 highway, and up thru the mountains in a zig zag pattern to mono lake, back to Sonoma, back to June lake, back to Yosemite, up to Jamestown, down thru Fresno, and zoom along 99 back to Malibu. I'll need at least a dozen queries to select from.

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