Waypoint name

[dkotter]

I am wondering if by the waypoint name, you could tell the area the cache is in. The first two letters are obvious: GC - which I would suspect stand for Geocaching, I was just wondering if there is a meaning to the rest of the number.

[Motorcycle_Mama]

http://www.markwell.us/geofaq.htm

 

How are Waypoint Names Generated and What Do They Mean?

Each cache is assigned a number based on the order in which it is posted - e.g. Beverly, one of the oldest caches, is number 40. Originally, the Geocaching.com database translated this number into a hexadecimal code (1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,A,B,C,D,E,F,10) with a "GC" tagged onto the front (GC28 for Beverly).

 

Somewhere around April of 2003, the database reached ID=65535 or GCFFFF - the maximum of four digit hexadecimal. The programmer's used the solution of changing to a base 31 code (0-9, A-Z with some characters left out). The waypoints were originally limited to six characters because most GPSRs only allow six characters per waypoint. In December of 2006, the database hit 512401 cache records, which meant that they had already had GCZZZZ, the maximum cache under the base 31 method. The programmer's solution was that next cache would be GC10000 (seven digits). That cache is a "memorial" to the rollover.

 

All that is pretty much fluff, as all you really need to know is that the GC***** waypoint is a unique code: another way of identifying the individual caches. It has absolutely nothing to do with the location.

 

Now I know how they're produced. Do I have to use these numbers?

It is not required that you use this number for anything. EasyGPS and its big brother ExpertGPS and programs like GSAK can download directly from the Geocaching site and then into your GPS through a connecting cable. When that happens, the Geocaches will have the GC***** code for its name

[+imajeep]

Hey, this was very cool! I discovered that the third-oldest, still-active cache in the world is located just a few miles from my home! Well, I know what I'm doing tomorrow at lunchtime!

[2bear]

Great info-- Thanks