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Utility for Etrex users


Delta68

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Our Etrex only handles waypoint codes up to 6 chars long. This is a pain as geocache codes are now 7 chars long and the codes get truncated overwriting each other.

 

To combat this problem I wrote a simple .vbs file to remove the leading 'G' from codes with 7 characters and being the nice kind people that we are, we thought others might find it useful

 

Click here to download it

 

Save it to your desktop or somewhere handy and run it by dropping a .gpx or .loc file on to it (or a shortcut to it) It will create a new file with the word 'fixed' inserted into the filename.

 

I'd be pleased to know if anyone else finds it useful...

 

:laughing:

 

Thanks

Mark

Edited by Delta68
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I just tried the link and got this message:

 

"HTTP1.1 STATUS 403 Remote Access to this object forbidden This file cannot be directly accessed from a remote site, but must be linked through the Brinkster Member's site."

 

I was just going to have a look at it out of interest but it sounds like a really great idea to me. I upgraded from the etrex but I imagine that the 7 digit thang is annoying.

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I just tried the link and got this message:

 

"HTTP1.1 STATUS 403 Remote Access to this object forbidden This file cannot be directly accessed from a remote site, but must be linked through the Brinkster Member's site."

 

I was just going to have a look at it out of interest but it sounds like a really great idea to me. I upgraded from the etrex but I imagine that the 7 digit thang is annoying.

 

OK, I've fixed that... I've changed the link to a page on the site with a link :laughing:

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I hate to rain on your parade but I think there is a setting in GSAK that does this already :laughing:

Correct. When Exporting your database ready for sending to the handheld you can use smart tags in the waypoint name box (I think thats what its called, i've not got it here in the office).

To exclude the GC from the start of the code use %drop2 in that box and all will be good with the world.

 

Further to that, my GPS holds 10 characters so I use these smart names to give me more info in the waypoint name, %drop2 %typ1-%con1%bug=#

%drop2 - This gives me the 4/5 digit code, no GC,

%typ1 - A one letter code for the type of cache, T-Trad, M-Multi etc

%con1 - One letter container size, M-Micro, S-small, R-Regular, L-Large, U-Unknown

%bug=# - Adds a # to any entry where GSAK lists a TB. just so I can keep an eye out when I get there.

 

I know that has wondered a little OT and is no help for a 6 digit system, but thought it was fitting to add it here.

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I hate to rain on your parade but I think there is a setting in GSAK that does this already :laughing:

Correct. When Exporting your database ready for sending to the handheld you can use smart tags in the waypoint name box (I think thats what its called, i've not got it here in the office).

To exclude the GC from the start of the code use %drop2 in that box and all will be good with the world.

 

Further to that, my GPS holds 10 characters so I use these smart names to give me more info in the waypoint name, %drop2 %typ1-%con1%bug=#

%drop2 - This gives me the 4/5 digit code, no GC,

%typ1 - A one letter code for the type of cache, T-Trad, M-Multi etc

%con1 - One letter container size, M-Micro, S-small, R-Regular, L-Large, U-Unknown

%bug=# - Adds a # to any entry where GSAK lists a TB. just so I can keep an eye out when I get there.

 

I know that has wondered a little OT and is no help for a 6 digit system, but thought it was fitting to add it here.

Cool! Thanks for that! :)

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awwww it doesnt work with EasyGPS :laughing:

 

You can open the fixed loc file but the geocache ID still contains the GC code and the number changes so that its different to the geocaching.com ID

 

I don't really understand what you mean.

 

 

 

I use GSAK for loading data into the Mio, but I use EasyGPS along with my .vbs script for the Etrex.

I don't use EasyGPS from anything other than loading data to teh Etrex so just having the waypoint code tweaked is fine for me.

 

 

Mark

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Here are some pics of what I mean.

 

This is what the unfixed cache IDs look like in EasyGPS

 

geowo9.jpg

 

And this is what the cache IDs look like after they have been fixed.

 

geofixof5.jpg

 

The GC prefix is still there and the cache ID is scrambled so you cant match it up to the ID's on the geocaching.com website.

 

The thing is its not for me as I have a vista HCX and use GSAK to sort my caches but my mom has my old etrex and needed to use some easy programs to upload the caches to her GPS.

 

I have sorted it by using this fix and using GPSUtility to upload the caches instead of EasyGps as for some reason this glitch doesnt affect GPS utility. So all sorted now thanks.

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It all works for me, but I do find it a little confusing with the "G" only being dropped when needed so I might tweak it a little.

 

Apparently Groundspeak are implementing a feature to adapt the waypoints so they are appropriate for the device you are using so this will hopefully will be a temporary solution.

I'm with Alistair on this one. Having recently bought a Geko for my partner, this would be a very handy utility. However I also find it quite confusing with only the G being dropped, and only in those that are 7 originally.

I think it would be great to have a version that would always drop the GC. This way you know for certain what it happening.

Chris.

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It all works for me, but I do find it a little confusing with the "G" only being dropped when needed so I might tweak it a little.

 

Apparently Groundspeak are implementing a feature to adapt the waypoints so they are appropriate for the device you are using so this will hopefully will be a temporary solution.

 

I hope so, it's something I have been asking for on the GC website forum for a while now.

 

BY THE WAY FOLKS!!

There's a fairly easy way to get rid of the GC prefix. Open the gpx file in a text editor, and simply find/replace all the instances of 'GC' replacing with '' (ie nothing).

 

I'm on a Mac and software that does this for me is thin on the ground (there isn't any that actually works - I have tried)

 

Anyway it's the same on a PeeCee, I think you use notepad or something, it has a find/replace button, one click and all the GC's are gone - easy.

 

I've built an automator macro for Mac which opens all my GPX zips, renames them to something more descriptive instead of numbers, then fixes and resaves them.

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BY THE WAY FOLKS!!

There's a fairly easy way to get rid of the GC prefix. Open the gpx file in a text editor, and simply find/replace all the instances of 'GC' replacing with '' (ie nothing).

 

Carefull. Doing a find and replace on just "GC" will indiscriminately replace all combinations of "GC". This might wipe out the vital clue needed for a puzzle cache.

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It all works for me, but I do find it a little confusing with the "G" only being dropped when needed so I might tweak it a little.

 

Apparently Groundspeak are implementing a feature to adapt the waypoints so they are appropriate for the device you are using so this will hopefully will be a temporary solution.

 

I hope so, it's something I have been asking for on the GC website forum for a while now.

 

BY THE WAY FOLKS!!

There's a fairly easy way to get rid of the GC prefix. Open the gpx file in a text editor, and simply find/replace all the instances of 'GC' replacing with '' (ie nothing).

 

I'm on a Mac and software that does this for me is thin on the ground (there isn't any that actually works - I have tried)

 

Anyway it's the same on a PeeCee, I think you use notepad or something, it has a find/replace button, one click and all the GC's are gone - easy.

 

I've built an automator macro for Mac which opens all my GPX zips, renames them to something more descriptive instead of numbers, then fixes and resaves them.

 

GPX files are written in XML where all the data elements are tagged. You can be more certain of eliminating the "GC" prefix by replacing all occurrences of <name>GC with <name> .

 

This can be done interactively using e.g. Notepad (PC), or TextEdit or TextWrangler (Mac). There are a heap of ways of performing the same edit non-interactively.

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BY THE WAY FOLKS!!

There's a fairly easy way to get rid of the GC prefix. Open the gpx file in a text editor, and simply find/replace all the instances of 'GC' replacing with '' (ie nothing).

 

Carefull. Doing a find and replace on just "GC" will indiscriminately replace all combinations of "GC". This might wipe out the vital clue needed for a puzzle cache.

 

Personally I use textedit and it is case sensitive, the chance of someone writing GC in capitals in a clue is very slim. And if you had the problem you would probably know it was a typo caused by the GC removal process and mentally correct it whilst out caching. I take your point though.

 

Another reason why I want GC.com to sort this stupid situation out!

 

FYI, I use automator to create the macros.

Just right click (yes, you can right click on a Mac) and the named list of automator macros pops up.

 

Automator and TextEdit are both built into Mac OSX, there's no need to go fishing around for third party apps.

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