"CHARTER MEMBERS"

[+GIDEON-X]

Sitting in a Coffee-House, in Yuma, AZ. Muzing over the ways of the world, one item keeps coming up (who knows why) How Many Charter-Members Are Still Around / Active / Alive?? Perhaps The Keeper of The Books...........May Be We Could Start A "Good-Old Boys Club" or Some Such.....

[+sbell111]

1662

 

Edited to add that I got this number from the total number of Charter Members according to the forum list. This listed a number of cachers with no forum posts, so I thought that this would be all the current charter members. However, it is more likely all the charter members that signed into the forums, whether they posted, or not. Therefore, it is no doubt low. However, further investigation of these accounts found that some are showing as 'member' on GC.com. I assumed that they would revert to 'member' over here, also, but apparently that's not the case. Therefore, pay no attention whatsoever to this post.

 

Move along. There's nothing to see here.

Edited December 5, 2007 by sbell111

[+Vinny & Sue Team]

Phew! At least he didn't ask how many Platinum members there are!

[Keystone]

A charter member who let their paid membership lapse would not show up as being a regular member in the forums unless they followed the forum link from GC.com to update their account information. Remember, the site and the forums reside on different servers.

 

Conversely, an active charter member who never registered in the forums would not show up in the forum membership list.

 

So, the actual number is a secret known only to Signal the Frog. *I* don't even know the answer, and I supply Signal the Frog with his Chemical X.

 

For those who are new and wondering, a Charter Member is a Premium Member who signed up for a paid membership during the first year when they were offered (spring 2002 to spring 2003).

 

For those who are new and wondering, "Chemical X" is what allows Signal the Frog to travel around the world, posing for photos at geocaches everywhere.

 

For those who are new and wondering, don't ask about Platinum Membership. Vinny has already said too much.

[+StarBrand]

I've often wondered who were the first Charter member - those that plinked down their money on that very first day or 2..........

[+Sagefox]

I've often wondered who were the first Charter member - those that plinked down their money on that very first day or 2..........

 

You've got me wondering too. I think we sent our dollars in shortly after we heard about it - not the first day or two - but it would be fun to see where we stand.

[+Breaktrack]

Sitting in a Coffee-House, in Yuma, AZ. Muzing over the ways of the world, one item keeps coming up (who knows why) How Many Charter-Members Are Still Around / Active / Alive?? Perhaps The Keeper of The Books...........May Be We Could Start A "Good-Old Boys Club" or Some Such.....

 

Hmmm, well, I"m still around, still alive, and every once in a long while, still caching...lol.

 

I still maintain all my physical caches, those that are left after the "anti-virtual" wars, and "anti-micro" wars, and the, well, you get the point.

 

I check in every once in a while to the forums, but not nearly as much as I used to. I bring up the "How Did You Serve" thread every once in a while so it stays "current" (it's from april of 2003).

 

Other than that, I just maintain my paid membership and wish Jeremy and Geocaching.com nothing but the best.

 

Mac McKinney aka Breaktrack

[+Gator Man]

I was ALMOST a Charter Member, but I just never got around to sending in that ORIGINAL check. (or any of the others) Do you think if I PRE-dated it, for the appropriate amount, ('ya know, for all those previous years of fun) they'd change my lowly status to CHARTER MEMBER???

 

GM

[+trainlove]

Yes, I get 1662 also but that's only 'Charter Members' who have signed up for the forums.

I know it's probably not possible that there are any who have not done so. So 1662 is probably correct.

 

And of course that does not include the many 'Premium Members' who have had a PayPal glitch ruin their history.

Edited December 6, 2007 by trainlove

[+mtn-man]

Yes, I get 1662 also but that's only 'Charter Members' who have signed up for the forums.

I know it's probably not possible that there are any who have not done so. So 1662 is probably correct.

 

And of course that does not include the many 'Premium Members' who have had a PayPal glitch ruin their history.

Wow. You must not have read Keystone's post at all. Your post could not be more wrong. In addition, it should be known that if the PayPal glitch does mess you up, if you check back with the site quickly they will restore your Charter Member status. Quite a bit of bad information in your post.

 

Regarding Platinum Membership, the puppymonster can talk to you about that.

Just remember the magic words though...

 

[+Fish Below The Ice]

Why does my post say Milkbone?

 

dave

[vagabond]

.

.

.

.

<---and the there are

Edited December 7, 2007 by vagabond

[+Confucius' Cat]

For those who are new and wondering, a Charter Member is a Premium Member who signed up for a paid membership during the first year when they were offered (spring 2002 to spring 2003).

So... If only I had PAID instead of freeloading for so long, I coulda been a charter member? *sob-sob boo-hoo*

 

I thought the game was pretty young back then, but I assumed the "charter member" thing had been closed for a good while. It was indeed a different world in early '03- only about 500 caches to be had within 100 miles as i recall. And I figured I'd get 'em all!

 

Oh well, so much for that. The game has indeed exploded over the last few years.

 

Anyway i am in a very exclusive group now: the palladium tadpoles. Hey all you platinum members: *phffffft!*

[+Glenn]

I used to be a Charter Member. But then I accidentally let my membership laps for few days. I think it would be cool to be able to see not only the date when someone created their account but also the date that they first became a member.

[+trainlove]

Yes, I get 1662 also but that's only 'Charter Members' who have signed up for the forums.

I know it's probably not possible that there are any who have not done so. So 1662 is probably correct.

 

And of course that does not include the many 'Premium Members' who have had a PayPal glitch ruin their history.

Wow. You must not have read Keystone's post at all. Your post could not be more wrong. In addition, it should be known that if the PayPal glitch does mess you up, if you check back with the site quickly they will restore your Charter Member status. Quite a bit of bad information in your post.

 

Regarding Platinum Membership, the puppymonster can talk to you about that.

Just remember the magic words though...

 

 

Who's wrong here?

I see that Glenn is no longer a Charter Member due to exactly the thing I mention and that Keystone mentions as NOT being a problem. I guess it WAS a problem for Glenn and who knows how many others. And I never knew that Charter Members are just so dumb that they never change their passwords and therefore never have to update their account information due to the very thing mentioned in that post. Don't you change your password every 90 days?

[+sbell111]

Yes, I get 1662 also but that's only 'Charter Members' who have signed up for the forums.

I know it's probably not possible that there are any who have not done so. So 1662 is probably correct.

 

And of course that does not include the many 'Premium Members' who have had a PayPal glitch ruin their history.

Wow. You must not have read Keystone's post at all. Your post could not be more wrong. In addition, it should be known that if the PayPal glitch does mess you up, if you check back with the site quickly they will restore your Charter Member status. Quite a bit of bad information in your post.

 

Regarding Platinum Membership, the puppymonster can talk to you about that.

Just remember the magic words though...

 

Who's wrong here?

I see that Glenn is no longer a Charter Member due to exactly the thing I mention and that Keystone mentions as NOT being a problem. I guess it WAS a problem for Glenn and who knows how many others. And I never knew that Charter Members are just so dumb that they never change their passwords and therefore never have to update their account information due to the very thing mentioned in that post. Don't you change your password every 90 days?

He was saying that the 1662 number is wrong. Take a look at my previous post and Keystone's for a complete explanation of why that number cannot be correct.

[+Vinny & Sue Team]

This news just in, from a highly confidential source: my source informs me that at this moment in time, it appears that there are a total of a tad over 7,300 Charter members on the books at this time on the geocaching.com website. This number changes daily for obvious reasons, including attrition/dropouts, folks switching from Premium/Charter member status to general free (no-fee) status, bannings and etc. Of course, it is true that many of these Charter members have never visited the forums, and thus the tally of Charter members showing on the forum software should be quite a bit lower than this figure; it should usually be from five to ten times lower than the total, as, on average, it appears that only from 4% to 12% of the GC membership ever visits the forums.

[+W7WT]

I became a geocacher on August 10, 2001. I don't remember exactly when Jeremy asked for some help to purchase some needed equipment to expand the site. I think it was sometime in early 2001. I felt the need to join to keep the site going and sent in my $30 check. I still pay by check. I am proud to be a Charter Member. I will be 83 in April and still enjoy geocaching. Dick, W7WT

[+sbell111]

I became a geocacher on August 10, 2001. I don't remember exactly when Jeremy asked for some help to purchase some needed equipment to expand the site. I think it was sometime in early 2001. I felt the need to join to keep the site going and sent in my $30 check. I still pay by check. I am proud to be a Charter Member. I will be 83 in April and still enjoy geocaching. Dick, W7WT

I'm pretty sure that the memberships didn't start until mid-2002. Prior to that, there was a PayPal donation link.

[+9Key]

I think I was a charter member at one time but I let my membership lapse because I kept forgetting to update my credit card info on my Paypal account. D'oh!

[+Team Cotati]

Too many.

[+El Diablo]

I think I was a charter member at one time but I let my membership lapse because I kept forgetting to update my credit card info on my Paypal account. D'oh!

 

You and Glenn both mentioned this. The definition of a Charter Member is "an original member of a group". In my opinion you are, and always will be a Charter Member. To me it shouldn't matter that you were late in renewing your membership, for whatever reason. Once it was renewed you should revert back to your original standing. For that matter, even if you stopped paying, you are still a Charter Member. I believe this is an oversight that GC.com should remedy.

 

We were the first to step up and support this site. Today membership will bring lots of perks. Back then there were little no no benefeits of becoming a paying member.

 

With all that being said. I know for a fact that if you are late on renewing, you can send an email to GC.com and they will correct your status. They did it for me several years ago.

 

El Diablo

[+Confucius' Cat]

I think I was a charter member at one time but I let my membership lapse because I kept forgetting to update my credit card info on my Paypal account. D'oh!

 

You and Glenn both mentioned this. The definition of a Charter Member is "an original member of a group". In my opinion you are, and always will be a Charter Member. To me it shouldn't matter that you were late in renewing your membership, for whatever reason. Once it was renewed you should revert back to your original standing. For that matter, even if you stopped paying, you are still a Charter Member. I believe this is an oversight that GC.com should remedy.

 

We were the first to step up and support this site. Today membership will bring lots of perks. Back then there were little no no benefeits of becoming a paying member.

 

With all that being said. I know for a fact that if you are late on renewing, you can send an email to GC.com and they will correct your status. They did it for me several years ago.

 

El Diablo

Your definition is certainly correct in my thinking. A charter member should always be a charter member- if a member at all. I guess it doesn't make sense to call one who quits a charter member... former charter member though, but technically not a member of any kind after quitting... unless this is one of those "mafia" type organisations where the only way out id death.

[+mtn-man]

Actually El D, with all due respect, this has been discussed and a decision was reached by the site administrators. You have a time period of two months to write the site to correct your status, but if you wait for an extended period of time then you have waited too long to correct the problem.

 

Please note that this is off topic with regard to this topic really and truly, but if you want to read more detail and respond to the specifics regarding this issue, then this is your topic (though it is a "done deal"):

 

http://forums.Groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?showtopic=159438

 

Back on topic, I've wanted to thank you sbell111 for setting trainlove straight once again. The words "in addition" must appear as invisible or something.

[+El Diablo]

Actually El D, with all due respect, this has been discussed and a decision was reached by the site administrators. You have a time period of two months to write the site to correct your status, but if you wait for an extended period of time then you have waited too long to correct the problem.

 

Please note that this is off topic with regard to this topic really and truly, but if you want to read more detail and respond to the specifics regarding this issue, then this is your topic (though it is a "done deal"):

 

http://forums.Groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?showtopic=159438

 

Back on topic, I've wanted to thank you sbell111 for setting trainlove straight once again. The words "in addition" must appear as invisible or something.

 

Thanks for the link. I was unaware of the thread. Sorry about being off topic.

 

Back on topic. I'm proud to be a Charter Member.

 

El Diablo

[+sbell111]

Sitting in a Coffee-House, in Yuma, AZ. Muzing over the ways of the world, one item keeps coming up (who knows why) How Many Charter-Members Are Still Around / Active / Alive?? Perhaps The Keeper of The Books...........May Be We Could Start A "Good-Old Boys Club" or Some Such.....

We should just do a head count.

 

'One.'

[+KBI]

For those who are new and wondering, don't ask about Platinum Membership. Vinny has already said too much.

I'm not new. I'm old ... but I'm wondering: Am I the only "Double-Premium" member?

[+Vinny & Sue Team]

For those who are new and wondering, don't ask about Platinum Membership. Vinny has already said too much.

I'm not new. I'm old ... but I'm wondering: Am I the only "Double-Premium" member?

Probably not. Our household supports at least two Premium memberships at all times, one for our Vinny & Sue account and one for Sue's Sue-Cat account, and we sometimes support a third or fourth Premium member account for my friend Greta, who is my co-placer for some caches out in the ID/WY area, and for related purposes. Then there are the 450 Premium member sock puppet accounts which I maintain to send posts agreeing with my posts.....

Edited December 11, 2007 by Vinny & Sue Team

[+KBI]

For those who are new and wondering, don't ask about Platinum Membership. Vinny has already said too much.

I'm not new. I'm old ... but I'm wondering: Am I the only "Double-Premium" member?

Probably not. Our household supports at least two Premium memberships at all times, one for our Vinny & Sue account and one for Sue's Sue-Cat account, and we sometimes support a third or fourth Premium member account for my friend Greta, who is my co-placer for some caches out in the ID/WY area, and for related purposes. Then there are the 450 Premium member sock puppet accounts which I maintain to sent posts agreeing with my posts.....

I agree with Vinny & Sue Team.

[+CaptRussell]

For those who are new and wondering, don't ask about Platinum Membership. Vinny has already said too much.

I'm not new. I'm old ... but I'm wondering: Am I the only "Double-Premium" member?

Probably not. Our household supports at least two Premium memberships at all times, one for our Vinny & Sue account and one for Sue's Sue-Cat account, and we sometimes support a third or fourth Premium member account for my friend Greta, who is my co-placer for some caches out in the ID/WY area, and for related purposes. Then there are the 450 Premium member sock puppet accounts which I maintain to sent posts agreeing with my posts.....

I also agree with Vinny & Sue Team.

[+Vinny & Sue Team]

For those who are new and wondering, don't ask about Platinum Membership. Vinny has already said too much.

I'm not new. I'm old ... but I'm wondering: Am I the only "Double-Premium" member?

Probably not. Our household supports at least two Premium memberships at all times, one for our Vinny & Sue account and one for Sue's Sue-Cat account, and we sometimes support a third or fourth Premium member account for my friend Greta, who is my co-placer for some caches out in the ID/WY area, and for related purposes. Then there are the 450 Premium member sock puppet accounts which I maintain to send posts agreeing with my posts.....

I agree with Vinny & Sue Team.

Grumble... I HATE it when people agree with me... Like, tell me, just WHERE is the angst in that? No angst, no fun, when people agree with me... sigh... grumble...

[+KBI]

For those who are new and wondering, don't ask about Platinum Membership. Vinny has already said too much.

I'm not new. I'm old ... but I'm wondering: Am I the only "Double-Premium" member?

Probably not. Our household supports at least two Premium memberships at all times, one for our Vinny & Sue account and one for Sue's Sue-Cat account, and we sometimes support a third or fourth Premium member account for my friend Greta, who is my co-placer for some caches out in the ID/WY area, and for related purposes. Then there are the 450 Premium member sock puppet accounts which I maintain to send posts agreeing with my posts.....

I agree with Vinny & Sue Team.

Grumble... I HATE it when people agree with me... Like, tell me, just WHERE is the angst in that? No angst, no fun, when people agree with me... sigh... grumble...

Me too. I agree.

[+CaptRussell]

For those who are new and wondering, don't ask about Platinum Membership. Vinny has already said too much.

I'm not new. I'm old ... but I'm wondering: Am I the only "Double-Premium" member?

Probably not. Our household supports at least two Premium memberships at all times, one for our Vinny & Sue account and one for Sue's Sue-Cat account, and we sometimes support a third or fourth Premium member account for my friend Greta, who is my co-placer for some caches out in the ID/WY area, and for related purposes. Then there are the 450 Premium member sock puppet accounts which I maintain to send posts agreeing with my posts.....

I agree with Vinny & Sue Team.

Grumble... I HATE it when people agree with me... Like, tell me, just WHERE is the angst in that? No angst, no fun, when people agree with me... sigh... grumble...

Me too. I agree.

Me too. I agree too also as well.

[+Vinny & Sue Team]

For those who are new and wondering, don't ask about Platinum Membership. Vinny has already said too much.

I'm not new. I'm old ... but I'm wondering: Am I the only "Double-Premium" member?

Probably not. Our household supports at least two Premium memberships at all times, one for our Vinny & Sue account and one for Sue's Sue-Cat account, and we sometimes support a third or fourth Premium member account for my friend Greta, who is my co-placer for some caches out in the ID/WY area, and for related purposes. Then there are the 450 Premium member sock puppet accounts which I maintain to sent posts agreeing with my posts.....

I also agree with Vinny & Sue Team.

That was VERY funny! Good post/twist! I wonder how many folks, except old-timers, got that one!

 

BTW, at least we have distracted people from thinking about Platinum membership. I got in a lot of trouble with the mods for having mentioned that in an earlier post. This place reminds me of a fascist state sometimes, with their dadgum paranoia and secrecy about the higher levels of membership. sigh...

[+hydnsek]

Sitting in a Coffee-House, in Yuma, AZ. Muzing over the ways of the world, one item keeps coming up (who knows why) How Many Charter-Members Are Still Around / Active / Alive?? Perhaps The Keeper of The Books...........May Be We Could Start A "Good-Old Boys Club" or Some Such.....

We should just do a head count.

 

'One.'

Two

[+puppymonster]

There are even some double Charter Memberships too.

 

I have the distinct honor of being the first Platinum Member. "Platinum Puppymonster" sounded so cool that the new level was created. I am consulted before any other members are allowed to this level. They must meet with my approval. And don't think those wimpy small or medium milkbones will cut it either.