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Could the numbers be a little bigger, please?


Dave_W6DPS

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I am turning 50 this month, and the major physical change I have noticed is that my eyesight just isn't what it used to be.

 

I have also noticed a trend in the tracking numbers for geocoins getting smaller. Particularly on coins with low-contrast color schemes, they can be very tough to read. Some of the coins I have found recently have been difficult to read, even in good light and with my glasses.

 

Well, the tracking numbers are hard to read. Everything else on the coins are usually fine.

 

So, when designing geocaoins, please remember two things:

 

1. Please remember that many cachers are over the hill and have trouble reading the fine print.

 

2. The cachers who don't fit in item 1 will bve joining us sooner than they think....

 

Thanks for reading!

 

Dave_W6DPS

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Note to self: Add magnifying glass to that long list of caching gear.

While I don't carry a magnifying glass in my TOTT bag I do have one on my desk... a BIG one. In the field I rely on younger eyes.

Edited by Droo
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Something else to remember: A coin number that can't be read, can't be tracked.

 

Sage words!!

 

I released a Java Junkie coin earlier this year and just couldn't see the number on it ANYWHERE. My 11 year old spotted it but it was still too small for me to read. I put the tracking number - that my daughter helpfully read to me - on a sticker and attached it to the travel tag to help with the tracking. I remember being very frustrated at the time because I have pretty good vision.

 

Or so I thought... B)

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Ditto! Ditto!

B):DB):DB)

Some of the older editions were close on impossible. I once set a geocoin off on a journey after activating it with the wrong number - an E and F mixed...... (blanket activation code allowed this)

 

Recently the codes have been much more read-able. Then came one with the lightly engraved code on the rim (? edge) that was impossible. :D

 

I have found that at night I have to put some coins aside until my eyes are fresh and even then can only read them under a very strong light.

At one stage I was tempted to give away or trade all my "wee codes" coins just because I felt so old (at 49) that my spectacles enhanced eyes B) could not read them.

 

Turn this around - THANKS and a bouquet to all those who have in the past ensured good read-able codes.

 

Engraved large figures/ digits enhanced with a contrast colour - preferably a DARK colour will aid us all.

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I'll second that. Bigger numbers or at least distinct numbers that are clearly defined. B)

 

7794c2fd-0bde-4507-87e9-bc0a22aa42f9.jpg

Jeweler's Loupe

However, one of the most helpful things I always carry with me when caching is a jeweler's loupe. It's very compact (about 1 inch cubed when folded), so it fits anywhere and a jeweler's loupe only costs about $4.00. B)

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I'll second that. Bigger numbers or at least distinct numbers that are clearly defined. B)

 

7794c2fd-0bde-4507-87e9-bc0a22aa42f9.jpg

Jeweler's Loupe

However, one of the most helpful things I always carry with me when caching is a jeweler's loupe. It's very compact (about 1 inch cubed when folded), so it fits anywhere and a jeweler's loupe only costs about $4.00. B)

 

Where are such sold?

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AMEN!

 

Larger numbers please - with contrasting color fill if possible. My eyes have just started to turn this year. I'm OK if I'm wearing glasses, but many coins are near hopeless when I'm in contacts (usually). The Java Junkie was the hardest to read that I've seen in a while.

 

While many like to collect coins, some folks like to release them. Micro numbers don't help them to move.

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I'll second that. Bigger numbers or at least distinct numbers that are clearly defined. :)

 

7794c2fd-0bde-4507-87e9-bc0a22aa42f9.jpg

Jeweler's Loupe

However, one of the most helpful things I always carry with me when caching is a jeweler's loupe. It's very compact (about 1 inch cubed when folded), so it fits anywhere and a jeweler's loupe only costs about $4.00. :o

Hmmm...I have a few of those lying around somewhere, from my geologist days. If a search for "jeweler's loupe" does not yield the results that you seek, try a search for "hand lense". The prices range all over the gambit, but you should be able to pick up one for just a few bucks...and if you live near a university, you might be able to find one if the school's bookstore.

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While I don't carry a magnifying glass in my TOTT bag In the field I rely on younger eyes.

I have two sets of those they come in really handy for that small number reading, extra hidden caches, and decoding the hints.

 

Was that a hiccup? how did two get here??

Edited by seaeye
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The Java Junkie was the hardest to read that I've seen in a while.

 

 

My worst one was a dragonfly design - so tiny.

 

I am grateful that the micro "don't forget your pen" coin is legible.

 

Black on silver or white on black is great - forget gold, it's too hard to read in most cases.

The bushwacking Pirates Swords are for me I have one I still can't read.... I have yet to sick the young eyes on it as of yet though :o

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I remember posting a request for larger numbers more than a year ago. Now that I am closer to 60 than to 50 :):o:), the need is getting more pronounced, but the number of coins with teeny numbers just gets bigger. For those producers who say that it can't be done, that larger numbers take up too much space, I refer you to Crake's geocoins. This guy puts out some of the most intricate designs anywhere, yet his ID numbers are almost always very large. It can be done, if you put a little thought into it.

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on a day I realised myself that my eyes where a littlebit bad,

therefore I the decision that I had to go to a eye doctor.

there I an optical device and i see the world sharply what,

but I had a relief nevertheless still a small problem..... :o

i can`t see the little tracking number on some coins :)

I`m glad that I am not the only one.

 

thanks for making this problem speakable............

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The bushwacking Pirates Swords are for me I have one I still can't read.... I have yet to sick the young eyes on it as of yet though :)

Contrary to what some people think, my eyes must not be that old, because there is only one coin that I cannot read the numbers on (although I admit that some are harder to read than others)...it is the Bushwhacking Sword. I don't feel too bad though...the 12 year old cannot read it either. :o

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I'll second that. Bigger numbers or at least distinct numbers that are clearly defined. :)

 

7794c2fd-0bde-4507-87e9-bc0a22aa42f9.jpg

Jeweler's Loupe

However, one of the most helpful things I always carry with me when caching is a jeweler's loupe. It's very compact (about 1 inch cubed when folded), so it fits anywhere and a jeweler's loupe only costs about $4.00. :o

 

Where are such sold?

Here's a direct link to a Jeweler's Loupe for $3.99. :D

I carry my jeweler's loupe with me geocaching and at home, I use a large magnifying glass. :)

PS - Dave, I was also born in '58. My 50th is in October. :D

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We understand how hard the smaller numbers are. Neither of us are in the 50+ range ,,,yet,, but with both having Diabetes our eyesight has regressed. One thing we have done with the coins we make is put white numbers on black coins, and black numbers on the nickel gold and copper ones. The first thing we mentioned about the numbers also was make sure we can read them. Glad others are seeing this and hopefully will help in the trend to super size in the future.

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new coin design then - one side the text "It's not about the numbers" with maybe jumbled and scattered letters and numbers all over and ?

 

on the other - "Or is it ?" and just the tracking number as big as possible with a magnifying glass over it as if that has been used to read them.

 

Would it work ??

 

Sue

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new coin design then - one side the text "It's not about the numbers" with maybe jumbled and scattered letters and numbers all over and ?

 

on the other - "Or is it ?" and just the tracking number as big as possible with a magnifying glass over it as if that has been used to read them.

 

Would it work ??

 

Sue

 

LOVE it. Go for it.

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We strive to make numbers legible but I'm interested to know what folks think of the new trend to engrave the tracking number on the edge of the coin instead of the front or back? We have our first 'tracking number on edge' coin coming up...

 

Sometimes I really have to hunt to find that tracking # on the edge..... if it is simply engraved or stamped on, it can still be hard to read.

A coin's tracking # is most obvious when it is next to the "Trackable on GC" text.

Thanks for following this forum. It's good to know someone is listening to our aging concerns.

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We strive to make numbers legible but I'm interested to know what folks think of the new trend to engrave the tracking number on the edge of the coin instead of the front or back? We have our first 'tracking number on edge' coin coming up...

 

Sometimes I really have to hunt to find that tracking # on the edge..... if it is simply engraved or stamped on, it can still be hard to read.

A coin's tracking # is most obvious when it is next to the "Trackable on GC" text.

Thanks for following this forum. It's good to know someone is listening to our aging concerns.

You're welcome :laughing:

We almost always put the trackable at gc.com wording on the edge of a round so that we can use the entire front and back for the custom art. If the coin is shaped then we need to put the trackable wording on the front or back. We can colour fill the laser engraved tracking number when they are engraved on the front or back, but I don't believe it's possible to colour fill them when they're engraved on the edge. A trick we do is to reduce the coin art to 'life size', print it off and see if the tracking number is going to be legible. We're picky about their size, so your feedback and discussions are very useful to us, thanks!

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Sounds like those bumper stickers with tiny text along the lines of "If you can read this, you're too @#$% close!" :lol:

 

For many coins, having a loupe from a college geology class has been an absolute life saver (or squinty eyed vision saver, more like it :lol: )

 

Some of the hardest ones I've had to read were on some T-shirt shaped coins (either GW5 or some later event, forget which one) where the engraving was microscopic, and apparently done by hand and not by machine. Thankfully those aren't the norm! :D

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Both of us old frogs have a hard time reading the tracking numbers on most coins. We keep a magnifying glass in our caching bag and one in the house to help with that. When we are getting a coin ready to travel, its number is put on its goal tag in a size that is really easy to read to make it simple for others to log it. I don't know that I would like the numbers to take up more space on the coins (taking away space for the art) but higher contrast or an easier to distinguish font would be great.

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following on from the idea from tsunrisebey and combining it with my earlier

 

one side "Now you see me" with a magifying glass over the numbers making them legible

the other "Now you don't" with really small numbers - maybe the same as those on side 1

 

Sue

 

Sue, we started talking about that as soon as we started talking about number size,lol, too funny, it just never quite got done.

 

May have to do that, can we use your idea????

 

As far as the numbers on the side. I only have a few I have seen like that and I even find them hard to read most times.

 

Sometimes maybe bigger is better. :)

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following on from the idea from tsunrisebey and combining it with my earlier

 

one side "Now you see me" with a magifying glass over the numbers making them legible

the other "Now you don't" with really small numbers - maybe the same as those on side 1

 

Sue

 

Sue, we started talking about that as soon as we started talking about number size,lol, too funny, it just never quite got done.

 

May have to do that, can we use your idea????

 

As far as the numbers on the side. I only have a few I have seen like that and I even find them hard to read most times.

 

Sometimes maybe bigger is better. ;)

Heard back from Sue!!! It is a go look for thread coming with art posted. Will get pics up when we get them.

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