Trying to set a a PQ, going batty

[+OhLookABunny!]

My wife and I decided to fork out for a paid account so we could try out Pocket Queries and Route queries, and the Pocket queries are driving me around the bend!

 

I'm trying to create a simple query:

 

Generate Monday (Today)

Uncheck when done

Show 500 Caches

Of Any Type

In Any Container

That I Haven't Found, I Don't Own, and Are Active

Terrain <= 1.5

Difficulty <= 2.0

In British Columbia

Within 10km of my home co-ordinates

 

And I'm getting crazy random results. Sometimes I get 0 results, others I get >100. Worse yet, if I attempt to change any of these fields, there's no change in the number of results returned.

 

I've tried attempting to delete these queries (got error 707 for several minutes attempting to do so), and eventually got it to work, but they're merely crossed out. I'm worried about using up a 5 query limit for the day, but this thing has me seriously confused. And I actually create and maintain databases for a living!

 

Two questions:

1) Can someone set me on the right path? Either PQ is broken at the moment, or I'm doing something obvious and stupid.

2) Is it possible to truly delete all query history and start over? Or perhaps undelete queries so I can use them again for something else? I'd rather not have a mangle of broken queries and a few good ones I actually want to use....

 

Thanks in advance!

[+WascoZooKeeper]

First of all, when you delete a query, it will appear crossed out, but then it will disappear from your list after 24 hours or so. That gives you a chance to grab a copy of it if you deleted it by mistake. I don't think you can "undelete" it, but you can use the "copy" selection to copy it over as "Copy of <query name>".

 

When you get zero caches in your result, a very likely cause is that you specified mutually exclusive parameters. For example, some people will check off both "I haven't found" and "I have found", thinking that this will give them all the caches they haven't found PLUS all the caches they have found. But that's not how that section works. You have to consider each of the checked conditions as applying simultaneously to EACH of the caches that might be a candidate for your results. It's impossible for any given cache to be BOTH "found" and "not found", so if you check both of those boxes you will always get zero results.

 

Without knowing your home coordinates, I couldn't tell you how many you should be receiving. But when I ran a PQ with the conditions you specified, but using postal code V0S 1N0 as the center point, I received 32 caches in the result.

Edited August 3, 2009 by WascoZooKeeper

[OpinioNate]

One important consideration in preserving your five queries for the day is to leave the day *un*checked until you are satisfied with the results. Once you have previewed the contents of the PQ and like what you see then you can check the day (usually today) and you will have safely used only one of your allotted PQs.

[+OhLookABunny!]

Thanks for the quick replies.

 

I *think* my problem has to do with selecting my province, and then using the mouse wheel to scroll down and then it selects some other region. I'm not entirely sure it's changing the location on me, but when I remove the state/province/region it seems to work again. Maybe.

 

I think it might also not be possible to change queries that have generated gpx files. Or something.

 

At any rate I'm getting a lot closer.. I'll be sure NOT to actually select a date until the PQ is formed as I like it

 

Thanks!

 

EDIT: I guess this means that if I accidentally created a query that was to report all 7 days of the week, and then deleted it, it will? won't? count towards my totals for the rest of the week? Or will it be deleted in advance?

 

I wish queries that generated no results didn't count towards the query total... at least for your first day

Edited August 4, 2009 by OhLookABunny!

[+fegan]

I think it might also not be possible to change queries that have generated gpx files. Or something.

 

You CAN change a query after it has generated a GPX/PQ/e-mail. I do that all the time to re-use an existing PQ.

[+fegan]

Start simple and build from there. Don't check a day to run until you're satisfied with the results.

[+Lil Devil]

EDIT: I guess this means that if I accidentally created a query that was to report all 7 days of the week, and then deleted it, it will? won't? count towards my totals for the rest of the week? Or will it be deleted in advance?

No. Deleted queries won't run, and won't count towards your total.

[+OhLookABunny!]

Start simple and build from there. Don't check a day to run until you're satisfied with the results.

 

That simple advice would have saved me an hour of anguish. How the days work, and that you can actually perform a PQ without generating a GPX isn't exactly documented well.

 

At least I can generate some interesting Pocket Queries tonight and get on the business of generating their corresponding GPX files tomorrow! Thanks everyone.

Edited August 4, 2009 by OhLookABunny!

[+tozainamboku]

I think you are also seeing a known bug. If you select a state or province and also select withing x km. of your home coordinates the PQ generator doesn't work right. Instead of select My Home Coordinates select By Coordinates and enter your coordinates explicitly.

[+Markwell]

Yep - the home coordinates in a geographical area (From My Home Coordinates, in British Columbia) produces a glitch of zero results.

 

Instead key it from a cache near your home or type in the actual coordinates of your home.

 

Nate - you listening?

[+WascoZooKeeper]

OTOH, would 10km from your home even reach outside BC at all? If not, don't even bother to specify BC as a requirement.

[+Puppy Dawg]

No. Deleted queries won't run, and won't count towards your total.

No, they will. Learned that the hard way. They count as a PQ that will run tommorrow.

[+teamhillside]

Start simple and build from there. Don't check a day to run until you're satisfied with the results.

 

That simple advice would have saved me an hour of anguish. How the days work, and that you can actually perform a PQ without generating a GPX isn't exactly documented well.

 

At least I can generate some interesting Pocket Queries tonight and get on the business of generating their corresponding GPX files tomorrow! Thanks everyone.

 

Agreed - it took me almost a month to realise that, whilst there was no "preview query results" button on the PQ design page, it was available on the PQ listing. I'm sure it has been suggested before (am I one of the 200 ?), but at the foot of the PQ design page it would be useful to have a "submit" and "preview results" button. Submit would save and return you to the www.geocaching.com/pocket whereas "preview results" would take you to a preview of the results (!). On the preview page there then should be a link to "return to edit this PQ". That would follow more "normal" paradigms (e.g. wikipedia, web-forums such as this one ("add reply" or "preview post") etc etc).

 

Just my two-penneth!

 

Matt

[+mtn-man]

Yep - the home coordinates in a geographical area (From My Home Coordinates, in British Columbia) produces a glitch of zero results.

 

Instead key it from a cache near your home or type in the actual coordinates of your home.

 

Nate - you listening?

I modified the topic's sub-title.

[+OhLookABunny!]

I think you are also seeing a known bug. If you select a state or province and also select withing x km. of your home coordinates the PQ generator doesn't work right. Instead of select My Home Coordinates select By Coordinates and enter your coordinates explicitly.

 

Aha! Good to know. I suspected something might be up.

 

I see where the bugs are reported fixed... Is there a location where bugs are catalogued?

 

OTOH, would 10km from your home even reach outside BC at all? If not, don't even bother to specify BC as a requirement.

 

Washington state is a shade over 10km, actually. On a 20km+ search I'd want to restrict my search.