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Log signing etiquette


ibgpin

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I have a question about signing logs, especially those small logs in most small or micro cache's. Today I ran into many instances of full logs ( I found 48 cache's today). What really upset me was people who use a stamp to sign their name and take up 4 lines on the log to do so. Is this acceptable or should they be using a pen or pencil and stick to one line per name?

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Some people have trouble writing due to arthritis, some can't see well because of degraded eyesight, some have terrible penmanship, some are very creative and create wonderful designs for their stamps, some folks are just lazy. But the cool thing about caching is that they can all be part of the game.

 

Let it go and find a spot to sign, even if you have to sign on top of their 4 line stamps. In the end it is the responsibility of the cache owner to keep a fresh log in the cache.

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I have a question about signing logs, especially those small logs in most small or micro cache's. Today I ran into many instances of full logs ( I found 48 cache's today). What really upset me was people who use a stamp to sign their name and take up 4 lines on the log to do so. Is this acceptable or should they be using a pen or pencil and stick to one line per name?

 

Log management is the cache owner's business. If he places a micro, then dealing with those who use stamps, stickers etc. is part of the maintenance obligation of cache ownership. If he doesn't like it then perhaps he should consider placing caches that fit larger logbooks.

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I have a question about signing logs, especially those small logs in most small or micro cache's. Today I ran into many instances of full logs ( I found 48 cache's today). What really upset me was people who use a stamp to sign their name and take up 4 lines on the log to do so. Is this acceptable or should they be using a pen or pencil and stick to one line per name?

 

What's the problem, you couldn't sign the log?

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I have a question about signing logs, especially those small logs in most small or micro cache's. Today I ran into many instances of full logs ( I found 48 cache's today). What really upset me was people who use a stamp to sign their name and take up 4 lines on the log to do so. Is this acceptable or should they be using a pen or pencil and stick to one line per name?

 

I dislike those logsheets where you have to write really tiny to use one line. They are very rarely audited, so just signing in is a little absurd anyway. The logbooks originally were intended as communication to other cachers about what they traded, or what they thought about the hide. Just take a photo if you cant log it.

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I found a couple of these micro caches yesterday - one of which I signed the 2nd to last line.

 

When I logged on here I said the CO may want to replace the log soon - They'd have no idea how far through the log it was without constantly going back to check - and this one was on a fairly busy intersection - so you wouldn't want to be going to it too often.

 

I think the log signing etiquette should be that it doesn't matter how many lines you use cos eventually someone's going to be the last person to use the log - if you're near the end, let the CO know so they can plan a visit to the cache before it runs out!

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Some people have trouble writing due to arthritis, some can't see well because of degraded eyesight, some have terrible penmanship, some are very creative and create wonderful designs for their stamps, some folks are just lazy. But the cool thing about caching is that they can all be part of the game.

 

Let it go and find a spot to sign, even if you have to sign on top of their 4 line stamps. In the end it is the responsibility of the cache owner to keep a fresh log in the cache.

 

I've run across a few nano logs recently that were "signed" with stickers. They don't cause a problem because the stickers don't occupy much much more space than a set of initials. The name on the sticker is legible.

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I have a question about signing logs, especially those small logs in most small or micro cache's. Today I ran into many instances of full logs ( I found 48 cache's today). What really upset me was people who use a stamp to sign their name and take up 4 lines on the log to do so. Is this acceptable or should they be using a pen or pencil and stick to one line per name?

 

Log management is the cache owner's business. If he places a micro, then dealing with those who use stamps, stickers etc. is part of the maintenance obligation of cache ownership. If he doesn't like it then perhaps he should consider placing caches that fit larger logbooks.

 

That may be as written in the "Moderator's Guide to Cache Logs" section of your "unflinching" handbook.

But as the subject involves etiquette, my answer is thus.

Etiquette involves politeness.

I personally assume it is polite to sign/stamp in a way that takes little room, and thus helps the cache owner avoiding frequent maintenance trips.

:rolleyes:

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That may be as written in the "Moderator's Guide to Cache Logs" section of your "unflinching" handbook.

But as the subject involves etiquette, my answer is thus.

Etiquette involves politeness.

I personally assume it is polite to sign/stamp in a way that takes little room, and thus helps the cache owner avoiding frequent maintenance trips.

:rolleyes:

 

I disagree. I think the etiquette lies in informing the cache owner that the logbook is almost full, which gives the CO a few days to get out to replace it.

Edited by Lone R
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The piece of paper has a specific purpose. Everone knows or ought to know the purpose for that piece of paper.

 

The piece of paper has lines on it. Everone knows or ought to know what the purpose of those lines are.

 

Unfortunately, as with far too many aspects of life, some people just do not give a carp and seem to think that the world revolves them.

 

The rules of normal accepted behavior do not apply to these people. Fortunately these types remain in the minority. Unfortunately they seem to be gaining ground. The rest of us are therefore required to deal with the flotsam ans jetsam of their behavior.

 

Ignore them as best you can and carry on with life.

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I have a question about signing logs, especially those small logs in most small or micro cache's. Today I ran into many instances of full logs ( I found 48 cache's today). What really upset me was people who use a stamp to sign their name and take up 4 lines on the log to do so. Is this acceptable or should they be using a pen or pencil and stick to one line per name?

I do it all the time. It's my way of saying "use a bigger log book" (translate: bigger container). Other times, I use my micro stamp.

 

Some folks rush to say that I don't give a carp or that the world revolves around me*, but I shrug it off and continue to have fun.

 

 

*I will be the first to admit that my world revolves around me and my family. If yours doesn't revolve around yours, then that's your issue.

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The piece of paper has a specific purpose. Everone knows or ought to know the purpose for that piece of paper.

 

The piece of paper has lines on it. Everone knows or ought to know what the purpose of those lines are.

 

Unfortunately, as with far too many aspects of life, some people just do not give a carp and seem to think that the world revolves them.

 

The rules of normal accepted behavior do not apply to these people. Fortunately these types remain in the minority. Unfortunately they seem to be gaining ground. The rest of us are therefore required to deal with the flotsam ans jetsam of their behavior.

 

Ignore them as best you can and carry on with life.

 

What about the etiquette of the CO who places a sheet of paper with a table of 200 tiny cells for finders to squeeze in the date and their trailname into with a super-fine point pen? No consideration for finders who like to leave a little note about their experience or use a signature stamp/sticker. To me, the 200 cell logsheet squeezed into a film canister says -- 'I don't want to have to maintain this cache for at least a couple of years'. This year I have been surprised to see this practice in regular size caches. An 8.5x11" sheet of paper with a 200 cell table on the front and back. Recently, I thought the CO of a regular size (dollar store container) cache forgot to put in a logbook but with further investigation, I unfolded the information sheet to find a table with tiny cells on the back of the "What is geocaching" page.

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I didn't mean to start a fight, just wanted to know what is correct. I was a little upset about the 4 line stamp but not to the point my blood pressure rose. Even though the logs were completely filled and some folks had signed along the edge and the top no one created a "needs maintenance" log entry. One or two mentioned it in their regular log entry but I'm not sure the CO sees all of these. I did create a "needs maintenance" log entry and told the CO the log needs replacing. I can see by the responses to my original question there are a lot of opinions. I have mine others have theirs, I will continue to use one line per name no matter what size the log is.........and I will carry extra log sheets with me so I can help the CO out. I don't want to condemn those that put out small cache's with small logs because if it weren't for them we'd have a lot less cache's to look for. Thanks to those who replied, all the varied responses did help me understand better.

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One of the main reasons this hobby of ours is so successful is that the rules are limited and the game is left open for folks to play as they see it. We all express ourselves differently through cache placements, written logs, online logs, fancy stamps and sig items, forum posting styles, etc.

 

Of course this means that when other people don't play it our way, then there is an opportunity for bit of friction. Either we get hot and bothered or we add some mental lubricant and let it slide off. That's just human nature.

 

Caches get abandonded and neglected. Sometimes we underestimate the space a log book is going to need over time. Stuff happens.

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I have a question about signing logs, especially those small logs in most small or micro cache's. Today I ran into many instances of full logs ( I found 48 cache's today). What really upset me was people who use a stamp to sign their name and take up 4 lines on the log to do so. Is this acceptable or should they be using a pen or pencil and stick to one line per name?

I do it all the time. It's my way of saying "use a bigger log book" (translate: bigger container). Other times, I use my micro stamp.

 

Some folks rush to say that I don't give a carp or that the world revolves around me*, but I shrug it off and continue to have fun.

 

 

*I will be the first to admit that my world revolves around me and my family. If yours doesn't revolve around yours, then that's your issue.

 

YOUR world....THE world, two entirely different things. That is my issue. :rolleyes:

Edited by Team Cotati
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I place small and larger containers so it isn't mmuc of an issue because I leave little notebooks for logbook - write as much as you want!!!

 

On caches I find - I take up as much space as my signiture and date (taking into consideration my writing utensil and frozen stiff fingers) need to make it readable.

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... no one created a "needs maintenance" log entry. One or two mentioned it in their regular log entry but I'm not sure the CO sees all of these. I did create a "needs maintenance" log entry and told the CO the log needs replacing. ...

 

An active cache owner would have seen the mention in a regular log. An inactive one won't see your NM log. Your NM log creates a flag that other cachers can use to avoid this cache because it's "problems".

 

So my advice is to use the NM log when the maintence issue makes the cache worth avoiding. A full log in my view doesn't rise to that level. I'd just sign betwene lines, in a margin, or over the top of a faded signature. Then mention in my log, the logs full and move on.

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Either we get hot and bothered or we add some mental lubricant and let it slide off. That's just human nature.
I just had a couple of cold 12oz mental lubricants last night! :rolleyes:

 

Anyhow, good advice MM. :ph34r:

 

Great advice.

My lubrication comes in a green 75 cl bottle from Chile.

Aaaaahhhh!

:o

Merry Christmas fellow cachers.

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Xmas Day and I'm on geocaching.com.

 

I still don't see the problem in people using up 4 lines instead of one. Lines are nothing but a guideline to make sure you don't write on an angle, and that you economically use the space given. Doesn't mean you have to stick to one. I like the stamps - I will look through logs to see what people have said before me (if the privacy of the location permits it) and I remember the stamps and stickers more than I remember the names.

 

Someone will ALWAYS be the last person to sign, and there will have ALWAYS been a way for more 'signatures' to have been added if someone else had just squeezed up theirs. Let the CO know its nearing full, and enjoy it! If its full already, maybe carry some small bits of paper in your 'caching kit' to add to it. I'm sure the CO won't mind if you give the log a big more life til they have to visit.

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I've run across a few nano logs recently that were "signed" with stickers. They don't cause a problem because the stickers don't occupy much much more space than a set of initials. The name on the sticker is legible.
I'd think that, no matter how tiny they were, it wouldn't take very many before the rolled up log would be too big to fit back into the container. Each one is approximately doubling the thickness of the paper at that spot.
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The nice thing about those stamps and stickers is that they make the cachers who use them happy when they find a cache.

The nice thing about those stamps and stickers is that they usually have enough blank space around their text and images that I can post my name or initials with my handy gel pen.

It's a win-win. We all get to find the cache and log it.

 

My pet peeve is cachers who roll the whole thing back up to it's original position instead of leaving the next open space handy. Perhaps I should start my own thread to discuss this though? :)

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What really upset me was people who use a stamp to sign their name and take up 4 lines on the log to do so. Is this acceptable or should they be using a pen or pencil and stick to one line per name?

Acceptable? I don't think it's fair to "waste" so much space. I usually use a stamp as well, it just looks neater. Said stamp was a present by a close friend. But this stamp fits into a single line of the standard micro logbook, so, no space is wasted.

 

GermanSailor

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I tried computer preprinted stickers early on. Not huge ones but ones less then 1/2" tall. The reason for it was to be able to "sign" the log quickly and move on. What I found was that as soon as the log gets wet the ink smears. I switched back to using my pen/pencil and using one or two lines. If there's room I like to put where I'm from on the second line.

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I'm no artist, so anything worthwhile that I might put to paper on-site will be words that could just as well be put into the online log where not only new finders but prospective finders can see it as well. As a consequence, my hardcopy logs are pretty thin - no more than a couple of sentences when a larger format allows.

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I have found quite a few micros that I didn't even bother signing. Like those little TINY nanos with the magnets in the bottom. I rarely eveny try to sign those, unless I can tell from the online logs that there will be plenty of room. All the unrolling/rolling of that little strip of paper tends to make it very fragile, and after a few dozen finds, there is rarely any room left to sign them. I haven't heard of anyone who owns these kinds of caches (or, for that matter, any micro) going out and checking the logs to verify finds, anyway, so to me, if they can't be bothered with maintaining their cache, why should I bother signing the log? If I were going for a record or something, I would be more concerned about it, but usually, I'm not.

 

I agree wholeheartedly with the post that said that if the CO doesn't like the way people sign their logs with stamps or stickers or whatever, then they should hide larger caches with larger logbooks. I have a very few micros out there myself, but when the logs are full, I will either replace the logs (if it's one I really enjoy owning) or archive the cache. I remember when I started caching in 2001, there was ONE micro cache that I knew of, and it was pretty much the unanimous opinion of all the cachers I knew that it was a piece of crap, and an embarrassment to caching in general. Now there are tens of thousands of these around the world, most of them not much better - or worse - than that one was. I'd really like to see a limit placed on the number of micro caches a cacher can hide. I think it wouild improve the perception of the sport in general, and dramatically improve the creativity of the micros that remain.

 

Sorry...don't mean to hijack the thread into micro-bashing...'nuff said.

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I have a question about signing logs, especially those small logs in most small or micro cache's. Today I ran into many instances of full logs ( I found 48 cache's today). What really upset me was people who use a stamp to sign their name and take up 4 lines on the log to do so. Is this acceptable or should they be using a pen or pencil and stick to one line per name?
Some people are just inconsiderate jerks and think they since they don't like Micro caches they should feel free to waste log space on someone else's cache just to make their point. These people hunt micros, even though they don't like them and can easily avoid them, and then feel that it's okay to vandalize someone else's property.

 

If someone else wasted half of these people's regular sized log book to make some other point, they'd be VERY upset and would think the person that did it was a jerk too.

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I just carry a few new log sheets with me......replace the logsheet and make note to the cache owner.

I leave the old one behind for the owner.

Replaced 7 out of 24 logsheets today that were soaked or full of water, but then we had 8 1/2 inches of rain in 2 days

Edited by TrickRick
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Some folks rush to say that I don't give a carp or that the world revolves around me*, but I shrug it off and continue to have fun.

 

 

*I will be the first to admit that my world revolves around me and my family. If yours doesn't revolve around yours, then that's your issue.

 

An insight into your attitude that seems to be spilling over into your approver duties as well.

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