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TREA$URE AND CA$HES... planting seeds?


infiniteMPG

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The new intro and video on the GC website is good but it also plants some seeds that maybe should not be planted. The text on the page states "Geocaching is a high-tech treasure hunting game played throughout the world by adventure seekers equipped with GPS devices." Then in the video it waffles back and forth between calling the hides "geocaches" and then calling them "caches". For the person COMPLETELY VOID of exposure to geocaching when you mention "TREASURE hunting" and "cache" (which sounds EXACTLY like "CA$H") it starts sounding to the newbie that there's treasure in them there hills.

 

Especially when the video makes statements like 'THEN HEAD OUTSIDE TO FIND THE CACHE (CA$H)...". There's a chance that a complete newbie wouldn't even know that "cache" is short for "geocache". Recently found people explaining geocaching asking someone "Do you know what a geocachÉ is?" making it sound very French-like... "geocach-AYE".

 

To an owner who has recently had to deal with dozens of raided caches having to report boat loads of missing TB's and geocoins, I CRINGE when I see implication given out that there's treasure/cash out there to be found. IMHO the word "treasure" should be avoided at all costs when describing geocaching and until someone is a little more exposed to the game, referring to a hide as a "CA$H" shouldn't be mentioned either. Nothing wrong with using the word "geocache" throughout the video.

 

We have explained the game to regular folks on the trails and had the response "There's money in 'em?" so I believe beyond a shadow of a doubt that people easily jump to that conclusion.

 

It's a good video, don't take me wrong, but I just think that even subliminally planting the seed that there is money/cash/treasure involved should be avoided and I see nothing lost in avoiding those terms.

 

Just MHO :lol:

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Welcome to America! Capitalism at work!! I agree with you. I think (just my opinion) its about attracting more people to the site, not to the game.

 

 

edit to add- Recently talking to a neighbor about a cache that is almost in my back yard, his first question was "what do you find in them, money?"

If you are five years old, you might find a Mctoy "treasure" but I think it adds to the loss of TB's and Coins when it is presented like this.

Edited by NeecesandNephews
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Welcome to America! Capitalism at work!! I agree with you. I think (just my opinion) its about attracting more people to the site, not to the game.
I think they could do that better with just two words.... FREE BEER :lol:

 

The wiki describes geocaching as an activity where "participants use a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver or other navigational techniques to hide and seek containers (called "geocaches") anywhere in the world." (edited slightly) which to me sounds clean and good and doesn't use the term "treasure hunting". If you changed that text and then in the video just say "geocache" every time rather then waffling back and forth between "geocache" and "cache" you wouldn't loose a spec of information while keeping the "money" inferences out of the intro. Nothing lost, a LOT gained.

 

When someone gets a little deeper in the game, then let them discover that a "geocache" can be shortened to "cache".

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"When you find a cache..."

"If you take something from the cache..."

 

It's obvious from the context that they're not talking about money. If you replace "cache" with "cash" in the above lines from the video, it becomes nonsense. Nobody refers to money as "a cash", nor would anyone ever say "take something from the cash".

 

You're making a mountain out of a molehill. This is a non-issue.

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You're making a mountain out of a molehill. This is a non-issue.
I have had many people ask me if there's money in the containers when I explain geocaching to them. When I tell them "no" their immediate response is "I thought you said CASH". I doubt I'm the only one.

 

I don't see the harm in doing whatever can be done to reduce the chance of people heading out with misconceptions or misunderstandings. Don't think it's that big an effort to edit some text on the main page and change some words in the video presentation and it wouldn't take one spec of info or PR away from it at all. But if it prevented one person from heading out looking for "treasure" and innocently raiding a cache it would be worth it a thousand times over. Especially to the person who's sentimental item is in the hide, or the owner of the cache who would have to notify them if it disappeared.

Edited by infiniteMPG
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1) It is a treasure hunting game. You can't fault that.

2) If it only said "cache" maybe I could see your point. It doesn't though. It uses it in the contect of "geocaching".

3) Think about rewording how you explain caching to people. I have never had that reaction when explaining caching to people and I've talked to quite a few people about it.

 

It sounds to me like you are reading into things too much. None of what you mentioned seems out of the ordinary. None of it seems to give off the wrong idea in my mind. (In fact I've never even thought that.) While many think of cache as being short for geocache, in reality it is still a "cache". Don't assume that everyone thinks that the word cash/cache only means cash money.

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You're making a mountain out of a molehill. This is a non-issue.
I have had many people ask me if there's money in the containers when I explain geocaching to them. When I tell them "no" their immediate response is "I thought you said CASH". I doubt I'm the only one.

 

 

I get this all the time. "You ever find one with any real money in it?"

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I completely agree with the OP here. I know the majority of cachers are not in Minnesota, as I am (Duh... :smile: ), so they aren't necessarily familiar with the INCREDIBLY popular State Parks Wildlife Safari Geocache event, where the state parks here have hidden a geocache in each park and then advertised it to the masses. In fact, this is how I discovered geocaching. However, they did not make it very clear what the sport involved other than that it was to find a 'container' in the park, full of 'stuff.' My first geocache we went to, the three year old in our group grabbed a TravelBug. Having no idea what this was, we went on our merry way. It was only later when I found it lying around and checked the site (thus, my entrance into geocaching!!) that I realized what it was and went online to log it and move it on.

 

I no longer hide travel bugs in State Park caches, because a VAST, HUGE, SICKENING number of them get eaten alive by unwitting geocache tourists who never have any intention of going online and just want to see what's in the nice box in the woods and maybe find a prize (each one has a collectible card). I think a more solid intro to what the game is about and some of the more important facets are about would be excellent. Among these more important points would be the mention of trackable items, which, by the way, are technically property of their respective owners!

 

And by the way, without fail, every single person that didn't know about geocaches that I talked to and called them caches to thought I was referring to money. And about 99 percent of those people said to me, "Hey, so do you ever find money?" Everyone's eyes light up at the prospect of free money.

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Yup. I get the "OH BOY! MONEY!" reaction too. Their ear obviously can't tell the difference between cash and cache, and I'll be hanged with a dirty rope before I use "Cache-ay" So, maybe take them to WalMart and let them figure out that no one, repeat, no one is going to leave a Krugerrand under a lamp post cover.

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