garmin chirp -uk

[team tisri]

...... and if so why are caches where an entrance fee must be paid so heavily frowned upon? Why is it unacceptable for a cache to be hidden inside a private garden with a £15 entry fee yet perfectly acceptable for a cache to be hidden with a device that requires a £200 Garmin GPS to find it?

 

Are they frowned upon? They never used to be. There's even an attribute for Access or Parking Fee

 

There are a few in places like Kew Gardens but I thought they were grandfathered in. From all the talk on forums about issues with placing caches in areas where interaction with employees might be required, where making a purchase might be required etc it certainly seems that being required to buy a product in order to log a cache is frowned upon. But now we have caches that can't be found without a specific Garmin GPS and it doesn't seem to be an issue.

 

Parking fees are different on the basis a lot of places could be reached by bike, public transport etc, or indeed you could park somewhere else and walk a bit further.

[+keehotee]

...... and if so why are caches where an entrance fee must be paid so heavily frowned upon? Why is it unacceptable for a cache to be hidden inside a private garden with a £15 entry fee yet perfectly acceptable for a cache to be hidden with a device that requires a £200 Garmin GPS to find it?

 

Are they frowned upon? They never used to be. There's even an attribute for Access or Parking Fee

 

There are a few in places like Kew Gardens but I thought they were grandfathered in. From all the talk on forums about issues with placing caches in areas where interaction with employees might be required, where making a purchase might be required etc it certainly seems that being required to buy a product in order to log a cache is frowned upon.

 

Interaction with employees in order to find a cache is a lot different to paying an entry fee to find a cache.

[team tisri]

...... and if so why are caches where an entrance fee must be paid so heavily frowned upon? Why is it unacceptable for a cache to be hidden inside a private garden with a £15 entry fee yet perfectly acceptable for a cache to be hidden with a device that requires a £200 Garmin GPS to find it?

 

Are they frowned upon? They never used to be. There's even an attribute for Access or Parking Fee

 

There are a few in places like Kew Gardens but I thought they were grandfathered in. From all the talk on forums about issues with placing caches in areas where interaction with employees might be required, where making a purchase might be required etc it certainly seems that being required to buy a product in order to log a cache is frowned upon.

 

Interaction with employees in order to find a cache is a lot different to paying an entry fee to find a cache.

 

Sure, the impression I've been picking up for some time is that any interaction with a business is the problem - whether in the form of interacting with staff or buying a product or whatever.

 

If I've missed the point and placing caches somewhere that does require an entry fee to be paid is acceptable than that specific objection to chirps no longer applies. I still can't help thinking of them as a solution desperately seeking a problem but obviously there's a big difference between my own preferences and a fundamental inconsistency in the rules.

[Deceangi]

...... and if so why are caches where an entrance fee must be paid so heavily frowned upon? Why is it unacceptable for a cache to be hidden inside a private garden with a £15 entry fee yet perfectly acceptable for a cache to be hidden with a device that requires a £200 Garmin GPS to find it?

 

Are they frowned upon? They never used to be. There's even an attribute for Access or Parking Fee

 

There are a few in places like Kew Gardens but I thought they were grandfathered in. From all the talk on forums about issues with placing caches in areas where interaction with employees might be required, where making a purchase might be required etc it certainly seems that being required to buy a product in order to log a cache is frowned upon.

 

Interaction with employees in order to find a cache is a lot different to paying an entry fee to find a cache.

 

Sure, the impression I've been picking up for some time is that any interaction with a business is the problem - whether in the form of interacting with staff or buying a product or whatever.

 

If I've missed the point and placing caches somewhere that does require an entry fee to be paid is acceptable than that specific objection to chirps no longer applies. I still can't help thinking of them as a solution desperately seeking a problem but obviously there's a big difference between my own preferences and a fundamental inconsistency in the rules.

 

To try and clear up some of the confusion. A Fee to enter falls into 2 categories

 

For Profit: So a Wildlife Park like Longleat or a Theme Park like Alton Towers, Legoland or similar will not be allowed. As it's a commercial venture.

 

Not for Profit: Such as National Trust, a Heritage Site owned by a Local Council, County Council or Designating Authority ie: English Heritage, CADW, Historic Scotland. Will be allowed on their own merits.

 

Garmin Chirps are a totally separate issue. And as such have been treated as such by Groundspeak.

 

Interaction with a Employee of a Business is not acceptable, but interaction with a Employee of a Libary is allowed. As the location is not a Business.

 

I hope this clears up some of the confusion.

 

Deci

[team tisri]

To try and clear up some of the confusion. A Fee to enter falls into 2 categories

 

For Profit: So a Wildlife Park like Longleat or a Theme Park like Alton Towers, Legoland or similar will not be allowed. As it's a commercial venture.

 

Not for Profit: Such as National Trust, a Heritage Site owned by a Local Council, County Council or Designating Authority ie: English Heritage, CADW, Historic Scotland. Will be allowed on their own merits.

 

Garmin Chirps are a totally separate issue. And as such have been treated as such by Groundspeak.

 

Interaction with a Employee of a Business is not acceptable, but interaction with a Employee of a Libary is allowed. As the location is not a Business.

 

I hope this clears up some of the confusion.

 

Deci

 

Thanks for clearing that up Deci.

 

It still seems to me that disallowing a cache that requires paying money to a specific profit-making entity such as Alton Towers while allowing a cache that requires paying money to a specific profit-making entity such as Garmin is inconsistent.

[+Jonovich]

Thanks for clearing that up Deci.

 

It still seems to me that disallowing a cache that requires paying money to a specific profit-making entity such as Alton Towers while allowing a cache that requires paying money to a specific profit-making entity such as Garmin is inconsistent.

 

Comparing a service with a product is inconsistant, but it hasn't stopped you!

 

Jon.

[team tisri]

Thanks for clearing that up Deci.

 

It still seems to me that disallowing a cache that requires paying money to a specific profit-making entity such as Alton Towers while allowing a cache that requires paying money to a specific profit-making entity such as Garmin is inconsistent.

 

Comparing a service with a product is inconsistant, but it hasn't stopped you!

 

Jon.

 

Paying money is paying money, whether what you get for the money is something you can touch or an experience.

 

From a caching perspective it seems that being required to pay to access one type of cache is disallowed while being required to pay to access another type of cache is allowed. That's the bit that seems odd, not the nature of any additional benefits the money buys.

[+Team Noodles]

To get this back on track, a thought I just had, picture the following scenario:

 

""""Cacher x likes chirps, he buys an amount, lets say 9, 'ties' (that's how it works afaik) these to his Oregon, sets out a trail in some park in London. (This trail gets some good responses btw).

 

The cache owner then goes to lets say, uhm, Poole, Dorset and drops his Oregon in the sea whilst admiring seagulls (oops!). At the same time the Met has decided that caching in that park is no longer allowed.

 

So, the CO travels back to London to remove his chirps, whilst posting on the forums looking for a date with a diver. The date was a success but the Oregon kicked the bucket and had to be replaced. """"

 

Now, my question is : what happens to those 9 chirps, they are now effectively useless right? Will Garmin 'reset' them for you? Or did you just get the short end of the stick??

 

 

ps, In case anyone wondered : the CO and the diver lived happily ever after

[+Jonovich]

To get this back on track, a thought I just had, picture the following scenario:

 

""""Cacher x likes chirps, he buys an amount, lets say 9, 'ties' (that's how it works afaik) these to his Oregon, sets out a trail in some park in London. (This trail gets some good responses btw).

 

The cache owner then goes to lets say, uhm, Poole, Dorset and drops his Oregon in the sea whilst admiring seagulls (oops!). At the same time the Met has decided that caching in that park is no longer allowed.

 

So, the CO travels back to London to remove his chirps, whilst posting on the forums looking for a date with a diver. The date was a success but the Oregon kicked the bucket and had to be replaced. """"

 

Now, my question is : what happens to those 9 chirps, they are now effectively useless right? Will Garmin 'reset' them for you? Or did you just get the short end of the stick??

 

 

ps, In case anyone wondered : the CO and the diver lived happily ever after

 

Said cacher will hopefully have made a note of his GPSr's internal serial number or will be able to retrieve it from the Garmin website where he registered it and use the code to unlock the Chirps.

 

J

[Deceangi]

To get this back on track, a thought I just had, picture the following scenario:

 

""""Cacher x likes chirps, he buys an amount, lets say 9, 'ties' (that's how it works afaik) these to his Oregon, sets out a trail in some park in London. (This trail gets some good responses btw).

 

The cache owner then goes to lets say, uhm, Poole, Dorset and drops his Oregon in the sea whilst admiring seagulls (oops!). At the same time the Met Parks Senior Management has decided that caching in that park is no longer allowed.

 

So, the CO travels back to London to remove his chirps, whilst posting on the forums looking for a date with a diver. The date was a success but the Oregon kicked the bucket and had to be replaced. """"

 

Now, my question is : what happens to those 9 chirps, they are now effectively useless right? Will Garmin 'reset' them for you? Or did you just get the short end of the stick??

 

 

ps, In case anyone wondered : the CO and the diver lived happily ever after

 

 

To avoid any urban rumours and common misconception . I've corrected your scenario. Contrary to popular belief, it was the Parks Senior Management who Banned Geocaching. At a meeting with a representative of the Geocaching Community with the Senior Management, there was present a Sargent from the Royal Parks Police Department-Metropolitan Police Service.

 

And to clear up another issue, Groundspeak where not aware of the Creation and Release of the Chirp. Until just before release. They took a decision which they believed was in the best interest of the Community, yet even though they have allowed them. Several have castigated them, for requiring the WIFI attribute. It just goes to prove the old saying, " you can't please everyone, all the time". So they've been damned for not blocking them, and damned for allowing them with certain requirements.

 

So now back to the technical discussion posted by the quoted poster

 

Deci

[+smstext]

may i make a suggestion to non garmin users, go to a local meet and meet someone with a garmin device that can pick up the chirp and arrange a time to go and find it together.

 

If not im sure someone somewhere at the meet will just tell you where it is anyway (not that i agree with it).

 

Like Wherigo started off on a pocket pc (which i dont own) and selected garmin devices it has now moved over to android and iphones. give this technology 6 months or so and there be little chirp reading devices being sold to pick up the signal (like wifi spot locator devices), im sure there is a little factory out in china making the devices as we speak.

[+Bear and Ragged]

And to clear up another issue, Groundspeak where not aware of the Creation and Release of the Chirp. Until just before release. They took a decision which they believed was in the best interest of the Community, yet even though they have allowed them. Several have castigated them, for requiring the WIFI attribute. It just goes to prove the old saying, " you can't please everyone, all the time". So they've been damned for not blocking them, and damned for allowing them with certain requirements.

 

Rhetorical question...

 

If Groundspeak have bent over (some way, if not 'backwards') to accept these Chirps from Garmin, when are Garmin going to 'pull their finger out' and accept that Groundspeak and their users (us!) would like the GPS units programming to accept 'Nano' as a size category?

It seems to be the GPS manufacturers side of things that is stopping Groundspeak from introducing 'Nano' as an official size!

 

*Note.

Deci is only quoted as he was the one to post the 'Chirp' comment, not to quote him as an official comment!

[+obcjy]

I have read if you have the last dights of the GPSr serial number that the Chirp is tied to, you will be able to enter that code and manage the Chirp like having the orginal GPSr. I have not tried this as of yet.

[Deceangi]

And to clear up another issue, Groundspeak where not aware of the Creation and Release of the Chirp. Until just before release. They took a decision which they believed was in the best interest of the Community, yet even though they have allowed them. Several have castigated them, for requiring the WIFI attribute. It just goes to prove the old saying, " you can't please everyone, all the time". So they've been damned for not blocking them, and damned for allowing them with certain requirements.

 

Rhetorical question...

 

If Groundspeak have bent over (some way, if not 'backwards') to accept these Chirps from Garmin, when are Garmin going to 'pull their finger out' and accept that Groundspeak and their users (us!) would like the GPS units programming to accept 'Nano' as a size category?

It seems to be the GPS manufacturers side of things that is stopping Groundspeak from introducing 'Nano' as an official size!

 

*Note.

Deci is only quoted as he was the one to post the 'Chirp' comment, not to quote him as an official comment!

 

Nano is planned but currently there is not a time line as of yet Groundspeak User Voice Feedback Topic

 

It makes sense to pop in to User Voice, and see what's happening occasionally (Feedback tab to the left of every cache page)

 

Deci

[+keehotee]

..... when are Garmin going to 'pull their finger out' and accept that Groundspeak and their users (us!) would like the GPS units programming to accept 'Nano' as a size category?

 

Noooo..!!!!!!!

 

To some users, nanos already have an accurate category. They're micros. Don't for one minute assume every cacher wants nanos to have a separate size - any more than any other container.

Why does everything have to be dumbed down to the lowest common denominator just because some people can't (or won't) read guidelines??

[+maxkim]

..... when are Garmin going to 'pull their finger out' and accept that Groundspeak and their users (us!) would like the GPS units programming to accept 'Nano' as a size category?

 

Noooo..!!!!!!!

 

To some users, nanos already have an accurate category. They're micros. Don't for one minute assume every cacher wants nanos to have a separate size - any more than any other container.

Why does everything have to be dumbed down to the lowest common denominator just because some people can't (or won't) read guidelines??

 

But it would make a very easy way to ignore them.

[+Bear and Ragged]

 

Noooo..!!!!!!!

 

To some users, nanos already have an accurate category. They're micros. Don't for one minute assume every cacher wants nanos to have a separate size - any more than any other container.

I know that they are Micros, but how many cache owners list them as 'Other' or 'Not Listed'.

At least if they have their own size there's no excuse for listing it as anything but a Nano... Unless it's a very cunningly disguised Nano!

[+Gushoneybun]

I am happy with the way GC.com has dealt with Chirps, my ancient GPS (a two year old Colorado) can not see them and it seems never will. I am not racing out to buy a new GPS, as I would not be allowed so have excluded the chirp in PQ's so I do not get them onto my GPS.

[+Maple Leaf]

I am happy with the way GC.com has dealt with Chirps, my ancient GPS (a two year old Colorado) can not see them and it seems never will. I am not racing out to buy a new GPS, as I would not be allowed so have excluded the chirp in PQ's so I do not get them onto my GPS.

 

You can now .. according to the wiki site

 

The following Garmin GPS units can be used to receive chirp data only (they cannot program a chirp):

Colorado 300, 400t, 400i, 400c (as of software 3.60)

[+Unobtainium]

I have just made my list (of one) public, so if anyone wants to add to it let me know. I'm aware of at least 4 that are in the planning so I'm sure it'll grow quite quickly....

 

If anyone knows of any more then just PM me through my profile.

PM on it's way

[+Matrix]

I have one chirp cache and a chirp enabled geocoin

 

And I have just bought another 2 chirps

[+Unobtainium]

I have one chirp cache and a chirp enabled geocoin

 

And I have just bought another 2 chirps

do we have our first Chirp Addict?

[+HazelS]

After having a long think about setting a Chirp cache, I will be ordering a Chirp from the USA (you get it a wee bit cheaper - no pun intended!) and having it sent to my friend's home in the USA...

 

Luckily I'm all set to visit at the end of March and will bring it home without the UK shipping fee too!!!

 

Anyone want to jump on the wagon with me, drop me a line through my profile!!