Why Does One Get a Souvenir?

[+NCad]

How does one figure out the specific basis for receiving a souvenir? E.g. Does just finding a cache in South Carolina earn one a South Carolina Souvenir?

 

And is there any master list of caches or events or geographical areas for which one would earn a specific Souvenir?

 

Can we do anything with Souvenirs besides look at them on that one page?

 

Is this explained anywhere?

[+Mr. Wilson & a Mt. Goat]

I think it's just finding a certain cache in an area, or logging a special event.

Here's a link to the one's released so-far: List of Released Souvenirs if you haven't seen it already.

[+NCad]

We've made those same guesses but we're still looking for an explanation from Groundspeak that allows predicting when Sounenirs will be collected.

[4wheelin_fool]

It's a form of icon worship. I've been awarded a few, despite not caching under this name in several months. I started caching under another handle to avoid a certain nutty person. It is rather odd to be awarded them retroactively.

Edited December 8, 2010 by 4wheelin_fool

[+EscapeFromFlatland]

Because Groundspeak needed something to entice smart-phone users to pay the $1 or $2 to download their caching app.

[+NYPaddleCacher]

We've made those same guesses but we're still looking for an explanation from Groundspeak that allows predicting when Sounenirs will be collected.

 

They could probably make some ballpark guesses, but since each souvenir requires graphic design work to create the artwork it's probably not going to be entirely accurate. Since the US State souvenirs are being released about two a week in the order that the state entered the union it should be pretty easy to determine when California (the 31st state) will get one.

 

Predicting when major event based souvenirs would be released is dependent upon the event and I haven't seen anything about when specific country or Canadian province souvenirs will be released.

 

I do think some sort of discovery mechanism for what is *currently* available other than a pinned thread in the forums would be helpful. To me, one of the aspects of "collecting" things is knowing what is available to be collected. If, for example, "wow" factor souvenirs such as significant historical locations (the Wright Brothers Memorial in NC, for example), some sort of facility to browse for souvenirs might prompt someone to take a road trip to some place to log a cache and obtain the souvenir.

[+microvision]

The information on the Souvenir pages is not always accurate either. Two of the souvenirs that I have, RI State and NH State, both claim to have been the first state out of the original 13 colonies to declare independence from England. Not sure which is correct, or if either of them is right, but they both can not be correct.

[+Ike 13]

Both RI and NH claim to be the first to declare Independence and from a few minutes of research I don't see anything definitive.

 

"Rhode Island was the first of the thirteen original colonies to declare independence from British rule and the last to ratify the United States Constitution." I saw that on at least two sites

 

"(1774) New Hampshire first state to declare independence from England" and this on at least 2 sites

 

So the souvi's are both correct because History isn't perfect and no one really knows.

[+lamoracke]

I also think they are trying to compete with GSAK...they do not want you to use GSAK in your cache listings anymore, so if they have the state souvenirs, thats perhaps one thing GSAK does not have.

[Mr.Yuck]

It's a form of icon worship. I've been awarded a few, despite not caching under this name in several months. I started caching under another handle to avoid a certain nutty person

 

There you are!! It puts the lotion on it's skin, or it gets the hose again.

 

Nope, I'm on topic. I got Rhode Island yesterday, and it's nice. And I did actually notice the "first to declare independence" controversy.

[+geodarts]

Because Groundspeak needed something to entice smart-phone users to pay the $1 or $2 to download their caching app.

 

Or the $9.99. I suspect that souvenirs grew out of the popularity of badges, pins, and stamps on certain other location-based games. Earlier this year Jeremy made a comment about learning from the network and adding features that are more social and more virtual, so perhaps souvenirs was one of the things that emerged from this.

 

In any event, I keep forgetting to look at them. I wonder if there would be more interest if they were tradeable?

 

Personally, I would rather have more focused souvenirs - a state is fine I suppose but I am more interested in what is within a state. At home, I do not have a Utah souvenir but I do have a Bryce Canyon t-shirt. So souvenirs for destinations like the Grand Canyon, Yosemite, or typical tourist spots might be more souvenirish.

 

At least McDonalds has not paid Groundspeak to have a souvenir based on finding a LPC in a parking lot.

Edited December 8, 2010 by mulvaney

[+Ike 13]

Because Groundspeak needed something to entice smart-phone users to pay the $1 or $2 to download their caching app.

 

Or the $9.99. I suspect that souvenirs grew out of the popularity of badges, pins, and stamps on certain other location-based games. Earlier this year Jeremy made a comment about learning from the network and adding features that are more social and more virtual, so perhaps souvenirs was one of the things that emerged from this.

 

In any event, I keep forgetting to look at them. I wonder if there would be more interest if they were tradeable?

 

Personally, I would rather have more focused souvenirs - a state is fine I suppose but I am more interested in what is within a state. At home, I do not have a Utah souvenir but I do have a Bryce Canyon t-shirt. So souvenirs for destinations like the Grand Canyon, Yosemite, or typical tourist spots might be more souvenirish.

 

I think they'll eventually have souvis for those places. They're starting big and then will work on lots of other places, and ideas.

[+beejay&esskay]

I also think they are trying to compete with GSAK...they do not want you to use GSAK in your cache listings anymore, so if they have the state souvenirs, thats perhaps one thing GSAK does not have.

And how would that convince me not to use GSAK?