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Seriously: about that map page...


LarsThorwald

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I've gotten ONE map in the last two weeks of trying... and that was only the first one, of the entire state (CA). I've relied on this feature for cache searches on any driving trip of length. I know Jeremy et.al. are working hard... but is there any time frame on this feature becoming useable? The time of day I try seems to make no difference at all. What's a poor cacher to do?

 

Charlie

"One should never begin a journey by heading in the wrong direction."

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I've learned not to rely on those maps - not only because do I expect them not to load very fast (if at all), but also because I don't want to put extra strain on the system when I don't really need to.

 

Imho, having the listing of nearby caches is fine - you can see that a cache is 15 miles NE, and if you click on it you can see the localized mapsource map. That should be enough for anyone, really. The overall cache map is nice, but just an "extra" feature imho that I don't demand be working properly. icon_biggrin.gif

 

- Toe.

 

--==< Rubbertoe's Webcam, Photo Albums, and Homepage >==--

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I've learned not to rely on those maps - not only because do I expect them not to load very fast (if at all), but also because I don't want to put extra strain on the system when I don't really need to.

 

Imho, having the listing of nearby caches is fine - you can see that a cache is 15 miles NE, and if you click on it you can see the localized mapsource map. That should be enough for anyone, really. The overall cache map is nice, but just an "extra" feature imho that I don't demand be working properly. icon_biggrin.gif

 

- Toe.

 

--==< Rubbertoe's Webcam, Photo Albums, and Homepage >==--

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quote:
Originally posted by Rubbertoe:

Imho, having the listing of nearby caches is fine - you can see that a cache is 15 miles NE, and if you click on it you can see the localized mapsource map. That should be enough for anyone, really.>==--


 

I get what you're saying, but that's awfully cumbersome when, for example, I'm heading up to Northern California. I go up I-5, then down 101. Being able to click along the route on the maps meant that, in a half-hour or so, I could easily isolate the caches I wanted to hit, easily see how far they were from the freeway, or my destination... I

 

Charlie

"One should never begin a journey by heading in the wrong direction."

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The map is very helpful when you're not looking just around your house. I do understand what's going on, but I'm looking forward to being able to use that feature again.

It ia also helpful in letting you easily see clumps of caches even in your own zip code if your interested in hitting a bunch in a short time.

 

cool_shades.gif ---I will stand out, I am a raven in the snow.

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quote:
Originally posted by geospotter:

Someone in another thread suggested logging out before trying the maps. It works! They even load quicker. Of course, it can't tell you which ones you've already found...


 

Oh my GOD! I just whipped through about six maps in 15 seconds! What's THAT all about? Am I unwittingly doing great harm to the geocaching community, or is this just GOOD NEWS?!

 

Thanks!!

 

Charlie

"One should never begin a journey by heading in the wrong direction."

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quote:
This past weekend, I bought MS Streets and trips and downloaded all the caches within 100 miles from my Pocket Query. Man - it was slick. Only $40 too...


 

Markwell, were you actually able to import the waypoints into MS S&T? That would be cool, but I have no idea how to go about this. icon_confused.gif

 

Paul

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quote:
This past weekend, I bought MS Streets and trips and downloaded all the caches within 100 miles from my Pocket Query. Man - it was slick. Only $40 too...


 

Markwell, were you actually able to import the waypoints into MS S&T? That would be cool, but I have no idea how to go about this. icon_confused.gif

 

Paul

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GeoBuddy will convert the .loc files into a .csv file that S&T will like...

 

but....

 

It's a one way trip..

You can not export pushpins from S&T into anything else... You can not list the pushpins... you can not download them to a GPS.

 

Forewarned is Forearmed

 

>Personally Responsible for the Recovery of .00176% of the Benchmark Database!<

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quote:
GeoBuddy will convert the .loc files into a .csv file that S&T will like...


 

I too only use Streets & Trips as a final mapping utility, and have recently been hauling my laptop out with me to help with directions on the spur of the moment caches, when I'm in an area of town that I'm not to familiar with. It would be cool to import my cache list to S&T to type in routes, etc.

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Speaking of Streets&Trips, I have the 2001 edition, which "doesn't allow" custom waypoint icons.

 

Its possible to customize the icons, I've made icons which look similar to the checkbox and blue/orange cache container icons used on the maps generated by geocaching.com.

 

If you have access to a resource editor, you can edit Bitmap resource ID 30004 in the file MSM8USA.dll. There is also 30003, which appears to be B&W versions of the icons (probably for printing purposes).

 

Just thought I'd mention it. Thanks for the info about geobuddy, I was wondering if I'd have to write my own tool to get from the XML into CSV icon_biggrin.gif

 

snazzsig.jpg

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Speaking of Streets&Trips, I have the 2001 edition, which "doesn't allow" custom waypoint icons.

 

Its possible to customize the icons, I've made icons which look similar to the checkbox and blue/orange cache container icons used on the maps generated by geocaching.com.

 

If you have access to a resource editor, you can edit Bitmap resource ID 30004 in the file MSM8USA.dll. There is also 30003, which appears to be B&W versions of the icons (probably for printing purposes).

 

Just thought I'd mention it. Thanks for the info about geobuddy, I was wondering if I'd have to write my own tool to get from the XML into CSV icon_biggrin.gif

 

snazzsig.jpg

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quote:
Originally posted by LarsThorwald:

I've gotten ONE map in the last two weeks of trying... and that was only the first one, of the entire state (CA). I've relied on this feature for cache searches on any driving trip of length.


 

It *would* be nice to get this working with the server load... I wonder why there hasn't been any response?

 

Is it money? I'm willing to donate towards getting things working right... Paypal is easy enough...

 

How about letting us know what's needed and we can donate accordingly...

 

Of course, Microsoft products are known for this kind of thing... This is yet another example...

 

geosig.jpg

Contents Under Pressure...

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Right on, Lars and Nurse Dave & LKay!

 

The map generator certainly does indeed seem to be broken. When I actually can view a state map (which is getting rare these days) I can't zoom in past the second level even when I'm not logged in, and the problem seems to have grown worse in the last month. I don't know what’s wrong or what needs to be done to fix it, but I do know that the maps ARE important!

 

I guess we all have our own approach to cache hunting, but like some others, I find the map pages to be VERY useful. This is especially true in the early stages of planning a day-long caching trip, when I use maps to see the overall distribution of caches throughout the entire area within my driving range. In fact, I always use maps to decide what general area to head out for, and I don't know of any other tool that will work nearly as well.

 

I know I'm alone in my belief that our map page is IMPORTANT. The fact that this thread drifted off into a discussion of what other map tools people are using just seems to reinforce how important cache location maps are to geocaching. They are so essential that we aren't waiting for our own map pages to be fixed - we're using alternate sources.

 

Like Markwell, I've long since resorted to buying a stand alone mapping software package and downloading cache locations into it. Like ooga booga, I use Buxley's online maps all the time. But I still miss being able to access our own map pages, and not being able to do so ever again seems unthinkable to me.

 

When I was first getting into caching, I relied upon our map pages very heavily, because I didn't know about Buxley's pages, and I didn't want to spend the money on a stand alone software program for cache maps when I'd just blown a wad on a GPSr. Also, I can still remember the very first time I logged into this site and called up a map of local caches. Seeing on the map right where that puppy was planted is what convinced me to actually get up and go after my first stash.

 

Just because there are alternatives available doesn't mean this site shouldn't have usable maps! I firmly believe that the maps are so essential to geocaching that fixing the mapping feature should be a very high priority.

 

- Genius Loci (‘the Guardian Spirit of a Place’)

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The pushpins in Streets and Trips come from the .loc file. You can upload the .loc file to your GPS. No big deal there. Not sure why you'd want to import the points into Streets and Trips and then turn around and re-export them. Unless you were trying to set up routing or something, but S&T will give you driving directions to the caches icon_smile.gif

 

And the pushpins appear on a map. Seeing them geographically is the most useful thing. Seeing them in a list gives you no indication of where they are. However, you CAN see them in a list in geobuddy or easygps. Then you can do a search in Streets and Trips for the cache name (GC***) to find it on the map in mere seconds.

 

I have MapPoint 2002, which is very similar to Streets and Trips. I'm a charter member so I get the .loc files of all caches in my area (or the area I'm going) dropped to me in an email.

 

I use Geobuddy to import the stuff into MapPoint and use Easygps to upload the cache points to my GPS.

 

The really cool thing about MapPoint is that once you've imported the CSV, you can plot driving directions, etc. It'll even let you do ctrl-click on a cache pin and it'll open an IE browser right to the cache page for you.

 

I use MapPoint exclusively when plotting trips. You can even plug your GPS right into your computer if you have a data cable.

 

I haven't used Streets and Trips, but I believe from what I've heard it's about the same dern thing, just a lot cheaper. I would definitely reccommend getting ahold of a copy. It's probably faster than the web site, AND it can be used offline or out on the road. I keep a copy of a map with all the cache points in my state. If I'm somewhere and bored, I just open it up and start caching. Very cool IMHO.

 

quote:

Originally posted by Raouljan:

GeoBuddy will convert the .loc files into a .csv file that S&T will like...

 

but....

 

It's a one way trip..

You can not export pushpins from S&T into anything else... You can not list the pushpins... you can not download them to a GPS.

 

Forewarned is Forearmed

 

>Personally Responsible for the Recovery of .00176% of the Benchmark Database!<


 

--------

trippy1976

 

migo_sig_logo.jpg

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The pushpins in Streets and Trips come from the .loc file. You can upload the .loc file to your GPS. No big deal there. Not sure why you'd want to import the points into Streets and Trips and then turn around and re-export them. Unless you were trying to set up routing or something, but S&T will give you driving directions to the caches icon_smile.gif

 

And the pushpins appear on a map. Seeing them geographically is the most useful thing. Seeing them in a list gives you no indication of where they are. However, you CAN see them in a list in geobuddy or easygps. Then you can do a search in Streets and Trips for the cache name (GC***) to find it on the map in mere seconds.

 

I have MapPoint 2002, which is very similar to Streets and Trips. I'm a charter member so I get the .loc files of all caches in my area (or the area I'm going) dropped to me in an email.

 

I use Geobuddy to import the stuff into MapPoint and use Easygps to upload the cache points to my GPS.

 

The really cool thing about MapPoint is that once you've imported the CSV, you can plot driving directions, etc. It'll even let you do ctrl-click on a cache pin and it'll open an IE browser right to the cache page for you.

 

I use MapPoint exclusively when plotting trips. You can even plug your GPS right into your computer if you have a data cable.

 

I haven't used Streets and Trips, but I believe from what I've heard it's about the same dern thing, just a lot cheaper. I would definitely reccommend getting ahold of a copy. It's probably faster than the web site, AND it can be used offline or out on the road. I keep a copy of a map with all the cache points in my state. If I'm somewhere and bored, I just open it up and start caching. Very cool IMHO.

 

quote:

Originally posted by Raouljan:

GeoBuddy will convert the .loc files into a .csv file that S&T will like...

 

but....

 

It's a one way trip..

You can not export pushpins from S&T into anything else... You can not list the pushpins... you can not download them to a GPS.

 

Forewarned is Forearmed

 

>Personally Responsible for the Recovery of .00176% of the Benchmark Database!<


 

--------

trippy1976

 

migo_sig_logo.jpg

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