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Possible to "hide" cache using app?


DownwardlyMobile

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Yes, but I'd recommend using a bit first to see where you can get good coordinates. We use our iPhones exclusively for caching. Near cities, our coords are spot on every time, so we feel safe using it to hide caches near town. But out in the mountains (trees, elevation differences, etc) the coords are more jumpy so we wouldn't use ours to hide a cache in a place like that. It doesn't have anything to do with phone service or how many bars, but rather the terrain, in my experience.

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You can mark the spot and then go to the phone's browser and create a cache page. I've done it but not marking the spot with the iphone. Sometimes the iphones can be from 50 to 500ft off. I also noticed depending on whether you have wifi on or off you will get two different readings.

I would really suggest after marking the spot and creating a page not to release it til you have double checked it with Google Earth to see if the location you marked matches what you see on Google Earth.

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I'd find a few more caches of different types before placing my first cache. Please read, re-read then read again the Geocache Listing Guidelines each and every time you place a cache, as they can, and do, change. Also check out the thread Pictures-Cool Cache Containers which is very informative. There are a lot of neat ideas there!

Welcome to the forums and to geocaching!

Edited by popokiiti
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There's another app to use for that called Perfect Mark. it'll take coords and average them, etc.

 

I wouldn't recommend hiding a cache with the phone but if you do .... Make sure to request a friend (with a handheld) test your coords to make sure they are good before you publish the cache.

 

OK, never had an Iphone, probably never will. But it was the first of the official Geocaching app's. 2009 maybe? When it first came out, there was absolutely a disclaimer that it wasn't accurate enough for hiding a cache, and strongly discouraged. Who knows, it's almost 2012 though. Is this still the "official policy"?

 

Never heard of perfect mark, and I have a different one for my Windows Phone. And being an Iphone, I'll bet there are several "competitor" apps out there too.

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OK, never had an Iphone, probably never will. But it was the first of the official Geocaching app's. 2009 maybe? When it first came out, there was absolutely a disclaimer that it wasn't accurate enough for hiding a cache, and strongly discouraged. Who knows, it's almost 2012 though. Is this still the "official policy"?

 

Never heard of perfect mark, and I have a different one for my Windows Phone. And being an Iphone, I'll bet there are several "competitor" apps out there too.

 

Oh sorry I made that assumption ( I should pay attention more). There should be other apps available for taking coordinates as well as taking several samples and averaging capabilities. But definately have them checked by a friend.

 

If this is your first hide, you want to make sure it's near perfect or else the cachers might get grumpy with you LOL

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There's another app to use for that called Perfect Mark. it'll take coords and average them, etc.

 

I wouldn't recommend hiding a cache with the phone but if you do .... Make sure to request a friend (with a handheld) test your coords to make sure they are good before you publish the cache.

 

+1 for all of the above. Install the Perfect Mark app (free) to do your waypoint averaging. I hid my first cache with my iPhone and have had no complaints about the coordinates.

 

Do note that the iPhone 4 is more accurate than the older versions. I don't know if the 4S is better still because I'm not sure if they upgraded the GPS chipset. The original admonition from Groundspeak about hiding a cache with the app may have been in the days before the iPhone had a real GPS chip and used cell tower triangulation to determine your position. This was notoriously inaccurate, but the newer versions (3GS and up) have included a GPS chip and have become increasingly more accurate.

 

To address more directly your original question, you can't really use the app itself to hide a cache because it's not set up for that...you'll be better off using Perfect Mark to get your coordinates and creating your cache listing on GC.com on a regular computer. So can you use your phone to hide a cache, yes...can you use the app to hide a cache, no...

Edited by Chief301
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There's another app to use for that called Perfect Mark. it'll take coords and average them, etc.

 

I wouldn't recommend hiding a cache with the phone but if you do .... Make sure to request a friend (with a handheld) test your coords to make sure they are good before you publish the cache.

 

I still haven't hid my first cache yet because of my lack of a real GPSr (not to mention I want my first to be perfect and have since rethought the hide and the container). I tried to use Perfect Mark and had it average out of 84 separate points with the automatic averaging feature and it continuously placed the averaged coordinates about 50 feet away from the actual spot (kept placing the coordinates either in a neighbor's yard or in the middle of a busy street). I have an iPhone 4 and tried both with WIFI on and off (the cache WAS going to be located on my property) and still I received inconsistent results when I checked against both Google Earth and my neighbor's GPSr. So while it may get you ballpark, the accuracy is spotty if the GPS isn't accurate to begin with.

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How do I go about it?

 

By getting a real GPS. There is a wide variety of accuracy depending on the smartphone. Some have apparently been pretty accurate, but many are horrible. Just get yourself a cheap handheld to hide a cache. Your fellow geocachers will be thankful.

I'm just venting a little bit here, please note that if someone has a question about using their smartphone to Geocache, it doesn't help to answer their question by telling them to go buy a GPS unit. Unfortunately it's a common answer to many smartphone questions on this forum, but does little to help the cacher better understand his/her device when using it to cache.

Also, many cachers have experienced more accuracy with newer smartphones than with their older, cheaper GPS units, so telling someone to go buy a cheap GPS could possibly yield the same inaccurate results that everyone's trying to avoid. Everyone assumes a GPS unit is always better, but in some cases that's not necessarily true.

 

Install the Perfect Mark app (free) to do your waypoint averaging. I hid my first cache with my iPhone and have had no complaints about the coordinates.

I just wanted to clarify to avoid confusion just in case anyone looks for this app. The Perfect Mark app is .99 in the App Store. I heard about it (on this forum) months ago and always meant to buy it & try it out.

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Thanks so much for your response in defense of those of us who cache with iPhones! I'm am only a few months into caching and am pretty turned off by the negativity I see on these and other forums when it comes to caching with an iPhone. Most of the time, the person doing the criticizing doesn't even own an iPhone and has never cached with one.

 

My cousin and her family introduced me to caching and he couldn't believe how awesome it was to cache with my iPhone 4s. He uses a handheld device (I'm guessing an older one maybe?) and he equated the difference between the two as rabbit ears to digital tv.

 

I understand that caching with a phone might not lead me to caches in the middle of the rain forest, but for my corner of the world it has served me well for the past several months.

 

I am thinking of hiding a cache, have downloaded Perfect Mark and compared my cords with several gps apps and they all agree on the location. I'm going to make certain I do have it right before I proceed and I think I can do it. I don't think negativity encourages people to fall in love with this super fun sport.

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Thanks so much for your response in defense of those of us who cache with iPhones! I'm am only a few months into caching and am pretty turned off by the negativity I see on these and other forums when it comes to caching with an iPhone. Most of the time, the person doing the criticizing doesn't even own an iPhone and has never cached with one.

 

My cousin and her family introduced me to caching and he couldn't believe how awesome it was to cache with my iPhone 4s. He uses a handheld device (I'm guessing an older one maybe?) and he equated the difference between the two as rabbit ears to digital tv.

 

I understand that caching with a phone might not lead me to caches in the middle of the rain forest, but for my corner of the world it has served me well for the past several months.

 

I am thinking of hiding a cache, have downloaded Perfect Mark and compared my cords with several gps apps and they all agree on the location. I'm going to make certain I do have it right before I proceed and I think I can do it. I don't think negativity encourages people to fall in love with this super fun sport.

 

The negativity stems from new COs that use phone apps but don't average their coordinates, and don't double check their coordinates (go back the next day and see if you can get back to your cache with the set coords). Then after the cache goes live they don't respond and update their coordinates when the first finders' comments say the cache is by 60 feet. Basically the angst comes from the increasing numbers of caches that are posted with very poor coordinates and it co-relates to the increasing number of cachers who plant using phone apps.

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Is there a place where you list what device you used to determine your coordinates on the caching form? I looked over everything and did not see that I needed to list this, nor have I ever noticed this on a cache when searching. I am assuming from your comment above that catchers must be listing this somewhere. Am I missing something?

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Is there a place where you list what device you used to determine your coordinates on the caching form? I looked over everything and did not see that I needed to list this, nor have I ever noticed this on a cache when searching. I am assuming from your comment above that catchers must be listing this somewhere. Am I missing something?

 

Nope. I'm pretty sure this feature was suggested on the old Feedback forum. Don't know what became of it. I'd like to see it implemented.

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Is there a place where you list what device you used to determine your coordinates on the caching form? I looked over everything and did not see that I needed to list this, nor have I ever noticed this on a cache when searching. I am assuming from your comment above that catchers must be listing this somewhere. Am I missing something?

There isn't a dedicated field for listing the device, but COs sometimes list it in their description (like here). We had some prolific hiders in the area many years ago, and they always listed which device they used. You don't see it very often anymore, though.

 

As far as the above negativity towards iPhone caching...

Until recently, the iPhone was not suitable for hiding caches. Period. It's only since the release of the iPhone 4 that the accuracy has been good enough to place caches. I've tried finding some caches hidden with older iPhones, and they were disastrous. I think a lot of the negativity comes from cachers looking for these caches hidden with pre-4 iPhones. I presume the cache I linked to above was hidden with a 4 or 4s, because the coordinates were bang on. I expect as the pre-4 caches get archived and 4/4s caches replace them, the general view towards iPhone hiding will change.

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Thanks guys. I am using an iPhone 4 so hopefully my caches will turn out alright. One problem I did notice is that even when I verify via the app that my cache is at least .1 mile from any other cache, the distance is different and I get my cache denied. Looking for a work around.

How far out are we talking? A few feet? A few hundred feet? Or is it that there is a stage of a multi or final of a puzzle that won't show on the map? If it's the latter, there's not much you can do other than make the find on that other cache so you know where it is.

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Well it's over 480 ft away according to the website. I'm the director of children's services for parks and rec. Ground zero is in a park overseen by the rec center that runs children's camps. The nearby caches are either too dangerous for kids or in utter disrepair. I've been teaching the kiddos to geocache, so I wanted to hide one safe for them to find.

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I understand that caching with a phone might not lead me to caches in the middle of the rain forest, but for my corner of the world it has served me well for the past several months.

 

I am thinking of hiding a cache, have downloaded Perfect Mark and compared my cords with several gps apps and they all agree on the location. I'm going to make certain I do have it right before I proceed and I think I can do it. I don't think negativity encourages people to fall in love with this super fun sport.

You might be surprised at how well they work in more rural terrain. We're constantly caching in heavily wooded & hilly areas with my iPhone 4. It's obviously not as accurate under the canopy of trees, but with a little effort, it hasn't failed us yet. Sure sometimes it may not put us right on top of it, but in a worst case scenario, I'd say within 15-20 ft. on a bad day and that's easily manageable. Caching isn't always about the accuracy of the device, but the skill of hunting that comes along with the experience you gain the more you play. Knowing what to look for (some of the more common hiding places), being able to think outside the box on occasion, and simply thinking like a cacher. We often pull up to a location, get an initial reading (sometimes hundreds of feet away), point ourselves in the right direction, put the phone away and go. I think it's sometimes more fun that way. If the device, whatever it may be, puts you on top of the cache every single time, I think that would take much of the fun out of it.

 

Also, it's great that you plan to take care to hide your caches properly & accurately with your phone. I think it's very possible for many of the newer smartphones to hide a cache accurately as long as the user makes the effort to do so. Let's face it, even some of those who hide with a GPS unit aren't always accurate...they just tend to get a free pass around here because they're using a handheld.

 

The negativity stems from new COs that use phone apps but don't average their coordinates, and don't double check their coordinates (go back the next day and see if you can get back to your cache with the set coords). Then after the cache goes live they don't respond and update their coordinates when the first finders' comments say the cache is by 60 feet. Basically the angst comes from the increasing numbers of caches that are posted with very poor coordinates and it co-relates to the increasing number of cachers who plant using phone apps.

In all honesty, the problems you describe can be found with GPS unit users as well, not just smartphone cachers. But for whatever reason, there's an overall general disdain for smartphone users regardless of how good or bad they are. There's plenty of "bad" CO's using GPS units whose coords are inaccurate & caches are constantly in need of maintenance that rarely happens. I'm not saying all smartphone users are innocent, but we seem to take much of the blame for problems when blame can easily be shared between all devices. At some point you have to stop blaming the device for certain problems and blame the person using it.

 

Is there a place where you list what device you used to determine your coordinates on the caching form? I looked over everything and did not see that I needed to list this, nor have I ever noticed this on a cache when searching. I am assuming from your comment above that catchers must be listing this somewhere. Am I missing something?

 

Nope. I'm pretty sure this feature was suggested on the old Feedback forum. Don't know what became of it. I'd like to see it implemented.

I think requiring a CO to list the device they used to hide with would cause even more animosity than there already is towards smartphone cachers. As has already been said many times on this forum, yes there are older smartphones that flat out are not capable of hiding a cache accurately. But there are many newer models that are, and some that can even outshine the accuracy of certain GPS units. I truly believe that if you have a device capable of providing accurate coords, it has more to do with the person hiding than the device they're using. If you make the effort to get good coords, recheck them for accuracy (more than once is a good idea), and ensure a good caching experience, then that's what's important. Someone with the most accurate GPS out there can still hide an inaccurate cache if they don't put forth enough effort.

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Thanks so much for your response in defense of those of us who cache with iPhones! I'm am only a few months into caching and am pretty turned off by the negativity I see on these and other forums when it comes to caching with an iPhone. Most of the time, the person doing the criticizing doesn't even own an iPhone and has never cached with one.

 

My cousin and her family introduced me to caching and he couldn't believe how awesome it was to cache with my iPhone 4s. He uses a handheld device (I'm guessing an older one maybe?) and he equated the difference between the two as rabbit ears to digital tv.

 

I understand that caching with a phone might not lead me to caches in the middle of the rain forest, but for my corner of the world it has served me well for the past several months.

 

 

battery life, waterproof, shockproof...your iPhone is lacking all those qualities

 

if you only get a few caches a day in urban settings and on sunny days, iPhone is perfect for your needs

 

in any case the analogy your cousin made is really off, and i mean waaaaaaaaay off :lol: what gps do they have?

 

i do not own any iProducts whatsoever so i have no experience using it to hide one but i was on the finding end and its either the unit is inaccurate or the owner has no idea what to do but the coordinates were inevitably off

Edited by t4e
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We cached with our iPhones for months and it got us started in the hobby. I will say - once you buy a dedicated GPS and use it, you'll soon realize how much better a dedicated GPS actually is.

 

I never felt comfortable hiding a cache with the phone. I used perfect mark and used a nuvi to gather atleast 30+ coordinates each unit and average them. I'm anal like that - and I wanted to make sure it was right.

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I use an iPhone 4s for geocaching. I started off using an iPhone 4 a year ago. It's great for impromptu caching, wherever I am in the world I can sneak off for a cheeky cache. Battery life can be an issue, but you can get 4 hours out of it, and then charge it up in the car when you eat your sandwiches. Generally speaking accuracy is well within 20ft depending on buildings/mountains etc. It should be noted that iPhone 3GS and earlier are too inaccurate to be used in my experience.

 

Back on topic, I hid my first geocache on New Years eve. I used my iPhone 4s for the co-ordinates. Went back 3 times and used the average of 6 readings. Asked people to let me know if the co-ordinates were off. The cache logs report that the co-ordinates are spot on.

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