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New Waypoint IDs

MedicP1

By MedicP1
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Markwell

+Markwell

Posted
Posted

quote:
Originally posted by robertlipe:

Come on now...Within two hours of receiving the bug report you sent me I had a new release of gpsbabel on the web that fixed it. (The source version was fixed two months ago.) That meant the fix was available the same day that the Groundspeak GPX stuff was made available.

 

I stand corrected. I hadn't yet seen the new version of GPSBabel because I haven't opened it yet - which is, of course, my fault.

 

The GPSBabel did work - and it created a *.loc file with no problem. Although I couldn't open the resulting *.loc file in Geobuddy. And since there's no option for a comma delimited (or more preferably a tab delimited), I'm stuck with where I was to begin with.

quote:
Originally posted by Warm Fuzzies - Fuzzy

Excel xp can import XML - including GPX. You might need to delete a few columns and filter duplicates, but it does work.

That's more what I needed. My office environment is still on Win2000 and Office2000, but my home computer with XP Office imported the file OK with Excel. From there I can get it into Streets and Trips or whatever else I need to do with it.

 

Not that I don't appreciate the work going on, and the work already done, but I'm still waiting for the cleanliness that was Geobuddy and the *.loc files.

 

I'll shut up and be more patient now. icon_wink.gif

 

Markwell

Chicago Geocaching

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robertlipe

robertlipe

Posted
Posted

quote:
Originally posted by Markwell:

[i hadn't yet seen the new version of GPSBabel because I haven't opened it yet - which is, of course, my fault.

 

The GPSBabel did work - and it created a *.loc file with no problem.

 

OK. Good.

quote:

And since there's no option for a comma delimited (or more preferably a tab delimited), I'm stuck with where I was to begin with.

 

I'm confused. You must know there's a comma separated option in gpsbabel because the test case you sent me had csv output.

 

But as a result of this conversation, I booted windows and downloaded geobuddy. I have found a difference in the gpsbabel of the .loc format and what Groundspeak emits. Since EasyGPS ate it up, I thought it was OK. It's a 1-byte change and it'll be winging its way to your mailbox in scant moments...

 

quote:

From there I can get it into Streets and Trips or whatever else I need to do with it.

 

I thought I heard just recently somewhere that S&T could read the CSV output of gpsbabel.

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Sissy-n-CR

+Sissy-n-CR

Posted
Posted

The discussion of keeping the "gee-see" number is like the telephone company trying to keep from issuing new area codes by adding digits to the local numbers.

 

...or changing numbering schemes because they ran out of 1-800 numbers.

 

I think the easiest and most logical way to go past GCFFFF is roll over to GD0000. First pad all waypoints to four digit hex--GC21 becomes GC0021. Next generate the waypoint by converting cache_ID to hex and adding C0000 hex, then tack on the G in front.

 

The advantage to this is there are no break points and generating the next 196000 caches will be trivial. Then if you want, at the break point of 262143 (I think), stop adding the C0000.

 

I just think it's much simpler math and, like someone said, by the time you run out, it'd be time to start on something different anyway.

 

Ma Bell went to 1-888 and 1-877 instead of trying to change the rest of the number.

 

CR

 

72057_2000.gif

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Sissy-n-CR

+Sissy-n-CR

Posted
Posted

Another idea. Maybe I missed it, but here goes...

 

Go to an eight digit waypoint system and leave it hex. You get two more places for hex.

 

For the users of units that only take 6 digits make a check box that will truncate the 8 digits to 6 when they down load information. Basically the first rollover would be GC10000 and truncated for 6 digits series units it'd simply be c10000.

 

You'd still have the "gee-see" in all of the units that allow it AND third party programs don't have to be changed AND normal people like me can convert waypoint to cache_ID.

 

Watcha think about that?

 

CR

 

72057_2000.gif

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ApK

+ApK

Posted
Posted

quote:
Originally posted by Sissy-n-CR:

For the users of units that only take 6 digits make a check box that will truncate the 8 digits to 6 when they down load information. Basically the first rollover would be GC10000 and truncated for 6 digits series units it'd simply be c10000.

 

Truncating digits would result in duplicate names.

I wonder that the impact would be if you merely dropped the GC on request? Then the users of those GPSrs would only loose the ability to sortall geocaches together (assuming that a typical user waypoint like "15OAK would sort in the middle of a numeric list?)

But, of course, if you were going to offer optional different waypoints in the firstplace, you could change them to a whole different scheme, rather than just truncating.

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Sissy-n-CR

+Sissy-n-CR

Posted
Posted

quote:
Originally posted by ApK:

Truncating digits would result in duplicate names.

 

Perhaps "truncating" is not the proper word.

 

If you truncate from the right you'd get duplicate waypoints, but if you truncate from the left you would not for another 720,000 caches. Or not until you actually get to hex C0000. At that time there will be over three quarters of a million caches.

 

I'm just trying to come up with a much simpler way to handle the rollover.

 

Combine this scheme with an effort to recycle caches, I think you'd be set for a three or four years.

 

CR

 

72057_2000.gif

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PlaysByEar

PlaysByEar

Posted
Posted

I wrote an ap that will change the Geocache ID in .loc files based on data from the geocaching.com HTML page as an alternative to manually changing them. Check it out (see my sig)

 

Use my Iconverter software to customize geocache symbol, ID, and comment fields with geocache type and diffuclty/terrain ratings! Also install custom geocache icons on your Magellan 315/320. http://home.mn.rr.com/pbe/

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GrizzlyJohn

+GrizzlyJohn

Posted
Posted

quote:
Originally posted by The Leprechauns:

If you read the thread, and especially Elias' posts, you'll see that the waypoint characters will include:

 

0123456789ABCDEFGHJKMNPQRTVWXYZ

I don't like this one bit. I am very limited in the nasty words I can spell with these letters. Can I please buy a vowel?
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jtice

+jtice

Posted
Posted

I wouldnt mind being able to look at the name and see what type of cache it is, BUT !!!!

 

PLEASE donnot change the beginging letter,,,, if you have some that are MC, VC, etc, then when I view them in alphebitical order, they will not all be together,,,, and i hate renaming them.

 

Plus, why cant I goto Geocaching.com and type in a caches name and find the info page on it?

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The Leprechauns

+The Leprechauns

Posted
Posted

quote:
Originally posted by GrizzlyJohn:

I don't like this one bit. I am very limited in the nasty words I can spell with these letters. Can I please buy a vowel?

You'll just have to be content with hiding cache number GCHECK. Me, I dreamed of being the owner of GCBEER and GCBREW, but we've run through the "B's" under the hex system. icon_frown.gif

 

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

.sdrawkcab dootsrednu tub sdrawrof devil si efiL

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robertlipe

robertlipe

Posted
Posted

quote:
Originally posted by The Leprechauns:

 

You'll just have to be content with hiding cache number GCHECK. Me, I dreamed of being the owner of GCBEER and GCBREW

 

This is the kind of stuff that makes me both proud and ashamed to be a UNIX guy, but according to a quick:

 

$ egrep -i '^[GHJKMNPQRTVWXYZ][ABCDEFGHJKMNPQRTVWXYZ][ABCDEFGHJKMNPQRTVWXYZ][ABCDEFGHJKMNPQRTVWXYZ]$' /usr/share/dict/words | wc -l

 

There will be 268 four letter English words in the new scheme while there were only 17 of the hex variety.

 

Next up on the store: vanity GC numbers. "Only 268 left..."

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GrizzlyJohn

+GrizzlyJohn

Posted
Posted

quote:
Originally posted by robertlipe:

Next up on the store: vanity GC numbers. "Only 268 left..."

Wait this might not be a bad idea. All joking aside. Would anybody be willing to pay for a vanity waypoint? Would anybody have a problem if vanity waypoints were offered for sale? It might be another way to bring in money to help keep the site running. I don't know that it would be a bad thing.
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Dave_W6DPS

+Dave_W6DPS

Posted
Posted

quote:
Originally posted by jtice:

Plus, why cant I goto Geocaching.com and type in a caches name and find the info page on it?

 

Have you tried clicking the tab for "Hide&Seek a Cache" and typing the name in the "keywords" block?

 

Dave_W6DPS

 

My two cents worth, refunds available on request. (US funds only)

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GeneralBracket

+GeneralBracket

Posted
Posted

I almost never plan a geocaching trip, they just seem to happen spur of the moment. Hence, when I get into the field I am sometimes at a loss as to if I should be hunting for a physical cache or not.

 

Sooo... I've been changing the G in GCxxxx myself for quite awile now. That'd sure be a nice feature, but I can make a meaningful conversion of my own if GC.com can't/won't implement it. No biggie.

 

As far as the C goes, who cares? As long as the G stays I can convert to my method to my hearts content.

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mrcpu

+mrcpu

Posted
Posted

After reading this entire thread I've come to the realization that since the database id for a cache is a sequential decimal number then we really DON'T have a problem! We are NOT going to run out of space in our GC naming convention. Why? Because all we have to do is stop thinking of the GCxxxx name as global and consider it a localized waypoint name for your own usage.

 

In order to accomodate this we might want to have a field under preferences where you can specify how many chars your GPS will use for it's waypoint names. Then when you download to a GPS that supports 10 char names it won't get truncated. When you download to a GPS that only supports 6 chars then a couple of simple to program things happens.

 

HEXVERSION = convert database id to hex

if HEXVERSION is < = 6 then waypoint id is "GC" + HEXVERSION

if HEXVERSION is = 7 then waypoint id = "G" + HEXVERSION

if HEXVERSION is > = 8 then waypoint id = HEXVERSION

 

Now what about the G-C0000 through G-CFFFF problem? Who cares! These wayoint names are GLOBAL. They are for YOUR purposes, and do not absolutely represent a GC in the database. This means that you will have to know how you've setup your GPS and the downloads.

 

As for advanced features like being able to use VC or GC or whatever, I'd like to see something a bit different.

 

I'd like to see the ability for each of us to create and share XSL stylesheets and select those stylesheets to be applied to the data at download time. Imagine that you have a specific need. Instead of writing a piece of software, perhaps you could do it with a style sheet. Now you've just got to have a way to upload the style sheet to your GC profile and let the existing .NET software on GC's end apply that for you before the download starts.

 

Rob

Mobile Cache Command

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SimonG

+SimonG

Posted
Posted

quote:
Originally posted by SimonG:

So who wants to guess when we're going to reach GCZZZZ? My money's on May 10th 2006.

Ah, here it is! I thought I'd made this post in a thread in the General forum, but when I looked again it wasn't there, so I made it again. I was most confused.

 

So now I've said it twice. Oh well.

 

SimonG.org - now with added blog!

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timparenti

timparenti

Posted
Posted

quote:
Originally posted by Bill D (wwh):

Surely the best vanity waypoint of all has to be GCACHE. icon_smile.gif

 

When I first saw this, I thought GC-ACHE and I said "Why would that be best?" Then I saw G-CACHE. But looking at GC-ACHE got me thinking: We've already passed through GC-Axxx! Oh, well. I'd better get out of this thread before it gives me a HEAD-ACHE! icon_confused.gif

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Bilder

+Bilder

Posted
Posted

I have been running my waypoints through GPXSpinner. It changes the waypoint name to the cache name. Also changes the waypoint symbol depending on what kind of cache it is.

 

I have found it to be very nice when I dont have printouts with me.

 

But yes, having the GCXXXX names changed so you can tell without spinning would be great.

 

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I have never been lost. Been awful confused for a few days, but never lost!

N61.12.041 W149.43.734

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