upload recorded tracks to show your last trip

[+FraenCache]

Heya fellow cachers!

 

I recently had the idea for a new feature for the personal profile page. I was on a monster 15 miles / 23 kilometer walking tour with two (guest cacher)friends yesterday, and I thought it would be a nice feature, if you could upload your recorded track on your profile page to show it to people. Doing so would be a great way to suggest routes to fellow cachers or even just show off what you did and encourage other people to maybe do the same or similar tours.

 

I´m thinking of a page linked in your personal profile where you initially would see a list of all the tracks / tours uploaded by the user and marked as links, with date and maybe short notice of the region/city/country, where it has been done. Then you would click on one of these links and a new window would open with a big map on top, showing the full overview of the track and all the caches along the way. On the right side next to the map there could be for example on the very top a collection of Attributes, the cacher can choose to indicate his chosen means of transportation (e.g. hike, >10miles or bike for example) and maybe others to indicate dangers/obstacles/ammenities he encountered (e.g. water near by, attention ticks etc.)

 

Underneath the Attributes the uploader may type in a starting and a finish point, maybe by name and/or coordinates. Maybe there could be an option like a plus button to add more waypoints, if there are some interesting places along the track like sights or views or other cities etc.

 

Then I would add a text entry field, where the uploader can share the story behind the trip.

 

Of course there would have to be a option to upload or link pictures from the trip as well ... maybe even geo referenced, so they could be shown as icon on the map along the track as well ...

 

And last but not least underneath it all the comment section, where visitors can leave theyr remarks and questions for the uploader.

 

I´ll see if I can photoshop a montage of how I would imagine the site, for better understanding ...

 

So, what do you guys think so far?

 

**Edit:

That´s the "screenshot"-montage of how approximately I would Imagine the page of a certain uploaded track:

 

 

Edited July 29, 2012 by FraenCache

[+frinklabs]

This functionality exists on an existing site called everytrail.com

 

Here's a trip I did:

 

Cold Creek Conservation Area Caching

 

Note that I had to edit the tracks and remove waypoints afterwards to prevent spoiling the final of a two-stage multi that I did. Not everyone else might remember to do that.

[+FraenCache]

Note that I had to edit the tracks and remove waypoints afterwards to prevent spoiling the final of a two-stage multi that I did. Not everyone else might remember to do that.

 

ah, good point, never thought about that it would spoil multis ... but true ... also never seen this site. I´ll have a look. but I think it would be more handy if it was implemented directly in the gc profile, not on an extra website. but thanks for your reply anyways!

[7rxc]

Note that I had to edit the tracks and remove waypoints afterwards to prevent spoiling the final of a two-stage multi that I did. Not everyone else might remember to do that.

 

ah, good point, never thought about that it would spoil multis ... but true ... also never seen this site. I´ll have a look. but I think it would be more handy if it was implemented directly in the gc profile, not on an extra website. but thanks for your reply anyways!

 

While displaying tracks might be a good idea, done in the right way, there will be those with privacy concerns. Recently I was at a friends place and noticed it was right next door to a house that I had Identified from a track file a cacher had sent me. I had never met them or even known they used to live with their parents there while growing up. When I recognized some geocache related stickers on a vehicle parked there, I said hi and introduced myself. Question was HOW did you know we were here? Pointed to the vehicle as confirmation, and mentioned backtracking the track file sent as how and where.

 

So, a file that was improperly edited or even saved could concern some, most likely the ones that would NOT do it correctly.

It took me a while to figure out how to isolate tracks while saving, usually I was getting a sort of master log of everything the GPS knew about and editing was possible but a real pain to do. Now I know to store it onto the SD card under it's own name. And to not start it up at home all the time, but at the trail head or near by.

 

Just more to consider, worry about and often forget... as well as turning it on and storing/ uploading etc.

Seems a bit more than most would do. I sometimes move tracks over to GE via Mapsource, or just place map pins there for a record.

But I don't see a pressing need to show all these different displays on my profile at all. Feel free to request it if you do though, it's an open game.

 

Doug 7rxc

[jri]

This sounds like an interesting idea to me. Some of the security concerns could be got around by showing a preview of the track before making it public,or by allowing tracks to be shared only with friends, but I think the problem of spoilers would always be an issue. Also, there would be the technical challenge for Groundspeak to manage all the track data: depending on the settings you use to record your logs, the files can be quite big.

 

I do like the idea of being able to show track logs on the map though. I've already got a Greasemonkey script that will let me drag and drop a GPX file onto the map to see the waypoints it holds. In the next version, I'm planning to extend it to display GPX format tracks and routes. That will give similar functionality to what FraenCache suggested, but without the tracks actually being shared (which removes the privacy issue). You can always email GPX files to your mates to share them, and I guess that that's not going to be any worse a spoiler than phoning a friend.