Pocket Queries

[+acachebox]

I have a Garmin 450. I have loaded several small PQs and have some questions. It looks like the information loaded reflects caches I had found with my I Phone before I got the 450. Is this correct? For some reason it did not load ALL caches in the area I requested even though they were placed long before the PQ. It also did not got out the distance I requested on one direction. I had asked for a 10 mile radius from town and it only gave results out about 3 miles in one direction even though there are many caches in the unlisted area.

 

What are the idiosyncrasies I am missing.

 

Also if I do a much larger PQ over the area already in the 450 what happens?

[+Gitchee-Gummee]

If this was from your home location:

 

...asked for a 10 mile radius from town and it only gave results out about 3 miles in one direction...

For one thing... if your shortened distance was to the southwest... well, that is PA, not NJ. Am guessing that one of your parameters was for the state of NJ, correct?

 

It looks like the information loaded reflects caches I had found with my I Phone before I got the 450.

Did you exclude caches that "You Have Found"?

 

For some reason it did not load ALL caches in the area I requested even though they were placed long before the PQ.

A 10-mile radius in a cache-rich environment can be a large number of caches. Did you exceed to the total allotted number (including child waypoints)?

Edited July 21, 2013 by Gitchee-Gummee

[+acachebox]

If this was from your home location:

 

...asked for a 10 mile radius from town and it only gave results out about 3 miles in one direction...

For one thing... if your shortened distance was to the southwest... well, that is PA, not NJ. Am guessing that one of your parameters was for the state of NJ, correct?

 

The short fall was to the north and well within New Jersey

 

It looks like the information loaded reflects caches I had found with my I Phone before I got the 450.

Did you exclude caches that "You Have Found"?

 

Not sure on thst point, but a good point

 

For some reason it did not load ALL caches in the area I requested even though they were placed long before the PQ.

A 10-mile radius in a cache-rich environment can be a large number of caches. Did you exceed to the total allotted number (including child waypoints)?

 

The total count on the PQ was under 500

 

A Bigger Question. If I do a general PQ that reflects more than 500 caches but includes the current caches will it just load over top of the current caches and include them?

[+Gitchee-Gummee]

If you are loading via drag 'n drop method, dropping a new GPX loading will overwrite the older one. I dunno about the results using a loading program. With GSAK, you can create methods to work around that if you want, so I'm told.

We load our unit (a Delorme) by (re)naming each file prior to dragging it to the unit. We keep them separated that way, usually by area(s). This is handy for trips and the like. I do not know if that would work for a Garmin or not.

 

We don't usually leave a PQ in the unit longer than two weeks (whether caching or not). Any info (data) loaded and older than say... two weeks or so is outdated. New caches are placed, others are archived or disabled all the time. If you use old data, you will end up searching for something that isn't there, while missing its' (new) nearby replacement. PQ's are cheap, you probably won't use 'em up.

 

I have no answer regarding your distance gap to the north.

 

The numbers thing has me stumped, but I do not know what number you selected as a cache limit, either.

I have noticed a couple of threads that discussed the proper numbers of caches not being included in Queries. I don't know if an answer to that was ever found or discovered.

[+acachebox]

 

We load our unit (a Delorme) by (re)naming each file prior to dragging it to the unit. We keep them separated that way, usually by area(s). This is handy for trips and the like. I do not know if that would work for a Garmin or not.

 

 

Which file are you renaming? The original or the new one as you load.

 

How do you remove a PQ file from the unit?

[+Gitchee-Gummee]

 

We load our unit (a Delorme) by (re)naming each file prior to dragging it to the unit. We keep them separated that way, usually by area(s). This is handy for trips and the like. I do not know if that would work for a Garmin or not.

 

 

Which file are you renaming? The original or the new one as you load.

 

How do you remove a PQ file from the unit?

Sorry, should've made that a little more clear. We name a PQ before running it, but lately, we have noticed some queries come through without the name... so, upon downloading the Pocket Query, we immediately go to the folder, right-click for a drop-down window, one choice allows for re-naming of the folder. We then drag 'n drop that folder (making sure the files within are unzipped) to the SD card of the unit.

As we do not use one, I am not completely sure that you can do that with a Garmin unit. I have heard (read) that you can, so take it for what it is worth. If so, naming the file(s) is important to keep them separate.

Using the SD card instead of internal memory allows for more efficient workings of the GPSr as it leaves more free memory. A card will hold many GPX files, far more than internal memory can.

 

As far as removing a file, we simply highlight, right-click > delete the desired file. With a Delorme, we can delete individual caches in the field without having a computer hook-up. I do not believe that you can do such with a current Garmin -- you could with older ones. I understand that for a Garmin, one needs to enter the "[drive]:\garmin\gpx" folder. Once there, delete ONLY files denoted as GPX. You shouldn't mess with other files, unless you are really, really sure you wish to delete them.

It may be unnecessary to delete those files as I understand that adding a new GPX file to the folder overwrites the old one in a Garmin.

You should play around with it and make notes for your own behalf, both with naming the files and with overwriting the old ones. Just make sure that you do not delete anything other than GPX files if you are gonna mess around with deleting.

 

Personally, until I was fully versed (and practiced at it) I would stick with letting the new file overwrite the old one. Less steps involved. Mistakes can happen while deleting... and I hate mistakes.

I simply found that our Delorme accepts the PQ files by name or number. It got confusing keeping track of the numbers, and it was getting clogged with numbered files, so we moved over to naming the files. We name according to the area(s) that we load. It is easier for simple minds to remember names. We even have our owned geocaches in there, named as "Maintenance". Some are really tough to find if you only have to go to them once a year or so (deep in the forest).

[+acachebox]

 

We load our unit (a Delorme) by (re)naming each file prior to dragging it to the unit. We keep them separated that way, usually by area(s). This is handy for trips and the like. I do not know if that would work for a Garmin or not.

 

 

Which file are you renaming? The original or the new one as you load.

 

How do you remove a PQ file from the unit?

 

We even have our owned geocaches in there, named as "Maintenance". Some are really tough to find if you only have to go to them once a year or so (deep in the forest).

 

Great Info

 

You mention your owned caches and that you name that file "Maintenance". That name applies to files that can be seen on your computer. How do you bring up the individual caches on the GPS while out in the field? Or do you make a list before going out?

[+Gitchee-Gummee]

The Delorme allows us to switch between those loaded PQ files having used different names -- as long as they are loaded onto the SD card, through the geocache menu on the unit.

 

Those names are assigned to each particular PQ download before loading it to the GPSr (card).

 

If we go 'caching near Lubbock, we can open the Lubbock file. Later, when we arrive near Detroit, we can open the Detroit file. If we want to check on our deep-woods caches, we open the Maintenance file. Likewise Sudbury, Memphis, Sioux Falls, etc., etc.... endless.

 

Mind you, these particular files do not remain there forever. They are only created before we make such a trip -- aside from that Maintenance file, which pretty much stays as is. If there are more placements going out, it too would be "reloaded", simply by running a PQ only for caches that "I Own" -- one of the PQ parameters.

[+acachebox]

The Delorme allows us to switch between those loaded PQ files having used different names -- as long as they are loaded onto the SD card, through the geocache menu on the unit.

 

Those names are assigned to each particular PQ download before loading it to the GPSr (card).

 

If we go 'caching near Lubbock, we can open the Lubbock file. Later, when we arrive near Detroit, we can open the Detroit file. If we want to check on our deep-woods caches, we open the Maintenance file. Likewise Sudbury, Memphis, Sioux Falls, etc., etc.... endless.

 

Mind you, these particular files do not remain there forever. They are only created before we make such a trip -- aside from that Maintenance file, which pretty much stays as is. If there are more placements going out, it too would be "reloaded", simply by running a PQ only for caches that "I Own" -- one of the PQ parameters.

 

Not sure if I can access areas by name on the Garmin but I have done small PQ for a given area and when in that area and Search for the Nearest they come up. Maybe the same result.