Dual icon for Geocache maps and apps.

[+Chris-King]

One thing that is semi-frustrating, is the icon used on the Geocaching web maps for ownership:

1. If you own a cache from start (and don't find one of your own caches of course!) it shows up as a 'STAR' to show ownership.

2. A cache unfound shows a box (standard, multi, ? etc as per normal)

3. A found cache shows as a smiley icon.

 

The problem comes from when you find a cache that is owned by another cache owner and of course it changes to a smiley - then the cache owner passes the cache to you after to adopt it, or you adopt a cache you did when under the original CO, alas at this point, you still have a smiley on the map to show your find when originally logged under the original CO, but alas you can not see the 'STAR' icon to show ownership.

Would it not be possible for Groundspeak / Geocaching to introduce a new icon which consists of a small star and smiley (Small star top/smiley bottom) on the icon to show you now own but found originally under another CO?

 

I raised this as a ticket on the GeoCaching support ticket desk and had this reply.

Hi Chris,

 

Thanks for contacting us at Geocaching HQ with your feedback and suggestion. This seems like a potentially viable idea for the game and I will pass it onto the "powers that be." Since this is a concept that may affect many Geocachers around the world, I suggest that you also post this thought in the Geocaching.com forums to get a sense of what the rest of the community thinks. There are many angles to consider on a new concept and we like to get the opinions of the community to be sure that everything has been considered.

 

Thank you again.

 

Annika

Community Manage

 

Sounds like this is possible and good enhancement and one Groundspeak might do, but would be good to get more support from others to get this idea off the ground..

 

Chris

[+Walts Hunting]

You got the canned response. Personally that scenario is so small (and I have one that fits that category) that it isn't worth the time to do it. There a multitude of things for them to work on more important than this.

[+Chris-King]

You got the canned response. Personally that scenario is so small (and I have one that fits that category) that it isn't worth the time to do it. There a multitude of things for them to work on more important than this.

I probably did, but I suppose if enough people like the idea, it could be added or dropped in .. dont see why it should be a major change?

[Moun10Bike]

This would be a nice feature on the map, but it is not as easy to implement as it might appear. First, the creative team would have to be tasked with creating new icons for the situation. Then, the dev teams would have to revamp the code on the map and in the apps to account for situations where a given cache is both found and owned by the account viewing it (right now, the two states are mutually exclusive, with find status taking precedence over hide status). That's a fair amount of resources to devote to something that is of use to a vanishingly small number of users. If we were flush with resources this would be a reasonable request, but given the size of our backlog I don't realistically see us addressing this anytime soon.

[+Chris-King]

This would be a nice feature on the map, but it is not as easy to implement as it might appear. First, the creative team would have to be tasked with creating new icons for the situation. Then, the dev teams would have to revamp the code on the map and in the apps to account for situations where a given cache is both found and owned by the account viewing it (right now, the two states are mutually exclusive, with find status taking precedence over hide status). That's a fair amount of resources to devote to something that is of use to a vanishingly small number of users. If we were flush with resources this would be a reasonable request, but given the size of our backlog I don't realistically see us addressing this anytime soon.

Fair enough and I do understand work commitments - but please can it be kept on the 'nice to have list' or the 'if can be addressed when doing any work on that area?' list

[+joshuar9476]

I'd be fine if it "owned" took prescience over found. I have two caches I adopted after i found them. I'd prefer they show a star and not a smiley.