+Team Microdot Posted November 1, 2013 Share Posted November 1, 2013 So there's a local challenge cache that I almost qualify for - I need to find caches with names which start with 0 to 9 in number and chronological order. So I'd obviously like to search out those caches closest to me which would enable me to complete the challenge - but the search function on geocaching.com seems... limited? Firstly there's a text box there on the search form labelled Cache Starts with - so I type 8 in there - expecting to see caches with names which begin with 8 followed by any other string of characters... nope All I get back is a list of caches called 8 - even though I know caches with names which match what I'm looking for exist. Is that text field incorrectly named? Should it be named Cache is called? Even if the search form returned a suitable list of results - I'm not sure it would order that list based on distance from my home coordinates - probably not Is the search function fundamentally broken, or am I just doing something wrong? Are there any wildcards I can use in the search string to get the results I need? Quote Link to comment
+redwoodkestrel Posted November 1, 2013 Share Posted November 1, 2013 So there's a local challenge cache that I almost qualify for - I need to find caches with names which start with 0 to 9 in number and chronological order. So I'd obviously like to search out those caches closest to me which would enable me to complete the challenge - but the search function on geocaching.com seems... limited? Firstly there's a text box there on the search form labelled Cache Starts with - so I type 8 in there - expecting to see caches with names which begin with 8 followed by any other string of characters... nope All I get back is a list of caches called 8 - even though I know caches with names which match what I'm looking for exist. Is that text field incorrectly named? Should it be named Cache is called? Even if the search form returned a suitable list of results - I'm not sure it would order that list based on distance from my home coordinates - probably not Is the search function fundamentally broken, or am I just doing something wrong? Are there any wildcards I can use in the search string to get the results I need? Yeah, the search function is incredibly limited. Usually if you're looking for caches with certain words in the title, you can go to Google and type "site:geocaching.com _________ (whatever word you're looking for)" but that's not going to work very well with numbers. When I was doing an alphanumeric challenge, GSAK was my savior - I could load in a bunch of pocket queries from around my area and then sort or search by the cache name. I also would look at the caches that other cachers used to fulfill the challenge to see which ones were in the area. Not the easiest solution, but I hope that helps! Quote Link to comment
+Team Microdot Posted November 1, 2013 Author Share Posted November 1, 2013 I was afraid GSAK would come to the fore - it's not something I've got to grips with as the interface makes me want to scream and run away I did take a look at the qualifying caches used by others but a lot of them are archived / too far away / I've already found them - but not in the required order. I'll take another look though as someone has just updated their list as the original had a non-qualifying cache in it Quote Link to comment
+Walts Hunting Posted November 1, 2013 Share Posted November 1, 2013 The answer to all "how do I" questions is GSAK. Quote Link to comment
+redwoodkestrel Posted November 1, 2013 Share Posted November 1, 2013 I was afraid GSAK would come to the fore - it's not something I've got to grips with as the interface makes me want to scream and run away I did take a look at the qualifying caches used by others but a lot of them are archived / too far away / I've already found them - but not in the required order. I'll take another look though as someone has just updated their list as the original had a non-qualifying cache in it Ha, yeah, I'm pretty sure I'm only using like, 17% of GSAK's capabilities. If you want to tell me the area you're looking in (or want to send me some pocket queries you've run in the area - that way they could exclude caches you've already found) I'd be happy to do some GSAK magic searching for you. Though it would have to wait a few hours, since my work computer is a Mac and thus doesn't have GSAK on it. Quote Link to comment
+Team Microdot Posted November 1, 2013 Author Share Posted November 1, 2013 If you want to tell me the area you're looking in (or want to send me some pocket queries you've run in the area - that way they could exclude caches you've already found) I'd be happy to do some GSAK magic searching for you. Though it would have to wait a few hours, since my work computer is a Mac and thus doesn't have GSAK on it. That's a really kind offer - thanks I'm going to have another stab at getting to grips with GSAK first though - even though it makes me cringe I may still take you up on the offer at some point though - if it gets the better of me Quote Link to comment
+redwoodkestrel Posted November 1, 2013 Share Posted November 1, 2013 No worries, just let me know! Shouldn't take more than a few minutes. Quote Link to comment
+Team Microdot Posted November 1, 2013 Author Share Posted November 1, 2013 No worries, just let me know! Shouldn't take more than a few minutes. I managed to crank up my old install of GSAK and after two 550 second nag delays purged the database and important my nearest 1000 unfound caches from a PQ None of the numbers I need are in that list As far as I can see I'm faced with picking a cache centroid at random, running a 1000 cache PQ, porting it all into GSAK, as many times as it takes to find the caches I need. Isn't it a shame the website doesn't provide adequate tools to support the types of caches that can be published i.e. the means to locate the caches required to complete challenge caches Quote Link to comment
+Harry Dolphin Posted November 1, 2013 Share Posted November 1, 2013 While it is sad that the search function has been degraded, what you need to do is to run a series of pocket queries. (I run 25 pockets queries a week, which covers the entire state of New Jersey, and any other caches within 65 miles. Not that I usually roam that far. Yeah, that gives me 25000 caches...) I can find 0-9 within 25 miles. Depending if the challenge accepts #1, instead of 1, &c. What you need is more pocket queries based on your home location. Quote Link to comment
Keystone Posted November 2, 2013 Share Posted November 2, 2013 For non-GSAK users, I recommend using the wildcard search feature accessed from the dashboard page at Project-GC.com. Ask for all caches with the desired number that are located within your country or region, then sort the results on the "name" column and scroll to the right part of the list. Yes, it's true that not every advanced search feature is available on the website. But by partnering with API partners like GSAK and Project-GC, the API allows for very rich features without so much strain on the live database. Quote Link to comment
+Walts Hunting Posted November 2, 2013 Share Posted November 2, 2013 I do have to applaud the continuing development of the API. It has made possible so many things. I use GSAK and Clyde has kept up with the newest features like tracking favorites and working with bookmark lists. Keep it up. Quote Link to comment
+Team Microdot Posted November 2, 2013 Author Share Posted November 2, 2013 Yes, it's true that not every advanced search feature is available on the website. But by partnering with API partners like GSAK and Project-GC, the API allows for very rich features without so much strain on the live database. When I see a text box labelled Cache Starts with I don't expect it to return a list which includes only caches which start and end with exactly and only what I type into that box Nor would I class this as an advanced search feature - surely it's just a standard sliding search query? I'm also confused as to how offloading the ability to run a standard sliding search to an API partner reduces the strain on the live database - unless the API partner has a local copy of the database? Quote Link to comment
+Team Microdot Posted November 3, 2013 Author Share Posted November 3, 2013 In fact it's not even a sliding search - that would search for the given string anywhere in the chosen field, which would be more processor intensive than the simple search we're talking about here. Quote Link to comment
+Team Microdot Posted November 6, 2013 Author Share Posted November 6, 2013 Yes, it's true that not every advanced search feature is available on the website. But by partnering with API partners like GSAK and Project-GC, the API allows for very rich features without so much strain on the live database. When I see a text box labelled Cache Starts with I don't expect it to return a list which includes only caches which start and end with exactly and only what I type into that box Nor would I class this as an advanced search feature - surely it's just a standard sliding search query? I'm also confused as to how offloading the ability to run a standard sliding search to an API partner reduces the strain on the live database - unless the API partner has a local copy of the database? I was rather hoping Keystone might respond further to the queries (pardon the pun) raised above? Quote Link to comment
Keystone Posted November 6, 2013 Share Posted November 6, 2013 (edited) I gave a helpful answer that met the OP's needs, and which didn't involve GSAK. I was rather expecting a reply from the OP which had the words "thank you" in there somewhere -- more along the lines of the reply from Walts Hunting. Remember, this the "How Do I...?" forum. Edited November 6, 2013 by Keystone Quote Link to comment
+Team Microdot Posted November 6, 2013 Author Share Posted November 6, 2013 I gave a helpful answer that met the OP's needs, and which didn't involve GSAK. I was rather expecting a reply from the OP which had the words "thank you" in there somewhere -- more along the lines of the reply from Walts Hunting. Remember, this the "How Do I...?" forum. Sorry - you're quite right - I forgot to thank you for the useful information which did actually get me the information I needed - so thanks for that Do you think I should raise my further queries in the Geocaching.com Web Site forum? Quote Link to comment
+dizzabella Posted November 6, 2013 Share Posted November 6, 2013 For non-GSAK users, I recommend using the wildcard search feature accessed from the dashboard page at Project-GC.com. Ask for all caches with the desired number that are located within your country or region, then sort the results on the "name" column and scroll to the right part of the list. Yes, it's true that not every advanced search feature is available on the website. But by partnering with API partners like GSAK and Project-GC, the API allows for very rich features without so much strain on the live database. Okay, so what is Project-GC. I can't find anything that is called that. To be honest the search by name function on geocaching.com is useless and a waste of space. Quote Link to comment
+J Grouchy Posted November 6, 2013 Share Posted November 6, 2013 For non-GSAK users, I recommend using the wildcard search feature accessed from the dashboard page at Project-GC.com. Ask for all caches with the desired number that are located within your country or region, then sort the results on the "name" column and scroll to the right part of the list. Yes, it's true that not every advanced search feature is available on the website. But by partnering with API partners like GSAK and Project-GC, the API allows for very rich features without so much strain on the live database. Okay, so what is Project-GC. I can't find anything that is called that. To be honest the search by name function on geocaching.com is useless and a waste of space. http://project-gc.com/ Quote Link to comment
+dizzabella Posted November 6, 2013 Share Posted November 6, 2013 For non-GSAK users, I recommend using the wildcard search feature accessed from the dashboard page at Project-GC.com. Ask for all caches with the desired number that are located within your country or region, then sort the results on the "name" column and scroll to the right part of the list. Yes, it's true that not every advanced search feature is available on the website. But by partnering with API partners like GSAK and Project-GC, the API allows for very rich features without so much strain on the live database. Okay, so what is Project-GC. I can't find anything that is called that. To be honest the search by name function on geocaching.com is useless and a waste of space. http://project-gc.com/ thank you Quote Link to comment
+J Grouchy Posted November 7, 2013 Share Posted November 7, 2013 For non-GSAK users, I recommend using the wildcard search feature accessed from the dashboard page at Project-GC.com. Ask for all caches with the desired number that are located within your country or region, then sort the results on the "name" column and scroll to the right part of the list. Yes, it's true that not every advanced search feature is available on the website. But by partnering with API partners like GSAK and Project-GC, the API allows for very rich features without so much strain on the live database. Okay, so what is Project-GC. I can't find anything that is called that. To be honest the search by name function on geocaching.com is useless and a waste of space. http://project-gc.com/ thank you Doesn't change the fact that it's utterly ridiculous that GC does not have such a search function already built in to their own site. Why should we have to go to a third-party? It makes zero sense. Quote Link to comment
+Team Microdot Posted November 7, 2013 Author Share Posted November 7, 2013 Doesn't change the fact that it's utterly ridiculous that GC does not have such a search function already built in to their own site. Why should we have to go to a third-party? It makes zero sense. While I agree that it's inconvenient/frustrating/slightly baffling that this search functionality doesn't exist within geocaching.com I'd be willing to learn more about the reasons why it is so before branding it ridiculous- and enter into any dialogue with TPTB that might see some improvements. In the absence of any further response from TPTB or their volunteer representatives within this thread - or even an indication as to the proper place to raise such queries, I've partially duplicated the thread here, in the hope that the current wall of silence around this might be broken and useful dialogue might continue. Fingers crossed Quote Link to comment
Jayme H Posted November 11, 2013 Share Posted November 11, 2013 It looks like some helpful information was given to the OP here. Thanks guys! I LOVE useful dialogue and so I have joined up with the partially duplicated thread. Quote Link to comment
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.