Coordinates & checksum

[+StreetTeam1]

Hello,

 

I have had a look and couldn't find anything relating to my question. I am wondering about when doing a multi cache. So you are given questions and equations to work out final coordinates for GZ, sometimes CO' s will provide a hint that you can check to make sure your coordinates add up the the answer they have provided. However I do not understand the equation that needs to be used, because I was working on one yesterday which told me that the sum of the EAST coordinates would be 24. But my E coordinates start with 144 (down here in sunny Vic, Australia) can anyone help me out with this please.

[+Glimmereyes]

Hello,

 

I have had a look and couldn't find anything relating to my question. I am wondering about when doing a multi cache. So you are given questions and equations to work out final coordinates for GZ, sometimes CO' s will provide a hint that you can check to make sure your coordinates add up the the answer they have provided. However I do not understand the equation that needs to be used, because I was working on one yesterday which told me that the sum of the EAST coordinates would be 24. But my E coordinates start with 144 (down here in sunny Vic, Australia) can anyone help me out with this please.

They might mean that the sum of each decimal place will be 24. 1+4+4=9 so hope your coords aren't 144 00.000

[+niraD]

As Glimmereyes indicated, you add all the individual digits. For example, if the coordinates are:

N 37° 25.502 W 122° 06.834

 

Then the checksum is:

3 + 7 + 2 + 5 + 5 + 0 + 2 + 1 + 2 + 2 + 0 + 6 + 8 + 3 + 4 = 50

 

and the north checksum is:

3 + 7 + 2 + 5 + 5 + 0 + 2 = 24

 

and the west checksum is:

1 + 2 + 2 + 0 + 6 + 8 + 3 + 4 = 26

 

One other thing to keep in mind is that some multi-caches and puzzle caches provide a checksum that includes only the unknown coordinates. For example, if the seeker has to determine the values of A=F in the coordinates

N 37° 25.ABC W 122° 06.DEF

then the cache owner might provide only a 6-digit checksum (A+B+C+D+E+F). Or if the seeker has to determine the values A-J in the coordinates

N 37° AB.CDE W 122° FG.HIJ

then the cache owner might provide only a 10-digit checksum (A+B+C+D+E+F+G+H+I+J).

[+dprovan]

One other thing to keep in mind is that some multi-caches and puzzle caches provide a checksum that includes only the unknown coordinates. For example, if the seeker has to determine the values of A=F in the coordinates

N 37° 25.ABC W 122° 06.DEF

then the cache owner might provide only a 6-digit checksum (A+B+C+D+E+F). Or if the seeker has to determine the values A-J in the coordinates

N 37° AB.CDE W 122° FG.HIJ

then the cache owner might provide only a 10-digit checksum (A+B+C+D+E+F+G+H+I+J).

And just to be clear about what niraD is saying: they might mean this, or they might mean the sum of all 15 digits. Generally, one or the other will be close enough for you to know which is being used, and I recommend that anyone specifying a checksum be explicit. (Although there's a puzzle cache that depends on the checksum being really low suggesting that it's a checksum of unknown digits, but, it turns out, the digits you have to figure out are so low that they add very little to the known digits.)

 

Checksums are almost always the sum of the individual digits. I've seen a few checksums that involved multiple digits taken together for one reason or another, but those have always been quite clear about which are being summed how.