+TheAuthorityFigures Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 I saw this term in another thread and was unfamiliar with it. Looked it up in the help section, but I was wondering if there was a way as a CO to "look up" my GHS? I'm curious, just as I track my credit score, is there a way to track my GHS on GS? Quote Link to comment
Keystone Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 Each of the individual geocaches that you've hidden has a Geocache Health Score. And no, it is not visible. Some community members in another thread are speculating about an aggregate health score for a person, based on their cache hides. I'm glad you took the time to learn about the Geocache Health Score by reading the article in the Help Center. Quote Link to comment
+TheAuthorityFigures Posted March 25, 2017 Author Share Posted March 25, 2017 Each of the individual geocaches that you've hidden has a Geocache Health Score. And no, it is not visible. Some community members in another thread are speculating about an aggregate health score for a person, based on their cache hides. I'm glad you took the time to learn about the Geocache Health Score by reading the article in the Help Center. Thanks for responding. Yes, I know it's not visible, just as my credit score is not visible, but I have the ability to find out my credit score. I guess I was wondering if a CO can also request their GHS? Quote Link to comment
+L0ne.R Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 (edited) Each of the individual geocaches that you've hidden has a Geocache Health Score. And no, it is not visible. Some community members in another thread are speculating about an aggregate health score for a person, based on their cache hides. I'm glad you took the time to learn about the Geocache Health Score by reading the article in the Help Center. Thanks for responding. Yes, I know it's not visible, just as my credit score is not visible, but I have the ability to find out my credit score. I guess I was wondering if a CO can also request their GHS? I don't think it would be to difficult to figure out whether a cache you own is 'healthy' or not. Does it have a lot of DNFs in a row with no response from you. Are there any NMs on the cache? Have you received a reviewer note or disable? Have you checked the cache and posted any OMs? Edited March 25, 2017 by L0ne.R Quote Link to comment
+Mudfrog Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 I know people get curious, otherwise i've never understood why people get so excited to see their credit score. They know what their credit habits are so i'd think it would be fairly obvious to them where they stand. No doubt it's going to be down if they over extend themselves, apply for more credit than they need, and/or are late paying bills. I know my habits, therefore never felt the need to check my credit score. I know my geocaching habits as well so i'm fairly certain i know about where my GHS stands. Quote Link to comment
+TheAuthorityFigures Posted March 25, 2017 Author Share Posted March 25, 2017 I know people get curious, otherwise i've never understood why people get so excited to see their credit score. They know what their credit habits are so i'd think it would be fairly obvious to them where they stand. No doubt it's going to be down if they over extend themselves, apply for more credit than they need, and/or are late paying bills. I know my habits, therefore never felt the need to check my credit score. I know my geocaching habits as well so i'm fairly certain i know about where my GHS stands. All this is correct and I agree with you. As stated, the question was one out of curiosity is all. Quote Link to comment
+barefootjeff Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 (edited) Each of the individual geocaches that you've hidden has a Geocache Health Score. And no, it is not visible. Some community members in another thread are speculating about an aggregate health score for a person, based on their cache hides. I'm glad you took the time to learn about the Geocache Health Score by reading the article in the Help Center. Thanks for responding. Yes, I know it's not visible, just as my credit score is not visible, but I have the ability to find out my credit score. I guess I was wondering if a CO can also request their GHS? I don't think it would be to difficult to figure out whether a cache you own is 'healthy' or not. Does it have a lot of DNFs in a row with no response from you. Are there any NMs on the cache? Have you received a reviewer note or disable? Have you checked the cache and posted any OMs? Many (most?) DNFs have nothing to do with cache health (too many muggles about, a sudden onset of rain, someone just looking in the wrong place or not spotting the clever camo) and don't require any response from the CO, but the Cache Health Score doesn't know any different and treats all DNFs as bad. So yes, a cache can have a poor GHS without the CO being aware of it until the dreaded email comes. Edit to add: And don't forget, just not being found for a long time can also give a cache a poor GHS. Edited March 25, 2017 by barefootjeff Quote Link to comment
+dprovan Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 I know people get curious, otherwise i've never understood why people get so excited to see their credit score. They know what their credit habits are so i'd think it would be fairly obvious to them where they stand. No doubt it's going to be down if they over extend themselves, apply for more credit than they need, and/or are late paying bills. I know my habits, therefore never felt the need to check my credit score. I know my geocaching habits as well so i'm fairly certain i know about where my GHS stands. Even when your credit habits are healthy -- or your cache maintenance habits -- you should check the score in order to find out about mistakes. Quote Link to comment
+niraD Posted March 25, 2017 Share Posted March 25, 2017 It might actually be useful for a CO with more than a handful of caches to sort their active caches in order of Geocache Health Score, to make it easier to identify which of their caches are most in need of attention. 1 Quote Link to comment
+TriciaG Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 I know people get curious, otherwise i've never understood why people get so excited to see their credit score. They know what their credit habits are so i'd think it would be fairly obvious to them where they stand. No doubt it's going to be down if they over extend themselves, apply for more credit than they need, and/or are late paying bills. I know my habits, therefore never felt the need to check my credit score. I know my geocaching habits as well so i'm fairly certain i know about where my GHS stands. Even when your credit habits are healthy -- or your cache maintenance habits -- you should check the score in order to find out about mistakes. Credit REPORT, yes. Credit SCORE, not so much. 1 Quote Link to comment
+Mudfrog Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 I know people get curious, otherwise i've never understood why people get so excited to see their credit score. They know what their credit habits are so i'd think it would be fairly obvious to them where they stand. No doubt it's going to be down if they over extend themselves, apply for more credit than they need, and/or are late paying bills. I know my habits, therefore never felt the need to check my credit score. I know my geocaching habits as well so i'm fairly certain i know about where my GHS stands. Even when your credit habits are healthy -- or your cache maintenance habits -- you should check the score in order to find out about mistakes. Credit REPORT, yes. Credit SCORE, not so much. Exactly! Not that it matters to anyone else but i run one report from one of the 3 credit reporting agencies every 4 months. Matter of fact, i was surprised when the report i ran in January showed that i had a 2nd wife named Barbara. Quote Link to comment
+Team Microdot Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 Many (most?) DNFs have nothing to do with cache health (too many muggles about, a sudden onset of rain, someone just looking in the wrong place or not spotting the clever camo) and don't require any response from the CO, but the Cache Health Score doesn't know any different and treats all DNFs as bad. To what degree? Edit to add: And don't forget, just not being found for a long time can also give a cache a poor GHS. Again, to what degree? Quote Link to comment
+barefootjeff Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 Many (most?) DNFs have nothing to do with cache health (too many muggles about, a sudden onset of rain, someone just looking in the wrong place or not spotting the clever camo) and don't require any response from the CO, but the Cache Health Score doesn't know any different and treats all DNFs as bad. To what degree? Edit to add: And don't forget, just not being found for a long time can also give a cache a poor GHS. Again, to what degree? Does it matter? This thread is about whether a CO can look up their caches' scores and I was responding to LOne.R's list of things affecting it, which omitted the documented "long time since found" criterion, and the statement Does it have a lot of DNFs in a row with no response from you which implies a string of DNFs requires a CO response, which is not the case if none of them had anything to do with cache health. Five people in a row saying "there were too many muggles near GZ" doesn't mean the cache requires maintenance. Quote Link to comment
+TheAuthorityFigures Posted March 26, 2017 Author Share Posted March 26, 2017 So, I guess the answer to my original query is a no? There's no way to request a GHS report? Quote Link to comment
+L0ne.R Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 (edited) So, I guess the answer to my original query is a no? There's no way to request a GHS report? I think that if the GHS were visible, reviewers would end up with more work and hassle dealing with more emails from argumentative owners. Edited March 26, 2017 by L0ne.R 2 Quote Link to comment
+Mudfrog Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 So, I guess the answer to my original query is a no? There's no way to request a GHS report? I think that if the GHS were visible, reviewers would end up with more work and hassle dealing with more emails from argumentative owners. Was thinking this as well. Too many people would feel the score was wrong/unfair and would want to contact their reviewer or Groundspeak to complain. 2 Quote Link to comment
+Team Microdot Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 So, I guess the answer to my original query is a no? There's no way to request a GHS report? No. Quote Link to comment
+Team Microdot Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 Many (most?) DNFs have nothing to do with cache health (too many muggles about, a sudden onset of rain, someone just looking in the wrong place or not spotting the clever camo) and don't require any response from the CO, but the Cache Health Score doesn't know any different and treats all DNFs as bad. To what degree? Edit to add: And don't forget, just not being found for a long time can also give a cache a poor GHS. Again, to what degree? Does it matter? Only if you're trying to pass off your speculation as facts - which it looks like you are. Quote Link to comment
+dprovan Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 Many (most?) DNFs have nothing to do with cache health (too many muggles about, a sudden onset of rain, someone just looking in the wrong place or not spotting the clever camo) and don't require any response from the CO, but the Cache Health Score doesn't know any different and treats all DNFs as bad. To what degree? More than zero, and much more than zero for some caches. Edit to add: And don't forget, just not being found for a long time can also give a cache a poor GHS. Again, to what degree? We have no idea. That's one of the problems. Only if you're trying to pass off your speculation as facts - which it looks like you are. OMG, LOL! This coming from the person that's spent two threads supporting the unproven claim that artificial scores applied mechanically will solve problems that haven't been demonstrated. You can't get a blacker pot! 1 Quote Link to comment
+Team Microdot Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 OMG, LOL! This coming from the person that's spent two threads supporting the unproven claim that artificial scores applied mechanically will solve problems that haven't been demonstrated. You can't get a blacker pot! That's funny What I actually did was took part in two threads which explored the idea that scores like the one in use by Groundspeak as an indicator of cache health might help with problems that I've seen in my local caching environment. Quote Link to comment
+barefootjeff Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 (edited) Many (most?) DNFs have nothing to do with cache health (too many muggles about, a sudden onset of rain, someone just looking in the wrong place or not spotting the clever camo) and don't require any response from the CO, but the Cache Health Score doesn't know any different and treats all DNFs as bad. To what degree? Edit to add: And don't forget, just not being found for a long time can also give a cache a poor GHS. Again, to what degree? Does it matter? Only if you're trying to pass off your speculation as facts - which it looks like you are. Huh? What speculation am I trying to pass off as facts? I said these things: the GHS uses DNFs as in indicator of poor cache health (the Help Centre page says so and personal experience confirmed it); DNFs don't always mean a cache is missing, even if there's a string of them; the GHS algorithm can't distinguish between DNFs that relate to cache health and those that don't; and a long time between finds can also give a cache a poor GHS (the Help Centre page says this too). Edit: fixed acronyms Edited March 26, 2017 by barefootjeff Quote Link to comment
+Team Microdot Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 Many (most?) DNFs have nothing to do with cache health (too many muggles about, a sudden onset of rain, someone just looking in the wrong place or not spotting the clever camo) and don't require any response from the CO, but the Cache Health Score doesn't know any different and treats all DNFs as bad. To what degree? Edit to add: And don't forget, just not being found for a long time can also give a cache a poor GHS. Again, to what degree? Does it matter? Only if you're trying to pass off your speculation as facts - which it looks like you are. Huh? What speculation am I trying to pass off as facts? I said these things: the GHS uses DNFs as in indicator of poor cache health (the Help Centre page says so and personal experience confirmed it); DNFs don't always mean a cache is missing, even if there's a string of them; the GHS algorithm can't distinguish between DNFs that relate to cache health and those that don't; and a long time between finds can also give a cache a poor GHS (the Help Centre page says this too). Edit: fixed acronyms You actually said that the geocache health score treats all DNF's as bad and that just not being found for a long time can also give a geocache a poor Geocache Health Score. I asked to what degree in which case because I felt that your terminology suggested the Geocache Health Score treats those two parameters aggressively but it could also be true that those two parameters have a tiny impact on the Geocache Health Score. The fact is that none of us know how to what degree those factors impact on the Geocache Health Score. That's what I wanted to clarify. I assume you're referring to the information on this page when you claim that a long time between finds can also give a cache a poor Geocache Health Score. That page actually says: This algorithm is based on a combination of logs and circumstances, including Did Not Find (DNF) Needs Maintenance (NM) Needs Archived (NA) Caches that have not been found in a long time Difficulty and terrain rating Hopefully now you see the disconnects between what you said and the facts as we know them. You might consider them subtle differences but they are certainly biased towards the GHS being a bad thing. I don't think the GHS is a bad thing - I think it's a good thing. Quote Link to comment
+barefootjeff Posted March 26, 2017 Share Posted March 26, 2017 Many (most?) DNFs have nothing to do with cache health (too many muggles about, a sudden onset of rain, someone just looking in the wrong place or not spotting the clever camo) and don't require any response from the CO, but the Cache Health Score doesn't know any different and treats all DNFs as bad. To what degree? Edit to add: And don't forget, just not being found for a long time can also give a cache a poor GHS. Again, to what degree? Does it matter? Only if you're trying to pass off your speculation as facts - which it looks like you are. Huh? What speculation am I trying to pass off as facts? I said these things: the GHS uses DNFs as in indicator of poor cache health (the Help Centre page says so and personal experience confirmed it); DNFs don't always mean a cache is missing, even if there's a string of them; the GHS algorithm can't distinguish between DNFs that relate to cache health and those that don't; and a long time between finds can also give a cache a poor GHS (the Help Centre page says this too). Edit: fixed acronyms You actually said that the geocache health score treats all DNF's as bad and that just not being found for a long time can also give a geocache a poor Geocache Health Score. I asked to what degree in which case because I felt that your terminology suggested the Geocache Health Score treats those two parameters aggressively but it could also be true that those two parameters have a tiny impact on the Geocache Health Score. The fact is that none of us know how to what degree those factors impact on the Geocache Health Score. That's what I wanted to clarify. I assume you're referring to the information on this page when you claim that a long time between finds can also give a cache a poor Geocache Health Score. That page actually says: This algorithm is based on a combination of logs and circumstances, including Did Not Find (DNF) Needs Maintenance (NM) Needs Archived (NA) Caches that have not been found in a long time Difficulty and terrain rating Hopefully now you see the disconnects between what you said and the facts as we know them. You might consider them subtle differences but they are certainly biased towards the GHS being a bad thing. I don't think the GHS is a bad thing - I think it's a good thing. If you go back to the original Release Notes thread announcing the algorithm, and the response from the lackeys in that thread, it's pretty clear the intent is to send the email when a cache simply hasn't been found for a long time. The GHS might well be a good thing in places where cache maintenance is an endemic problem, but that's not true everywhere, and in places where the false positives outnumber the true positives, it's a bad thing. My other main concerns are its reliance on DNFs as an indicator of poor cache health, particularly in the absence of any NMs or NAs, and the lack of any clear way for a CO to properly respond to a false positive. Quote Link to comment
+SwineFlew Posted March 27, 2017 Share Posted March 27, 2017 So, I guess the answer to my original query is a no? There's no way to request a GHS report? I think that if the GHS were visible, reviewers would end up with more work and hassle dealing with more emails from argumentative owners. Muahahaha... Oh yes... we all know that. I would love to know my GHS so I know where I stand. Not to have a fight with them. Do I need to improve or am I in good standing. The problem is, many CO dont like to hear ANYTHING negatives about their "wonderful" cache. Quote Link to comment
+dprovan Posted March 27, 2017 Share Posted March 27, 2017 OMG, LOL! This coming from the person that's spent two threads supporting the unproven claim that artificial scores applied mechanically will solve problems that haven't been demonstrated. You can't get a blacker pot! That's funny What I actually did was took part in two threads which explored the idea that scores like the one in use by Groundspeak as an indicator of cache health might help with problems that I've seen in my local caching environment. You say that as if it changes the fact that everything you've said has been based on your speculation passed off as facts. Quote Link to comment
+Team Microdot Posted March 27, 2017 Share Posted March 27, 2017 Many (most?) DNFs have nothing to do with cache health (too many muggles about, a sudden onset of rain, someone just looking in the wrong place or not spotting the clever camo) and don't require any response from the CO, but the Cache Health Score doesn't know any different and treats all DNFs as bad. To what degree? Edit to add: And don't forget, just not being found for a long time can also give a cache a poor GHS. Again, to what degree? Does it matter? Only if you're trying to pass off your speculation as facts - which it looks like you are. Huh? What speculation am I trying to pass off as facts? I said these things: the GHS uses DNFs as in indicator of poor cache health (the Help Centre page says so and personal experience confirmed it); DNFs don't always mean a cache is missing, even if there's a string of them; the GHS algorithm can't distinguish between DNFs that relate to cache health and those that don't; and a long time between finds can also give a cache a poor GHS (the Help Centre page says this too). Edit: fixed acronyms You actually said that the geocache health score treats all DNF's as bad and that just not being found for a long time can also give a geocache a poor Geocache Health Score. I asked to what degree in which case because I felt that your terminology suggested the Geocache Health Score treats those two parameters aggressively but it could also be true that those two parameters have a tiny impact on the Geocache Health Score. The fact is that none of us know how to what degree those factors impact on the Geocache Health Score. That's what I wanted to clarify. I assume you're referring to the information on this page when you claim that a long time between finds can also give a cache a poor Geocache Health Score. That page actually says: This algorithm is based on a combination of logs and circumstances, including Did Not Find (DNF) Needs Maintenance (NM) Needs Archived (NA) Caches that have not been found in a long time Difficulty and terrain rating Hopefully now you see the disconnects between what you said and the facts as we know them. You might consider them subtle differences but they are certainly biased towards the GHS being a bad thing. I don't think the GHS is a bad thing - I think it's a good thing. If you go back to the original Release Notes thread announcing the algorithm, and the response from the lackeys in that thread, it's pretty clear the intent is to send the email when a cache simply hasn't been found for a long time. I've skimmed that thread taking into account mainly posts by Groundspeak representatives and I can't see anything which substantiates your claim. From personal experience, I have caches which haven't been found for months on end and I am yet to receive an email from Groundspeak about them. Quote Link to comment
+Lati.dude Posted September 18, 2017 Share Posted September 18, 2017 On 3/25/2017 at 0:54 PM, Keystone said: Each of the individual geocaches that you've hidden has a Geocache Health Score. ... Does the algorithm for Geocache Health Score pull any data from "Your Unpublished Disabled Caches" (i.e. caches that are in preparation, but not yet submitted for review or published)? In the Help Center, Geocache Health Score is described in Section 6.3, within Chapter 6 "Ownership after publication." This suggests that Geocache Health Score is based on just published caches. Even if all of your published caches are properly maintained, however, if you have an unpublished disabled cache, when you start the process to prepare a new listing, you get the prompt page "Your Existing Geocaches May Need Attention. Before you submit a new geocache, it looks like one or more of your existing geocaches may need some attention: [GC..... - Unpublished, Temporarily Disabled] You may continue creating a new geocache, however, we recommend making sure your existing geocaches are in tip-top shape before you do." Quote Link to comment
Keystone Posted September 18, 2017 Share Posted September 18, 2017 The Geocache Health Score is only calculated for published caches. Quote Link to comment
+bflentje Posted September 18, 2017 Share Posted September 18, 2017 It'd be nice for cache owners to see the health score of their caches to incentivize those that are motivated to make better cache maintenance and placement decisions. But I suspect it will remain a secret. Quote Link to comment
+L0ne.R Posted September 18, 2017 Share Posted September 18, 2017 19 minutes ago, bflentje said: It'd be nice for cache owners to see the health score of their caches to incentivize those that are motivated to make better cache maintenance and placement decisions. But I suspect it will remain a secret. I think it will remain a secret to prevent a large number of disgruntled cache owners from complaining that their health score is not fair or accurate. Quote Link to comment
+justintim1999 Posted September 19, 2017 Share Posted September 19, 2017 17 hours ago, L0ne.R said: I think it will remain a secret to prevent a large number of disgruntled cache owners from complaining that their health score is not fair or accurate. Boy there's some truth to that, although disgruntling bad cache owners wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing. I'd at least like to know how it's calculated and to what degree certain "activities" effect it. Quote Link to comment
+redsox_mark Posted September 19, 2017 Share Posted September 19, 2017 2 hours ago, justintim1999 said: Boy there's some truth to that, although disgruntling bad cache owners wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing. I'd at least like to know how it's calculated and to what degree certain "activities" effect it. We don't know the algorithm, but we know what effects it to some extent. (What is published is Quoted at the bottom of this post). So things we can do as owners to improve the score: - Address issues and perform maintenance if NM or NA logged. - Adjust the D/T rating if needed. (e.g. if a cache is getting a lot of DNFs but is there, perhaps the D should be higher?). Additionally, if we desire: - Add hints or change the hide to make it easier, to reduce DNFs. - For a cache which seldom gets attempted, hide other caches in the area to encourage more finders. Then there are some things we don't know if they help or not. e.g. - Check the cache and log a Owner Maintenance after a DNF if the cache is there. This algorithm is based on a combination of logs and circumstances, including Did Not Find (DNF) Needs Maintenance (NM) Needs Archived (NA) Caches that have not been found in a long time Difficulty and terrain rating Quote Link to comment
+justintim1999 Posted September 19, 2017 Share Posted September 19, 2017 I'm sure all those things have an effect. I'd love to know the specifics so I could put on my reviewers hat and see exactly how I'd interpret these cache scores and how I think I'd handle them. Probably no different than there being handled now. Quote Link to comment
+Team Microdot Posted September 19, 2017 Share Posted September 19, 2017 3 minutes ago, justintim1999 said: I'm sure all those things have an effect. I'd love to know the specifics so I could put on my reviewers hat and see exactly how I'd interpret these cache scores and how I think I'd handle them. Probably no different than there being handled now. Would that be a tin hat by any chance? Quote Link to comment
+justintim1999 Posted September 19, 2017 Share Posted September 19, 2017 Just now, Team Microdot said: Would that be a tin hat by any chance? In my case probably a straw hat. Quote Link to comment
+Team Microdot Posted September 19, 2017 Share Posted September 19, 2017 4 minutes ago, justintim1999 said: 4 minutes ago, Team Microdot said: Would that be a tin hat by any chance? In my case probably a straw hat. I would recommend something more sturdy. Quote Link to comment
+justintim1999 Posted September 19, 2017 Share Posted September 19, 2017 I would If I only had a brain. But I do have a big heart. Quote Link to comment
+niraD Posted September 19, 2017 Share Posted September 19, 2017 5 hours ago, justintim1999 said: I'd at least like to know how it's calculated and to what degree certain "activities" effect it. I would imagine that something like this is not static. So even if they revealed the formula they're using this month, that information would be obsolete next month. It might not change as often as Google changes its search algorithms, but I'm sure it's being tweaked on a regular basis. Quote Link to comment
+Team Microdot Posted September 19, 2017 Share Posted September 19, 2017 3 minutes ago, niraD said: I would imagine that something like this is not static. So even if they revealed the formula they're using this month, that information would be obsolete next month. It might not change as often as Google changes its search algorithms, but I'm sure it's being tweaked on a regular basis. I highly doubt it's that sophisticated. Quote Link to comment
Keystone Posted September 19, 2017 Share Posted September 19, 2017 The cache health algorithm is pretty sophisticated, and it's tweaked from time to time in response to feedback. One such tweak is in testing right now, for deployment in the near future. Some of that feedback comes from reviewers, who can see each cache's health score. We can, and do, question why a cache triggered a reminder email to the owner under certain circumstances that, as geocachers, we'd call premature, and where, as reviewers, we would not take action. The opposite is also true: "why didn't this 1/1 cache with eight straight DNF's over the past year not trigger an email reminder to the owner?" Geocaching HQ is unlikely ever to share the exact details of the algorithm, or the health score for a particular cache. That could cause reactions ranging from "why is my cache rated a B+ when I think it should be an A+?" to people gaming the system in various ways to trick the algorithm into producing an artificially high health score. 8 Quote Link to comment
+Mudfrog Posted September 19, 2017 Share Posted September 19, 2017 Keystone, only a thousand to go! Oops, sorry to be off topic,, but the 19,000 was kinda noticeable. Quote Link to comment
+RufusClupea Posted September 20, 2017 Share Posted September 20, 2017 10 hours ago, redsox_mark said: This algorithm is based on a combination of logs and circumstances, including Did Not Find (DNF) Needs Maintenance (NM) Needs Archived (NA) Caches that have not been found in a long time Difficulty and terrain rating Does that mean due to a string of DNFs, or might it happen just because nobody looked for it in a long time? It also makes me wonder if a health score or CO might be penalized for hiding a cache too well? Perhaps the algorithm accounts for high D/T in that respect? Quote Link to comment
+Touchstone Posted September 20, 2017 Share Posted September 20, 2017 1 hour ago, RufusClupea said: Does that mean due to a string of DNFs, or might it happen just because nobody looked for it in a long time? It also makes me wonder if a health score or CO might be penalized for hiding a cache too well? Perhaps the algorithm accounts for high D/T in that respect? A D/T rating doesn't replace an active cache owner. In my area, it is usually the absent cache owner that gets penalized, not the high Difficulty caches. 3 Quote Link to comment
+redsox_mark Posted September 20, 2017 Share Posted September 20, 2017 8 hours ago, RufusClupea said: Does that mean due to a string of DNFs, or might it happen just because nobody looked for it in a long time? It also makes me wonder if a health score or CO might be penalized for hiding a cache too well? Perhaps the algorithm accounts for high D/T in that respect? Just going by what is published (quoted above) both DNFs and time are considered. So a cache which hasn't been found in 5 years might get a lower score even without DNFs. And yes it also takes D/T into account. So a 1/1 cache not found for 5 years will be treated differently than a 5/5 not found for 5 years. Quote Link to comment
+barefootjeff Posted September 20, 2017 Share Posted September 20, 2017 Something that concerns me a little is that, in past threads on this subject, it was repeatedly said that CHS false positives don't matter because a reviewer will always look at the logs before taking any action and can easily see if the DNFs that triggered the low health score actually had anything to do with the cache or were just from things like encroaching muggles, failing light, rain, high tide, tired kids, etc. But now we've learnt that the CHS played a part in the algorithm that selected the virtual cache recipients, with no human oversight to dismiss false positives. I can't help wondering how many people missed out because their otherwise excellent caches had DNFs having nothing to do with cache health. With the CHS now firmly entrenched in the system, I wouldn't be surprised to see more initiatives like this based on it, to the peril of those COs who, in spite of their best efforts, have caches getting DNFs for all sorts of non-maintenance reasons. Quote Link to comment
+Team Microdot Posted September 20, 2017 Share Posted September 20, 2017 31 minutes ago, barefootjeff said: Something that concerns me a little is that, in past threads on this subject, it was repeatedly said that CHS false positives don't matter because a reviewer will always look at the logs before taking any action and can easily see if the DNFs that triggered the low health score actually had anything to do with the cache or were just from things like encroaching muggles, failing light, rain, high tide, tired kids, etc. But now we've learnt that the CHS played a part in the algorithm that selected the virtual cache recipients, with no human oversight to dismiss false positives. I can't help wondering how many people missed out because their otherwise excellent caches had DNFs having nothing to do with cache health. With the CHS now firmly entrenched in the system, I wouldn't be surprised to see more initiatives like this based on it, to the peril of those COs who, in spite of their best efforts, have caches getting DNFs for all sorts of non-maintenance reasons. Where's that popcorn emoji? Quote Link to comment
+NYPaddleCacher Posted September 20, 2017 Share Posted September 20, 2017 16 hours ago, Keystone said: Geocaching HQ is unlikely ever to share the exact details of the algorithm, or the health score for a particular cache. That could cause reactions ranging from "why is my cache rated a B+ when I think it should be an A+?" to people gaming the system in various ways to trick the algorithm into producing an artificially high health score. There's something I didn't know. I don't recall seeing whether a high or low score is good. So, we know several things that will lower the score (multiple DNFs, NM logs ...) but it would be good for a cache owner to know what actions will increase the score (and what won't). I remember when we first saw the red wrench on caches that needed maintenance and it wasn't clear to many that enabling a cache that had been disabled would not clear the wrench. Quote Link to comment
+redsox_mark Posted September 20, 2017 Share Posted September 20, 2017 (edited) 2 hours ago, barefootjeff said: Something that concerns me a little is that, in past threads on this subject, it was repeatedly said that CHS false positives don't matter because a reviewer will always look at the logs before taking any action and can easily see if the DNFs that triggered the low health score actually had anything to do with the cache or were just from things like encroaching muggles, failing light, rain, high tide, tired kids, etc. But now we've learnt that the CHS played a part in the algorithm that selected the virtual cache recipients, with no human oversight to dismiss false positives. I can't help wondering how many people missed out because their otherwise excellent caches had DNFs having nothing to do with cache health. With the CHS now firmly entrenched in the system, I wouldn't be surprised to see more initiatives like this based on it, to the peril of those COs who, in spite of their best efforts, have caches getting DNFs for all sorts of non-maintenance reasons. It isn't a drama needing popcorn, but it is a valid point. We are told (in the help center) that DNFs are one part of the Health Score. And it is the part that COs have the least control over. I can try to minimize the impact, e.g. by making the cache easier to find, and/or adjusting the D/T ratings (presumably the DNFs on a high D/T cache have less impact to the score than a low D/T cache). But if a bus with 20 cachers heads out to find my cache and the bus breaks down.. and those 20 cachers all use the "I pressed go to navigate so it must be a DNF" method then my caches health score will suffer. And it isn't clear what, if anything I can do about that. If check the cache is there and log an OM, does that offset those 20 DNFs? The more things the CHS gets used for, the more COs will want to know what their score is or how they can improve it. Edited September 20, 2017 by redsox_mark Quote Link to comment
+thebruce0 Posted September 20, 2017 Share Posted September 20, 2017 Well I'd give them the benefit of the doubt against the extreme example that have often been raised in the past, and have weighed it down. ie, I would assume (hope) that they don't weigh 20 DNFs posted on the same day (since there's no way to know if it's one group or many) the same as an unbroken streak of 20 days with DNFs. The latter would/should weigh more heavily (with context) than 1 day with 20 dnfs. And if that hasn't been accounted for yet, well, here's your suggestion to include that occurrence in the algorithm 1 Quote Link to comment
+redsox_mark Posted September 20, 2017 Share Posted September 20, 2017 42 minutes ago, thebruce0 said: Well I'd give them the benefit of the doubt against the extreme example that have often been raised in the past, and have weighed it down. ie, I would assume (hope) that they don't weigh 20 DNFs posted on the same day (since there's no way to know if it's one group or many) the same as an unbroken streak of 20 days with DNFs. The latter would/should weigh more heavily (with context) than 1 day with 20 dnfs. And if that hasn't been accounted for yet, well, here's your suggestion to include that occurrence in the algorithm I gave an extreme example. The point remains that DNFs can impact the score, and there is only so much a CO can do about that. I know we just have to live with that, but I don't really like it. I don't like that the score of my cache may be impacted even by a single person (if not 20) who logs a DNF saying they pressed "go" but then decided not to complete my cache. But I have to live with it. If the CHS gets used more and more for different things, I can see COs objecting to DNF logs on their caches which say "I didn't really try". 1 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.