Jump to content

Release Notes (Website: Downloading caches to GPS devices) - August 28, 2018


Recommended Posts

3 minutes ago, IceColdUK said:

This would have given people the chance to understand the reasoning and work out there alternatives.

 

When I saw the passive-aggressive posts above, I did not notice an openness to alternatives.  Good to know. B)

 

Edited by kunarion
Link to comment
1 minute ago, kunarion said:

 

When I saw the passive-aggressive posts above, I did not notice an openness to alternatives.  Good to know. B)

 

Surely, if somebody pulls the rug from under your feet you’re going to feel sore?  I can forgive a bit of passive-aggression.

Link to comment

I have been happily geocaching for over 1 year now, and until today did not realise that there was a geocache forum. It is only because of this problem, that I emailed the geocache people for help and their reply had the link to the forum. Downloading to GPS has worked perfectly for me until yesterday. Like others, I am disappointed that the Download to GPS option has been changed to GPX. I will try some of the options being posted

  • Love 1
Link to comment
10 minutes ago, IceColdUK said:

 

Surely, if somebody pulls the rug from under your feet you’re going to feel sore?  I can forgive a bit of passive-aggression.

 

Look at all  the software and plugins that no longer function on those guys' PCs, and you'll find that the rug is long gone.  It's no surprise that one has an old PC without updates.  And whatever changes, it will be by definition, a change.

 

If you're not doing updates to your PC, there's no particular warning that things will fail later, and for the majority of people using "Send To GPS" there was also no "warning".  It's not a big deal, nothing to "Quit Geocaching" over. 

 

Edited by kunarion
  • Upvote 2
Link to comment
8 minutes ago, kunarion said:

 

If you're not doing updates to your PC, there's no particular warning that things will fail.  Look at the software that no longer functions on those guys' PCs, and you'll find that the rug is long gone.

 

I’m not disagreeing with you, but I am still sympathetic.  What (additional) harm could a bit of a warning done?  If Groundspeak had added a popup alert to the ‘Send to GPS’ button a couple of months ago, there’d be far fewer pissed-off cachers today.

Edited by IceColdUK
Clarity
Link to comment
12 minutes ago, IceColdUK said:

 

I’m not disagreeing with you, but I am still sympathetic.  What (additional) harm could a bit of a warning done?  If Groundspeak had added a popup alert to the ‘Send to GPS’ button a couple of months ago, there’d be far fewer pissed-off cachers today.

 

I have zero sympathy when they arrive Geocidal and looking for a fight.  Especially with thousands of existing posts (this is no exaggeration) about how to load a GPX file without "Send To GPS", and many pages of explanations on what the deal is.  And these posts have existed for years.

 

And if one is astonished that TBTP drastically changed something without notice, you don't know they vewwy well.

 

Edited by kunarion
  • Upvote 2
Link to comment
1 minute ago, kunarion said:

 

I have zero sympathy when they arrive Geocidal and looking for a fight.  Especially with thousands of existing posts (this is no exaggeration) about how to load a GPX file without "Send To GPS", and pages of explanations on what the deal is.  And these posts have existed for years.

 

And if one is surprised that TBTP drastically changed something without notice, you don't know they vewwy well.

 

I don’t think a vast majority of cachers even know about the forums.  My sympathy is with those I’m seeing in the Geocaching Facebook groups (as well as here) who just can’t understand why something that worked fine (for them) a couple of days ago, has now been removed without warning.

 

Fortunately the solution for most will be simple enough.  Not so sure about those using older devices. 

 

You say that TPTB never give notice, yet we still have old and new versions of a number of screens on the website (such as the Dashboard) - no drastic change there.

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
1 hour ago, IceColdUK said:

You say that TPTB never give notice

 

No I did not say that.  Thanks.

 

TPTB definitely deserve a lotta grief from upset Geocachers, with this particular issue being one of the least important.  But this thread is not an effective place to do that, except as a public place to gripe and then have posts inconsistently removed.

 

Edited by kunarion
Link to comment
1 hour ago, IceColdUK said:

 

Admittedly, I don’t know how much effort (if any) it’s taken the average user to keep their old set up working, but assuming it was indeed working, they’d have had no need to visit the forums.

 

This doesn’t affect me but I do feel sorry for those that are affected.  I think it would have been much fairer to have left the option in place for a month or two with a big warning that it would be removed at a later date.  This would have given people the chance to understand the reasoning and work out their alternatives.

I wasn't referring to members just joining with one or two posts in this topic and apologize if it was worded this way, this was a surprise to them and I've been working with one member by messenging to get them back to caching. This subject has been discussed many times over the last year, some people took what was given them and moved on, others didn't. Do a search for this problem outside of this topic and the remedy is there, I just don't think this is the right topic to be discussing the details.

 

The age of the GPS could come into play, but if your GPS uses a USB cable chances are pretty good you can move a gpx file to your GPS and make it work, no different than moving a downloaded picture to a thumb drive. Take a deep breath, forget about quitting the game, and approach this with an open mind. I would walk anyone through the process but a forum is not the ideal place for a one-on-one detailed discussion, plus I do have other things to accomplish today.      

Link to comment
2 hours ago, IceColdUK said:

 

Admittedly, I don’t know how much effort (if any) it’s taken the average user to keep their old set up working, but assuming it was indeed working, they’d have had no need to visit the forums.

This doesn’t affect me but I do feel sorry for those that are affected.  I think it would have been much fairer to have left the option in place for a month or two with a big warning that it would be removed at a later date.  This would have given people the chance to understand the reasoning and work out their alternatives.

 

Many admit they knew enough to keep outdated browsers and such to keep it working, so I believe most had to have  known it'd just be a matter of time before all eventually goes bye-bye.

To boot, most aren't interested in "alternatives" , but simply want what they believe their only option,  back.

  • Helpful 1
Link to comment
6 hours ago, dj8yn said:

It would have helped me, and probably many other cachers, to have instructions on how to make older Garmin devices fit for the transfer of GPX data.
I will not buy a new device!
After 10 years and 5000 logged geocaches, I say Good Bye Geocaching.com

 

Curious what your find count has to do with anything ?    :D

 

Maybe it's just me, but if you aren't keeping up with  what's going on in this odd hobby, you can't blame the site...

A simple search here that took less than a minute gave me 300+ pages on this subject.  This isn't something new...

 

I've cached with a long-discontinued GPSr, loading caches manually since starting.   No need to buy a new device.   ;)

 

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment

I'm with IceColdUK. This change should have been communicated as widely as possible*, and there should have been a delay before disabling the feature in order to allow members to find and learn the alternatives.

 

Those of us who frequent the forums knew all about the issue, as well as those whose browsers had already dropped NPAPI support, but what about those for whom it was working fine? They had no warning that this was going to happen and many of them never visit the forums unless they have an issue. Those whose devices can't accept GPX files are now stuck with buying a new device or learning third-party software. At the very least, an effort should have been made by HQ to provide some guidance for those with older devices.

 

I also can't help but wonder about the process that occurred within HQ surrounding this change. As we've seen before (including in this discussion), they're often keen on collecting usage data to back up their decisions. Surely they knew that the feature was still being used successfully by some members, right? Did they consciously choose to ignore that data and remove the feature with no regard for how it would affect those members? Did they mistakenly assume that every GPS device can accept GPX files? I'd love to have been a fly on the wall in HQ when this was being discussed...

 

Since we've now seen that some members have been affected by this change to the point that they're no longer able to cache, I think it's only reasonable to restore the feature temporarily and give the members time to figure out the alternatives. If the feature is later turned off again and some members haven't switched to alternatives, then at least they would have been given fair warning.

 

*At a minimum, every social media platform used by HQ, emails to all members, and a warning on the "Send to My GPS" page itself.

  • Upvote 2
  • Love 1
Link to comment
1 hour ago, The A-Team said:

I'm with IceColdUK. This change should have been communicated as widely as possible*, and there should have been a delay before disabling the feature in order to allow members to find and learn the alternatives.

 

Those of us who frequent the forums knew all about the issue, as well as those whose browsers had already dropped NPAPI support, but what about those for whom it was working fine? They had no warning that this was going to happen and many of them never visit the forums unless they have an issue. Those whose devices can't accept GPX files are now stuck with buying a new device or learning third-party software. At the very least, an effort should have been made by HQ to provide some guidance for those with older devices.

 

I also can't help but wonder about the process that occurred within HQ surrounding this change. As we've seen before (including in this discussion), they're often keen on collecting usage data to back up their decisions. Surely they knew that the feature was still being used successfully by some members, right? Did they consciously choose to ignore that data and remove the feature with no regard for how it would affect those members? Did they mistakenly assume that every GPS device can accept GPX files? I'd love to have been a fly on the wall in HQ when this was being discussed...

 

Since we've now seen that some members have been affected by this change to the point that they're no longer able to cache, I think it's only reasonable to restore the feature temporarily and give the members time to figure out the alternatives. If the feature is later turned off again and some members haven't switched to alternatives, then at least they would have been given fair warning.

 

*At a minimum, every social media platform used by HQ, emails to all members, and a warning on the "Send to My GPS" page itself.

 

Send To GPS had not worked for most of us for a long time. And getting it to work in the interim? Lots of research, lots of strange configuration settings. And no notice. Three years ago I didn't get a notice banner, where was my banner? B)

 

In this past year when people came to the forum and kept saying "send to GPS doesn't work for me, just get rid of that button", I'm one of the few, I think I'm the only one on the whole forum, who insisted that as long as other people can use it, let it stay there. Nobody who demanded the button gone suggested advance notice. As the lone voice in the wilderness, I almost don't even care that the button disappeared. In fact if there are any buttons that you regularly use that you like, be sure to say so. Don't expect a banner.

 

Edited by kunarion
  • Love 1
Link to comment
3 minutes ago, kunarion said:

Send To GPS had not worked for most of us for a long time. And getting it to work in the interim? Lots of research, lots of strange configuration settings. And no notice. 3 years ago I didn't get a notice banner, where was my banner? B)

 

Keeping it working didn't necessarily require lots of work. For some who were still running older operating systems and/or browsers that weren't being updated, it could theoretically keep working for many years with no intervention. I'm as guilty of this as others, but we have to remember that what we experience and how we do things doesn't necessarily apply to everyone else.

 

Quote

In fact if there are any buttons that you regularly use that you like, be sure to say so. Don't expect a banner.

 

For some site features, I'd be fine with TPTB disabling them without advance notice. However, removing a core function of the site - namely, one of the methods for downloading caches - is something that should be communicated in advance. Even if the change only affected a small percentage of the membership, the change could be significant enough to stop those members from caching entirely, so it's still a high-impact change.

  • Upvote 3
Link to comment
17 hours ago, kunarion said:

 

I don't have a Garmin Etrex, so I can't test it for you.  But I did a web search to see which model may support which functions.  And the very first result shows everything right there on the page, screen shots and everything.  If this is no good, there are thousands of posts in this Forum about how to load a GPS when "Send To GPS" is not an option.  Thousands.  It's not hard to do, and on an old "Etrex", for example, you must delete old files anyway manually (so much for one click).  Keep the GPS if it works fine.  But things change with Internet files, so get familiar with new options.  Learn it.  Live it.  Love it.

 

http://www.rambler-info.org.uk/gps/howto/ht_load_etrex10.htm

 

That's for a GPX file that you've already saved on a PC.  Once you're familiar with that, try saving directly to the GPS instead, see if you like that better.  It saves a step.

 

If this doesn't work, start a new thread about how to load your model of Etrex if you can't find one.

Thanks for the explanation - the first one that really helps me to tackle the problem solving more concretely.
I have a 7 year old Garmin GPSmap 60CSX and maybe I can do something similar to the one described for the eTrex.

For some reason, installing the webUpdater and Garmn Express did not work for me. So I have to find a way to bring the GPX file directly to my GPSmap. Now I am more confident.
Thanks again

Link to comment

In the past I used the "Send to GPS" option to send an unsubmitted/unpublished cache I was creating to my GPS for test purposes. The Download GPX option has never worked on an unpublished cache, and this was the only way I knew to get the required GPX file onto my GPS.
Now that "Send to GPS" has been removed, is it possible to send a GPX file of an unpublished cache (on my own account) to my own GPS for testing purposes?

Link to comment
On 8/29/2018 at 3:53 AM, Chris Baker said:

The removal of the "Send to my GPS" feature from the cache pages is very disappointing. I had purposely not updated my explorer browser so I could keep using this feature after it stopped working on Firefox. It now just got much more difficult for me to load caches along unplanned routes, to update previously loaded caches and to quickly load caches for FTF runs. Not entirely sure why it needed to be removed, why not leave it on the page for the few of us who relied on it.

 

The old link relied on deeply insecure plugins that put your machine at risk. There was a powerful reason why new browsers didn't support such a easily hackable plugin. I cannot understand the mindset that says "wah-wah I want my machine to be insecure and easily hackable, I want to be able to stick with the old insecure method, I don't want to move to a simpler more secure method, because I've my head stuck in the sand and refuse to learn something new."

 

Sorry that's deliberately harsh but I'm trying to get the point across that there are amazingly good reasons things get patched and updated. If you find yourself going out of your way to avoid change that should raise all sorts of red flags in your mind and strongly suggest you are doing something wrong. Instead the reaction is the "why not leave it alone". 

 

These changes are not done to annoy people they are done because dangerous flaws are discovered in old software and fixes are issued. This flaw has been known for years now, as you will be aware as it's the length of time you've fought the changes. The only negative is that it took Groundspeak so long to finally remove the option. 

  • Upvote 2
Link to comment
2 hours ago, AaronDodds said:

For anyone having big issues with older GPS systems such as mine, Legend H. Garmin express and the sort will not work. Download a program called EASYGPS. Download all your GPX files from geocaching into a folder. Open EasyGPS, click open and select all geocaches you want to trasnsfer. Hit transfer and then it will send it to the GPS.

 

Poor "update" from Groundspeak ... but nevermind, a bit of a heads up would have been nice.

Thanks for the tip! I have installed EasyGPS and have already transferred cache data to my GPSmap. It works!!! Now I have to become more familiar with the software and optimize the process flow but I'm optimistic

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
2 hours ago, AaronDodds said:

Poor "update" from Groundspeak ... but nevermind, a bit of a heads up would have been nice. From a point of new starters, this is going to make the whole process much more complicating. So instead of a transfer button, you now have to find out how to trasnsfer a GPX file before you even start geocaching!

They have been saying for 2 years now that they would be removing this option precisely how much of a "heads up" do you need?

 

This will be EASIER for new starters, as it is a simple one click copy to GPS using modern software and not the jumping through hoops of installing older browsers and the like to get the old deeply insecure plugin to work. So you couldn't be more wrong, for new starters this is so much easier.

 

If I was new to geocaching I'd get extremely suspicious if someone said this will only work if you disable your browser and use and old insecure browser and plugin. In fact it's tricky to even find the old plugin online other than some quite dodgy download sites.

 

Now all a new user has to do is to setup a modern interface to their browser and click download. No hoops far simpler. The only issue would be if they have an ancient GPS device. In which case they'd be far better just using their mobile phone as a modern mobile phone is typically more accurate than a GPS unit that's so old it doesn't support this new protocol.

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
14 hours ago, The A-Team said:

For some site features, I'd be fine with TPTB disabling them without advance notice. However, removing a core function of the site - namely, one of the methods for downloading caches - is something that should be communicated in advance. Even if the change only affected a small percentage of the membership, the change could be significant enough to stop those members from caching entirely, so it's still a high-impact change.

 

This change has been discussed for at least two years. They have regularly said they are removing the option in future and users should change over to using the new methods that were introduced over a year ago (only on lists though and now on cache page). The fact that users didn't listen and clinged to the old method is hardly Groundspeak's fault. It's not as if the forum/facebook etc hasn't been filled with at least one user a week posting about problems with the old method and being told to change to the new method. 

 

Yet people seem more comfortable with going out of their way to install older browsers and prevent them updating rather than embracing change to a new more secure method of getting data off the site to your GPS.

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment

It's not that people want their older browsers. It's not that people want to be insecure.

It's that people aren't educated enough about the situation. For whatever reason.

The fact that there ARE people who greatly inconvenienced and didn't know about it, despite how proliferated the discussion may have been, goes to show that communication for the change was not sufficient.

I agree that an alert on the website, primarily alongside the feature or activated when activating the feature, would have been much more effective. It would only show for people who use the feature. But they'd absolutely know. Newsletters aren't always enough. Forum posts are absolutely not enough.

 

It's time to stop denigrating people who sincerely, and innocently, did not know about this, are inconvenienced by this, and aren't experienced enough to deal with this easily.  Yeeshk.

Also, as evidenced in this very thread, merely posting instructions in a comment (and excellent ones), while helpful to people who are already watching the thread, won't stop new people coming to the thread and asking for help, not realizing there are answers a post or few above. If that happens, just a friendly link to a relevant instructive post is more helpful than haranguing the person for not reading (even if they didn't read).  Err on the side of friendliness and helpfulness, let's try, eh? :wub:

  • Upvote 5
  • Love 1
Link to comment
1 hour ago, ShammyLevva said:

 

This change has been discussed for at least two years. They have regularly said they are removing the option in future and users should change over to using the new methods that were introduced over a year ago (only on lists though and now on cache page). The fact that users didn't listen and clinged to the old method is hardly Groundspeak's fault. It's not as if the forum/facebook etc hasn't been filled with at least one user a week posting about problems with the old method and being told to change to the new method. 

 

Yet people seem more comfortable with going out of their way to install older browsers and prevent them updating rather than embracing change to a new more secure method of getting data off the site to your GPS.

Forum! Facebook! I have never read about this change. It doesn't effect me fortunately, but you are making far too many presumptions, based on your limited personal experiences, not considering other people's experiences. MOST people don't come to the forum for instance (I only recently did, after years of geocaching); even if they know a forum exists, and which I would hazard a guess that many don't know a forum exists. Likewise I would also hazard a guess that most people have no facebook link to geocaching, except maybe in local links to other geocaches and discussion that ensues from that, and in my local discussion, I have never heard mention of this change.

There are also many languages out there, and not everyone speaks English.

Edited by Goldenwattle
Link to comment
21 hours ago, kunarion said:

Especially with thousands of existing posts (this is no exaggeration) about how to load a GPX file without "Send To GPS", and many pages of explanations on what the deal is.  And these posts have existed for years.

First one needs to know about this forum and then visit it. Most geocachers likely don't. All the posts in the world would not have been read by the majority, if they don't visit here.

Link to comment
15 minutes ago, Goldenwattle said:

First one needs to know about this forum and then visit it. Most geocachers likely don't. All the posts in the world would not have been read by the majority, if they don't visit here.

 

 

DO NOT reply to my posts out of context to argue with me.  This should not even be allowed, yet it's common and the 2nd time it's happened to me in this thread.  Stop it. Read the thread, I was specifically referring to people who arrive in the Forum to whine.  Once they arrive, they did visit here.   At that point they can read all the posts in the world.

 

AND there's a Help Center, the place to go ask.  People aren't absolutely clueless, or if they are, you're proving my point.

 

Edited by kunarion
  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
31 minutes ago, Goldenwattle said:

But if the change has happened, it's too late then.

 

It's not too late.  When "Send To GPS" goes bad, either by web standards or by a company, we go find the new way to load GPX files.  That's what many of us did when Send To GPS failed years ago, with no advanced notice, with the inviting button in full view yet unfunctional, and we for the most part kept our heads, and didn't arrive here guns-a-blazing, all about how we quit.  Then it worked for a while, then went bad, again with no advance notice.  We simply switched to another simple way, once we got tired of tweaking our computers to keep that button running.  Sure it's fun to do B), but it leaves less time for Geocaching.

 

Of the ten posts I see above by persons who were surprised by the vanishing button, four are keen to find out how to fix it.  I'm guessing all four can save a GPX file to "Garmin/GPX".  That's what all the fuss is about?  One simple change fixes it all?  Huh, go figure.  For a very old GPS, there's probably some helper software and a simple plan.  There are posts already, with some ideas. DON'T get rid of your old GPS simply because a web button's gone.  For one or two caches, typing coords manually is no biggie.  You do many more coords like that while out caching.  Most people have used "POI Loader" style software since day one, because it makes the "old GPS" more handy, no need for The Button.

 

I know change is hard for old people.  I'm old people.  OK, not old, but whatever.  I no longer can figure out software (when did I lose that ability?), so I get it.  But the button had to go, it's been "gone" a long time for many of us, the TPTB aren't good at communication, and cachers must adapt to a new process.  Live with it. :)

 

Edited by kunarion
  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
7 hours ago, ShammyLevva said:

They have been saying for 2 years now that they would be removing this option precisely how much of a "heads up" do you need?

Have they? I'd be interested in seeing where they've said this. Even in the blog post about the release of the "Send to Garmin" feature, there's no mention of any timeline for the decommissioning of the old "Send to My GPS" feature, or that it would be decommissioned at all.

Link to comment
5 hours ago, kunarion said:

I know change is hard for old people.  I'm old people.  OK, not old, but whatever.  I no longer can figure out software (when did I lose that ability?), so I get it.  But the button had to go, it's been "gone" a long time for many of us, the TPTB aren't good at communication, and cachers must adapt to a new process.  Live with it. :)

Those of us familiar with the issue won't deny that the feature had to go at some point. It's just my opinion that it didn't need to be an unannounced, cold-turkey, "live with it" situation. Would it really have been such a bad thing to give everyone a heads-up? I don't mean a passive heads-up like discussions in the forum where someone has to seek out the information, but rather an active heads-up where members are directly notified by email and/or a warning on the feature.

Link to comment
7 minutes ago, The A-Team said:

Those of us familiar with the issue won't deny that the feature had to go at some point. It's just my opinion that it didn't need to be an unannounced, cold-turkey, "live with it" situation. Would it really have been such a bad thing to give everyone a heads-up? I don't mean a passive heads-up like discussions in the forum where someone has to seek out the information, but rather an active heads-up where members are directly notified by email and/or a warning on the feature.

 

Yeah, cool.  Use the banner they posted for the past 3+ years that "Send To GPS" has stopped working for many cachers with modern browsers.  Today, post the same instructions they posted back then on what to do once "Send To GPS" stops working.  Because it's not working at all now.  See the info in the Help Center?  Oh, wait, none of that happened. There is no heads-up and there never was, there are no updated steps, we must live with it.  I didn't say it wouldn't be nice, simply that it does not exist.  It's tough living here in reality. ;)

 

So imagine that banner six months ago, plenty of advance warning.  The fast and the furious would still be angry and geocidal as the ones for the past few years were, as Send To GPS went slowly bad.  Look at the posts above.  I count six out of ten who cannot, will not, change.  The warning would make no difference, except that they would be angry and geocidal six months sooner.  Why do we even have to do what the grumpiest want? If that's how it works around here, I'm grumpy now.  Do what I want. B)

Link to comment
11 minutes ago, kunarion said:

There is no heads-up and there never was, there are no updated steps, we must live with it.  I didn't say it wouldn't be nice, simply that it does not exist.  It's tough living here in reality. ;)

Fair enough. What's done is done, and it's unlikely that TPTB will backtrack. One would hope that a lesson has been learned, although past experience shows that it's unlikely that any lessons will have been learned.

 

Quote

So imagine that banner six months ago, plenty of advance warning.  The fast and the furious would still be angry and geocidal as the ones for the past few years were, as Send To GPS went slowly bad.  Look at the posts above.  I count six out of ten who cannot, will not, change.  The warning would make no difference, except that they would be angry and geocidal six months sooner.  Why do we even have to do what the grumpiest want? If that's how it works around here, I'm grumpy now.  Do what I want. B)

It's entirely possible that some people would be just as geocidal as they are now. However, that warning could have been useful for someone like Go Play Outside, who could have used the time to gradually introduce their parents to a new way of doing things. Now, they're forced to deal with the issue suddenly and without warning, which will make it much harder on their parents.

 

Coming from a customer support perspective, I'll always advocate for more communication. The best entities I deal with are those who are more transparent and will keep you up-to-date on what's happening and how changes might affect you. I don't like the model adopted by this site where communication often seems to be actively discouraged.

  • Upvote 3
Link to comment

Aaron D odds YOU ARE MY HERO. Spent two hours fussing with this issue until I downloaded EasyG PS.  I am old and like to keep same old same old. I resent the push to sign up and pay for elitist services and/or keep IT departments employed. Thanx to your post I can use my dinosaur technology and cache on.   I'd hate to needlessly  add my "outdated" GPS to the landfill. 

 

 

 

 

Link to comment
20 hours ago, AaronDodds said:

For anyone having big issues with older GPS systems such as mine, Legend H. Garmin express and the sort will not work. Download a program called EASYGPS. Download all your GPX files from geocaching into a folder. Open EasyGPS, click open and select all geocaches you want to trasnsfer. Hit transfer and then it will send it to the GPS.

(Video removed for brevity)

20 hours ago, AaronDodds said:

I understand some older folk / less computer experienced might have a bit of an issue understanding some of the steps, so heres a quick video I made -

 

Upvote me if its been helpful/works (bottom right up arrow, click it)

 

Poor "update" from Groundspeak ... but nevermind, a bit of a heads up would have been nice. From a point of new starters, this is going to make the whole process much more complicating. So instead of a transfer button, you now have to find out how to trasnsfer a GPX file before you even start geocaching!

 

Good idea AaronDodds.

I am trying to help my parents be able to load individual caches in their older GPSMap 60 series GPSs (that do not accept GPX downloads).

See my post earlier in the thread

 

I was thinking along the same lines and have been playing with EasyGPS today myself.

 

What I had hoped to do and have tried, was to associate EasyGPS with .gpx files so clicking on the link in a cache page would launch the program and load the cache into it automatically.  This works but unfortunately if you go to another cache and click the link on it, it launches another instance of EasyGPS and loads that single cache in it.  15 caches, 15 instances of EasyGPS each with one cache loaded.

 

I have looked for settings or command line parameters that would force EasyGPS to reuse an already open instance if one is running but no luck so far. 

If I could get it to do that I think I could teach my Mom (age 80 with very limited computer skills) to download a bunch of .gpx files into one instance of EasyGPS and then send them all to the GPS with one command.

If she has to download each .gpx file to a folder, specifying the destination with several clicks every time, then open EasyGPS, load all the files in the folder, then send to GPS from the program, then delete all the downloaded files so they don't get loaded again next time.  That will be too complicated for her, much more tedious, and more chances for a mistake. 

 

My parents like to go on caching day trips and load dozens of carefully selected and "doable for them" caches at a go.  A bulk load via GSAK or other api enabled application won't do.  See earlier post for more details.

 

Does anyone know of a way to prevent multiple instances of EasyGPS from loading with multiple .gpx downloads?

Or another similar Windows application that will do that with an extremely simple user interface (not GSAK which I love, pay for, and use) and that can export the caches to an old style GPS that uses waypoints vice processing .gpx files directly?

 

Thanks,

Link to comment
1 hour ago, Go Play Outside said:

My parents like to go on caching day trips and load dozens of carefully selected and "doable for them" caches at a go.  A bulk load via GSAK or other api enabled application won't do.  See earlier post for more details.

A similar workflow might be to add dozens of carefully selected and "doable for them" caches to a list, and then download the caches in the list as a single GPX file.

  • Upvote 1
Link to comment
55 minutes ago, niraD said:

A similar workflow might be to add dozens of carefully selected and "doable for them" caches to a list, and then download the caches in the list as a single GPX file.

 

A great suggestion I had not considered.  I tried it with a populated List but the only download options seem to be either "Send to Garmin" from the My Lists page, which may work like the old link ( I will try on my parents PC tomorrow) or from the actual List page "Download to .LOC" which on my PC does not download anything.  No Download to .gpx anywhere.

 

I will try tomorrow if I get a chance.

 

Bad timing, heading out camping for a week on Sunday.  Don't want to leave my parents hanging without a resolution for a week.

Link to comment

The  new method will not work with my older GPS why can't the Send to GPS be left for those that know how to make it work? I have used the GPX button and save too my Garmin file then clicked send to but it does not send. I have had no trouble at all using the previous send to button and would like to see it returned so I can carry on Caching.

Shar's Gang

Link to comment
On 29.8.2018 at 4:53 AM, Chris Baker said:

The removal of the "Send to my GPS" feature from the cache pages is very disappointing. I had purposely not updated my explorer browser so I could keep using this feature after it stopped working on Firefox. It now just got much more difficult for me to load caches along unplanned routes, to update previously loaded caches and to quickly load caches for FTF runs. Not entirely sure why it needed to be removed, why not leave it on the page for the few of us who relied on it.

 

Easy to understand... The existance of that completely outdated feature for sure created by far more issues and questions as anyone at the HQ is willing or able to answer. At some point "you" simply need to move forward and forget the old stuff...

Link to comment
On 29.8.2018 at 9:41 PM, fraager said:

I am 82 years old and sometimes mii the obvious. I click on gpx but do not get an option to send to my plugged in gps. it send to downloads and can do nothing with. What am I missing?

Just click the little arrow beside "Save" and chose to the the "Save at" option. Then you can chose the directory where to save the file. Correct directory for a Garmin would be \Garmin\GPX on your device. And sorry, as I'm using a German Windows version it may not exactly be "Save at" ;) But I'm sure you'll find the correct option!

  • Helpful 1
Link to comment
2 minutes ago, monsterbox said:

Just click the little arrow beside "Save" and chose to the the "Save at" option. Then you can chose the directory where to save the file. Correct directory for a Garmin would be \Garmin\GPX on your device. And sorry, as I'm using a German Windows version it may not exactly be "Save at" ;) But I'm sure you'll find the correct option!

That advice is useless as the old Garmins use a serial protocol for sending or receiving data. They definitely don't do this GPX thingy.

 

Hans

Edited by HHL
Link to comment
On 30.8.2018 at 11:00 AM, The Whittles said:

well it isn't working ive managed to send the caches to a file highlighted them click send to, click montana 680 says files sent to montana 680 no caches on the gps so how on earth is this simple?as opposed to one click downloaded?

You're simply doing it the wrong way... "Just" download the GPX files directly to the Montana, "Save as" ist easy, just depends on the browser you're using. So you can directly chose the correct directory on your device and that's it!

 

"Sending to" doesn't mean the files will be sent to the correct directory!

Link to comment
On 30.8.2018 at 5:44 PM, Redrich382 said:

"Going forward, GPSr users can put geocaches on their devices by clicking ‘Download GPX’ on the Geocaching map, or by clicking the ‘GPX file’ button on the cache page. Then, transfer the downloaded file to a GPS device."

I was planning to go out tomorrow to find over 60 caches. I tried to download them to my Garmin etrex GPS only to find "Download to GPS" has been changed to "Download to GPX". I am probably doing something wrong, but can't now get any caches to download to my device. I click on the Download GPX option and it asks if I want to open or save the file. I have tried both of these options, but none give me the option to transfer the downloaded file to my GPS device that is plugged into the computer. It used to be simple and quick to download caches with the "Download to GPS". Can anyone advise me how to resolve this please? (PS: I do not have a smart phone so cannot continue caching atm!) 

 

 

One options should be using Basecamp. Simply load the GPX files into Basecamp and send the caches to your device from in there. Should work like a charm.

Link to comment

I have done some more testing and Memory Map seems to have problems with the GPX format. Although the GPX file does contain a lot of data, Memory Map isn't picking it up, particularly the URL. Please can you reconsider retaining the LOC file option as it's easier to deal with. I appreciate the difficulty is probably down to Memory Map but at least the LOC option works for me.

Link to comment
On 28.8.2018 at 8:55 PM, Geocaching HQ said:

Release Notes (Website: Downloading caches to GPS devices) - August 28, 2018

 

 

DownloadGPX.jpg

 

 

CacheDetails.jpg

 

 

 

 

There's a big issue with the upper option on the map! The file generated THERE doesn't have the corrected but the header coords. The option on the cache page works as expected!

Link to comment
3 hours ago, Go Play Outside said:

 

A great suggestion I had not considered.  I tried it with a populated List but the only download options seem to be either "Send to Garmin" from the My Lists page, which may work like the old link ( I will try on my parents PC tomorrow) or from the actual List page "Download to .LOC" which on my PC does not download anything.  No Download to .gpx anywhere.

 

That's the bad thing about "Lists", you can't save its GPX file except by first "sending to" a Garmin.   I've had to first Send To Garmin, then copy from the Garmin to analyze the List-made files.  List GPX files have notable differences from Pocket Query GPX files.

 

A decent way to get a good old-fashioned GPX file from a List is to create a Pocket Query from it, then run and download that Pocket Query.  It sounds more convoluted than it is.  I have Lists and I've made their associated PQs.  Change something in a List, and its PQ changes (fingers crossed, it worked the last time I tried it :ph34r:).  Set up the PQs to run on a schedule, and you have a "real" GPX file available every weekend or whenever.

 

For Thread purposes, my new challenge is to discover the minimum number of "clicks" required to get a cache onto a very old GPS.  The goal being "one click".  And figuring out how to set that up.

 

 

Edited by kunarion
Link to comment

QUOTE ku: "my new challenge is to discover the minimum number of "clicks" required to get a cache onto a very old GPS.  The goal being "one click". 

 

Windows Machine, Firefox 61.0.1 loading an old Garmin.

 

I can't get it to one click, it takes two.  The first time, it takes more than two.

1) plug in gps

2) select cache, click GPX button

3) firefox says i've chosen to "open a gpx" and offers some programs  option  - on that dialog box, I need to tell it to SAVE instead

4)  For save, it offers the computer directory - where to put it - I  need to find the right directory ;  on my machine Garmin Oregon K> Garmin > GPX

5) save - and now that gpx file is in my gps

 

for   caches thereafter, I have to click twice, once on the GPX button on the cache page, once on the "save to" button. It's now defaulting to the last place such a file was sent, the Garmin (seen as K drive) GPX file. 

 

 There may be way to set up Firefox to automajically send gpx files to the Garmin K drive, assuming it's available (plugged in) ,  but I'm not going to hunt for that, as I generally  want to save to GSAK or Expert GPS anyway. 

Link to comment
1 hour ago, Isonzo Karst said:

 There may be way to set up Firefox to automajically send gpx files to the Garmin K drive, assuming it's available (plugged in) ,  but I'm not going to hunt for that, as I generally  want to save to GSAK or Expert GPS anyway. 

 

So with a browser procedure, you're saving the GPX file somewhere, then using other software to load the cache into the old GPS? 

 

I've been trying to find out if there's a kind of extension that works with some flavor of helper software.  Someone will certainly come up with an idea before I do.  If not "one click" for the old GPS, at most the same number of clicks it takes to load a GPX file into a modern Garmin.  I guess that process is basically what you posted.

 

It would need to be an extension that behaves consistently, certainly designed for loading a GPS (especially, adept at loading a real old GPS).  But not abandoned right after it's made.  That part's tricky.  I open my browser, and find some extensions disabled due to not being supported by the current version of the browser.  And no replacement.

 

Part of this situation is growing pains.  Things are changing as we speak, maybe we'll get nice buttons in the brave new world of the future, but not today.  Browsers are dropping support for "Plugins", protocols that once worked fine are not supported, and Geocaching.com is moving to The App as the way to load caches (or am I wrong about that part?).  Anyway, Firefox I think only last month completely dropped "NPAPI" support, or that was their plan anyway.  So the browsers are still in the process of "becoming more secure", it's going in stages, and we may have to wait for all the changes to be settled before there's a set way to load a GPS.  After which, they'll change everything again. :)

 

 

Edited by kunarion
Did not 'ave a leh-sawnce fur zat minkey.
Link to comment
Guest
This topic is now closed to further replies.
×
×
  • Create New...