+zookeepertx Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 I did maintenance on one of my caches and just went to log it and got a surprise. A good third of the page is covered by a box telling how the website uses cookies and only 1 choice: "Accept". I never know whether to accept cookies or not, so I tried to log without clicking on it, but I can't get to the "Post" button with that box there. I SWEAR that "cookies box" wasn't there a few days ago and I never know what to do with unexpected changes! So, what's with the new stuff?? I'm aware you guys are going to think I'm an imbecile, but I'm really just technologically challenged. Thanks Jenny Quote Link to comment
+Max and 99 Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 35 minutes ago, zookeepertx said: I did maintenance on one of my caches and just went to log it and got a surprise. A good third of the page is covered by a box telling how the website uses cookies and only 1 choice: "Accept". I never know whether to accept cookies or not, so I tried to log without clicking on it, but I can't get to the "Post" button with that box there. I SWEAR that "cookies box" wasn't there a few days ago and I never know what to do with unexpected changes! So, what's with the new stuff?? I'm aware you guys are going to think I'm an imbecile, but I'm really just technologically challenged. Thanks Jenny I've suddenly gotten the new cookies message, starting a few days ago I think. 1 Quote Link to comment
+L0ne.R Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 Can’t see the logs unless I accept cookies. 1 Quote Link to comment
+cerberus1 Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 (edited) I thought it was because I'm still using windows 7, and IE11, both ready to no longer be supported. Odd, but glad it's not just me. ETA... I'm also not able to click on anyone's caches, trackables, nada. It just goes back to profile each time. Edited December 31, 2019 by cerberus1 Quote Link to comment
+zookeepertx Posted December 31, 2019 Author Share Posted December 31, 2019 1 hour ago, Max and 99 said: I've suddenly gotten the new cookies message, starting a few days ago I think. So, I'm just curious; did you click on "Accept"? Quote Link to comment
+zookeepertx Posted December 31, 2019 Author Share Posted December 31, 2019 1 hour ago, L0ne.R said: Can’t see the logs unless I accept cookies. Yep, I forgot to say that as well! Did you accept? Quote Link to comment
+zookeepertx Posted December 31, 2019 Author Share Posted December 31, 2019 1 hour ago, cerberus1 said: I thought it was because I'm still using windows 7, and IE11, both ready to no longer be supported. Odd, but glad it's not just me. ETA... I'm also not able to click on anyone's caches, trackables, nada. It just goes back to profile each time. LOL! I had the same thought: "Glad it's not just me". Do you mean you can't click on caches on the map or just on the list when you do a search? Quote Link to comment
+Max and 99 Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 9 minutes ago, zookeepertx said: So, I'm just curious; did you click on "Accept"? Yes I did. And I immediately thought of GDPR. Quote Link to comment
+SwineFlew Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 Gs is trying to make more money. Quote Link to comment
+dprovan Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 Wow, glad I noticed this thread. When I saw all the cookies they were nonchalantly maintaining, I just automatically turned off all the ones we're allowed to turn off. Apparently some of the non-required cookies are required, 'cuz the personal cache not feature immediately stopped working. It wasn't until I saw all the other trouble people are having that I recognized the cause and effect, turned the "preferences" group back on, and could edit the personal notes again. Quote Link to comment
+igator210 Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 5 hours ago, SwineFlew said: Gs is trying to make more money. Nope... you have all the privacy laws that are kicking in to thank. Not sure how Groundspeak would make money off of cookies anyway. 1 Quote Link to comment
+*AGUK* Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 39 minutes ago, igator210 said: Not sure how Groundspeak would make money off of cookies anyway. Advertising? _______ I accepted all cookies and yet various things have not worked for me since then.For example, I can not see any logs in the actually opened cache.Or: If I log a "Found it" and have entered / sent the log text, the website always returns to the log page. Then again without data etc.The log itself went through. Quote Link to comment
+dimwit61 Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 Queries and advanced searches are total broken for me. I accepted all the cookies so that doesn't seem to be a factor. Quote Link to comment
+L0ne.R Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 2 hours ago, igator210 said: Nope... you have all the privacy laws that are kicking in to thank. How do cookies play into privacy laws? I would have guessed it’s the opposite, less privacy. Quote Link to comment
+Mudfrog Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 36 minutes ago, L0ne.R said: How do cookies play into privacy laws? I would have guessed it’s the opposite, less privacy. In this case, I figure the pop up box is to warn us that cookies are used and required for website usage. Of course most of us know this so I'm guessing it's for those that don't realize it's already happening. GC is not the only website that this new cookie banner is popping up on. I'm seeing it on other sites that I use as well. Someone mentioned privacy laws and I'm guessing this is because of a new one that was recently enacted. Pushing the accept on forum sites I use all the time is not a problem because I already have cookies enabled anyway to save my password and such. 2 2 Quote Link to comment
+kunarion Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 (edited) 1 hour ago, Mudfrog said: In this case, I figure the pop up box is to warn us that cookies are used and required for website usage. Of course most of us know this so I'm guessing it's for those that don't realize it's already happening. GC is not the only website that this new cookie banner is popping up on. I'm seeing it on other sites that I use as well. Someone mentioned privacy laws and I'm guessing this is because of a new one that was recently enacted. Pushing the accept on forum sites I use all the time is not a problem because I already have cookies enabled anyway to save my password and such. I've seen new "cookie warnings" on most of the sites I use this week. There's a link for settings, right there in the popup. If you missed it, or wish to review or change settings, go here: https://www.geocaching.com/account/documents/cookies Beware that if you fiddle with settings (most any settings, not just "cookies"), be sure they're not creating a problem before asking the Forum why your browser doesn't work. My ESP isn't as good as it used to be. Edited December 31, 2019 by kunarion 2 Quote Link to comment
+zookeepertx Posted December 31, 2019 Author Share Posted December 31, 2019 So, last night the window said there were 104 "necessary" cookies to accept. A HUNDRED AND FOUR!! That's ridiculous! Except now it says 111. I don't need or want that many things clogging up my computer (or my phone. My phone is a stupid piece of crap already!). We got off work early today and I thought I might go look for a few caches on the way home, but not anymore. I'm not amused with this! 1 Quote Link to comment
+Viajero Perdido Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 (edited) 51 minutes ago, zookeepertx said: now it says 111 Most of those don't seem to be from geocaching.com directly. In my Firefox, I block third-party cookies, and with NoScript I block googletagservices.com, googletagmanager.com, google-analytics.com (creepy tracking stuff), and (new today!) cookiebot.com. With those things blocked, everything still works fine (haven't done a full test today however), and more to the point, I count only 15 cookies total from three geocaching.com domains. Oh, I run a brutal ad-blocker at the router level as well, so that might be blocking some known-to-be-useless domains... Edited December 31, 2019 by Viajero Perdido 1 Quote Link to comment
+humboldt flier Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 The hamsters must be on strike orrrrrrrrr are on a union mandated safety training. Can NOT log ... logged yesterday without incident before and after accepting cookies, cupcakes and apple pie ala-mode Quote Link to comment
+humboldt flier Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 (edited) Hmmmmm, Hit the "Play tab" and the site stalls. Go to a previously viewed cache via profile and the cache page opens fine. Attempts to log a cache are met with the spinning green arc of death >>>>>> must be a cousin of the "windows blue screen of death". Perhaps tons of traffic related to "the souvy seekers"???? TOOOOOOOOO KORNFUSING TO ME. Edited December 31, 2019 by humboldt flier typo correction Quote Link to comment
+msrubble Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 It's the new California privacy law. Web sites can't always tell who is or is not from California. It's faster and easier to just act as though every user is covered. Unfortunately, the cookie acceptance implementation is breaking things, depending on your browser. Some threads were started in the Website forum, but apparently the lackeys are watching the release notes thread (privacy law compliance). If you are still having mysterious recent problems with geocaching.com, post there. Quote Link to comment
+elyob Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 Should be fun getting souvenirs when we can't even log a cache. 2 Quote Link to comment
+elyob Posted December 31, 2019 Share Posted December 31, 2019 Workaround: go to the old log-a-find process. Quote Link to comment
+The A-Team Posted January 1, 2020 Share Posted January 1, 2020 The bug with the logging page should now be fixed. Quote Link to comment
+dimwit61 Posted January 1, 2020 Share Posted January 1, 2020 Sort of fixed. I still can't use pocket queries or advanced searches. Essentially all premium member features are still broken for me. Quote Link to comment
+zookeepertx Posted January 1, 2020 Author Share Posted January 1, 2020 3 hours ago, msrubble said: It's the new California privacy law. Web sites can't always tell who is or is not from California. It's faster and easier to just act as though every user is covered. Unfortunately, the cookie acceptance implementation is breaking things, depending on your browser. Some threads were started in the Website forum, but apparently the lackeys are watching the release notes thread (privacy law compliance). If you are still having mysterious recent problems with geocaching.com, post there. I'm in TX; what do I care about a CA privacy law? And it seems to ME that adding more cookies to my computer allows MORE "outsiders" get information from my computer, which is the OPPOSITE of protecting my privacy! I don't like it! Especially when its been sprung/sneaked in on me without warning. 1 Quote Link to comment
+niraD Posted January 1, 2020 Share Posted January 1, 2020 7 minutes ago, zookeepertx said: I'm in TX; what do I care about a CA privacy law? There isn't a separate version of the site for CA, TX, EU, etc., etc., etc. There is a single version of the site that is designed to comply with all the regulations everywhere. 1 Quote Link to comment
+funkymunkyzone Posted January 1, 2020 Share Posted January 1, 2020 13 hours ago, igator210 said: Not sure how Groundspeak would make money off of cookies anyway. Selling them? Quote Link to comment
+funkymunkyzone Posted January 1, 2020 Share Posted January 1, 2020 I suspect it's a case of prior to this, you were accepting all cookies by default, but now they are asking you if you want to Accept them (and if you don't, well, you don't use the site I guess, or at least features requiring the cookies). So it's not that there are new cookies - just the same ones as before, but you've now got the courtesy question of whether you want to accept them. Quote Link to comment
+barefootjeff Posted January 1, 2020 Share Posted January 1, 2020 1 hour ago, funkymunkyzone said: I suspect it's a case of prior to this, you were accepting all cookies by default, but now they are asking you if you want to Accept them (and if you don't, well, you don't use the site I guess, or at least features requiring the cookies). So it's not that there are new cookies - just the same ones as before, but you've now got the courtesy question of whether you want to accept them. Yes, and I suspect every time you do anything now, it's going off to some database somewhere in the system to check which cookies you've enabled. It seems every page partially loads, pauses for a few seconds then reloads fully (or not if something's still broken). Everything feels really clunky now. 1 Quote Link to comment
+zookeepertx Posted January 1, 2020 Author Share Posted January 1, 2020 2 hours ago, barefootjeff said: Yes, and I suspect every time you do anything now, it's going off to some database somewhere in the system to check which cookies you've enabled. It seems every page partially loads, pauses for a few seconds then reloads fully (or not if something's still broken). Everything feels really clunky now. Yep, more than likely. And we all know how well "upgrades" actually work, right? Quote Link to comment
+39chevy Posted January 1, 2020 Share Posted January 1, 2020 If it aint broke fix it until it is. 2 2 Quote Link to comment
+funkymunkyzone Posted January 2, 2020 Share Posted January 2, 2020 3 hours ago, 39chevy said: If it aint broke fix it until it is. Except I think you can thank all of the data and privacy laws for this one... Quote Link to comment
+zookeepertx Posted January 5, 2020 Author Share Posted January 5, 2020 (edited) Copying a post I made on that "Release Notes..." topic: I haven't posted in this thread in several days, so I doubt if anyone will even read this, but all of this is just a mess!! My original problem was that I went to log in a few days ago and got the screen that insisted I needed to Accept Cookies basically (as I interpret it) to do ANYTHING in the website. As I say - MY interpretation. I don't "speak" technology, so all these posts about Seamonky, javascript (yes, I'm the last person on earth that doesn't have a grasp on that), disable cookiebot (do I even HAVE cookiebot?), AP1, scraping data, tampermonkey mean ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to me. They might as well be talking the finer points of brain surgery! I just don't understand that kind of speak. I'm not referring specifically to the things I mentioned above; those are just examples of terms that everyone else gets, but do not go into my head. Plus, how would I know the difference between "Functional, Analytical, and Advertisement" cookies?? Nothing on the internet - or most technological things - ever has a name that gives any clue to an idiot like me what the heck they are! So, I wouldn't know which ones to allow and which ones to block, let alone HOW to block them! See, my problem is that I DESPISE installing things or downloading things or anything like that. In the process, the thing invariably either asks me a question that I MIGHT know the answer to if I even understood the question, or it tells me to ("do something") then click "Okay" - but there IS no "Okay"! Maybe there's "Yes", but how do I know whether that means "Okay"? Especially if there are 1 or 2 other buttons to choose from! I HATE technology! But I didn't start it, it hated me first! I'm just hating it back. Anyway, I guess I'm just an idiot. And I just used to enjoy this fun game/hobby but if it's going to require taking a bunch of computer courses to figure out how to even GET to the website, then it's more work than I want to do! That makes me sad. EDIT: DANGIT! I just went to look at my profile in HERE and got the same stupid "Cookies" "Updated TOU" windows! GRRRR! Edited January 5, 2020 by zookeepertx 1 Quote Link to comment
+cerberus1 Posted January 5, 2020 Share Posted January 5, 2020 4 minutes ago, zookeepertx said: I don't "speak" technology, so all these posts about Seamonky, javascript (yes, I'm the last person on earth that doesn't have a grasp on that), disable cookiebot (do I even HAVE cookiebot?), AP1, scraping data, tampermonkey mean ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to me. They might as well be talking the finer points of brain surgery! I just don't understand that kind of speak. I'm not referring specifically to the things I mentioned above; those are just examples of terms that everyone else gets, but do not go into my head. Plus, how would I know the difference between "Functional, Analytical, and Advertisement" cookies?? Nothing on the internet - or most technological things - ever has a name that gives any clue to an idiot like me what the heck they are! So, I wouldn't know which ones to allow and which ones to block, let alone HOW to block them! I hear ya... I'm laughing with BTW, not at. Thought I'd be all taken care of, but the other 2/3rds is with a team that hits other states/countries to fix their stuff. I apparently have to figure how to "upgrade" to at least windows10 first without losing anything already there, and I guess that comes with a new browser that doesn't play well with other stuff. Oh boy... The odd part is I hit caches manually, so you'd think I shouldn't have any issues... 1 Quote Link to comment
+BethDaddyKaty Posted January 5, 2020 Share Posted January 5, 2020 (edited) 1 hour ago, zookeepertx said: Copying a post I made on that "Release Notes..." topic: I haven't posted in this thread in several days, so I doubt if anyone will even read this, but all of this is just a mess!! My original problem was that I went to log in a few days ago and got the screen that insisted I needed to Accept Cookies basically (as I interpret it) to do ANYTHING in the website. As I say - MY interpretation. I don't "speak" technology, so all these posts about Seamonky, javascript (yes, I'm the last person on earth that doesn't have a grasp on that), disable cookiebot (do I even HAVE cookiebot?), AP1, scraping data, tampermonkey mean ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to me. They might as well be talking the finer points of brain surgery! I just don't understand that kind of speak. I'm not referring specifically to the things I mentioned above; those are just examples of terms that everyone else gets, but do not go into my head. Plus, how would I know the difference between "Functional, Analytical, and Advertisement" cookies?? Nothing on the internet - or most technological things - ever has a name that gives any clue to an idiot like me what the heck they are! So, I wouldn't know which ones to allow and which ones to block, let alone HOW to block them! See, my problem is that I DESPISE installing things or downloading things or anything like that. In the process, the thing invariably either asks me a question that I MIGHT know the answer to if I even understood the question, or it tells me to ("do something") then click "Okay" - but there IS no "Okay"! Maybe there's "Yes", but how do I know whether that means "Okay"? Especially if there are 1 or 2 other buttons to choose from! I HATE technology! But I didn't start it, it hated me first! I'm just hating it back. Anyway, I guess I'm just an idiot. And I just used to enjoy this fun game/hobby but if it's going to require taking a bunch of computer courses to figure out how to even GET to the website, then it's more work than I want to do! That makes me sad. EDIT: DANGIT! I just went to look at my profile in HERE and got the same stupid "Cookies" "Updated TOU" windows! GRRRR! The cookies are as they sound. Cookies are a way for websites to identify you personally - or at least computer or phone, which in the case of your phone is as good as you. Functional are ones that provide function to you - e.g. saving your login so you don't have to login each time. Analytical are ones that provide function to the website owner - e.g. letting them link the pages you visit and when. Advertising are ones that provide functions to advertisers - e.g. if you look at buying shoes on Amazon, you will likely see adverts for shoes. The reason in general cookies are receiving more attention in the past is that the web is increasingly linked, and greater processing has allowed people to build up incredibly detailed profiles of website users. That information could be very powerful - they could probably make a good guess at whether you are a safe driver, or whether you are living a healthy life style, which your insurers would love to know. Remember, the reason companies like Google are immensely rich is because they are using this data already to target you personally, rather than people like you as advertisers would have done in the past. So although it is a boring, technical issue, it can have big consequences, and is worth looking into the various privacy extensions and the like you can get. Edited January 5, 2020 by daddybeth 3 Quote Link to comment
+zookeepertx Posted January 9, 2020 Author Share Posted January 9, 2020 On 1/5/2020 at 1:34 PM, cerberus1 said: I hear ya... I'm laughing with BTW, not at. Thought I'd be all taken care of, but the other 2/3rds is with a team that hits other states/countries to fix their stuff. I apparently have to figure how to "upgrade" to at least windows10 first without losing anything already there, and I guess that comes with a new browser that doesn't play well with other stuff. Oh boy... The odd part is I hit caches manually, so you'd think I shouldn't have any issues... No, I get it; I'd be laughing, too, if it wasn't so dang aggravating. Just the WORD upgrade gives me a nervous twitch! (Alleged) upgrades are the worst idea EVER!! Quote Link to comment
+zookeepertx Posted January 9, 2020 Author Share Posted January 9, 2020 On 1/5/2020 at 2:45 PM, BethDaddyKaty said: The cookies are as they sound. Cookies are a way for websites to identify you personally - or at least computer or phone, which in the case of your phone is as good as you. Functional are ones that provide function to you - e.g. saving your login so you don't have to login each time. Analytical are ones that provide function to the website owner - e.g. letting them link the pages you visit and when. Advertising are ones that provide functions to advertisers - e.g. if you look at buying shoes on Amazon, you will likely see adverts for shoes. The reason in general cookies are receiving more attention in the past is that the web is increasingly linked, and greater processing has allowed people to build up incredibly detailed profiles of website users. That information could be very powerful - they could probably make a good guess at whether you are a safe driver, or whether you are living a healthy life style, which your insurers would love to know. Remember, the reason companies like Google are immensely rich is because they are using this data already to target you personally, rather than people like you as advertisers would have done in the past. So although it is a boring, technical issue, it can have big consequences, and is worth looking into the various privacy extensions and the like you can get. See, THAT is what I'm worried about is the possibilities/probabilities of having too much of my information "out there". I mean, I know the bad guys can get to my info, but I don't want to make it EASY for them. So, what do I do? I want to still be able to play the caching game, but am chicken to accept the cookies, since I don't know what they lead to. And since the information about the cookies when I checked indicated there were over 100 cookies, I really, really don't want to go through them individually! Who's got time for that? This is just a pain! 1 Quote Link to comment
+IceColdUK Posted January 9, 2020 Share Posted January 9, 2020 7 hours ago, zookeepertx said: See, THAT is what I'm worried about is the possibilities/probabilities of having too much of my information "out there". I mean, I know the bad guys can get to my info, but I don't want to make it EASY for them. So, what do I do? I want to still be able to play the caching game, but am chicken to accept the cookies, since I don't know what they lead to. And since the information about the cookies when I checked indicated there were over 100 cookies, I really, really don't want to go through them individually! Who's got time for that? This is just a pain! I understand your frustration, but the thing to remember is that prior to the update, you were getting all of these cookies without even knowing about them. Now you have the option of just accepting those required to make the site run, and rejecting those related to advertising, etc. Quote Link to comment
+K13 Posted January 13, 2020 Share Posted January 13, 2020 On 1/8/2020 at 10:38 PM, zookeepertx said: See, THAT is what I'm worried about is the possibilities/probabilities of having too much of my information "out there". I mean, I know the bad guys can get to my info, but I don't want to make it EASY for them. So, what do I do? I want to still be able to play the caching game, but am chicken to accept the cookies, since I don't know what they lead to. And since the information about the cookies when I checked indicated there were over 100 cookies, I really, really don't want to go through them individually! Who's got time for that? This is just a pain! Long ago, someone told me, "Never take cookies from strangers". The way I look at this is that Geocaching.com is not a stranger. Most advertisers are. I disabled the advertising cookies, and left the other two types on the Geocaching sites. YMMV. Quote Link to comment
+horseshoechamp Posted January 13, 2020 Share Posted January 13, 2020 When are they going to fix the browzers where they will work again so we can see our profiles and TBs and everything else? Quote Link to comment
Keystone Posted January 13, 2020 Share Posted January 13, 2020 14 minutes ago, horseshoechamp said: When are they going to fix the browzers where they will work again so we can see our profiles and TBs and everything else? What operating system and browser, including version numbers, are you using? What functionality issues are you seeing? Are any of them discussed in the open Release Notes thread, which is monitored by Geocaching HQ? 1 Quote Link to comment
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