[Feature Request] Map Coordinates Toggle View

[+Kaitlyn]

Currently on the website map, any caches where you update the coordinates will display in their updated location until the find is logged, after which it will go back to its posted location. Is it possible to have a feature where one can toggle if they want to see updated location, or posted location?

 

For example, if I have solved a set of geoart but only found half of it, I would like to still see the full geoart instead of half of it. Also, if I live in an area with many puzzles, it's easier for me to toggle view the solved coordinates so I can scout a location for a new hide (as the Hide a Geocache map won't give you this information even if you've solved and found hidden waypoints).

[+Viajero Perdido]

Some non-Groundspeak caching apps have this feature, if it helps.

[+niraD]

1 hour ago, Kaitlyn said:

Currently on the website map, any caches where you update the coordinates will display in their updated location until the find is logged, after which it will go back to its posted location. Is it possible to have a feature where one can toggle if they want to see updated location, or posted location?

 

Please, please, pretty please? I have no use for the bogus posted coordinates once I've solved a puzzle cache. I'd rather see the solution location, even after I've found the cache.

[+dprovan]

12 hours ago, niraD said:

Please, please, pretty please? I have no use for the bogus posted coordinates once I've solved a puzzle cache. I'd rather see the solution location, even after I've found the cache.

Yep. The more experience I get with this behavior, the more cases I run into where the found cache moving back to it's posted coordinates is confusing or annoying or both, and the less convinced I become that I'm ever go to run into a case where it does anything useful for me. Just this weekend I had to track down a cache that I revisited by searching unknown caches in the area one by one until I figured out which it was even though I could point on the map to where I'd just resigned the log.

[+ecanderson]

I haven not tried it yet - may have time to do so later today - but ...

What happens if you go to the cache page and re-enter the solution into the native checker?  Does the location move again?  Wondering if that would toggle the location flag, or whether it's strictly based upon found / not-found status.

 

 

[+Kaitlyn]

2 minutes ago, ecanderson said:

I haven not tried it yet - may have time to do so later today - but ...

What happens if you go to the cache page and re-enter the solution into the native checker?  Does the location move again?  Wondering if that would toggle the location flag, or whether it's strictly based upon found / not-found status.

 

 

It seems to be based on found/unfound since after you find it, the coordinates on the cache page do not revert back to original - only in the map view.

[+ecanderson]

Yeah, gave it a try just in case, and that idea was a bust.

 

[+thebruce0]

Yes yes please. The only way to see the final (physical) pin on the map at the corrected coordinates for caches you've found, at least that I could find, is to use a custom script on gsak. Even from what I could find PGC doesn't have that option (tho I believe it's on their todo list)

 

There's no simple way to see all caches at the final/corrected coordinates on the map, and it's pretty frustrating when you're trying to see where the physical containers are, both found and unfound. Geoarts are the big issue context. Bundles of physical containers scattered around a region, but once you've found the geoart, how do you see where they are?

 

Cachly does keep the pins in the corrected coordinates after finding. But of course you need to run PQs or search areas to see the pins. There's no 'native' way to see this...

[+ecanderson]

I guess I haven't run into this before because I use GSAK to manage all of that, and since all of my puzzle finals are already re-located, bringing up a Mapsource map of caches (found and unfound) shows them where I want them -- where they really are.  I use the web site as little as possible due to its many shortcomings, this being one of them it seems.

[+WingsAndTales]

I also find this behavior of the website aggravating and annoying.  The posted coords on a puzzle are useless once you have solved it.  The posted coords might be useful for a multi but why not let the user decide. I don't understand the logic in the site that overrides the corrected coords that I have entered.  If I wanted the icon to display at the posted coords I would change it back.

 

Please, please change this!

[+solid-rock-seekers]

I'm also very interested in this feature - being able to have the user choose whether the geocaching.com website maps show caches with "solved coordinates" that have been entered by the user, or at the original (aka "posted") coordinates.  

 

As described by the first poster in this thread, the current behavior is that unfound caches are shown at the "solved coordinates" on the map, unless there are no "solved coordinates" entered, in which case they are shown at the original (posted) coordinates.

 

However, for caches that have been found, the map only shows the icons at the original (posted) coordinates.

 

Being able to display "found" caches on the map at the "solved coordinates" is very helpful for many things, such as determining prospective hide locations for a new cache, among other things.

 

Is there any way to know if the geocaching.com maintainers are even planning to add the above feature, or if there are other reasons that the maintainers have explicitly decided against such a feature?

 

Thanks!

[+MartyBartfast]

I'd like this too please.

[+arisoft]

10 hours ago, solid-rock-seekers said:

Is there any way to know if the geocaching.com maintainers are even planning to add the above feature, or if there are other reasons that the maintainers have explicitly decided against such a feature?

 

From a user perspective this feature is not wanted. There was a short period of time when users could actually select which way solved coordinates was displayed. I used this option very much. Then this feature was removed streamlined. I think that this is a strong indication against the feature. It is not wanted for some reason.

 

You can use other tools to display the map properly. I guess that the official Geocaching App is the only which has this disadvantage. I am using Locus Map and Project-GC live map myself.

[+thebruce0]

On 1/8/2022 at 5:48 AM, arisoft said:

From a user perspective this feature is not wanted. There was a short period of time when users could actually select which way solved coordinates was displayed. I used this option very much. Then this feature was removed streamlined. I think that this is a strong indication against the feature. It is not wanted for some reason.

 

You can use other tools to display the map properly. I guess that the official Geocaching App is the only which has this disadvantage. I am using Locus Map and Project-GC live map myself.

 

Cachly has that implemented now as an option, to display pins at their original or updated coordinates. So it was desirable enough in that app's userbase for Nic to incorporate. No reason to remove a feature unless it's causing problems so that removing it makes the general experience better. 

[+dprovan]

On 1/8/2022 at 2:48 AM, arisoft said:

From a user perspective this feature is not wanted. There was a short period of time when users could actually select which way solved coordinates was displayed. I used this option very much. Then this feature was removed streamlined. I think that this is a strong indication against the feature. It is not wanted for some reason.

I don't remember that period when you could choose. I only remember people immediately asking for the feature as soon as people noticed the cache snap back. How long was there a way to choose? And why would GS put up with the complaints if they already had the code to provide user control?

 

I agree someone doesn't want it, but it's clear from the regular complaints that many users do want it. Why would a user object to being able to choose the behavior they'd prefer?

[+arisoft]

9 hours ago, dprovan said:

I don't remember that period when you could choose. I only remember people immediately asking for the feature as soon as people noticed the cache snap back. How long was there a way to choose? And why would GS put up with the complaints if they already had the code to provide user control?

 

There were two maps. One was the old browse map as today. Another was the old search map which opened, for example, If I remember right, when you clicked "view larger map" from a cache page and it displayed only a limited number of caches nearby,  using corrected coordinates also for found caches as one may wish to be used especially in this case. The old search map used coordinates to locate the map and it worked properly with archived caches. Today this function is broken for archived caches because the position data is replaced with the cache id.

 

This removed feature was enough to check if there is free space for a new cache or a cache at the coordinates you got while trying to solve a mystery cache. This option was working months until someone in the HQ found that this is not they want and this feature was removed by displaying caches at the bogus coordinates. Later this was changed to use the new search map. Excuse for displaying geo art correctly could not be used in this case because the map didn't show all caches. The old search map wasn't a suitable tool for enjoying geo art.