Site Inferface

[+Wolfen32]

I found Waymarking from geocaching. However, I like it just as equally. I enjoy both games in different ways. 

However, it seems that the Waymarking website itself hasn't gotten the updated treatment that the geocaching page has. I'm aware that geocaching pays the bills so to speak. But with some of the present difficulties, I feel Waymarking is almost holding itself back. For being a location-based game, some of the mapping and search features are a bit harder to use than they could otherwise be. 

On a top level, a stylistic update to be more modern would help. A similar look to what we have here. 
The next level down, a primary "live map" like on geocaching that allows you to search a live field of active waymarks based on your location, or similar parameters. 
thirdly, when it comes to searching itself - consolidating the coordinate searches in the same way google maps or geocaching.com does. That is to say, accepting coordinate inputs in multiple formats in a single text field, rather than a drop down to Additional Search Options > Coordinate Search  > DMS/MinDec/DegDec. 

The latter two are perhaps the most important, as they would vastly improve the ease of use when using the site. And as they are already operational on the sister site, I imagine they could be ported over. Assuming they have a similar codebase. 

I love recommending Waymarking to my family and friends. But often, they are intimated or put off by the site itself. Soon there will be an app, and I am beta-testing on that. But the success of the web platform can't be necessarily tied to the app, as we have desktop users as well. If you guys have thoughts, I'm sure this has been asked before... I just wasn't able to find any discussion or answers to these on the forum. 

[+ScroogieII]

Well, you are, indeed, correct - this subject, IE the subject of updating the WM site, has been discussed at length over the years.

While I generally agree with each point you've touched on,  as a rule I am not totally in favour of updating a site purely on aesthetic grounds. I've dealt with several sites that took a perfectly usable site that was easily navigated and, in the interest of appearing more contemporary, turned the site into an unnavigable jungle of pretty bells & whistles. Hence, I don't take well to the upgrading of websites "Just because we can" or "because it looks a little dated". Adding or improving functionality without increasing complexity, however, I am nearly always in favour of.

 

I understand the utility of being able to search for Waymarks from one's present location, but just realized that I have done that only rarely from my laptop. When searching for Nearest Waymarks I am almost exclusively searching for WMs at a location other than my own. AND, when using the function, I simply plug in replacement LAT & LON coords (in decimal degrees), leaving the default format in place - "[lat:52.974419,lon:-122.510678]". Many have complained about the hit-and-miss utility of searching at Waymarking while using other methods, such as searching on a name or location. My method has been entirely successful for over nine years.

 

Searching for Waymarks from one's present location from within a mobile app is, obviously, a different kettle of fish. That is exactly the functionality one hopes and expects to find in such an app.

 

I would suggest that Waymarking - the WHOLE WORLD for that matter - standardize geographical coordinate usage on DECIMAL DEGREES. That is far and away the easiest and simplest format to use, both from the standpoint of quick and error free copying and of mathematical calculation. For example, ever tried to construct a relatively simple Excel function for divining the distance between two relatively close objects (as in, on the order of a few hundred kilometres or less) using degrees and decimal minutes or, heaven forbid, degrees, minutes and seconds? Here, decimal degrees is the clear winner.

 

So, my next suggestion would be that Groundspeak fix the coords input function on the Submit Waymark pages to accept decimal degrees correctly. The function has been badly bent for as long as I've been Waymarking, at least - IE since 2012, possibly since the dawn of time. It will usually work correctly only on the second time around and will then often continue to work correctly for the rest of the day.

 

Keith

Edited February 12, 2021 by ScroogieII

[+elyob]

After so many many years of figuring out how to use the Waymarking web site, I am terrified thinking about someone changing things now.

[+elyob]

Groundspeak has chosen to leave us on our own.  So be it.

[+PISA-caching]

I also think that improvements of the website would be great, but I mean "improvements", not "changes". It all depends on the basis for it. If they read through the wishes of the active waymarkers, they get improvements. If someone (who is not an active waymarker) plans a complete redesign of the website and has to think what active waymarkers "might" find to be useful, it will most likely be "changes", and not a success.

Edited February 12, 2021 by PISA-caching