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Garmin 65s - geocache_visits.txt does not track found caches


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Hello

 

I bought a Garmin 65s to replace my 64s.   When I log a cache, the geocache_visits.txt file is empty.   The only entry is "G" in row 1.  

 

The geocache_logs.xml file does have the caches visited, but not the _visits.

 

I deleted the file and let it be recreated and logged a variety of caches with Found, DNF, Needs Maintenance.  However none of these logs are in the file.

 

This GPS is 6 days old and has never recorded a logged cache.

 

I load my GPS with GGZ files from GSAK.  I use a Mac.   The same caches loaded onto the 64s with the same GSAK settings log normally.

 

I am out of ideas and tried searching the forum and Google and am not making any progress.

 

Ideas?

 

Thank you

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45 minutes ago, F33APilot said:

I deleted the file

 

45 minutes ago, F33APilot said:

I use a Mac.

 

When you deleted the geocache_visits.txt file, did you dump the trash before disconnecting the Garmin?  I don't know if deleting the file could help, but if it can, on a Mac it doesn't actually become "deleted" until after that next step.

 

You might try a factory reset.

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Hello

 

I moved the geocache_visits.txt to trash

I emptied the trash

I ejected the GPS

I reconnected the GPS and there is no geocache_visits.txt

ejected the GPS again

logged a few caches

connected the GPS

opened the _visits.txt file and the same, only the letter G

 

but the _logs.xml file has the caches

 

471564910_ScreenShot2022-03-23at7_48_42PM.png.de14903a1fcdc2682e658eb12c53a8f0.png

 

1003495497_ScreenShot2022-03-23at7_51_27PM.png.ab9c55be303a82f64d717d3a2d2ce339.png

Edited by F33APilot
adding new info
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1 hour ago, F33APilot said:

opened the _visits.txt file and the same, only the letter G

 

That is odd.  It should contain info similar to what the XML file shows, but it's line after line of comma delimited data.  The first letter in the file starting with "G" because its a cache code such as GC7H6A3.

 

I found one thread over 10 years old that mentions a blank field notes file (with a different model of Garmin GPS).  The OP tried a soft reset which didn't help, and then he stopped posting in that thread.

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What editor are you using to look at the geocache_visits.txt  ?

The 'problem' is that the file is in double-byte format; which means that every ascii-code is followed by a x0 character. (see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DBCS )

So e.g. GC1234 is coded in the file as: 47 00 43 00 31 00 32 00 33 00 34 00

It looks like your editor/viewer thinks the x00 character is the end of text so only shows the first character.

Solution: use another editor to look at the file; or just upload it to geocaching.com/drafts

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So many times, on these and other forums, when a MAC is involved, the MAC is the issue.

 

If you do anything other than read this file, on any machine, you are very likely to find that it in fact no longer records your geocache visits, in which case, simply deleting the existing file and letting the GPSr write a new one the next time you log a cache will resolve the issue.

 

Also, not using a MAC helps. A lot.

  • Funny 2
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1 hour ago, Mineral2 said:

Often, Macs are just easier.

 

That's the big elitist lie Apple continues to spread...

 

Everyone I know that use apple products are constantly suffering from compatibility and/or lack of support issues that simply do not exist on Windows PC's. In fact, most of them still have to keep a Windows PC handy for just such occasions.

  • Funny 1
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3 hours ago, Mineral2 said:

but then you have to deal with stability issues of Windows

 

What stability issues? I've been running my present Windows 10 PC for over four years and it's never missed a beat. My previous one, which I bought in 2012, started becoming flaky in hot weather, due to either a motherboard or power supply problem, but Microsoft didn't make either of those. Sure, if you use rubbish hardware or badly written third party drivers you'll likely have stability issues, but that's not the fault of the operating system.

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23 hours ago, barefootjeff said:

 

What stability issues? I've been running my present Windows 10 PC for over four years and it's never missed a beat. My previous one, which I bought in 2012, started becoming flaky in hot weather, due to either a motherboard or power supply problem, but Microsoft didn't make either of those. Sure, if you use rubbish hardware or badly written third party drivers you'll likely have stability issues, but that's not the fault of the operating system.

Macs don't have a Blue Screen of Death?
 

As far as compatibility goes, I haven't yet found much that can't work with a mac. Ok... I admit I'm not a gamer and so I'm not as concerned with game studios and programmers who choose not to compile their programs for the Mac OS. But as far as work tools go, MS Office, Adobe Suite, etc. are all cross compatible. And almost all hardware just works. Plug n' play. 

 

On 3/25/2022 at 9:25 PM, Atlas Cached said:

That's the big elitist lie Apple continues to spread...

That's really just my opinion (and the opinion of a lot of mac users) based on experience.

I don't care what system you use. Mac, Windows, Linux, Android, iOS... if you have a problem, I will search Google for an answer (something you all should be able to do yourselves, but I digress). But if you're going to snark against macs, I have plenty of snark to throw back at PCs.

Let's keep this thread on topic please.

Edited by Mineral2
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6 hours ago, Mineral2 said:

Let's keep this thread on topic please

 

Certainly, but first we must change the topic to be more accurate and correct, as the current topic is in fact completey incorrect and deceptive.

 

The users GPSMAP 65 does in fact actually track found caches, and the REAL issue is directly related to the use of a MAC.

 

A much more honest topic would be "My MAC has trouble reading the geocache_visits.txt file on my GPSMAP 65."

 

Now, as you say, let's stay "on topic".

  • Funny 1
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Interesting debate.

 

I connected my 65s to my Lenovo Laptop running Windows 11 and found the same issue.   The xml file had the logs and the txt file did not.  Using a text reader that could read UTF16 did not show any caches.  

 

As this was replicated on a Windows machine, I am not convinced it is a Mac issue, but something with the device.

 

I cleared the files of the GPS, soft reset, downloaded a firmware update and loaded caches from my Windows machine.  It is working now.

 

I cleared the files again and loaded from my Mac and is working there to.

 

It appears to be an issue with the GPS as everything is normal after the firmware update.  GSAK, BaseCamp, Windows and Mac File Explorer and Finder are all showing normal behaviour now.

 

Thank you everyone for the input.   

  • Helpful 1
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Glad you have it sorted out!

 

I suspect when you opened the file the very first time using the MAC, the file structure was changed/corrupted, and once that happens, the GPSr will no longer write to that file on the device.

 

The firmware update and device reset cleared that file and a new, uncorrupted file was written.

 

So long as none of your text editors make any changes to that file, you should be good to go.

 

Should you run into the issue again, simply delete the file from the GPSr (and empty the trash on the Mac) and reboot the device, it will rewrite a fresh new file for future cache logs.

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56 minutes ago, Atlas Cached said:

I suspect when you opened the file the very first time using the MAC, the file structure was changed/corrupted, and once that happens, the GPSr will no longer write to that file on the device.

Except when you read the original post, the OP deleted the file and had the GPS create a new one:

 

On 3/23/2022 at 6:46 PM, F33APilot said:

I deleted the file and let it be recreated and logged a variety of caches with Found, DNF, Needs Maintenance.  However none of these logs are in the file.


Some thoughts on this:

  • When the GPS creates a new Geocache_visits.txt file, it doesn't consult the XML file to recreate past logs. It simply continues writing the next time you log a geocache.
  • It's possible (though unlikely) that deleting the .txt file but not the XML file is the source of the problem. I almost always delete both when resetting my geocache files on the device.
  • Trying to manually edit or create the .txt file will result in a file that the GPS can't read or write. But because the file with that name exists, a new one won't be created.
  • I don't really understand why Garmin writes this file in some other encoding other than UTF-8 or Latin-1. Maybe it's a limitation imposed by Groundspeak to prevent average users from making their own field notes file to upload to the site. Whatever the reasoning, editing the geocache_visits.txt file before uploading it to drafts will cause an error there as well.

It sounds like something else was causing issues and the soft reset fixed it. If this occurs again in the future, it might be worth testing to see if it was a corrupt database. The entire SQL folder can be deleted and will be recreated upon boot without having to delete all of your GPX files or reset your settings.

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1 hour ago, Mineral2 said:

Except when you read the original post, the OP deleted the file and had the GPS create a new one:

 

Except:

 

Was the file actually deleted? Was the recycle bin cleared before disconnecting the GPSMAP 65? If not, the same file would have still been present on the device when reconnected....

 

Further more,

 

What does that text editor do to the source file when opening? ANY change will corrupt it....

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1 hour ago, Mineral2 said:


Some thoughts on this:

  • It's possible (though unlikely) that deleting the .txt file but not the XML file is the source of the problem. I almost always delete both when resetting my geocache files on the device.

 

Not the issue. The GPSr simply adds to the existing files each time a cache is logged.

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1 hour ago, Mineral2 said:


Some thoughts on this:

  • I don't really understand why Garmin writes this file in some other encoding other than UTF-8 or Latin-1. Maybe it's a limitation imposed by Groundspeak to prevent average users from making their own field notes file to upload to the site. Whatever the reasoning, editing the geocache_visits.txt file before uploading it to drafts will cause an error there as well.

 

Correct!

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1 hour ago, Mineral2 said:

If this occurs again in the future, it might be worth testing to see if it was a corrupt database. The entire SQL folder can be deleted and will be recreated upon boot without having to delete all of your GPX files or reset your settings.

 

Simply deleting the txt file (and empty trash on apple products) then rebooting the device will solve it.

 

The SQL database does not contain any information about this txt file. The geocache_visits.txt file is present for one single purpose, logging finds at geocaching.com.

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