Jeremy Posted November 3, 2004 Share Posted November 3, 2004 Here's the general idea of cache attributes. There is essentially a bank of attributes, and each type can have their own specific attributes. Since some attributes could be a yes or a no, I offer some of these options depending on the type. So if it is an event cache there is no need to say "recommended at night" but you may want to have "dogs allowed" or "campfires allowed." We can add them at will, so it isn't a big deal to do so. I wanted this to be pretty flexible. Once it is done, the cache pages will show the icons for the attributes you selected. Feedback appreciated. Link to comment
+Moose Mob Posted November 3, 2004 Share Posted November 3, 2004 Looks good!!!! A couple other thoughts... - Easily accessible from Highway (say, 10 minutes to/from) - Poisonous Plants (poison oak/ivy/sumac) Thanks! This is looking great! Link to comment
+southdeltan Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 Feedback: I didn't have a chance to go over everything but that's a GREAT start. Good Work Jeremy. sd Link to comment
Jeremy Posted November 4, 2004 Author Share Posted November 4, 2004 - Easily accessible from Highway (say, 10 minutes to/from) Interesting one. - Poisonous Plants (poison oak/ivy/sumac) Like this? I do like attributes, but am a bit worried about overkill on them. Link to comment
+LordSaw Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 Jeremy, As 9Key stated in another topic on this subject, Selector from him at Texas Geocaching Association, already has a good list that have been requested. You might want to review it for any categories you think might have not thought of. I won't suggest the obvious, but I think they have all been used on cache pages here at one time or another. Thanks for working on this great addition to the listings. Cache Well Link to comment
+Moose Mob Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 - Poisonous Plants (poison oak/ivy/sumac) Like this? I do like attributes, but am a bit worried about overkill on them. Hmmm... I just looked and it was there. Did I miss it the first time? And... Gotta watch the overkill. I would hate to scroll through three pages of "Caution: Wild kids on tricycles" etc. Link to comment
+Stunod Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 How about one that a lot of people seem to want to filter by: URBAN MICRO? Link to comment
Jeremy Posted November 4, 2004 Author Share Posted November 4, 2004 I think there is one setup that has "muggles present" - I suppose by searching to exclude those - that would count. Link to comment
Jeremy Posted November 4, 2004 Author Share Posted November 4, 2004 Hmmm... I just looked and it was there. Did I miss it the first time? No. It is just one attribute I didn't add for the test page. Link to comment
+Moose Mob Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 Hmmm... I just looked and it was there. Did I miss it the first time? No. It is just one attribute I didn't add for the test page. Thanks, I thought I was losing it (again) So... reading the test page, and thinkiong long and hard on the "Available at all times". Wouldn't it be better to approach it from "Only accessible during business hours" or something similar? Link to comment
+The Leprechauns Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 Another important attribute that I'm sure was omitted purely as an oversight, or to keep the test page uncluttered: Hamstercaching Permitted Link to comment
+Hemlock Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 - Poisonous Plants (poison oak/ivy/sumac) And just what is wrong with poisonous plants?? 1 Link to comment
+Renegade Knight Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 Equidestrian (Completely misspelled) Cache Retrieval Tool Required Pickle Park (Daytime hunt recommended) Restricted Hours. No GPS Reception Link to comment
+nfa Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 Hi, This looks great...how about a "high-muggle density zone, geocool required" condition? nfa-jamie Link to comment
robertlipe Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 Interesting idea. Please do be sure to extend the DTD to include these so client-side software can intelligently filter/display these. Link to comment
+southdeltan Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 Once it is done, the cache pages will show the icons for the attributes you selected. Can you give us an example of how this will appear on cache pages? I hope that it will be done with the minimal amount of space used. One of the reasons I do not use "The Selector" (aside from the fact that I try to include all useful information in the cache page text) is the amount of space that the image takes up. I like neat pages - for a variety of reasons (including printing out the pages - and please, whoever is going to suggest PQs/PDAs - don't... been there, done that, didn't like it). southdeltan Link to comment
Jeremy Posted November 4, 2004 Author Share Posted November 4, 2004 Interesting idea. Please do be sure to extend the DTD to include these so client-side software can intelligently filter/display these. When we come out with a new version of the Groundspeak:cache namespace it will contain this info. We'll probably position the data on the right-hand side of the cache page to keep from taking up too much space. It will be symbols-only to keep the size down, similar to how you can click on the example to see how they come up on the page. Link to comment
+kingsting Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 How about some of these hazards: Shoe sucking mud Bugs Biting Bugs Snakes Link to comment
+flask Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 when the attribute options get very dense, it becomes more difficut to list a cache where you don't want to give anything away. for instance, i may hide one where a short swim is the best bet, but i don't want to say so up front. could there be a "be prepared for anything" attribute? i don't want the absence of indicators to be understood that is's going to be a short walk on flat terrain. sometimes an indication that no boat is necessary but wading is required is too much of a hint. i may want you to be prepared for anything, but maybe i don't want to spoil the surprise. i DO recommend requiring the mention of fees if there are fees. often my budget is limited and i've planned for gas money, but not a seven dollar admission fee. if i drive a long way to find out i don't happen to have the bux to go in, i'm plenty toasted, and it happens more often than i like. i am not interested in poaching anyone's trails, so finding an "alternate" parking isn't an option for me. i either go in legal or i don't go. Link to comment
ju66l3r Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 -Is/Is Not Available For Viewing at Buxley's Waypoints Website Link to comment
Bobthearch Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 How about motorcycle-able? This would be caches that are ~not~ located on gravel roads and require only a short walk (hiking in motorcycle boots sucks). I don't think natural hazards are worthy of an Attribute. "Fee Area" is a good one, as mentioned by flask. -Bob Link to comment
+amytincan Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 4x4 required or be prepared to hike forever. do not attempt this trail without proper safety equipment and a buddy and a winch and extra underwear. (don't worry Jeremy, if I ever get to place a cache like that, it wouldn't need an attribute) Link to comment
+Moose Mob Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 4x4 is not always required on all dirt roads, but high clearance vehicle sure comes in handy on dirt roads around here (Las Vegas). Link to comment
+Moose Mob Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 - Poisonous Plants (poison oak/ivy/sumac) And just what is wrong with poisonous plants?? They don't go good in a salad. (well, maybe for the Addam's Family) Link to comment
+GeoTeam Maggi Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 RV Friendly or large vehicle access perhaps? I frequently cache in a 40 foot rig pulling a 25 foot trailer. Does not allow for easy U-turns! Link to comment
+9Key Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 Looks similar to something else I've seen... Link to comment
thorin Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 (edited) No GPS Reception If there's no reception how would you list co-ordinates? And what about all the instances where one person has poor or no reception and everyone else is fine? Or were you simply meaning caches like "the co-ordinates listed are the cave entrance, no GPS reception within the cave" etc How would we keep people from creating difficulty 4s with "May require swimming" when it should actually be "Requires Boat". Though this already happens so perhaps it's irrelevant. Also for requires boat adding something like Flat Water yes/no or White Water yes/no, or even better lets include the standard "class" scale, would be great. An international rating scale for comparing river difficulty was developed using six classes or difficulty levels. Class 1, the easiest level, is defined as fast-moving water with small waves, a few obvious obstructions, and relatively little danger to accidental swimmers. The classes increase in difficulty, culminating in Class 6, which is described as extreme and exploratory. These runs are almost never attempted, even by expert paddlers, and offer extremes of danger and unpredictability. The consequences of a mistake can be severe or fatal. More Info Thorin Edited November 4, 2004 by thorin Link to comment
+Eric K Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 What I would like to see is "Parking Co-ordinates" Link to comment
+Merel Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 In the Netherlands they use also a kind of Selector program : ICONEN CODE-GENERATOR. Maybe You'll find some more ideas over there. Link to comment
+Moose Mob Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 This feature is going to be great! Mr. Irish, when the PQ's are setup to query on these attributes, will we be able to include or filter out by "attributes not set"? There will be thousands of caches where the owner has long been gone from geocaching and will not be updating thier cache page to set these attributes. These caches have a life of thier own and geocachers are maintaining them as we find them (adding logbooks, cleaning out geo-trash, etc). Thanks! Link to comment
CoyoteRed Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 How about something to the effect you must read the cache page? Some caches, though they are traditionals, might have special requirements not covered in the selector. Maybe it's certain approaches that are not readily visible on site. This would allow folks to be able to filter on those caches where you can just show up and not have to worry about unforseen problems. I don't know if you remember, but this would be like designating a cache as "Commando." Your loaded GPS and pen would be all you need! Just a thought. Otherwise, my biggest thing is, and has been, special equipment rating 5 stars. If you add a "Other Special Equipment" and "Other Specialized Knowledge*" to the ones you already have then there would be no need to rate what would normally be a 2 star cache as 5 stars just because you need some rope. *Hunts might include spelunking or other areas where you should have to know what you're doing before you get yourself in trouble. Not saying a cache would be in a cave, maybe just a clue. Mainly, it's not for the things we can think about, it's for the things we can't. (To steal a quote.) In that vein, phobias? Normal ones like heights or close quarters, not stuff that one would normally run into in the woods like spiders or snakes. This is certainly in the "too much" category, but throwing out so others can comment. Link to comment
+9Key Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 I guess I don't understand this new project. There's two exisiting web apps that already have all of the icons / attributes mentioned here. Seems like its redunant. Link to comment
CoyoteRed Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 (edited) Seems like its redunant. Except this, I'm hoping, will be filterable. Edited November 4, 2004 by CoyoteRed Link to comment
+ZackJones Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 What I would like to see is "Parking Co-ordinates" Me too! Link to comment
Keystone Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 Bingo, CR. And also, built into the site so that the possibility of user error is decreased, and exposure to the useful tool is increased. Misuse of the third party solutions has slowed down many a cache review for me as I assist cache owners with basics like "you have to check the html box." Link to comment
+Moose Mob Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 I guess I don't understand this new project. There's two exisiting web apps that already have all of the icons / attributes mentioned here. Seems like its redunant. The problem with the other sites is that you can't query on these attributes. Many people may only want to see "kid friendly" caches for the family cache group. Link to comment
Jeremy Posted November 4, 2004 Author Share Posted November 4, 2004 I guess I don't understand this new project. There's two exisiting web apps that already have all of the icons / attributes mentioned here. Seems like its redunant. I think the selectors out there (like yours) are great, but you can't filter them in or out on search queries. Link to comment
+wimseyguy Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 (edited) I'm not so sure if "close to highway #x" is more important than, or a better way of saying "less that 500' from the car/parking" phrasing already used by the Selector. I can easily see the proximity to the highway on the map. Also I'll echo the icon for "Hey Stupid! Be sure to read the cache page for some special instructions beofre you hunt this one!" Maybe we can get the right to use Homer Simpson? I suppose RTFM wouldn't be family friendly enough? Edited November 4, 2004 by wimseyguy Link to comment
+Allen_L Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 I suppose RTFM wouldn't be family friendly enough? What is unfriendly about Read The Fine Manual? Link to comment
Jeremy Posted November 4, 2004 Author Share Posted November 4, 2004 I suppose RTFM wouldn't be family friendly enough? What is unfriendly about Read The Fine Manual? Additional Instructions Required may be a friendly solution. Link to comment
+flask Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 "short swim" is not necessarily "requires boat". a cache located twenty feet off of shore in calm water does not re Link to comment
+flask Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 ..quire a boat. twenty feet does not even justify putting my boat on the car. there are some caches where saying that it requires a boat is enough of a hint to loacate the cache, which is problematic in the case of a puzzle cache for which you might prefer to use a boat. Link to comment
thorin Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 And "requires boat" isn't necessarily "swimming impossible" so it should be further clarified. Thorin Link to comment
+Allen_L Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 I suppose RTFM wouldn't be family friendly enough? What is unfriendly about Read The Fine Manual? Additional Instructions Required may be a friendly solution. AIR works for me. Link to comment
Jeremy Posted November 4, 2004 Author Share Posted November 4, 2004 (edited) This is interesting. Moun10bike made the first reference of cache attributes in May, '01. It's also an interesting thread about the origins of caches other than traditional. Edited November 4, 2004 by Jeremy Link to comment
CoyoteRed Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 I suppose RTFM wouldn't be family friendly enough? What is unfriendly about Read The Fine Manual? Additional Instructions Required may be a friendly solution. AIR works for me. Can we have a "postive negative" as well? Meaning a postive indication that reading is not required to weed out those were the choice is not made. Thanks Link to comment
+rusty_tlc Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 ....Once it is done, the cache pages will show the icons for the attributes you selected. Feedback appreciated. Could you go back and add/delete if conditions change? Like say they started charging for parking, or started closing a park at night. Link to comment
Jeremy Posted November 4, 2004 Author Share Posted November 4, 2004 (edited) Sure. It would be editable just like any field on a cache page. Well, with exception of unchangable ones like type. Otherwise we wouldn't be able to go back and update all of the older listings. Edited November 4, 2004 by Jeremy Link to comment
CoyoteRed Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 Okay, now what about if you're wanting to keep some things a mystery. You don't want to lie, but you don't want to give things away, either. By looking at, say, "Climbing Gear" you have "N/A" and "Required." Is "N/A" the same as saying "Climbing Gear Not Required?" But what if it is, you're just not wanting to say. Not looking at that particular one specifically, but I think you see what I mean--the equivalent of "This attribute intentionally left blank." Thanks. Link to comment
+Moose Mob Posted November 4, 2004 Share Posted November 4, 2004 I'm not so sure if "close to highway #x" is more important than, or a better way of saying "less that 500' from the car/parking" phrasing already used by the Selector. I can easily see the proximity to the highway on the map.Also I'll echo the icon for "Hey Stupid! Be sure to read the cache page for some special instructions beofre you hunt this one!" Maybe we can get the right to use Homer Simpson? I suppose RTFM wouldn't be family friendly enough? Perhaps a better way to say it would be something that indicates that the cache is easily accessible by people who are driving through the area. Something that reflects that it's not 2 hours out of the way, even if it is a level 5, it could take less than 30 minutes to go and return to the freeway without having to be familiar with the local streets. Since Pocket queries are limited to 500 caches, many of the queries that I have performed have only yeilded a 10-20 mile radius (i.e. San Jose with level Terrain 2.5 or less). This causes me to have to perfom 10 seperate PQ's to get from Monterey to Portland. Yes, I know I can (and do) use GSAK, but if I can do this easily with 2 or 3 PQ's, then trip preparation would be much simpler. I know a lot of retired folks that would love to know that they can get there and back in thier RV without a lot of hassle. might be more that $.02 this time And... knowing that "critical" information is located in the cache page would help also, but wouldn't I already be looking at the cache page to know that? I guess I could filter it out if I want to ignore those in a "grab and go" caching scenario. Link to comment
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