CachingCentral

It’s not posted on their site yet – http://www.garmin.com/support/download.jsp#programs – but you can update to 6.7 from within MapSource by clicking on Help / Check for Software Update.

Here’s what is listed between 6.5 and 6.7…
1. This will be the last version of MapSource to support reading/importing PCX5 files. For future compatibility, please migrate your data to the GPX format.
2. Added route road and area avoidances. To access avoidances, select “Manage Route Avoidances” on the Routing tab of the preferences dialog. Once avoidances are created, they are displayed on the main map if appropriate for the current map product.
3. Added “Auto” option to the display of route avoidances. This will hide route avoidances when the map is zoomed out far enough.
4. Added new “large” 24×24 pixel waypoint and map symbols. Select these symbols on the Display tab of the preferences dialog. Custom waypoint symbols can now be 24×24 and 32-bit color as well.
5. Added the ability to show or hide the left hand (user data) pane.
6. Added tooltips to the waypoint symbol selector with the name of the waypoint type.
7. Added celestial information dialog.
8. Added schema extension to GPX for handling Garmin-specific data elements, such as waypoint depth. The location of the schema is documented in outputted GPX files.
9. Updated the GPX Garmin extension (GPXXv1) to version 2 (GPXXv2) based on comments. GPXXv1 will not be supported.
10. Added ability to manually set the Y-axis endpoints on vertical profile plots.
11. Added “rest area” find subcategory.
12. Added artificial reef and oil rig map symbols.
13. Removed real-time tracking from MapSource. Use nRoute for PC real-time tracking applications.
14. Made several map rendering performance improvements.
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An article about a demonstration by a biology professor on geocaching. Either the professor needs to get educated or the reporter needs to comprehend and report more accurately. Here’s some inaccuracies from the article:

“The GPS is connected to the Internet through the Global Positioning Information System. This is a worldwide scavenger hunt.” I guess there’s a way, with ham radios to connect a GPS to the Internet in a round about way, but otherwise, that statement makes no sense.

“In order to participate, a GPS unit is required, and Holman said you get what you pay for, adding the higher priced models produce better results.” As we all know, the cheapest of Garmins will get you to the same spot just as accurately as the higher end units will. They might have more features, but I don’t think they will “produce better results”.

“By using simple GPS location longitude and latitude, the satellites track your position and lead you to the cache, Holman said.” and “All you really need to know is to turn the GPS unit on, push ‘go to’ and a compass will appear,” Holman said. “Then follow the arrow and the unit will tell you when you are approaching a landmark. If the arrow is not moving, you need to walk around a bit so the satellite will pick you up.” Well, we know the “satellites” don’t track our position. The GPS units use the satellite to determine our position. If they tracked us, they would know all the employees that spend too much time outside on smoking breaks!

“Holman said rules of geocaching require that you put something into the hidden spot, or cache, before you remove something from a secret location.” This sentence just reads so wrong.

“Holman said you don’t need to know all the technical mumbo-jumbo about GPS units to play geocaching.” Well based upon what was discussed/report, I sure hope that’s true since the “teacher” doesn’t know all the mumbo-jumbo either!

Full story…

A local Green Bay neighborhood association sponsored a geocaching event where caches were placed in 44 locations throughout the city to help bring the participants to interesting/historical locations. Some were actual cache containers and some were virtuals.

Full story…

You can request Garmin’s City Select v7 be shipped to you free. The upgrade CD is free but you will need to unlock it once it ships. I didn’t notice it displayed anywhere, but the past 2 updates (v4 to v5 and v5 to v6) were $75 each.

The URL is: http://shop.garmin.com/cartography/mapsource/update/cd_update_details.asp?CD=190-10018-08

The expected ship date of the update CD is around 8/15/2005. Remember, ordering the upgrade is free. Using it is when you need to pay.

The traditional “What is geocaching?” article out of Oregon. By now you think ever paper would have already run this story.

The article notes that the searches based on zip code show caches based on the location of your post office. That’s technically not correct. The Lat/Long provided for each zip code is the center of the zip code and the actual location of your post office isn’t involved in determining the center. Just though I’d throw that in.

Full story…

KPVI in Idaho did a brief segment on geocaching. The transcript of the segment as well as a link to the actual video segment is on the KPVI web site.

Snippet from the segment:
Wendy Ellis, who is an avid geocacher volunteered to be my guide as I searched to find my first geocache. For her the sport is more about the hunt than finding the prize.

Wendy Ellis: “It takes me to a lot of places that I’ve never been in my home town, and it takes me to a lot of sites that average people walking by never see.”

Full story and link to the video

Cachemate, the popular Palm OS based application for geocaching, has been updated.

Version 4.1.0 – July 15, 2005

An article highlighting some Upstate NY cachers as well as mentioning benchmarking.

July 15, 2005

ALBANY, N.Y. — The first time Marc Gorsage hid a cache in the wilds of upstate New York, in a pine barrens beneath power lines, he waited two months before somebody found it. In the fall of 2000, he didn’t know if anybody was even looking.

“Today somebody puts a cache out, you’ve got to run like hell to find it first,” said his friend and fellow geocacher Tom Brant, aka Rusty O Junk. The 56-year-old cement truck driver from Gansevoort says he’s found 1,125 caches since joining the adventure game in July 2002, been the first finder several times, and he has hidden 26.

Gorsage, 48, a Niskayuna resident who rents audiovisual systems, joined the game early. He hid a cache in Albany’s Pine Bush on Oct. 16, 2000, posting the location on the Web. It was recorded as first found on Dec. 26.

“I’ve always been into hiking and studying (topographical) maps and other maps,” said Gorsage, whose moniker is Marc G. After a co-worker pointed out a Web reference, he looked into it and got started. Today he owns 21 geocaches, has found about 350 and was first finder on more than 30 percent.

Full story…

We now have a 3rd geocaching related podcast and the first MP3 based PodCache was placed and approved on Geocaching.com.

I received a comment to a blog posting on the last podcast I listed. The comment indicated a 3rd geocaching related podcast that was available to listen to. So last night, I downloaded the podcast to my iPod and listened to it this morning on the way to work.

First, the site for all of this is http://www.podcacher.com.

The 2 hosts of the PodCache are a husband and wife caching team that go by the name of iTrax and FoxTail who reside in San Diego, CA.

Their initial podcast, 12 minutes long, introduced themselves and reviewed some caches they have enjoyed.

What they also did was create a PodCache (which is their 2nd podcast). The concept is to track down a cache by listening to the MP3 podcast which gives the hints to the cache location from the posted parking coordinates. It is meant to be listened to as you track down the cache. The cache is GCPNWV – The 1st PodCache.

I think they have created a new class of caches. Maybe it’ll be worthy of it’s own cache icon at some point. It definitely is an interesting twist on what might be nothing more then an ordinary urban/suburban cache.

I traveled to San Diego a few times on business, but I’ve recently switched jobs. I hope to get out to SD again to try this new cache type.

Check out and subscribe to this new PodCacher podcast along with the other geocaching related podcasts. See CacheCast and GeoRadio for info on the other 2 geocaching related podcasts.

By Heather LaRoi
Gannett Wisconsin Newspapers

Jeff Rusch has spent what many might consider ridiculously long hours in search of hidden treasures.

When Rusch was first introduced to the game about five years ago by his brother, he admits he was skeptical.

“When he first told me about it, I said, ‘That sounds kind of goofy, actually,’” Rusch recalled. “I thought, if you hide these things out in the woods or whatever, what’s to keep somebody from stealing them?”

He pictured himself spending hours scouring the woods for an object that was no longer there.

But once he and his wife, Anne, gave the game a try, it wasn’t long before they were hooked. And so were their two grown sons.

“The more you do it, you get a feel for where things might be,” said Rusch, a schoolteacher. “But there have been times when my wife and I have walked around, and if there’s somebody else there, they’ll think we’re crazy. There’s also been times when we’ve thrown up our hands and said, you know what, we’ll come back another day. And often times we’ll find it another time.

“Then once you get into it, the computer keeps track of how many caches each person has found. And some people really make it a competition.”

The Rusches, who play the game under the name Educ8ors, don’t take it that seriously but they’ve discovered other bonuses to geocaching.

“Probably the best thing that came out of this for us isn’t the caches themselves,” Rusch said. “But we’ve always liked camping and hiking in the woods, and this just gives us more reason to do it. We have found some wonderful parks and places to visit.”

Full story…