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Release Notes 6/24/09


OpinioNate

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It's that time again for a much needed update to Geocaching.com. Many of the development done for the site in the past couple sprints were technical debt that was necessary for the proper functioning of the website, but unfortunately is not very sexy to all of you.

 

However, we did manage to tackle quite a number of bug fixes that should put a smile on a few faces. As always, we will continue improving on the site and bring you new and better features as quickly as we can.

 

A new forum is on the way, and further Pocket Query enhancements will not be too far behind. We'll hopefully be able to provide a hotfix to solve the trackable mileage issue and other bugs not fixed in this release. Our dev output has never been higher so all these pain points will be a memory soon. Thanks for all of your patience and understanding.

 

And now for the notes:

  • Nearest cache search page now ignores caches placed on your Ignore List
  • Fixed bug preventing a user from navigating trackable galleries with "prev image" and "next image"
  • GPS reviews: Fixed issue with some device manufacturers not displaying the number of device reviews available in the manufacturer dropdown list
  • Fixed an issue of stat bars improperly displaying for accounts containing an apostrophe.
  • Fixed issue of bookmark paging timing out and displaying incorrect contents for indicated page.
  • Clarified text in PQ results email describing where on the website to find EasyGPS software download
  • Clarified instructions in email sent from user to user through the website for how to reply to the message - added URL to "email this user" page
  • Fixed issue with some users receiving duplicate weekly cache notification emails
  • Clarified definition of Letterbox Hybrid geocaches on cache_types.aspx
  • Hide & Seek a cache by username now correctly accepts the number of characters required to support any length username
  • Clarified account validation instructions to prevent new user confusion
  • Removed old version of cache along a route page
  • Added link to public profile edit page to complete profile edit page
  • Fixed issue with IE6 not allowing profile edits
  • Corrected link in Premium Membership expiration reminder to point to the renewal page
  • Fixed server error received when adding a new GPS device to an account which had not previously been associated with a device
  • Fixed compatibility issue with IE8 when selecting adding a GPS device to an account
  • Fixed "zoom to address" behavior in Google maps
  • Added auto-renew details to edit membership page for auto-renewing Premium Members
  • Forced "add a waypoint to the log" checkbox when "update coordinates" is selected from the log type dropdown when logging a cache
  • The home page login widget will now correctly update your last visit date
  • When adding a waypoint to a log the coordinate entry field will now auto-populate the cache's coordinates
  • Added second "My Account Details" link to options at the top of /my/ page for added visibility

 

Please comment on any topics mentioned here in this thread. All other topics for another thread. Thanks!

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It's nice to see especially these ones fixed. Thanks for all your work.

  • Nearest cache search page now ignores caches placed on your Ignore List
  • Fixed issue of bookmark paging timing out and displaying incorrect contents for indicated page.
  • Fixed issue with some users receiving duplicate weekly cache notification emails
  • Clarified definition of Letterbox Hybrid geocaches on cache_types.aspx
  • Added link to public profile edit page to complete profile edit page
  • Forced "add a waypoint to the log" checkbox when "update coordinates" is selected from the log type dropdown when logging a cache
  • The home page login widget will now correctly update your last visit date
  • When adding a waypoint to a log the coordinate entry field will now auto-populate the cache's coordinates

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Except now the coordinate changes don't work at all.

 

I just tried to update a cache, the default was set to the original coordinates. I edited them to the new ones. The log entry was:

N 49° 48.975 W 119° 37.316

** Coordinates Changed From **

N 49° 48.975 W 119° 37.316

Distance From Old: 0 feet

 

The new coordinates are: 49 48.971 119 37.346, and that is what I entered!

GC10YMV

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Except now the coordinate changes don't work at all.

 

I just tried to update a cache, the default was set to the original coordinates. I edited them to the new ones. The log entry was:

N 49° 48.975 W 119° 37.316

** Coordinates Changed From **

N 49° 48.975 W 119° 37.316

Distance From Old: 0 feet

 

The new coordinates are: 49 48.971 119 37.346, and that is what I entered!

GC10YMV

That was happening before the update, as well.

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[*]When adding a waypoint to a log the coordinate entry field will now auto-populate the cache's coordinates

This is not working properly. When I attempted to change the coordinates for a cache of mine, the site kept changing them back to the original coordinates. I even tried posting a note with the new coordinates, and it changed those back, as well. As far as I can tell, it is now impossible to enter a waypoint with a log without having it changed to the cache coordinates.

 

<Cartman>Not kewl, you guys. Not Kewl.</Cartman>

Edited by fizzymagic
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[*]Clarified definition of Letterbox Hybrid geocaches on cache_types.aspx

 

It now says "If there is a stamp inside a letterbox hybrid"....

 

lame. I think all letterbox hybrid caches should have stamps... that's the idea.

 

All letterboxes have stamps. So, an 'offset' cache (letterbox-style) without a stamp is just a multi (multis don't have to ahve coords at each wp, even according to the description of a Multi, below) or a puzzle cache. LBH's should have stamps. An LBH without a stamp is just a multi or "offset cache", as stated by the Multi Description:

 

 

"Multi-Cache (Offset Cache)

A multi-cache ("multiple") involves two or more locations, the final location being a physical container. There are many variations, but most multi-caches have a hint to find the second cache, and the second cache has hints to the third, and so on. An offset cache (where you go to a location and get hints to the actual cache) is considered a multi-cache."

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Cache log are being ordered by when they were logged rather than the date the cacher says they found the cache.

 

Example: May 4th log on the top of the page followed by June logs.

 

Cache page of example photo.

 

I noticed this today :o

It's even worse than before (which was also wrong)

 

I really can't see why this sort order is so difficult to fix! :)

 

 

 

Mark

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It now says "If there is a stamp inside a letterbox hybrid"....

I would suggest replacing

If there is a stamp inside a letterbox hybrid, it is not an item intended for trade;

by

The stamp inside a letterbox hybrid is not an item intended for trade;

 

An LBH without a stamp is just a multi or "offset cache"

An LBH without a stamp is just a geocache. :o You can have LBH caches at the posted coordinates, or with Multi-style clues, or with a Mystery-style puzzle. You may also find some older LBH caches which don't use a GPSr at all, typically from a few years ago when the reviewers would sometimes interpret LBH as "a cross-listed letterbox, complete with letterboxing clues". These are now grandfathered; today, when placing and listing an LBH cache, you need to show that you have to get your GPSr out of your pocket after leaving the car.

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It's that time again for a much needed update to Geocaching.com. Many of the development done for the site in the past couple sprints were technical debt that was necessary for the proper functioning of the website, but unfortunately is not very sexy to all of you.

 

However, we did manage to tackle quite a number of bug fixes that should put a smile on a few faces. As always, we will continue improving on the site and bring you new and better features as quickly as we can.

 

A new forum is on the way, and further Pocket Query enhancements will not be too far behind. We'll hopefully be able to provide a hotfix to solve the trackable mileage issue and other bugs not fixed in this release. Our dev output has never been higher so all these pain points will be a memory soon. Thanks for all of your patience and understanding.

 

And now for the notes:

  • Nearest cache search page now ignores caches placed on your Ignore List
  • Fixed bug preventing a user from navigating trackable galleries with "prev image" and "next image"
  • GPS reviews: Fixed issue with some device manufacturers not displaying the number of device reviews available in the manufacturer dropdown list
  • Fixed an issue of stat bars improperly displaying for accounts containing an apostrophe.
  • Fixed issue of bookmark paging timing out and displaying incorrect contents for indicated page.
  • Clarified text in PQ results email describing where on the website to find EasyGPS software download
  • Clarified instructions in email sent from user to user through the website for how to reply to the message - added URL to "email this user" page
  • Fixed issue with some users receiving duplicate weekly cache notification emails
  • Clarified definition of Letterbox Hybrid geocaches on cache_types.aspx
  • Hide & Seek a cache by username now correctly accepts the number of characters required to support any length username
  • Clarified account validation instructions to prevent new user confusion
  • Removed old version of cache along a route page
  • Added link to public profile edit page to complete profile edit page
  • Fixed issue with IE6 not allowing profile edits
  • Corrected link in Premium Membership expiration reminder to point to the renewal page
  • Fixed server error received when adding a new GPS device to an account which had not previously been associated with a device
  • Fixed compatibility issue with IE8 when selecting adding a GPS device to an account
  • Fixed "zoom to address" behavior in Google maps
  • Added auto-renew details to edit membership page for auto-renewing Premium Members
  • Forced "add a waypoint to the log" checkbox when "update coordinates" is selected from the log type dropdown when logging a cache
  • The home page login widget will now correctly update your last visit date
  • When adding a waypoint to a log the coordinate entry field will now auto-populate the cache's coordinates
  • Added second "My Account Details" link to options at the top of /my/ page for added visibility

Please comment on any topics mentioned here in this thread. All other topics for another thread. Thanks!

 

I do appreciate all the hard work you put into the updates. But I think it would be nice if you gave everyone a "heads up" that the site might be down. Preferably a day or two before the updates. That way people can get a PQ ran ahead of times.

Just a suggestion.

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Thank you for the bug reports about coordinate entry for logs and the freakishly ordered cache logs. We'll be investigating this morning to find and fix the problem.

 

There are a couple reasons for not posting a warning ahead of the site updates. One reason is because as of yet we're incapable of estimating the exact time when the new build will be ready. We're getting better about this but for now we're only confident enough to say a release will take place somewhere within 2 days. The other reason is that, assuming everything goes well (big assumption!) the site should only be down for about 15 minutes.

 

PS - Yes we are now using the Scrum method of software development. We're technically beginning our 6th sprint but have really only fully adhered to all the different aspects in the last two sprints. It's a challenging transition but so far has been pretty effective.

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The page refresh after selecting "Type of log:" is REALLY annoying.

I select "Found it" and start typing my comment only to find that what I've been typing GETS ERASED!!!

Yeesh.

 

I'm not seeing that behavior here. I just added a note to one of my own caches and didn't see any refresh after selecting type of log, and the note that I entered did get posted just fine.

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When I search for the nearest caches (e.g. "from home coordinates" or from a specific cache), the 20 nearest are all on the first page, but the sequence within that page is more or less garbled :o !

 

This looks like a bug. If it's a feature, I'd like to know the actual sort criterion within each page of the listing. It appears rather random to me :) .

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When I search for the nearest caches (e.g. "from home coordinates" or from a specific cache), the 20 nearest are all on the first page, but the sequence within that page is more or less garbled :o !

 

This looks like a bug. If it's a feature, I'd like to know the actual sort criterion within each page of the listing. It appears rather random to me :) .

 

I hope this could never be confused with a feature. We're aware of the issue and will have a quick fix here soon. Sorry for the confusion!

Edited by OpinioNate
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The page refresh after selecting "Type of log:" is REALLY annoying.

I presume this is there so that, if you've selected "Update Coordinates", the system can automatically give you the box in which to add the new coordinates.

 

In the absence of "onClick=" for HTML "<option>" tags (IE6 compatibility), an alternative would be for the dropdown list's onChange= handler to check the value which has been selected and only reload if you've chosen "Update Coordinates". Or of course, it could just reveal a hidden <div> in a flash. The site has historically been rather averse to using lots of Javascript, but these days it's fairly universal, even on mobile devices, so perhaps things will go that way in future.

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Bug????

I live in Indiana. When I hit the newest caches in Indiana, (from my profile page) It gives me almost 11,000 entries dating all the way back to the year 2000.

I don't remember this happening before the new release.

 

Windows XP using Firefox latest version. Also will repeat using Internet Explorer newest version.

Edited by kayak-cowboy
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I like how the ignored caches are removed from the main google maps, but I think there is a slight bug. The list of ignored caches no longer shows in the cache owner's owned cache list, also if you have a PQ of your ignored caches it does not show up in the map preview. I use the ignore feature to separate out the caches out of my usual PQs, but I keep a PQ of them so I can check on them periodically.

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There is another bug related to sorting:

When I go to my own profile, and click on "All Cache Finds", the last 20 are on the first page, but within that page, the sequence is somewhat garbled (same for the following pages, of course).

 

While finds within a single day have always been listed inconsistenly, the find days themselves used to get listed strictly chronologically. But currently there are e.g. caches I found 5 days ago listed on top of caches I found 4 days ago.

 

Even if this is no show-stopper, it's definitely annoying.

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Pretty sure it's always been like that...

 

-Raine

 

Thanks Raine......... I thought I might have been mistaken. I just didn't remember it giving all the caches hidden in Indiana all the way back to 2000 before.

 

It definitely has always been like that. You must have not noticed somehow. This is a nice way to search for the oldest caches in your state...just click the double arrow (rather than "next") below the cache list to go to the end (the oldest still active cache in the state).

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Pretty sure it's always been like that...

 

-Raine

 

Thanks Raine......... I thought I might have been mistaken. I just didn't remember it giving all the caches hidden in Indiana all the way back to 2000 before.

 

It definitely has always been like that. You must have not noticed somehow. This is a nice way to search for the oldest caches in your state...just click the double arrow (rather than "next") below the cache list to go to the end (the oldest still active cache in the state).

 

Your right I must not have noticed before. Although there is still a problem with this list. As has been noticed before in other cache lists this list is all garbled as well. The dates of placement are all mixed up.

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"Nearest cache search page now ignores caches placed on your Ignore List"

 

I still see my ignored caches on this page. Is there something I need to do to get this feature to work?

 

To make sure I'm on the right page: I'm using the "Search for Geocaches" search box on the geocaching.com home page. When I use that search box, and then map the results, my ignored caches are still visible.

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The page refresh after selecting "Type of log:" is REALLY annoying.

I select "Found it" and start typing my comment only to find that what I've been typing GETS ERASED!!!

Yeesh.

 

I'm not seeing that behavior here. I just added a note to one of my own caches and didn't see any refresh after selecting type of log, and the note that I entered did get posted just fine.

The page does seem to reload, but anything that I had typed in the message box remained when I changed the log type and the cache page had reloaded. I tested both IE7 and Firefox 3.0.11.

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If I am viewing someone's profile and the geocaches that they have hidden and if I have ignored any of their caches, they do not show up on their cache listing.

 

I may not want to have their cache show up on my not found cache list, but I may still want to view what caches they have placed. How can I do this?

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There are a couple reasons for not posting a warning ahead of the site updates. One reason is because as of yet we're incapable of estimating the exact time when the new build will be ready. We're getting better about this but for now we're only confident enough to say a release will take place somewhere within 2 days. The other reason is that, assuming everything goes well (big assumption!) the site should only be down for about 15 minutes.

 

PS - Yes we are now using the Scrum method of software development. We're technically beginning our 6th sprint but have really only fully adhered to all the different aspects in the last two sprints. It's a challenging transition but so far has been pretty effective.

Thank you for demonstrating that Scrum isn't compatible with ITIL methodologies. I'll keep that in mind the next time someone asks me if we should try Scrum out.

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The page refresh after selecting "Type of log:" is REALLY annoying.

I select "Found it" and start typing my comment only to find that what I've been typing GETS ERASED!!!

Yeesh.

 

I'm not seeing that behavior here. I just added a note to one of my own caches and didn't see any refresh after selecting type of log, and the note that I entered did get posted just fine.

 

I'm seeing the same thing ...waiting for the refresh after selecting the log type regardless of the type of log. OSX 10.4.11 and Safari 3.1.2

 

edit... PS selecting the log type as the last operation after typing the log and selecting the date seems to often, or maybe always, fix the problem

Edited by edscott
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I note some changes in the Route PQs with this release.

 

I like the sliders that give us continuous control over distance and number of caches. I don’t know if I like them better than just being able to type in the number myself, but this is much better than drop-down box. Thanks.

 

The slides appear “greyed out” on my screen (I use latest version of FireFox). Is that intentional? They do work as if they are not greyed out.

 

I hope you don’t mind instantly getting a new request after you have just implemented something great. My request would be for a button next to each of the slider that lets you simply optimize the slider according to the other slider. For instance, if I set the number of caches to return to 450, that the other slider can be quickly set to whatever distance will generate that. I do this a lot manually and you could probably calculate it much more efficiently than all the trial and error that I use.

 

Another cool thing would be if the slider component that you use has an option for graduation marks on which we could click to snap the slider to particular settings (like 1 km, 1 mi, 2 km, 2 mi etc); making that available would be very cool.

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I can't search the nearest caches from my house but I can see the list of my unfound caches. When I search closest to my home coords I get the following: This constraint cannot be enabled as not all values have corresponding parent values., with no caches. Could this be a broken link? Please help because I like to see who has found caches in my area.

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[*]Fixed issue of bookmark paging timing out and displaying incorrect contents for indicated page.

 

Please comment on any topics mentioned here in this thread. All other topics for another thread. Thanks!

 

I am not able to add a new cache to my bookmark lists now. Is this related to the updates? Is this a general or local problem?

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[*]Fixed issue of bookmark paging timing out and displaying incorrect contents for indicated page.

 

Please comment on any topics mentioned here in this thread. All other topics for another thread. Thanks!

 

I am not able to add a new cache to my bookmark lists now. Is this related to the updates? Is this a general or local problem?

How are you trying to do it? It works for me if I go to the cache page and click the Bookmark Listing link.

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The page refresh after selecting "Type of log:" is REALLY annoying.
I concur. This just hit me -- I had selected the correct date and begun typing when the page refreshed and the date reset. I type quickly, and many of my keystrokes were lost.

 

Please don't refresh a page while I'm filling out a form.

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we are having problems opening up our geocache.com maps. when we do go to open one we get this message:

 

We were unable to return you to geocaching.com.

 

Internet Explorer has stopped trying to restore this website. It appears that the website continues to have a problem.

What you can do:

Go to your home page

 

Try to return to geocaching.com

 

More information

 

When a website causes a failure or crash, Internet Explorer attempts to restore the site. It stops after two tries to avoid an endless loop.

 

Please help us in resolving this problem...anyhelp is greatly appreciated..

thanks dillonsdaddy(&mommy)

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The page refresh after selecting "Type of log:" is REALLY annoying.
I concur. This just hit me -- I had selected the correct date and begun typing when the page refreshed and the date reset. I type quickly, and many of my keystrokes were lost.

 

Please don't refresh a page while I'm filling out a form.

While logging my first finds since the update I encountered the same issue. On my first log I selected "Found It" and began typing my log. Then the page suddenly refreshed and my log entry was lost. On my subsequent logs I just waited for the refresh before beginning my log, so my typing was not lost. Users will probably only notice this issue if they begin typing their log before the page refreshes. I don't understand why the page needs to be refreshed after the log type is selected??

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The page refresh after selecting "Type of log:" is REALLY annoying.

I select "Found it" and start typing my comment only to find that what I've been typing GETS ERASED!!!

Yeesh.

 

I agree.

 

If I try to look at caches hidden by one particular member with http://www.geocaching.com/seek/nearest.aspx?u=Devil+Hunter, I get:

This constraint cannot be enabled as not all values have corresponding parent values.

It's the first time I've tried to look at this person's caches, so I don't know whether it began with the latest release.

I've been having this problem a lot with not only searches of individual cachers owned caches, but also the Nearby caches from a cache page search.

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About the cache along a route page:

 

Since the introduction of the sliders to control distance and maximum number of caches, I don't get all the caches I'm supposed to. I have design a few routes that cover specific areas with a 8 km radius and have been running the queries for over a year. Since the introduction of the sliders, without founding any cache in these areas, those pocket queries now returns only about half the caches they use to. In the area of those queries, enlarging the radius from 8 to 10 KM should have return me easily 30~60 mores caches instead it only brought me 5~10 more.

 

Thank for the attention

Edited by Oursmalin
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