Update coord logs

Discussion about the Geocaching Australia web site
Post Reply
Laighside Legends
10000 or more caches found
10000 or more caches found
Posts: 1304
Joined: 05 October 10 10:20 pm
Location: Australia

Update coord logs

Post by Laighside Legends » 26 March 16 4:03 pm

Is there a reason that GCA seems to ignore the details of update coord logs? Most of the time it doesn't matter but every so often a cache gets moved several kms and GCA never seems to pick this up...

eg. http://geocaching.com.au/cache/gc5prkb Moved 3.7km a year ago. Still shows up on the GCA map in entirely the wrong place.

I remember one in the mid north that got 'moved' 2 degrees of latitude due to an error when publishing. Shows up on GCA hundreds of kms from where it's meant to be.

User avatar
caughtatwork
Posts: 17013
Joined: 17 May 04 12:11 pm
Location: Melbourne
Contact:

Re: Update coord logs

Post by caughtatwork » 27 March 16 10:38 am

To answer the question, yes, there's a great reason.

We do not respect the change co-ordinates log type because they are not always imported, so we only respect the co-ordinates on the cache itself. When a geocache changes co-ordinates, if you import it, it gets changed. Someone imports an older file and it gets moved back again. Then a new file comes in and it gets moved. You play tag until either the files are all in line or someone gets annoyed. So we would not allow a manual import to change coords.

As we do mostly manual imports now I've made a change that will let the data bounce around for a while before it settles down.

Laighside Legends
10000 or more caches found
10000 or more caches found
Posts: 1304
Joined: 05 October 10 10:20 pm
Location: Australia

Re: Update coord logs

Post by Laighside Legends » 27 March 16 9:23 pm

Ah, makes sense. I thought there might be a reason. No big deal - just a bit confusing when a cache appears on the map but not on my GPS.

User avatar
Richary
8000 or more caches found
8000 or more caches found
Posts: 4189
Joined: 04 February 04 10:55 pm
Location: Waitara, Sydney

Re: Update coord logs

Post by Richary » 31 March 16 10:45 pm

Well I am doing my weekly update of NSW/ACT caches to the site. Apart from lots more logs being imported than usual (maybe the other person who normally does it Mondays or so didn't this week) I am seeing a lot of "Updating latitude and longitude of cache".

So expect the email for ACT and NSW ones in the morning to show a lot of changes!

User avatar
Tardis
3000 or more caches found
3000 or more caches found
Posts: 24
Joined: 04 June 14 11:16 am
Location: Tasmania

Re: Update coord logs

Post by Tardis » 03 April 16 5:45 pm

Same result here this morning for Tas. Most seem to be coord updates approved by CO. However, (& this is a bit more important), I have just done a my finds import using the usual process I follow (tag all recently logged GC finds in GSAK, export as GPX & import via My Import). Normally this works as expected. Any solved puzzles where I have corrected coords in GSAK do NOT get updated on GCA by this process. Today I had one that went through with a "coords updated" flag. It was only because my list was short that this was spotted.
Thinking it may be a furphy, I loaded the map from the GCA cache page for this GC cache. Sure enough it showed my corrected coords! Not good at all. Final GZ is quite a distance from listed so diff is obvious. I immediately downloaded a GPX of this cache from GC & re-uploaded that to GCA & it's repositioned the icon on the map back to GC listed. I hope this is right! Cache is GC2C70Z if it needs checking.
Note I do not store corrected coords on GC website, only in my local GSAK database. This could have major impact on puzzle caches if what I'm seeing has a ripple on effect.
One to check I think. In the interim, watch out for any puzzle caches with corrected coords going from GSAK to GCA.

User avatar
caughtatwork
Posts: 17013
Joined: 17 May 04 12:11 pm
Location: Melbourne
Contact:

Re: Update coord logs

Post by caughtatwork » 04 April 16 10:03 am

caughtatwork wrote:You are describing a problem which is insurmountable.

If a cache has co-ords which are different to ours they could be:
a. Moved
b. Corrected
c. Out of date

We accept whatever co-ordinates you import as the co-ordinates for the geocache. If you import a file of corrected co-ordinates, the site will update the co-ordinates. If you move them all to 0,0 then we'll set them to 0,0. I recommend you do not import a file with corrected co-ordinates. Only import the listed co-ordinates from the site.

User avatar
Tardis
3000 or more caches found
3000 or more caches found
Posts: 24
Joined: 04 June 14 11:16 am
Location: Tasmania

Re: Update coord logs

Post by Tardis » 04 April 16 1:02 pm

I take your point & bow to your far greater knowledge. However:
1. I have been following the GPX from GSAK procedure at http://wiki.geocaching.com.au/wiki/Uploading_logs for several years
2. I have never noted this behaviour in the past
3. I have checked several of my previous finds that have corrected coords in my GSAK & they appear to be as per GC listing on GCA despite having gone through the above import process.
(I say "appear" as the only means I can find of checking GC coords on GCA is by looking at the map. Clearly they are hidden from view until exposed by the auto-update emails).
4. I am unaware of any previous inadvertent exposure of corrected coords for caches found either by me nor anyone else. Surely with the numbers of cachers using GSAK to store corrected coords & performing GPX imports, the law of averages would suggest CO's would be complaining loudly by now.
Something seems to have recently changed with the process.

I will now need to revert to using the GC My Finds option. However, can I suggest:
1. that this issue be clearly highlighted on http://wiki.geocaching.com.au/wiki/Uploading_logs so others don't fall into a similar trap
2. that a means of transferring logs only from GSAK to GCA be examined. The import process you describe seems rather too "powerful", enabling non-CO's total control over the listing of a GC cache on GCA.

User avatar
caughtatwork
Posts: 17013
Joined: 17 May 04 12:11 pm
Location: Melbourne
Contact:

Re: Update coord logs

Post by caughtatwork » 04 April 16 1:51 pm

A few posts above this:
caughtatwork wrote:To answer the question, yes, there's a great reason.

We do not respect the change co-ordinates log type because they are not always imported, so we only respect the co-ordinates on the cache itself. When a geocache changes co-ordinates, if you import it, it gets changed. Someone imports an older file and it gets moved back again. Then a new file comes in and it gets moved. You play tag until either the files are all in line or someone gets annoyed. So we would not allow a manual import to change coords.

As we do mostly manual imports now I've made a change that will let the data bounce around for a while before it settles down.
It was changed recently. The wiki is open to anyone and everyone to update. Use the same credentials as the GCA site and you can update the wiki.

User avatar
J_&_J
Posts: 1264
Joined: 12 May 05 7:58 pm
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000016368307
Location: Morphett Vale
Contact:

Re: Update coord logs

Post by J_&_J » 04 April 16 7:10 pm

There is a box on the GSAK export dialog that should be ticked to prevent corrected coordinates being sent, as indicated here:

Image

User avatar
Tardis
3000 or more caches found
3000 or more caches found
Posts: 24
Joined: 04 June 14 11:16 am
Location: Tasmania

Re: Update coord logs

Post by Tardis » 04 April 16 9:07 pm

Thank you J&J. Perfect solution! That dialog pops up on every export yet I'd never spotted that option. Not only did I not have that box checked but somehow my default also had "include user notes in export" checked - though why that should ever be uploaded is a mystery as I put all sorts of "personal" stuff in there including partial WP's & misc notes to self. At least that's a hidden field somewhere in the GCA database. Still not clear why this change was made but that mod should resolve my dilemma. Thanks again.

Post Reply