Data Hacking

258 Part IV — Playtime
This new site (www.geocaching.com) enabled the sport of geocaching to grow fast and
spread quickly to what it is today (nearly 121,000 geocaches in 210 countries as of Sept 2004).
The appeal of geocaching is easy to understand — it makes real our childhood dreams and fantasies
of treasure hunting and combines that with hi-tech yet affordable gadgets, a massive
online community, and the great outdoors.
Geocaching Made Simple
Before we look at geocaching-specific hacks and software that might be of benefit to you, this
section explains a little bit about geocaching in case you aren’t sure what it is. If you are already
familiar with geocaching, you might want to skip this section.
For more specific information on geocaching, visit one of the following websites:
www.geocaching.com
www.navicache.com
www.brillig.com
http://geocaching.gpsgames.org
What Is Geocaching?
In its simplest form, geocaching is a modern-day treasure hunt. There are no sailing ships or
pirates, and instead of using an old map with an X to mark the spot, you use the Internet and
your GPS. Instead of a treasure chest filled with gold and jewels, the treasure is a plastic lunch
box or an ammo box (or maybe even something much smaller) filled with small trinkets and a
log book. (Who knows? You might be lucky and find a treasure chest that’s bursting at the
seams with riches. I’ve never come across one, but if some kind geocacher wants to hide one,
I’ll sure have a go at finding it!) The object of the game is simple: find the cache.
There can be more to it than that — some geocachers like to be the first to find a new cache
(finding a new, unlogged cache is called an FTF), while others might attempt to find a certain
number in a day or a year, whereas others just enjoy it for the sense of adventure and the new
places they discover. These are all variations on the same theme. What always matters is finding
the cache!
So, what’s the process involved? The following section explains geocaching, compressed into a
few simple steps!
Geocaching from Beginning to End
Here is what geocaching is all about, from beginning to end:
1. Someone has to prepare a cache and hide it somewhere. This person is called the cache
owner or cache hider.