A few of you have asked about how I review and how you can speed up your personal review. I thought I would take a moment and see if I can throw some light. I sit down at my computer and look at the list of caches to be reviewed. I started with the oldest GC code. That cache (in theory) has been floating around for a week or more and is waiting to be reviewed. So I start there. It does not do any good if you change your placement date back a week or two or three. That is the order I go in. (remember this is just me not other reviewers). Some cachers dump a bunch of caches at one time. I put those aside until I am done. Why? If a cacher places a large number why should I make others wait until I am done with his ten caches. (thats my opinion).
Also, some are slow learners (like myelf) I have learned that there are certain people that I know may have a few problems with their caches. I may set their aside until I clear the others as well. Again, why should I spend 20 minutes looking at one, and punishing other cachers for the foolishness of the problem cacher.
I want to get them published asap. Nothing annoyed me more then waiting for 3 days to get my cache published. I understood the reviewer had a life, but I wanted to see my stuff published.
How can you avoid having your caches held onto for a little bit?
- Read the guidelines - I am surprised by the little mistakes.
- Check proximity - look at the map. If there is another cache nearby know if it is far enough away. Please dont ask me to place a cache 500' away just because you didn't look. I have some leeway, but wadable rivers, buildings, parking lots, freeways with a nearby crossing, are not reasons to place a cache nearby. Those will be looked at on a case by case basis. If your cache is clever, time was spent putting it together, and needs to be location specific, email me and we can talk. Ultimatly a micro 500' from a micro will not get much of a second look. Something fun and clever might be. (note the word - might). (i may do an entire discussion on this at some point)
- Think about your placement, and read it through. Have your boyfriend, girlfriend, husband, wife, or kid look to see if something is right/wrong.
Try and keep all the notes on your cache page. I usually post emails I get on there as well that I feel is relavant. Even after the cache is gone, I can look at the long gone notes to see problems and instructions I (or another reviewer) may have given you. If we say no to proximity, then you move it and get it approved, then move your cache to where we said no, or something similar, then your cache may be archived, with no warning. If I get swine flue, and I am sitting in the hospital for weeks in a coma, then another reviewer will step in, they will want to see my concerns and your responses and how we were working on them.
Think. Some things are legal, but think if its smart. Can I put a cache on my back porch, most assuridly. Do you want people wandering around on your back porch at 3am looking for that micro stuck to your back door? We try and point out unwise caches.
Well, back the the reviewing. I wish this site allowed for people to comment. Then I would know if someone actually cared or visited.
-may the forks be with you-
LordMot asked me a question the other day. Why does geocaching.com allow people to log a cache more then one time, yet log a trackable only once. It is a question I have asked myself a few times.
There was not a firm and concrete reason why. It seemed that it was similar to what we talk about on our board. Here were some of the answers some from staff and some from other reviewers, experienced too new ones a few days on our forums.
- If someone deletes your logs on one cache, you log another one twice so that you can count your finds correctly.
- Events will place a temporary cache, that will not be approved for there temporary nature. People will log multiples on one to represent those caches.
- If a cache has been moved into a new place, some log it as a new find when they return
- Others log every time they return to find the cache.
- Traveling caches you find in a new place a second/third time.
Remember that you are the judge of your logs. If someone logs them twice you can delete them, if they did not sign the log, you can delete them. It would be nice if you asked why? or if you took the time to figure out the reasons behind it, or ask them to remove it. You are expected to do some of this maintenance, especially on Virtuals and Earthcaches. In fact, the failure to police bad logs on the Virtuals/Earthcaches can lead to your cache being disabled, archived and/or locked. Some have received emails watching for this.
Sometimes everything goes well. People ask my opinion of where to put a cache. Someone has has a nice cache high in the mountains wanting me to publish. That's the great part about being a volunteer. Everyone that has reviewed here has told me how great all the people here are that they reviewed for. The friendliest, and the most enjoyable to work through problems with.
There are even those unpleasant things that I have to deal with that are easy. If someone with a lamppost hide, or a mountain hide has ignored everyone posting Needs Maintenance, Should Be Archived notes, or when I post a note that is ignored, its easy to archive them. Its sad to see some of them go away, but that is how the game goes. Or when someone asks for me to publish a hide in a wilderness area, national park, or like what happened a while ago, in a courthouse tree, those are also easy. There are strict policies on how we deal with them, and in some instances how the government will deal with them.
Then there are the hard things. Someone places a fantastic hide, but it is in a questionable area, a well loved virtual, or traditional cache that is being treated as such. Sometimes I cannot believe some of the hard choices that I have been asked to make. I thought they would be easy. They may have been easy, if they were in Colorado, Arizona, Kansas, or other places. I am not caching there, I do not go caching with those people, I do not see you at events. It is much harder when I know who and when someone will send me an email. At times I need to do what the lily pad needs me to do, and other times I can do what you need me to do. I am the umpire, or referee. I don't make the rules, I just try to make everyone follow them.
I just wanted people to know, that I do take it seriously. Some cache owners do not, but I do. It hurts to see some of the caches go away, because of development, government regulation, or just being ignored. In many instances I find myself caught. I argue points with the lily pad lackeys and other reviewers when I think a choice is bad, and with cache owners when they are doing things wrong. Thanks for those that send me words of encouragement, it means a lot. Thanks for the help. Above all thanks for the caches, cache placers, and the hunters. Without them, the game would be over. -BR-