Geocaching@pt

It's been a while since we have done an update.

The new database is now installed at Internap alongside our current database we use for Geocaching.com. We're in the process of installing a backup copy of the Geocaching.com database so we can do some upgrade testing. Once this happens we'll be applying our latest patch of Geocaching.com which includes some new features. From there we'll test the site in a staging environment to make sure it is running happily.

If everything goes well by Tuesday we'll make a decision whether we'll go ahead and do the actual conversion on Wednesday evening. If that's the case there will be some downtime. During the downtime we'll have a single page up letting you know how long it may take. However upgrades can range quite a bit so don't hold us to a definite completion time!

It's good news all around. We're now in the design stage of the V2 version of the web site. So far we have documented the features of Geocaching.com so we don't miss anything in the new design! We've also documented Waymarking.com since the back end will be running identical code. That means that new features on either site will be implemented. It also means that we'll be able to share data across the different web sites so you can, say, download geocaches and waymarks at the same time!

All of the v2 work is a much longer process. We don't expect to have anything until early next year. In the meantime we'll continue to tweak Geocaching.com and provide new ways to speed up the web site.

We're in the late stages of our planning for the database update tomorrow, May 16. This is a major hardware upgrade and a very minor code change for the site. We're concentrating on speeding up the site and not so much on new features since we're really targeting the scalability of Geocaching.com

Our hope is you will notice a change in speed on the site once the update is complete - especially during the busiest days. We picked Wednesday evening since it is normally the quietest day of the week. By Thursday morning we'll be ready to go with little (or no) issues.

This is just one milestone on the path to a complete rewrite of the site, but it should keep the site humming along for at least another 9 months or more - depending on the growth of the community. Once we get closer down the path for V2 we'll be enlisting the geocaching community for feedback.

During the upgrade the forums will be available. You will just be unable to access the features of Geocaching.com. As we near the time we do the upgrade we'll provide a time window where we plan to have the site unavailable.

A Mystery Cache is the “catch-all” of cache types, this form of cache can involve complicated puzzles you will first need to solve to determine the coordinates. The only commonality of this cache type is that the coordinates listed are not of the actual cache location but a general reference point, such as a nearby parking location. Due to the increasing creativity of geocaching this becomes the staging ground for new and unique challenges.

A Mystery Cache is the “catch-all” of cache types, this form of cache can involve complicated puzzles you will first need to solve to determine the coordinates. The only commonality of this cache type is that the coordinates listed are not of the actual cache location but a general reference point, such as a nearby parking location. Due to the increasing creativity of geocaching this becomes the staging ground for new and unique challenges.