About CacheMate

CacheMate is a waypoint database at heart, but is loaded with features geared toward GPS cache hunts and benchmarking. It makes it easy to take cache information in GPX format and view it in the field, but is also fully editable and is flexible enough to deal with a variety of uses.

Being a shareware program, CacheMate running in unregistered mode has the following limitations. It is otherwise fully functional.

• Multi-database support is disabled
• Limited to 10 records

Record List View

CacheMate's main display, visible when the program is started, is a list of all records in the current database that match the selected category and the current list filters. The list is sortable by any visible column.

List columns may be shown, hidden, and reordered at will, and most of them are self-explanatory. The type and container columns only show the first letter of the name they represent, to conserve screen space, and there are five graphical columns:

• Travel Bugs
• Log Notes (grey, yellow or red icon, depending on log type)
• Bookmark
• Found (green check if found, red arrow if owned)
• Disabled

The "Find %" column, if enabled, shows the percentage of "found" logs among the total number of logs imported for the corresponding record. If there are no logs for a record, this column is blank.

The record list supports the Pocket PC context menu, for operations on particular records. Toolbar buttons at the bottom of the screen allow creation of new records, importing records, and running other plugins. A button on the left side of the category bar allows quick access to list filters.

The list also supports keyboard searching of certain columns. If the list is sorted by the name, waypoint or owner columns, entering letters using the keyboard or other input method will scroll to the first match.

Importing Records

The Import Records toolbar button, located on the record list view, starts the process of importing records into CacheMate from an external source. When the import dialog box appears, select the import plugin to use, the destination database, and the categories to assign to imported records:

• Owned - The owner's name matches one of the configured website user IDs
• Found - The import plugin has marked the record as "found"
• Extra - The import plugin has marked the record as "extra". This is the treatment given to Geocaching.com's "additional" waypoints, for example.
• Default - The "catch-all" category for records not matching the other criteria

The other options in this dialog determine what to do when an imported record's waypoint ID matches that of a record already in the database. The new record can either be inserted or merged with an existing record (preserving record flags and log notes), and the category for an existing record may be overriden with the selected one.

A GPX/LOC import plugin is bundled with CacheMate, and is used to import records from LOC and GPX formatted XML files located on the PDA or on a memory card. The plugin supports GPX extensions used by Geocaching.com, TerraCaching.com and Geocaching.com.au, as well as others that are specific to CacheMate.

The initial "found" status of an imported record is determined by the waypoint's symbol name. The "found" status is set if the file is in GPX format and the symbol name is "Geocache Found", otherwise it is not.

Viewing Records

Records may be viewed by double-clicking them in the list view, or by selecting View Record from that view's context menu.

CacheMate's record view displays information from a record in a formatted text display, using the Pocket Internet Explorer engine. Initiailly, the display shows hints (typically encoded), past cache logs (if any) and most other information associated with a record. The hints and each of the logs may be individually decoded as needed.

At the top of the main page are links for viewing the live version of a cache page (via Pocket Internet Explorer) and associated images. Images may only be viewed when there is an internet connection, unless they have been recently viewed and are in the PDA's browser cache. There are also links for editing record information and log notes.

Toolbar buttons, located along the bottom of the screen, may be used to run plugins on the record being viewed.

Editing Records

Records may be edited by selecting Edit Record from the list view's context menu, or from the link of the same name in the record view. The record editor allows changing of most of the information in the selected record, except for things like past logs and associated URLs, which are specially formatted and meant only for imported records.

Toolbar buttons, located along the bottom of the screen, may be used to run plugins on the record being edited.

Editing Cache Notes

Log notes for a record may be edited by selecting Edit Log from the list view's context menu, or from the link of the same name in the record view. This dialog box allows editing of log notes text, the log type, and start and end times of the cache hunt.

The log notes field supports an editable log template, stored in the CacheMate install directory as LogTemplate.txt, which can be inserted either manually or automatically to make some log entries quicker in the field. "Quick notes" may also be defined by adding text files to CacheMate's "QuickNotes" directory. Extra options in the notes field context menu control these features.

Automated actions may be configured in the event that a Found or Not Found log is entered. Selecting a log type of None clears all other information in the log notes editor.

The Bugs page allows for moving travel bugs between the cache and your personal inventory.

The Voice page allows voice notes to be recorded for a cache record. Notes can be recorded, played, and exported to WAV files.

Log Template Variables

Log templates may contain one or more variables that are filled in when the template is inserted in the log field. %date% and %time% are replaced with the current date and time, respectively.

%fcount% is replaced with a counter of times the template has been used in a "found" log. The current value of this counter is viewable and editable in the Preferences dialog.

Managing Travel Bugs

CacheMate allows for easy management of travel bugs (trackable trade items hosted by Geocaching.com), moving them between geocaches and a separate "inventory" database. From the log notes editor, you may move travel bugs in and out of caches.

You may also select Options > Travel Bugs > Inventory while in the list view to manage your travel bug collection. The inventory manager allows for adding, deleting and editing travel bug information.

The inventory list also indicates when a travel bug was moved there, and lines corresponding to bugs that have been there for a certain amount of time will display in red as an alert that you've had them for a while. This number of days is configurable from the Preferences dialog, and defaults to 30.

Movement of travel bugs in and out of caches, as well as manually adding a bug to your inventory, is logged to a text file in the CacheMate install directory. There are options in the Travel Bugs submenu to allow for easy viewing and clearing of this log. Warnings will start to appear if the log file grows beyond 30KB in size.

Preferences

The preferences dialog is reached by selecting Options > Preferences from the list view.

List
This page configures options related to CacheMate's list view, including the center point for distance/bearing list sorting, and distance units.

Options
This page allows setting of certain miscellaneous options in CacheMate, including whether to use location averaging in GPS query plugins. The Default to voice notes option causes the log notes editor to default to the voice notes controls whenever it is started. You may also configure the number of days that a travel bug is held before reminders start.

Found / DNF
These pages configure automated actions when a Found or Not Found log is entered for a record. Possible actions include changing the record's category, marking the hunt end time, changing the list view's center point, and marking the record as "found".

Plugins
This page allows plugin-specific configuration, for those plugins that support it.

Editing Categories

Each CacheMate database supports up to 32 record categories for easy organization of the records it contains. To edit the list of categories for the current database, select List > Edit Categories from the list view.

Renaming a category will change its name, but keep all record category assignments intact. Deleting a category will move all of the affected records to the Unfiled category, which is always present.

Editing List Filters

Aside from the category selector, records displayed in the list view may be further limited by a set of filters. These filters may be edited by selecting List > Edit Filters from the list view.

Distance/Bearing
These settings allow specifying a maximum distance and selecting directions from a configured center point, which is set either in the preferences dialog or from a record in the list view.

Text Matching
Case-insensitive text matching of owner, name or waypoint fields may be used to further limit listed records. If Exact Match is checked, the entire text is compared. Otherwise, a record is considered a match if one of those fields contains the text specified here.

Editing List Columns

Record list columns may be edited by selecting List > Edit Columns from the list view. The column editor displays a list of columns, with checkboxes for selecting which ones to include in the list view. Columns may also be moved up or down, controlling the order in which they are displayed in the record list.

Bookmarks

Records may be bookmarked using the record editor. Bookmarks are preserved even when information is merged during record importing. Selecting List > Bookmarks from the record list view displays a list of bookmarked records in the current database. From here, you may view a specific record, or move or export all of the bookmarked records.

Selecting List > Clear Bookmarks clears all bookmarks in the current database.

Multiple Databases

CacheMate contains support for multiple databases, limited only by the free space in the PDA or memory card on which it is installed. Selecting List > Select Database opens the database manager, from which you may select, create, rename or delete databases. This functionality is only available once CacheMate is registered.

After enough use, a database may begin to contain a substantial amount of empty space. This space is reused by the database, but is not all reclaimed by the file system due to the database architecture in Windows Mobile. To help keep the database size under control, you may occasionally select List > Compact Database while in the record list view.

WARNING: Due to the fact that another copy of the database much be temporarily created in order to compact it, you must have at least enough free space to create that copy. Once the new, compacted copy of the database is successfully created, the old one will be deleted.

Editing Record Types

CacheMate maintains a list of record types, some of which are included at install time and others that are added by the record editor as needed, usually due to imported records. Selecting Options > Edit Cache Types from the record list view allows editing of this list.

A list of cache container types is also maintained. Selecting Options > Edit Container Types from the record list view allows editing of this list.

Editing Website IDs

CacheMate maintains a list of identities used for various geocaching websites that records might be imported from, corresponding to the user, and used to determine what records are caches that that user owns. A list is used, rather than a single name, because a user's name may differ from one site to another. Selecting Options > Edit Website User IDs from the record list view allows editing of this list.

When populated, this list is used by the record import function (for category assignment) as well as the list view (for display purposes).

Plugin Support

CacheMate supports expansion using a plugin mechanism. Each plugin supports one or more of the following roles:

• Single-record mapping
• Single-record navigation
• Single-record exporting
• Multi-record exporting
• Record importing
• Calculation (with or without input coordinates)
• GPS location query
• Hyperlink

The GPS location query role is used by the Mark Waypoint button at the bottom of the list view, as well as in the preferences dialog for setting the center point. Some plugins may also support their own configuration options, accessible through the CacheMate preferences dialog.

The Hyperlink role allows a plugin to dynamically place a hyperlink in the HTML record view for functions not necessarily covered by the other standard plugin roles.

CacheMate includes the following plugins:

Coordinate Formats
Allows display of a record's coordinates in formats and projections other than the default degrees/minutes format.

Distance Calculator
Converts distance measurements between common metric, nautical and statute units.

Garmin iQue GPS/Mapping
Interfaces with the GPS hardware and QueMap software built into the Garmin iQue Mx series of devices. Configuration is supported to choose whether to use the record name or waypoint ID when adding a point to the map.

GPS Location Query
Queries current location using a selected GPS interface, optionally computing an average to help with accuracy.

Broadcom Bluetooth
NMEA MS Bluetooth
NMEA Serial
WM5 GPS Driver
GPS interface plugins that support the Broadcom/Widcomm Bluetooth stack, Microsoft Bluetooth stack, other serial connections, and the Windows Mobile 5 GPS driver, respectively.

GPX Export

GPX/LOC Import

HTML Notes Report
Writes log notes for one or more records to NotesReport.htm in the CacheMate install directory, then launches Pocket Internet Explorer to view it.

Waypoint Projection
"Projects" a new waypoint, using Vincenty's Direct formula, based on the currently selected record and user-supplied distance and bearing information.

Support for External Programs

While plugins allow CacheMate to work with external programs and devices, there also exists a way for external programs to exercise some control over CacheMate's operation. This control is accomplished through one of the following means:

• Specifying a waypoint ID on the command line
• Launching a "cmate:" URL (e.g. cmate:GC12345)

When either of these methods are invoked, CacheMate will jump to the specified waypoint if it is in the current database. Either method will work regardless of whether CacheMate is running at the time or not. The waypoint ID search is case-insensitive.

GPX Export Plugin

This plugin allows exporting one or more records to GPX files, for use with other applications, and may employ Groundspeak- and CacheMate-specific extensions as needed. It supports configuration of the following options:

Default symbol
Specifies the default waypoint symbol, for when a waypoint cannot be determined to be a geocache. If not specified, the default symbol is Waypoint.

Default type
Specifies the default waypoint type, for when a waypoint cannot be determined to be a geocache and a type is not defined in the waypoint record. If not specified, the default type is Waypoint.

Name as waypoint desc.
Normally, for non-geocache records where the record name is different from the waypoint ID, the description field will be used for the GPX <desc> element if it is not empty, instead of the record name. This option cancels that behavior, using the record name for the <desc> element in those cases.

CacheMate GPX Extensions

CacheMate has its own GPX extension schema for user-entered log notes and custom fields. The schema may be found here:

http://www.smittyware.com/schema/cmdata/1/0/cmdata.xsd

The elements documented in the schema are extensions to the GPX <wpt> element. The <log> element is supported for exporting, and <extra_data> is supported for both import and export.