GPSgames.org is Gone

It's finally happened. Death eventually comes to everything. The databases and (corrupted) game engines at GPSgames.org have finally been taken offline completely. This is not reversible. This is permanent.

All that's left is this blog. It can still be reached via the domain name GPSgames.org. The domain name will exist and remain associated with Geodashing for a few more years, just in case anyone comes looking for Geodashing, or Minutewar, or any of the other games that used to be run on this site. And there might be a blog update now and then, if something related to GPS gaming comes across my desk that I think might be of general interest. And if anyone else ever has anything to share, commenting is open. And my email address, Scout@GPSgames.org will remain functional and monitored for as long as the domain is alive.

That's all for now.

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Getting There is All the Fun.
Scout

GPSgames.org Crashed

The server hosting GPSgames.org crashed on August 19, 2022. It took me until September 6 to get it restored.

As before the crash, the game engines still only have limited service. Players can still review the archives of old games, but no new games will be started. The last game of Geodashing was played in July, 2021. The other games at GPSgames.org are mostly in the same state, although Shutterspot was left running for submission of "finds". When the domain registration eventually expires, the website GPSgames.org will likely go away, too. In that case the only thing left of the game will be this blog, hosted on another domain and server. So bookmark it.

When the server crashed, my email service did, too. So, Scout@GPSgames.org did not receive mail for three weeks. When the domain expires, that email address will go away, too, so update your contact lists now. My new email address (actually, a very old one that I just never used) is gpsgames@gmail.com. That one will last as long as Google's Gmail service does, or at least as long as it remains free. Nothing lasts forever. Eventually, even the sun will burn out.

I'd appreciate it if you'd send me an email if you've made it here. My email is gpsgames@gmail.com.

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Scout

Geodashing Home Page Screen Capture

The Geodashing.gpsgames.org home page as it looked on April 10, 2022.

GPSgames.org Screen Capture

The GPSgames.org home page, as it looked on March 26, 2022.

The History of Geocaching

Translations:
Svensk översättning
Português

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GPS, or Global Positioning System, was developed by the US Department of Defense. This satellite navigation system was intended for military use and therefore the signals were scrambled, limiting accuracy for civilian use to about 100 meters. On May 1, 2000, President Clinton announced that this scrambling, known as Selective Availability (SA), would be turned off. Civilians were then able to enjoy accuracy on the order of 10 meters.

On May 3, 2000, Dave Ulmer proposed a way to celebrate the demise of SA. He hid a bucket of trinkets in the woods outside Portland, Oregon and announced its location in a posting made to the USENET newsgroup sci.geo.satellite-nav. This announcement is remarkable for laying out the essence of the hobby that is still in place today. It's all there. The container. The trinkets. The log book. The rule of take something, leave something, sign the logbook. Dave Ulmer invented geocaching in one fell swoop in that newsgroup posting.

Scout's blog

Welcome to Scout's personal blog, where I plan to outline what's happening at GPSgames.org and comment on the wider world of GPS games.

GPSgames