"No geocaches found" bug

Discussion related to the Garmin GPSMAP 64 series GPSr
scotte
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Joined: Fri Sep 13, 2019 3:41 pm

"No geocaches found" bug

Unread post by scotte »

In this thread I mentioned the "No geocaches found" bug that some people have experienced after turning the GPSr off. I won't put all the background here, for anyone stumbling on this thread, please read the linked one.

OK, so I made some progress in how to trigger this bug. On my GPSr, I had a .kmz file from CalTOPO on the internal storage in CustomMaps. When I deleted that CustomMap, I was no longer able to reproduce the issue. By replacing the file back in the GPSr, I could make the problem happen again. Curiously, the problem does NOT happen if the same .kmz file is in CustomMaps on the SD card.

I suspect the GPSr goes bad somewhere when indexing a file it doesn't like, and for whatever reason this only affects geocaches, which the GPSr handles differently from other waypoints.

To reproduce this, I created a .gpx file with a single fake geocache, using all the XML elements as one would find in a real .gpx from groundspeak.

Here are the general steps I took in trying to test out different things:

1. Starting state - I have a .kmz in CustomMaps on internal storage. I have a bunch of .img files on the SD card. Geocache .gpx files can be in GPX in either internal storage or SD (problem occurs with either). Once the unit is powered off and back on, the receiver reports "No geocaches found". Renaming the .gpx file (or pulling out the SD card, when the .gpx files are located there, and going through a power cycle) works around the issue until the GPSr is turned off.

2. I removed the SD card entirely, to simplify test parameters. I was able to reproduce the problem with "No geocaches found" with the geocache .gpx on internal storage.

3. I removed the CustomMaps .kmz from internal storage, and renamed the .gpx file to go into a clean state. The problem does NOT happen - after rebooting the unit several times, geocaches are indexed.

4. I put the .kmz back in CustomMaps, and did not touch the .gpx file. The problem occurs on the first power up.

5. I put the SD card back in, and once again removed the .kmz from CustomMaps. I was unable to reproduce the issue.

6. I moved the .kmz file from internal storage to CustomMaps on the SD card. The problem does NOT occur. This I didn't expect.

7. I tested with some real .gpx geocache files, and was no longer able to reproduce the issue (again, with no .kmz in internal storage).

I will email the owner of this site my test files, but I have a sneaking suspicion that this problem can be reproduced simply by downloading a .kmz from CalTopo and placing it in CustomMaps on internal storage. I would recommend temporarily removing the SD card, as I did, just to limit the number of variables. In my experience, it doesn't matter what geocache .gpx file you use.

Looking forward to seeing if anyone else can or cannot reproduce the issue under a similar set of circumstances. Thanks!
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GPSrChive
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Re: "No geocaches found" bug

Unread post by GPSrChive »

Can you please send the offending KMZ file to webmaster@GPSrChive.com for testing?
scotte
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Re: "No geocaches found" bug

Unread post by scotte »

I emailed both the kmz and gpx file. It's a big attachment, but email didn't bounce. If you did not receive, reply here and I'll email a link where you can download the files. Thanks!
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GPSrChive
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Re: "No geocaches found" bug

Unread post by GPSrChive »

Next question(s):

Is this the ONLY KMZ file that has this affect?

Which GPSMAP 64 model and Firmware Version are you using?
scotte
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Re: "No geocaches found" bug

Unread post by scotte »

gpsrchive wrote: Tue Oct 22, 2019 2:18 pm Is this the ONLY KMZ file that has this affect?
I don't know, I haven't tested any others. One other thing I didn't mention before - the KMZ wasn't even enabled on the unit (though clearly it still needs to be indexed)...

I'll try another one, though I've already exceeded reasonable time in doing Garmin's testing for them - according to threads elsewhere, this 5+ year old bug has been reported to Garmin multiple times.
Which GPSMAP 64 model and Firmware Version are you using?
64st v5.60
scotte
Posts: 68
Joined: Fri Sep 13, 2019 3:41 pm

Re: "No geocaches found" bug

Unread post by scotte »

gpsrchive wrote: Tue Oct 22, 2019 2:18 pm Is this the ONLY KMZ file that has this affect?
So the answer to this is: I don't know. I tried two randomly exported KMZ files from CalTOPO, using the minimal possible size (16 tiles at 1:24K) and I could not trigger the issue.
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GPSrChive
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Re: "No geocaches found" bug

Unread post by GPSrChive »

Thank you!
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GPSrChive
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Re: "No geocaches found" bug

Unread post by GPSrChive »

scotte wrote: Tue Oct 22, 2019 4:21 pm I'll try another one, though I've already exceeded reasonable time in doing Garmin's testing for them...
I know exactly how you feel! How much time do you suspect I have invested in building this completely (advertisement) free website? (donations always gladly accepted!)

I want to help, but you have to help me help you first!

8^)
scotte
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Re: "No geocaches found" bug

Unread post by scotte »

Sorry, didn't mean to sound so negative - just disappointed to see where Garmin is today with the quality of software in these latest models, versus my experience with all my older receivers. When I sold my boat a couple of years ago, it had a still-functioning GPS 120 which had to be close to 25 years old with no updates. I know things are much more complicated with the current generation of units, especially with the ability to put arbitrary data on them, but still - Garmin should care. :-) Anyway, I digress, thanks for this site, it's a great resource.

Ok, back to the subject at hand... I tried a couple more files and here's what I found:

* With 1 image in the KMZ, the issue does not appear to happen.
* With 50 images in the KMZ, I can reproduce it.
* With 99 images in the KMZ, I can reproduce it.

As I have time, I will attempt to bisect the image counts and see if I can find any pattern in the number of image tiles that are in the KMZ. I'll build up the KMZ manually from the same set so I can be sure the image tile set is consistent. Now this is clearly not a definite test, but hopefully it is a data point towards understanding the issue.

Were you able to reproduce the issue with the files I sent you?
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GPSrChive
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Re: "No geocaches found" bug

Unread post by GPSrChive »

Yes, duplicated, just trying to gather any additional information I suspect the Garmin software team may ask for.

Thank you!
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