Painful Paperless – Help With Plucker

[Buy_The_Tie]

For several years now I have been successfully using the Spinner / Plucker method of loading cache info onto my PDA.

Just before Christmas, the motherboard in my computer died and has since been replaced. Seems like ever since then, Plucker gets about 2/3 of the way done and locks up.

I have tried un-installing Plucker and re-installing it to no avail.

I have tried creating a new “channel” but still come up with the same problem.

Anybdoy else have this problem (or a similar one) who could shed some light on the subject?

[jthorson]

I have not used Plucker for 2 years but I remember some things. Plucker transfers HTML files from the PC to your palm starting at a root.

It procceeds to a number of layers of links. If that layer setting is too high (4 was scary) then either Plucker runs forever or you run of out memory on the Palm. If you reduce the layer setting, things might work better.

Related to this, there is a Spinner setting that puts the translated clues on the cache page as opposed to a separate page. This reduces the need for higher layer numbers.

[This message has been edited by jthorson (edited 12-31-2005).]

[Bushwhacking Queen]

I have not expereienced any problems and I’ve ran a few queries this week. I have noticed a few errors on my spun file, however, nothing too difficult to work around.

Try this link http://www.geocacher-u.com/resources/paperless.html it may provide you some information on plucker and using it.

I know I’ve noticed that I have such a routine down on my computer that if I go over to Professor’s to help him (and his computer is much older and different operating system) I sometimes run into problems.

Under limits I use 3 and I chose to ignore the links.

Let me if you I may be able to help you anymore.

[GeoPink]

The other possibility could be your “spidering” setting. I recall that one would really bog down the process, while the other wouldn’t be too bad.

Change “depth first” to “breadth first” or vice versa and see if that makes a difference.

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Team GeoPink
– Jeff
Co-conspirator to make the world a better place…

[marc_54140]

No help on the Plucker problem. Just some observations.

I initially started paperless using Plucker. I gave up in frustration when I realized how limited it was. I had found a cache, and deleted it, thinking to clear things up. Then discovered the Plucker has only one file, and everything was gone.

I also was a little put out trying to find a cache in Plucker.

I have since gone to using CacheMate. There are two major advantages that I see. It has a nice alpha listing of caches, which makes it a lot easier than Plucker to find the cache you want. And each cache is an individual file, that you can move around, delete, etc, without affecting the others.

I recommend CacheMate over Plucker.

[Bushwhacking Queen]

I recommend Plucker over Cachmate. Plucker gives you the opportunity to search for a cache by name or GC# using a search function.

You can also export a cache page to a memo, make appropriate notes, copy/paste, etc. Afterwards, I can print off the memo and log from a piece of paper and file it if I want to for further reference (I’m an accoutnant remember )

I haven’t used Cachemate very much but tried to dabble with it a bit. It didn’t seem too user friendly once on the palm (i.e. trying to find the cache, etc.). Russell uses Cachmate and is forever frustrated. I really do enjoy Plucker and find it easy to use. There are a lot of hidden functions with Plucker that until you dabble with it or someone tells you, you are not aware that it is there.

Also, if you use your Palm for business and are traveling, you can download the news (as an example) from cnn.com and read it while commuting (as long as you are not behind the wheel that is).

[Jeremy]

quote:

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Originally posted by Buy_The_Tie:
Anybdoy else have this problem (or a similar one) who could shed some light on the subject?

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Does it always stop responding at exactly the same spot when spidering? If so, then yes I am also seeing this problem. I tried reinstalling Plucker and changing all kinds of Plucker settings. I tracked it down to a couple cache pages that have some “questionable” HTML content, two in particular that are always troublesome are:

GCPGTE – Whitnallgps’s 1,000th by Uncle_Fun
GCMA42 – Alan Kulwicki Memorial Cache by Uncle_Fun

Note that this problem only happens on my desktop machine, not my laptop. So either it is a problem with Plucker that only appears on certain machines, or has something to do with the configuration of certain machines. I do have Python installed on the desktop machine, which could be contributing to the grief.

So basically I have no fix for you Brian other than to not include caches that Plucker chokes on.

BTW, I also recommend Cachemate over Plucker. It is a lot easier to find the caches you are looking for in Cachemate (you can sort the list a couple ways, enter a letter to skip down in the cache listing, and do searches)… plus you can mark your finds in the Palm. When I get home, I just do a hotsync then go into GSAK and get a listing of those I found for easy logging… much better than writing your finds down a scrap of paper.

[This message has been edited by jvechinski (edited 01-01-2006).]

[Buy_The_Tie]

Jeremy,

It does stop at the same spot each time. I’m guessing that it is the same problem you are seeing. I since have removed Plucker from my machine because after it crashes, it leaves some junk running in the background.

I since have installed an un-registered version of cachemate, and tried it on my PDA. So far I like what I see. I still need to figure out how to get the last logs to show up.

Thanks for the help, I think that I am now “converted” to cachemate.

[Bushwhacking Queen]

quote:

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Originally posted by Buy_The_Tie:
It does stop at the same spot each time. I’m guessing that it is the same problem you are seeing. I since have removed Plucker from my machine because after it crashes, it leaves some junk running in the background.

Thanks for the help, I think that I am now “converted” to cachemate.

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This has happened to Professor of the ecorangers. He re-unzipped the file and it worked fine.
~Diane

[marc_54140]

Russell probably has problems with anything he touches, so his not being able to work CacheMate properly is not a good comparison. Sorry, Russell, but … I thionk you have been kidnapped by aliens!

Now, BQ, you are another matter … Printing? What are you printing – we are talking paperless here, aren’t we?

CacheMate’s biggest asset is separate files for each cache. All the programs have search functions, you just need know how to work them.

You can download CacheMate and test it for free. The free version limits you to 10 caches. It’s worth the test drive.

[Flushingrouse]

HEY!! Wait a minute! What did you guys do? (Just Kidding)

I can’t plucker my latest PQ either! It’s got to be a more recent cache that’s creating the problem…

I haven’t pluckered a thing since before gun deer season. Now I have a problem.

Huh!

We’ll see about this!

Cheers!
Flushingrouse

[Bushwhacking Queen]

Marc – what am I printing? A list of all the caches I found in a day. You know, a check and balance when I’m entering.

As for plucker, before Professor went down to KY he was having problems with his query. He emailed it to me and asked me to pluck it for him which I did successfully.

SO that makes me ask: could it be an operating system probelm? I run XP whereas Professor is running one from the dinosaur years {{giggle}}.

[Flushingrouse]

O.K. got it.
But, I’m still a little confused.
My PQ in question consists of about 450 caches. While pluckering it, it was stopping on retrieving page 341 everytime. I set a filter in GSAK to divide the caches up into two “halves” and ran each one separately without any stoppage… Went back and ran the entire thing and got stopped at 341 again. I seriously don’t understand that one!

So Jeremy, I took the info you provided regarding GCPGTE – Whitnallgps’s 1,000th by Uncle_Fun
GCMA42 – Alan Kulwicki Memorial Cache by Uncle_Fun and removed them from my list.

I ran those 448 caches through plucker and had no stoppage. My first question is: How did you determine those two to be problematic? And, Why didn’t they stop plucker when I had the PQ split in two?

Any ideas?

Thanks!
Bill

[Jeremy]

quote:

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Originally posted by Flushingrouse:

I ran those 448 caches through plucker and had no stoppage. My first question is: How did you determine those two to be problematic? And, Why didn’t they stop plucker when I had the PQ split in two?

Any ideas?

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I found out which ones were problematic by trial and error (it was painful :mad . You can run Plucker from the command line if you have Python installed… and I thought this would show me exactly which files it was choking on, but it does not fail when run this way. So the failure only occurs when running the GUI Plucker Desktop.

I also saw the same thing where the “bad” cache pages didn’t seem to cause problems if the total number being plucked was small.

Sounds like the world would be a better place (at least for Plucker users) if Uncle_Fun would just modify his cache pages… I’ll send him a note and see if he’d be willing to change them.

[Flushingrouse]

Nice detective work Jeremy!! Now, I’ll just have to remove those two in every PQ I get….Unless… I just have to go find those two and they wont show up in the next PQ…

There’s incentive for ya!!

Cheers!
Bill

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