TechBlazer

I have added a couple new geocache log sheets for 35mm film canisters. This has been one of the most requested size log sheets, so here it is.

1.5 inch FTF Geocache Log Sheet with black logo

This log sheet is 1.5 inches (3.81cm) wide and should fit in a variety of film canisters. It is available with either a color or black Geocaching.com logo.

This log sheet features a new cleaner layout. I’ve also added a 1.25 inch wide and a 2.5 inch wide geocache log sheet with the new layout.

Download the new log sheets from the Geocache Log Sheet page.

Shop and save 30% or more off MSRP!

Birthday Direct is a major online retailer of birthday party supplies, baby shower decorations, milestone party supplies, and more. They offer 30% or more off MSRP, award winning customer service, and super fast shipping.

Birthday Direct recently introduced 3 Day Direct Delivery, which means that customers now get their orders in 3 days or less anywhere in the continental US. That’s amazing considering that most other online retailers can’t even get orders out of their warehouse in 3 days.

Birthday Direct has really made shipping simple.

1. All orders shipped within the continental US arrive in 3 days or less.
2. Standard shipping for orders shipped within the continental US that total up to $34.99 pay $5.99 for shipping, orders up to $54.99 pay $4.99 for shipping, and orders over $55 ship for FREE.
3. Orders placed before 3pm central time ship the same day.

Birthday Direct is a privately owned American company and is located in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. As a disclaimer, I work for Birthday Direct.

Last week the family and I logged GC1B0Z7 - Alabama Music Hall Of Fame for our 300th find.

TechBlazer and family

You may have noticed Holly holding a new member to our geocaching crew. That’s Andrew Carter Elam. He born on April 25, 2008 in Florence, Alabama. For more pictures of Andrew visit Holly’s blog - FabricMom.com.

Our 300th find

A big part of our success in making it to 300 finds was a recent trip to my home state of Kentucky during the 4th of July weekend.

My Dad (Ben) and son (Josh)

I introduced my Dad, Mom, and youngest sister to geocaching and together we found 10 caches. I had a really great time geocaching with my Dad. He’s pretty good spotting those tricky caches and I think he is more persistant than me when looking for a cache. Hopefully we’ll get to go geocaching together again soon.

On the way back home the family and I logged another 9 caches. Now that I’m at 300, I’m even more eager to my next 300.

During SMX Advanced 2008 in Seattle I entered a drawing for an iPod Nano from Click Forensics. Shortly after SMX, I got an email from Mike at Click Forensics saying that I won! A few days later I had a shiny new 4GB Apple iPod Nano. Thanks Click Forensics!

Click Forensics is a leading provider of third-party technology and services designed to help online advertisers, agencies, and search providers better identify pay-per-click (PPC) fraud.

Click Forensics is also the founder and sponsor of the Click Fraud Network. The Click Fraud Network is a community of online advertisers, agencies, and search providers working together to develop an industry solution to the click fraud problem. Network members that provide data to the network receive free access to online campaign and risk assessment reports.

Click Forensics also offers ClickForensics 6.0, a free click fraud reporting and monitoring service. With ClickForensics 6.0, advertisers can track up to 100,000 paid clicks per month. Getting started is easy. Simply sign up and you will be emailed instructions on how to begin monitoring click fraud on your pay per click traffic. With the free service you will receive free click fraud reports to help you manage your PPC campaigns and access to the members only sections of the Click Fraud Network.

This morning I got my 10th First to Find (FTF) while on the way to work. The cache was GC1DGWE Hall Memorial Garden by Rubicon Cacher.

Hall Memorial Garden - GC1DGWE

My first FTF on a TechBlazer Log Sheet

This geocache log sheet looks familar. This is the second time I’ve got to sign a TechBlazer Geocache Log Sheet in a cache. Download geocache log sheets here.

When I first started geocaching it was almost like learning a new language. There were terms like “muggle”, “FTF”, and “TFTC” scattered all over geocaching log entries and descriptions. As time passed, I slowly picked up the lingo and began to understand the geocache slang, abbreviations, and acronyms. Most of these terms have now become a part of my natural vocabulary.

However for the new geocacher these terms and acronyms can be confusing and maybe overwhelming at times. Here are some great resources to help define the meaning of geocache slang, abbreviations, and acronyms:

Geocaching.com -http://www.geocaching.com/about/glossary.aspx

Groundspeak Forums - http://forums.groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?showtopic=48706

Geocacher University - http://geocacher-u.com/component/option,com_glossary/Itemid,47/

Geocaching Lingo - http://www.geocachelingo.com/

GeoLex - http://geolex.locusprime.net/

What do you call it? Geocache terms (or terminology), geocache slang, geocache lingo, geocache jargon, geocache abbreviations, geocache acronyms, or somthing else? Let me know in the comments.

Do know of any geocache slang, abbreviations, and acronyms that’s not listed in the resources above, or other geocache lingo sites? Let me know in the comments.

The following is from NGAUS Notes dated June13, 2008 titled “No Room in the Army Guard: Service Turns Off Recruiting”:

After growing its ranks by nearly 30,000 troops in three years, the Army National Guard’s recruiting effort for May fell short. But there’s more to it than meets the eye, a National Guard Bureau official said today.

“It’s a factual statement, but not the whole story,” said the official, who asked not be named.

He said the Army sent a letter in April to Lt. Gen. Clyde Vaughn, Army Guard director, asking him to hold his service at the 358,000 personnel level. To do that, recruiting came to a stop in late May, leaving the service with 5,311 recruits for the month, 6 percent below the goal of 5,635.

“It was not due to the fact that there were not people willing” to join, the official said. It was, instead, due to a period of unprecedented recruiting that pushed the Army Guard above its authorized strength.

The official noted the tremendous growth in the Army Guard recently, when it grew from 330,200 in August 2005 to its current level of 359,289.

Of that final figure, 1,400 will transition to the active-component Army as part of a recruiting program, Active First, that lets recruits serve on active duty with a promise to join the Guard later.

He said the Army Guard has for the first time out-recruited the active component so far this year.

Plus, he said, the Army Guard is now as young as it has ever been. That means the service can not expect to lose numbers due to retirement.

The Army Guard now hopes the halt in recruiting will not disrupt that success once it begins again.

“As soon as you tell people you’re full, they go somewhere else,”

[via NGAUS PDF]

Tomorrow, Tuesday, June 17th, is the official lauch date of Firefox 3. To celebrate this milestone you can help set a Guinness World Record for the most downloads in a 24 hour period.

Sounds like a good deal, right? All you have to do is get Firefox 3 during Download Day to help set the record for most software downloads in 24 hours - it’s that easy. We’re not asking you to swallow a sword or to balance 30 spoons on your face, although that would be kind of awesome.

[via Spread Firefox]

So far over 1.3 million people have pledged their support.Visit Spread Firefox for more details and pledge your support

Here is handy web page that lets you create your own geocache travel bug instruction sheet for free. Simply fill out the online form and print it out.

Have you had a Travel Bug disappear because someone found it and didn’t know what to do with it? Are you planning to send a new Travel Bug out into the world and you don’t want that to happen? We may have the solution for you. It’s no guarantee against loss, but it will help. It is a Travel Bug Instruction Sheet that explains how to properly use your Travel Bug. The sheet will fit in a zip-lock bag with your Travel Bug and best of all, you can make it right now. This sheet was created by Seth!, based on a design and text by Markwell. This page will generate a 6″x6″ sheet, which will fit in a 1 quart ziplock along with your Travel Bug. If you need the sandwich bag size, we have that as well.

Here is what you will need to make your own Travel Bug sheet:

• A Travel Bug and its serial number.
• The Travel Bug page ID from geocaching.com for YOUR Travel Bug. If you go to your Travel Bug’s “FOUND It? LOG IT!” page, that will be the numbers after the “ID=”.
• A name for your Travel Bug.
• A printer connected to your computer.
• Optional: A photo of your TB that has been uploaded to your Travel Bug’s page. You may also use one of the images that we have below.

Simply complete the form below, click on the “Make My Sheet” button, and you’ll have a Travel Bug Sheet ready to print. When the new page appears with your Travel Bug Sheet, just click your browser’s print button. You could also save the page as an HTML file for future use. After your sheet is printed, cut out the two pages and paste them back-to-back. You sheet can go in a ziplock bag as-is or you can have it laminated. Enjoy!

Visit Washington State Geocaching Association (WSGA) to Create Your Own Geocache Travel Bug Instruction Sheet.

Here’s another card formatted to be similar to the WSGA card:

This travel bug information sheet is formatted to be similar to the one at the WSGA, which appears to be the same as the one you can get at the Geocaching web site. The main difference is that this one is intended to fit on a double-sided credit-card sized piece of paper, which is easier to laminate and take with bugs that don’t fit inside a plastic baggie easily. Just print, cut, laminate, and you’re set. If you want one for a 5″x5.2″ baggie or a 6″x6″ baggie, I suggest you use the prettier version at WSGA’s Travel Bug Sheet page.

If you intend on laminating the card and attaching it to the item, I would suggest printing out the card, folding it, punch a larger hole in it, and then laminate it. If you punch the card in the paper area after it is laminated, the paper could get wet and destroy the tag. If you are really concerned with that, either pre-punch a larger hole so you have sealed laminate around the paper, or leave a tag of laminate to one side of the card. In the end, you won’t want to have any chance of water getting in direct contact with the paper.

Visit Rumkin.com to Create Your Own Geocache Travel Bug Instruction Sheet.

If you find these travel bug instruction sheets useful be sure to let the authors know. Thanks to everyone who creates and shares free geocaching tools and resources!

As Seen on Matt Cutts’ Blog - SMX Advanced 2008 Wrap-up!

Last week I attended SMX Advanced 2008 in Seattle, Washington. SMX — Search Marketing Expo — is the newest search engine marketing conference and expo created by Search Engine Land editor-in-chief Danny Sullivan (aka The Godfather of Search).

One of the first things I noticed was Danny Sullivan’s weight loss. He told me that he has lost 30 pounds so far. Way to go Danny!

The conference was very good. On Tuesday I attended all the sessions in the Organic SEO Track. It contained a lot of good information. Some of it, however, seemed to be a little on the gray or black hat side of SEO.

The best part of the conference was the Developers Luncheon and getting to talk to Matt Cutts (http://www.mattcutts.com/blog) from Google. I found out that Matt is from Morehead, Ky which is about 25 miles from my home town of West Liberty, Ky.

Matt mentioned the lunch on his blog and posted a picture taken by Danny Sullivan, and I just happened to be in it. Here’s what Matt said about the lunch:

One of my favorite events was a “Talk to search engineers” lunch where several people from Google, Yahoo, and Microsoft each ate at tables with 10-11 conference attendees.

…

My table was a ton of fun. I asked for the topic “Anything but Spam,” and even though we talked about spam a little bit, we also talked about a bunch of other topics, including high gas prices and Google’s Renewable Energy Cheaper than Coal initiative, which includes an investment in high-altitude wind energy extraction. We also talked about how presidential candidates describe their interactions with drugs, and whether that reflects the willingness of the younger “Chat/IM” generation to disclose their weekend hijinks on social sites like MySpace and Facebook.

See the photo and read Matt’s complete post, “SMX Advanced 2008 Wrap-up”, at http://www.mattcutts.com/blog/smx-advanced-2008/. In the photo I’m the second one to the right of Matt and wearing a brown shirt with white strips. In between us is Stephan Spencer. Stephan Spencer is the founder and president of Netconcepts.com. Stephan is also the author of the popular “SEO Title Tag” WordPress plugin. Read more about Stephan at http://www.netconcepts.com/who-we-are/executive-team/stephan-spencer/.

The food, snacks, and Starbucks coffee at SMX Advanced were great. Much better than any other conference I’ve attended. Maybe Matt can talk Danny into getting some Ale-8 next time.

I left a comment on Matt’s blog about the recent talk of SMX Advanced and black hat topics. My suggestion is for Danny to sphinn the gray hat / black hat material in a different way, such as things to stay away from or things our competitors could be doing to us. Just my two cents.

Update: Here’s a copy of the picture from Matt’s blog.