Contents - Index

GSAK FAQ


1. I have just installed GSAK, the cache screen looks empty, now what do I do?
2. I loaded a file from geocaching.com, but GSAK looks nothing like your screen shot  information is missing and there are no logs. What's up?
3. I want the GCXXXX code sent to my GPS but currently I just get the abbreviated cache name. How do I fix this?
4. All my "smart" names are 8 characters but I have set the Maximum Length set to 10. Why?
5. How can I generate waypoints that indicate the cache type and size (like GPX spinner) 
6. I get the error "Unhandled Archive type" when I double click on a GPX file inside a ZIP file (using Windows XP) 
7. How do I drag a zip file from my e-mail client when it takes up the entire screen and I can't see the GSAK screen?
8. How do I select multiple rows to perform some action on a group of rows (eg delete a group of waypoints)?
9. When I send waypoints to my GPS some of the comments are missing. Why?
10. I just did a bunch of pocket queries to update all my caches, my finds and every other cache. But when I opened them in GSAK it shows the all as mystery/puzzle caches with the "?". How can this be fixed?
11. I would like to see the cache hint in my GPS. How do I do this?
12. After having problems sending waypoints to my GPS, Robert Lipe has asked me to turn on debug and send the results. How do I do this?
13. I would love to be able to generate an Excel spread sheet of all my data. Is there anyway I can do this?
14. I want to use GSAK on my laptop as well, do I have to buy another registration?
15. My computer crashed and need to reinstall GSAK. I can't find my serial number - Help!?
16. I would like to find caches along a route. How can I do this using GSAK
17. Will you be creating a GSAK version for the Macintosh?

18. All distances show as miles, how do I change this to kilometres?
19. My caches are not showing as found and the found by me date is missing - why?
20. When I send all my data to CacheMate I only get 1 cache, why?
21. Can I set up GSAK as multi user?

22. When GSAK opens a page in my Browser it "Hijacks" the current page, overwriting it. Can I fix this?
23. Archived caches are not being updated when I load GPX files. Why?
24. Why do some cache descriptions in the grid show in bold, yet other do not
25. My default browser is FireFox (or Chrome or somehing other than IE) , so why does GSAK use IE




1. I have just installed GSAK, and I don't have any cache data, now what do I do?
You need to add records to the database in order to do anything useful with GSAK. The easiest way to do this is to fetch some geocaches. From the main menu take the option "Geocaching.com access=>Get geocaches" 

2. I loaded a file from geocaching.com, but GSAK looks nothing like your screen shot - information is missing and there are no logs. What's up?
The free LOC files from geocaching.com contain very limited information and you really only get about 10% use out of GSAK with these files. The best source of caching data for GSAK is by far the GPX file format from geocaching.com. Note you need to be a premium member to get GPX files from geocaching.com. If you would like to get an idea of what the extra information is in these files, you can load the file "sample.zip" which you will find in the install folder of GSAK. For a good tutorial on how to set up PQs from Geocaching.com please see this link

3. I want the GCXXXX code sent to my GPS but currently I just get the abbreviated cache name. How do I fix this?
When you send waypoints to your GPSr there is a box that says "You can build the waypoint name using tags" and the default entry in this box is %smart. This special tag generates a unique smart name for each cache but if you want to see the GCXXXX code then change this to the special tag %code. You can use any combination of special tags in this box but remember to keep the total length of your generated code to the same or less than the maximum length your GPSr can take.  

4. All my "smart" names are 8 characters but I have set the Maximum Length set to 10. Why?
The maximum length refers to the Maximum number of characters that GSAK will output to your GPS for the waypoint code. %smart is just one of the many tags you can use to build this waypoint code and the default length of the smart name is 8. If you want more or less characters for the %smart name, use the format %smart=nn where nn = the numbers of characters to use for the smart name. For example %smart=10 will generate a smart name 10 characters long.

5. How can I generate waypoints that indicate the cache type and size ?
Use the %tags for this For example, the cache GC4G12 which is a large multi cache you could use the tags %typ1 %con1 %drop2 to yield ML4G12. For more information on %tags click here.

6. I get the error "Unhandled Archive type" when I double click on a GPX file inside a ZIP file (using Windows XP)
This seems to be an XP specific problem. For some reason XP does not send the file to GSAK in the same manner WinZip and other programs do.
The fix for this is to just drag the whole zip file to GSAK rather than opening it up with XP

7. How do I drag a zip file from my e-mail client when it takes up the entire screen and I can't see the GSAK screen?
Both can be maximised. However as you can't see the GSAK screen when the e-mail client is maximised you must drag the attachment from you e-mail client onto GSAK in your task bar (hold for a second or two). The cursor will indicate you can't drop it here, but what this will do is now bring GSAK to the foreground so you can drop it there. Also, don't forget you can also drop the GPX or the ZIP file on to the GSAK desktop icon as well.

8. How do I select multiple rows to perform some action on a group of rows (eg delete a group of waypoints)?
Marking records in GSAK revolves around the user flag (column heading with ). You can set and clear user flags in bulk (see the "User Flags" menu) You can set/clear them individually by mouse clicking in the box. Once you have the required user flags set, then set a filter on "user flag" = "set". You now have a sub set of your database that only contains those records that have the "user flag" set. All GSAK options (eg GPS send, HTML export, etc) will then only use those records. 

9. When I send waypoints to my Magellan  GPS some of the comments are missing. Why?
Many of the modern Magellan models (Memory Map and Meridian for example) have a limit of 200 waypoint comments - even though the actual waypoint limit may be 500+

10. I just did a bunch of pocket queries to update all my caches, my finds and every other cache. But when I opened them in GSAK it shows the all as mystery/puzzle caches with the "?". How can this be fixed?
Your pocket query from geocaching.com is in  the LOC file format.LOC files contain very limited information and you only get about 10% use out of GSAK with them. LOC files are the only format available to non members, but as a member you have a choice. Change your PQ format to GPX and this will fix all of your above problems. For a good tutorial on how to set up PQs from Geocaching.com please see this link

11. I would like to see the cache hint in my GPS. How do I do this?
Firstly, your GPSr must support a waypoint description (sometimes referred to as notes or comments) in addition to the waypoint name. Secondly in the "Cache Description format" enter the special tag of %hint. An example of a GPSr that supports notes is the Garmin 60c/s (Note: currently the 60c/s only supports a maximum of 30 characters in the notes)

12. After having problems sending waypoints to my GPS, I have been asked to turn on debug and send the results. How do I do this?
When you try to send waypoints to your GPSr (GPS=>Send Waypoints...) check the box "Turn on debug mode"

When you click on the send button a message box displays the results. These results are also copied to the windows clipboard. So you can either do a screen dump of the error message, of just paste (For example, using Edit=>Paste from the main menu of your application of choice) the information into your favourite text editor (notepad will do) and save the file. GSAK also creates a file called babel.bat in the install folder of GSAK. When sending the information to Robert, please attach the result of the send (screen shot or text file) and the files babel.bat, gsak.stl, and babel.txt These files can all be found in the install folder of GSAK 

13. I would love to be able to generate an Excel spread sheet of all my data. Is there anyway I can do this?

See the option "File=>Export=>CSV or TXT". Most computers have CSV files associated with excel so it is then just a simple matter of double clicking on the file in windows explorer to open the file in Excel. It not then just generate the file as CSV or TXT then open the file in Excel, and it will recognise the file type and start a 3 step wizard that will convert this file. For more control over the creation of CSV files also refer to the TextOut function in the macro language. 


14. I want to use GSAK on my laptop as well, do I have to buy another registration?

The license agreement which you accept when installing GSAK does explain this (Yea, I know, who reads that rubbish) but I would just like to make it clear.The GSAK license is for the USER and not the computer. This means you can install and register it on your desktop, laptop, work computer (providing you have permission) etc.

It is not only OK to do this, I actively encourage it. One of the main reasons for the backup/restore feature was so you could transfer GSAK data/settings between computers.

This may be at odds with other license agreements, but I just don't think it fair you have to pay for the software on each computer YOU use.So if you are a bit geeky, and like me have 5 computers, then by all means install and register on all 5 without an ounce of guilt   

However, This does not mean you can use your license key on your friend's/relative's computer so he/she can use it.

15. My computer crashed and I need to re Install GSAK. I can't find my serial number - Help!

You should always keep your registration details in a safe place away from your computer. This applies to other applications and not just GSAK. However, it you do find yourself in this situation you can retrieve your serial number here 

16. I would like to find caches along a route. How can I do this using GSAK!

You can use the GSAK arc/poly filter for this (see that tab on the filter dialog). Bring up the arc poly/tab and click on the "GSAK polygon/arc drawing tool" to create your route (when finished drawing, click on the "Send to GSAK" button.

17. Will you be creating a GSAK version for the Macintosh?

In a word, NO. Windows is my native platform and is as much as I can handle. Note: GSAK has been known to run quite nicely under "Virtual PC", "Parallels", and "Boot camp" on the Mac. For more information see this link

18. All distances show as miles, how do I change this to kilometres?

From the main menu take the option Tools=>Options=>General. Now select the kilometres radio button from the "Distance calculation" box at the top right of the dialog. 

19. My caches are not showing as found and the found by me date is missing - why?

Found and found by me date will only be recognised if:

1. Your GSAK database is being updated with full information (not loc files or "Light" format api data)
2. You tell GSAK correctly how to match your found logs.

To get item 2 correct make sure you have the "method for matching hidden and found" caches filled out correctly (Tools=>Options=>General). For
more information see the this link. 

20. When I send all my data to CacheMate I only get 1 cache, why?

The box that says "You can build the waypoint name using special tags" has been inadvertently changed to a literal (or blanked out), therefore producing the same name for all caches and then you only get one in CacheMate. You must use a special tag here that will generate a unique waypoint name. The two most common are %code and %smart. %code is the shipped default with GSAK and I recommend using until you are more familiar with special tags 

21. Can I set up GSAK as multi user?

No, GSAK does not support multi user. However, you can share your GSAK database across a network - you just can't have simultaneous access to it. To share you GSAK database, change all your copies of GSAK to point to the shared data via the menu option Tools=>Options=>General and set the "data folder". Note that you can also set up profiles using this method.  

22. When GSAK opens a page in my Browser it "Hijacks" the current page, overwriting it. Can I fix this?

This is a browser dependant setting. If you are using Internet Explorer go to Tools=>Internet Options=>Advanced, then uncheck the box "Reuse windows for launching shortcuts". You can also hold down the SHIFT key while you open a page to force IE to open a new window. This allows you to have a default "reuse window" (avoids having dozens of windows open when you don't want them) and still have control to force a new window whenever you DO want one. 

23. Archived caches are not being updated when I load GPX files or run the api. Why?

This crux of the issue is that the Groundspeak  do not include archived caches (temporary disabled yes, archived no). For more information and a work around see this link

24. Why do some cache descriptions show in the grid in bold, yet others do not?

This is a "shipped" GSAK highlight which means that the parent waypoint has children. If you wish to remove it, go to "Waypoint=>Highlight" uncheck the "activate" box for highlight 1:



24. My default browser is FireFox (or Chrome or somehing other than IE) , so why does GSAK use IE?

The split screen needs to be able to render HTML code, so GSAK must use something to convert all HTML code for viewing. When including support for this, you can't just grab a browser and place it in your application. There must be a wrapper (active X, api, whatever) to provide two way communication with the browser so the HTML code can be rendered and displayed inside the application. Microsoft have provided an API for IE, where as none of the other browsers have provided a similar API. Displaying the information outside the application is easy, because there is no need to communicate with the browser directly to render the display - the browser does that for you. Because the application does not need to render the HTML we can just tell Windows to open the file with the default application and hence your default browser displays the file. GSAK is written in Delphi, and Delphi provides a wrapper around the native Microsoft API for IE. That is why GSAK uses IE in the split screen. Note: Even if all the other browsers did provide an API to communicate with them I doubt I would add support for each one in the split screen. They are all bound to have their own little quirks, adding extra support burden and just using the API is often not trivial.