The History of Signal from Groundspeak:
Signal the Frog is the official mascot for Groundspeak. Simply
put, he represents the combination of the outdoors and
location-based technology. Signal's ultimate goal is to put the
word "active" back into "interactive" by releasing you from the
shackles of your indoor "entertainment system." We call him "El
Capitan" or "The Liberator" in the office.
When developing the Geocaching.com web site, we realized that
representing GPS technology as a device would ultimately mirror an
existing design of one GPS unit manufacturer (Garmin, Magellan,
Trimble, etc.). And considering the constant changes in the designs
of GPS receivers - and their inevitable integration into existing
devices like cell phones - we wanted a creative solution to
represent the technology without locking ourselves into a design
that would soon be obsolete.
We decided a fun way to represent GPS technology would be to
give it a personality, so we decided on Signal the Frog. He's not
very bright but he knows where he is and can point you in the
direction you want to go. He's your GPS guide.
Frogs are everywhere - Just about every culture knows about
frogs, and they can live in many different climates, like the
desert and the jungle. Some can even glide, like the Javan flying
frog. GPS technology currently is being adapted for use in many
areas, from turn-by-turn directions to managing crops. And GPS
technology itself can be used just about anywhere on the planet.
Frogs are symbols in many cultures - There is a rich symbolism of
the frog in many cultures, including ancient Egypt. Usually frogs
represent fertility, regeneration and reincarnation. We decided on
a frog because we wanted to find a way to represent the transition
from the usual idea of technology as an indoor activity to using
technology in the outdoors. As a frog goes from tadpole to adult,
GPS will eventually mature into a technology that everyone will use
in their daily lives. Technology + Nature - We wanted to merge the
two different ideas of technology and nature into one symbol, which
is why Signal has an antenna on his head. Yeah, he's a bit of a
cyborg but he doesn't mind. The combination of technology and
nature is an ongoing theme at Groundspeak. Frogs are cool - I mean,
seriously, they drink and breathe through their skin, and have
these cool tongues. They can jump over 20 times their own length.
How cool is that?
You must find and catch Signal as he holds
the secret coordinates to locate the "10 Anniversary of Geocaching
Cache".
To reach Signal's Secret Cache park at the Loantaka Way parking
area, proceed down the paved bike path, then you will need to
navigate along a small stream to "Signal's Bridge Cache". This area
can be swampy. After you visit "Signal's Bridge Cache", you can
safely bushwhack through a nice woodland forest avoiding the
impassable chain link fence and major swampy area to reach these
caches.
If you prefer a longer hike with less bushwhacking, you can
simply follow the paved bike trail around to "The Old Gravestone
cache" which is 100 feet off the path, then you can easily
bushwhack to the other caches in this area of the
park.>/p>
The NNJC is about promoting a quality caching experience in
Northern New Jersey. For information on The Northern New Jersey
Cachers group you can visit: www.nnjc.org
