CQ-Contest
[Top] [All Lists]

Re: [CQ-Contest] FW: Getscores.org Changes/Improvements...

To: Robert Naumann <w5ov@w5ov.com>
Subject: Re: [CQ-Contest] FW: Getscores.org Changes/Improvements...
From: W0MU Mike Fatchett <w0mu@w0mu.com>
Date: Sun, 20 Jan 2008 10:16:29 -0700
List-post: <mailto:cq-contest@contesting.com>
I think this a  big block for many.  The top contesters know when the 
bands are open.  They have multiple rigs and antennas to check.  It does 
not do any good for me to see a person in 4land or 6land that is running 
10m or even 15m.  In sweepstakes, I know the east coast guys are going 
to work far more people on 80 than I could ever hope for.  Seeing them 
pile up big numbers there does not help me.

The whole reason for the score board is to generate more interest in the 
  sport and get more people to participate and encourage them to work 
harder and stay in the contest longer.  Wouldn't it be nice to have good 
runs on Sunday too!

The scoreboard can do two things.  One if you are getting smoked and had 
hoped to do well you might toss in the towel or you might hunker down 
and try harder.

There seems to be great reluctance on the part of most top competitors 
to use the scoreboard like their secrets will somehow magically be revealed.

I guess that propagation prediction programs should be banned as well as 
  well as looking at WWV prior to the contest or getting on an hour or 
two before the contest to check for conditions.

Band break downs are interesting.  We are driven by stats.  Every sport 
compiles more stats than most could ever need or want.

People can watch packet spots without ever being detected and one could 
probably detect which bands are open by the spots.

I would have loved to have been able to broadcast a message across 20m 
that 15m was open to Colorado yesterday to certain areas but nobody was 
checking.  Wouldn't it be nice if more people were available to work on 
more bands? Wouldn't this increase the fun?  Looking at the breakdowns 
is interesting.  Non serious ops could learn about openings by looking 
at the band break downs.  10 and 15 are sure a lot more fun to run on 
than having to duke it out on 20.

Things have changed from an era where most had one rig so knowing when 
to change bands was more of a strategic move.  Today most serious ops 
are running SO2 3 4 5 radios so they know what bands are open and when 
they open.  Many radios have built in bandscopes so you can visually see 
what is going on real time.

Winning is great.  The prizes, well not so great.  We do this for fun. 
Lets focus on bringing more people into the sport of contesting and 
having fun.  Most people are not going to win the contest anyway but the 
majority do it for the fun.

If people are cherry picking categories then there are too many 
categories or there is not enough competition in those categories.  Take 
the Unlimited class in SS.  One would think that the assisted op would 
beat the unassisted ops but that is just not the case.  If I am putting 
in a part time effort having spots is great to get the sweep and 
maximize my point contribution to my team.  I can't remember not getting 
a sweep when I did a full 24 hrs.

If you are not running you are probably losing....

What I feel here is a reluctance to change.  The big guns need to decide 
if they should be giving back to the contesting community by posting 
their scores for all to see.  It would be great if everyone would 
participate in the online score board!  The top sports players do not do 
their thing behind doors.  Their performances are their for all to see 
and those superstars also give back in a big way to their sport.

Lets find ways to embrace tools that will bring in new activity to our 
sport instead of finding flaws or reasons why it should not be used. 
This is new and leading edge technology for sure.


Robert Naumann wrote:
> One of the biggest problems with this is that it can serve to provide
> information to someone who wants to cheat - by claiming unassisted and
> cheating by monitoring of real-time breakdowns.
> 
> As a Single-Op, I could watch what a multi-multi is doing (who is posting
> their breakdown) on which bands and make my band selection based on that
> information. If I'm running on 20, and I see their qso count increasing on
> 15, I would know that 15 is now open. This might be a tactical error, but it
> is also cheating (a moral error) if I am claiming single op unassisted.
> 
> There's no reason to post breakdowns since it can lead to cheating.
> 
> Total scores don't reveal what band someone is on, breakdowns do.
> 
> To avoid assisting cheaters in using this tool to cheat, the site should not
> display breakdowns until after the contest is over.
> 
> 73,
> 
> Bob W5OV
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Gerry Hull [mailto:gerry@w1ve.com] 
> Sent: Friday, January 18, 2008 1:28 PM
> To: CQ-Contest@Contesting.COM
> Subject: Re: [CQ-Contest] FW: Getscores.org Changes/Improvements...
> 
>  The site supports the display of breakdowns.   It is not the SITE
> responsibility to filter data.
> 
> I would suggest a switch in the client software to only post total score and
> total mults, if the operator only wishes to post those items.  In that case,
> all zeros could be posted.   It is not really a technical challenge.   The
> poster has full control (limited by the design of the logging software) as
> to what to post.
> 
> You are wrong about Randy -- He did post his score with no breakdowns.
> Plus, I've added the simple view -- which you can use at your own option --
> which only shows score and mults.
> 
> That all said, it is a simple fact that if you are
> Getscores.org<http://getscores.org/>as a form of propagation
> monitoring, you are simply doing something wrong
> (in a tactical sense, not a moral one).   We had radios to monitor
> propagation (for the single op) as well as packet spots, etc for the
> multi-op.   Getscores is a motivational and informational tool, not a
> propagation monitor.   If you use it as such, you will NOT do any better in
> the results.
> 
> To answer Andrew's question:   See the FAQ on getscores.org: you will not be
> reclassified if you post your score.
> 
> Thanks again to all of those supporting the site and getting enjoyment out
> of this new faucet of contesting!
> 
> 
> 73, Gerry W1VE
> 
> 
> 
> 
> On Jan 18, 2008 1:27 PM, Richard DiDonna NN3W <nn3w@cox.net> wrote:
> 
>> I refuse to, and can tell that K5ZD basically refuses to as he posted only
>> raw score during the CQWW SSB last year.
>>
>> Do we count?
>>
>> 73 Rich NN3W
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "David Robbins K1TTT" <k1ttt@arrl.net>
>> To: <CQ-Contest@Contesting.COM>
>> Sent: Friday, January 18, 2008 1:11 PM
>> Subject: Re: [CQ-Contest] FW: Getscores.org
> <http://getscores.org/>Changes/Improvements...
>>
>>> Pete, name the top competitor who has stated that they won't post their
>>> score if it contains a band breakdown.  I know it has been discussed,
>> but
>>> has any top scoring station specifically refused to post their score
>> because
>>> it contains a breakdown.
>>>
>>>
>>> David Robbins K1TTT
>>> e-mail: mailto:k1ttt@arrl.net
>>> web: http://www.k1ttt.net
>>> AR-Cluster node: 145.69MHz or telnet://dxc.k1ttt.net
>>>
>>>
>>>> -----Original Message-----
>>>> From: cq-contest-bounces@contesting.com [mailto:cq-contest-
>>>> bounces@contesting.com] On Behalf Of Pete Smith
>>>> Sent: Friday, January 18, 2008 15:44
>>>> To: CQ-Contest@Contesting.COM
>>  >> Subject: Re: [CQ-Contest] FW: Getscores.org
> <http://getscores.org/>Changes/Improvements...
>>>> Dave and I have pretty much agreed to disagree about this, but I think
>>>> that
>>>> one disincentive to top ops using the scoreboard is that there is, at
>>>> present, no option to withhold band-by-band QSO and Mult numbers.  Some
>>>> people apparently are using a logging program that sends zeros for
>> these
>>>> numbers, either as an option or as the default, and some of the top
>>>> scorers
>>>> who *are* using the scoreboard appear to use this logging software.
>>  Other
>>>> software (notably N1MM Logger) sends all the band by-band numbers.
>>>>
>>>> Why does this matter?  I submit that many top contesters are highly
>>>> competitive and take the prospect of giving away their strategy very
>>>> seriously.  Dave argues that if you're paying *that* close attention to
>>>> your competition's scoreboard numbers you're gonna lose anyhow.  That
>> may
>>>> be, but the counter argument would be "why take the chance?"
>>>>
>>>> 73, Pete N4ZR
>>>>
>>>> At 07:30 PM 1/17/2008, David Robbins K1TTT wrote:
>>>>> Sorry if this is a dupe, but I didn't see it come through on
>> cq-contest.
>>>>> Gerry has done some more work on getscores.org as detailed below.
>>  Right
>>>> now
>>>>> it is running as if both naqp ssb and jan vhf are in progress if you
>> want
>>>> to
>>>>> test.  Sometime either tomorrow night or Saturday morning after we are
>>>> done
>>>>> testing it will switch back to the proper start times to clear out the
>>>>> testing scores.
>>>>>
>>>>> Personally I would sure like to see more of the big m/m and other top
>>>>> scorers get into this.  Even if you don't want to watch for yourself,
>> its
>>>>> interesting for those of us who do to have a big target to shoot for!
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> David Robbins K1TTT
>>>>> e-mail: mailto:k1ttt@arrl.net
>>>>> web: http://www.k1ttt.net
>>>>> AR-Cluster node: 145.69MHz or telnet://dxc.k1ttt.net
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> -----Original Message-----
>>>>> From: yccc-bounces@contesting.com [mailto:
> yccc-bounces@contesting.com]
>> On
>>>>> Behalf Of Gerry Hull
>>>>> Sent: Thursday, January 17, 2008 05:36
>>>>> To: CQ-Contest Reflector; YCCC
>>>>> Subject: [YCCC] Getscores.org
> <http://getscores.org/>Changes/Improvements...
>>>>> Thanks to a lot of feedback from the community, I've implemented a few
>>>>> changes to increase functionality:
>>>>>
>>>>> The scoreboard will now track more than one contest at a time.   This
>> is
>>>>> important for weekends like the upcoming one,
>>>>> where we have two popular contests -- NAQP and ARRL VHF.    Now,
>> choose
>>>> your
>>>>> contest and go ahead and post.
>>>>>
>>>>> The "testing" page has been modified to show all fields, including the
>>>>> contest name.  It will be pre-pended with [TEST] if you post outside
>> the
>>>>> valid contest hours (UTC) for a specific contest.   If you want to
>> test
>>>> that
>>>>> your scoring to the site properly, just fire up your logger, post a
>>>> score,
>>>>> and take a look at http://www.getscores.org/testing.aspx.
>>>>>
>>>>> There are some challenges left -- VHF multiplier breakdowns are still
>> an
>>>>> issue (you'll see a dash right now);  and, though it is a great
>> contest,
>>>> the
>>>>> Stew Perry is a challenge for both this site and loggers, as far as
>>>>> reporting goes.
>>>>>
>>>>> Activity continues to increase...   What a blast to watch the big guns
>>>> and
>>>>> little pistols compete!
>>>>>
>>>>> I look forward to your feedback and seeing you on the air -- and on
>>>>> getscores!
>>>>>
>>>>> A big THANKS to Dave, K1TTT, who has been a constant supporter and
>>>> champion
>>>>> for this site!
>>>>>
>>>>> 73,
>>>>>
>>>>> Gerry, W1VE/6Y6C
>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>> YCCC Reflector mailto: yccc@contesting.com
>>>>> Yankee Clipper Contest Club  http://www.yccc.org
>>>>> Reflector Info: http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/yccc
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>> CQ-Contest mailing list
>>>>> CQ-Contest@contesting.com
>>>>> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/cq-contest
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> CQ-Contest mailing list
>>>> CQ-Contest@contesting.com
>>>> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/cq-contest
>>>
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> CQ-Contest mailing list
>>> CQ-Contest@contesting.com
>>> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/cq-contest
>> _______________________________________________
>> CQ-Contest mailing list
>> CQ-Contest@contesting.com
>> http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/cq-contest
>>
> 
> 
> 
>  --
> Gerry Hull
> Greenfield, NH USA
> gerry.hull@gmail.com
> sip: gerry@voip.w1ve.com
> aim: w1ve
> msn: w1ve@hotmail.com
> 
> 
> 
_______________________________________________
CQ-Contest mailing list
CQ-Contest@contesting.com
http://lists.contesting.com/mailman/listinfo/cq-contest

<Prev in Thread] Current Thread [Next in Thread>