'Lectronic Score Sheet Instructions
Hi, and welcome! Thanks for trying our brave new experiment in collecting the stats for the team - the TRDL 'Lectronic Score Sheet! It's actually pretty simple to figure out - we've designed it to look pretty much like the paper score sheets you scribble and spill beer on when you play.
Things to keep in mind:
- The 'Lectronic Score Sheet, just like the paper one, needs to be returned by the Thursday evening following your match. If you file 'lectronically, we'll still need to get the paper copy (by mail or running into the statistician or editor or whatever) in a reasonable amount of time.
- The 'Lectronic Score Sheet has been laid out pretty much like the paper one and needs to be filled out the same way:
- Make sure all the fields are filled in, even if you have no "real" data to put in. Just enter a "0" or "n/a" or something. The form will insist that you obey this rule.
- Please include the last names of all the players the first time you enter them. After that, first (or last) names will do fine except (of course) when you have two or more players with the same first (or last) names. We get confused easily.
- If you can't quite make out a player's name due to scrawl or beerblotches, make a close guess. We have some pretty sophisticated "fuzzy-logic" software here at the TRDL World Headquarters and Cockroach Farm, so more'n likely, we'll figure it out.
- There are a couple of differences with the 'Lectronic version you need to be aware of:
- Some browsers will have trouble digesting the Java behind the magic. See our Known Issues & Bugs page for details.
- You need a password to verify the authenticity of your 'lectronic submission. Getting one is easy (and free)! Just email us and we'll send you one. (If your browser handles sending mail by itself - and not calling an external mail client - you should have no trouble with the 'Lectronic Score Sheet.)
- If you don't have a password and are really hot to try out this new toy, just enter your home phone number in the password field so we can verify that you're really you.
- It doesn't really matter how you distingush a "win" or a "loss." For a win, you can use a "1" or a "W" or a "w"; for a loss, it could be "0" or "L" or "l" in the field. (The points fields are only one character long, so "win/won" or "lost" won't make it, but the "w" and "l" will.)
- It's marked on the 'Lectronic Score Sheet, but don't forget - Singles and 701 wins are worth one point each and Doubles are worth two points.
- Someday (RSN), we'll get around to adding some more error-checking routines to simplify your entry, but that'll have to wait until the season is well under way. Thanks for sticking with this deal for now. :)
- The Cheap Talk, Patter & Jive (comments) section from the back of the paper score sheet appears as a single line in the 'lectronic version. This "single line" is actually 800 characters long, so don't hold back. If need be, we can even make it longer! (The "single-line theory" is a concession to brain-dead browsers that don't understand enough standard Java to be allowed to play in public. We won't mention any names, but we're sure Janet Reno could...)
- Be particularly aware of three things!
- If you Reload/Refresh the 'Lectronic Score Sheet page, most likely, all data you've entered will be lost. If you'd prefer, you can just save the page to a file on your local computer and enter the data there. Reload/Refresh on a local file will *not* destroy your data. When you're ready to send your data along to us, just be sure you're connected to your ISP and it'll all work just like you were online the whole time at the TRDL site.
- If you hit the "Start Again!" button at the bottom of the page instead of the "Submit!" button, you're SOL. All your data will be lost. (That's why the button says "Start Again!")
- This is essentially a beta version of the 'Lectronic Score Sheet and, as such, it has very little in the way of error-checking and those little nice things that make online forms easy to use. It can't tell, for instance, that you've indicated that both players in the same 301 game won (or lost). We have to trust you to make sure each game has one winner and one loser. If you mess up, expect a phone call from us.
That's about all we can think of to tell you right now. Check back now and then to see if we've added anything to this page.
Thanks again for trying the 'Lectronic Score Sheet and let us know if something's broke or you know of a slicker way to present the deal.
'Lectronic Score Sheet | TRDL Home
Comments are always welcome! Send them to Patrick Murray.
Last update: 8 January 1998