Appendix A Report Submission Methods

The contents of this appendix is mostly hard copy. Included are the following documents:

1. Rated Chess Events booklet - the documentation used by our TDs to learn the requirements to submit rating reports

2. A blank Official Tournament Report Form

3. Sample submissions. This includes several types of reports including a sample Swiss Standard report, a Swiss Cumulative Report, a Round Robin Report, and a match report.

4. The matching crosstable for each of the above events to show how our output relates to the input.

Also included are several files to show various reports submitted on disk created using the TA program. The reports on disk are just the edit files with the information already entered by the TD so our data entry clerk does on have to enter the data. These files can also be created by several pairing programs being sold by independent programmers.

Included are a Swiss (S), Cumulative (C), Round Robin (R), and match (M) type reports. The files have been placed in the following folders.

thexport.dbf, Tsexport.dbf, Tdexport.dbf for the Swiss Standard in the folder [StdSwiss]

Thexport.dbf, Tsexport.dbf, Tdexport.dbf for the Swiss Cumulative in the folder [Scum]

Thexport.dbf, Tsexport.dbf, Tdexport.dbf for the Round Robin in the folder [Rrobin]

Thexport.dbf, Tsexport.dbf, Tdexport.dbf for the match in the folder [Match]

I also exported these files in one set of files that included all four events. These files are located in the folder called [4 event rpt].

Additionally I have included a copy of the edit files from the Tournament Administrator program in the folder called [TA Tnmt files].

The included reports are:

1. 990613-381 - a two section event with both sections submitted as round robins.

2. 990626-392 - A match between 2 players who played 4 games

3. 990719-391 - A 2 section event submitted as a computer printout in Swiss Cumulative form. This report is very interesting as the tournament was actually a round robin. This can be determined by observing that in the 6 player section each player had a game against each of the other players. The 4 player section is also interesting as this is what we call a "double" tournament. In this section each player played two games against each of the other players. Although. submitted as a double Swiss, it was actually a double round robin.

4. 990909-353 - A handwritten report in the Swiss Standard format.

Double ( and triple or more) events cannot be directly entered into the computer. Round Robins are the most common of double events. In order to be rated, a double RR has to either be broken into 2 single RR sections or converted into a swiss format. This is time consuming manual labor that is also prone to errors. Having the ability to deal with these events directly with our new system or having a small stand-alone program that would convert them to an acceptable file input would be greatly appreciated.

The primary purpose of the edit module is to allow the operator to input data in the most efficient manner. The program has to allow for entering in the various formats received so the clerk does not have to convert from one submission type to another. The current edit program helps significantly in entering data by isolating the actual data placed in the file compared to the format viewed or entered on the screen. The round robin is a very good example. When the data entry screen is displayed after telling the program that you are entering a RR, It has the opponent already filled in and the clerk does not have to even step through the opponent field.

The following are useful definitions that the programmer should be aware of

Crosstable - A USCF report generated after the event is rated. It contains the pre-event and post-event ratings and is sorted by descending score and then descending rating. Most pairing programs have the capability to calculate ratings and produce a similar report. The ratings are not the same as a USCF generated crosstable because we will use each players current rating which is not available to the TD.

Current Rating - The most recent rating kept for each player. This comes from the post-event rating calculated from the most recent tournament rated. This is used as the pre-event rating at the start of each rating secession and if the player has more than one event rated during a rate, the post-event rating from the first event is then used as the current rating for the next event.

Pairing - the process of determining who will play who and what color each player will have. A good description of how a chess tournament works and the rules for pairings are found in the USCF's Official Rules of Chess, 4^th edition.

Pairing Number - After all the players have entered the event, they are ranked by descending rating order and assigned a number. This number is sequential and usually starts with 1. This is not always true and sometimes sets of numbers such as 100s, 200s, or 300s are used to help differentiate between sections.

Published Rating - The rating published in the most recent rating supplement in which the player appears. This rating is used by the TDs to assign the player to a section and determine the pairing number. It also determines the player's eligibility for prizes.

Round Robin Tournament - A tournament using a pairing method where each player in the section plays every other player in the section.

Standings - a normally computer generated list of the players in an event sorted by final score, and then by rating or by one of several tie break methods. It normally does not include color information. The pairing numbers are sometimes changed.

Swiss System Tournament - A tournament that uses a pairing method to determine a single winner for a large number of players and a relatively small number of games. A common example is a section with 20 to 40 players each playing 5 games.

Swiss Wall Chart - This is a hand-written or computer generated listing of everyone playing in the section. Almost always in pairing number order with the results listed in the cumulative style. Color, pairing, and result information is shown as well as name, rating, ID number. Occasionally State or team information is included. Occasionally the computer generated version is sorted by final standings. When this is done, the pairing numbers are regenerated and will not match the disk report if the sort is done after the files are created. This causes difficulty when the event is edited.

Tournament Administrator (TA) Program. A dos program based on our in-house edit program. This is mostly the same except that some edit functions for changing the status of flags have been left out. The bidders are encouraged to contact me for a copy to experiment with. This will give you a feeling for how our current system works. This program is most happy running under dos 6.xx