Yesterday afternoon the organization relocated the Braun "DZTV" truck to the beach, and while I was hacking AE code in the jury room, Ken and Lucy emptied our stuff out of the truck and stored it temporarily in the CF judging container. Included in our stuff was the Sony laptop we use for team photos and the IBM ThinkPad that was the primary server for all the competition judging (i.e. it was used in the "fishbowl"). This morning when I unlocked the container to get the systems ready for judging, the two laptops were gone. The room remains locked again until the police arrive.

Strange -- they left, undisturbed, the ThinkPad that the CF judges were using with their system. The two missing laptops were under a keyboard on the opposite end of the same table. Whoever took the laptops tossed the keyboard on the floor and left the third laptop alone. That spot the third one occupied was where the first laptop was stolen a week ago.

Anyway, while there's jumping going on this morning, there will be no judging until after the police complete whatever it is they do here and I can disturb the container again. The last surviving/remaining laptop will then get relocated to the fishbowl and take over duties as chief OmniServer.

In lighter matters ...

Nine responses to my poll yesterday, and the results were unanimous that guest team(s) should be placed properly within the rankings, without a ranking number. One was this response from an American competitor who wishes to remain anonymous:

"The PC answer is if you're an American team, you appear at the bottom of the list, if at all. If not, according to rank."

I, personally, found that very hard to argue with!

(Three of the nine responses were from non-Americans, and their votes were counted equally with the other six.)

Back to the scene of the crime. Internet updates will be sporadic today, for obvious reasons.

1300
Just back from the police station in Rosas. I didn't speak any Spanish or Catalan and they didn't speak any English. But I got my police report, and it's in Catalan.

Before going to the station (I think that was around 1045) it was a real nut-roll getting things up again. We had to scrounge up another laptop, restore what we had of the competition scores (I think we had everything backed up except the 8-Way CF speed scores), find a new place to work (with our truck now parked at the beach), overcome a few network problems (the lack of grounding in the containers is causing havoc with the Ethernet cards), re-install all the printers, and set up new "DZTV" -- now consisting of a pair of TVs in the white tent.

Off to grab some lunch and try to find out what's going on in the competition. The weather is holding up!

1415
Tramuntana is back. Competitors on hold; turns out CF competitors were on hold since sometime while I was in Rosas, because of turbulance.

I'm still working on those CF speed scores. They were not backed up, so I'm working on a tool for Barry, the CF chief judge, to recreate the score files using info from the score sheets, so he can do his standings.

1600
Competitors are on hold and holding down their hats until 1700 ...

One more response in from yesterday's poll, well said IMHO:

I'm of the strong opinion that guest competitors/teams should be afforded  the identical treatment to eligible teams: listing in standings, placement in airplane in reverse standing order in final rounds, AND MENTION AT AWARDS CEREMONY; guests are simply not eligible for medals.

The term "guest" sets the tenor for how non-eligible guest teams should be treated: with the hospitality one affords guests. Having entered many competitions as a guest competitor and having experienced the full spectrum of treatment (sometimes within the same competition), it is very clear that if the goal is to encourage participation in our sport guest competitors should be afforded maximum hospitality and recognition. To be treated like  "Casper the Friendly Ghost" and ignored in listing of standings does not provide feedback to encourage competitors and teams to enter as guests. If the sentiment surrounding a meet is to only recognize eligible competitors/teams, just restrict the competition to this same cadre.

Joel K. Shugar MD D-9565
Teams Optic Nerve, Blue Eye Majik

1700
Hold continues to 1800 ...

AE results are being updated at the moment ...

1800
Competitors are released for the day. I'm right behind 'em ...

Note to browsers of CF results: Yes, I know there is supposed to be a throw-away round when two or more have been completed ... that's on tomorrow's laundry list of things to fix. See you then!

 
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