COMPMNGR support for the paperless competition
Most COMPMNGR users require a lot of paper to manage their competitions. They receive paper entry forms from which they transcribe information into a COMPMNGR database, a tedious and error prone process. They print invoices to send to attendees. They print heat lists for competitors. During the competition the judges mark competitors on paper entry forms. As there are scratches and write-ins the registrar prints revised sections of the program for the master of ceremonies, the deck captain, the music person, and the videographer. Periodically the scrutineer prints results for the MC to announce. And so on. COMPMNGR provides features that make most of this unnecessary and can save a few trees. This page summarizes some of those features.
The on-line registration feature eliminates the requirement for paper entry forms and also eliminates the tedious and error prone job of transcribing information form the entry forms into COMPMNGR. To read more, click here.
Emailing invoices to attendees eliminates the printing and 'snail' mailing of paper invoices. To read more, click here.
Posting heat lists on-line reduces the need for paper heat lists. To read more, click here.
Linking the registrar's computer and the scrutineers' computers in a network allows them exchange information without running paper notes or diskettes back and forth. To read more, click here.
Handheld judges marking devices eliminate the need for marking on paper. To read more, click here.
The MC's computer, the scrutineer's computer, the videographer's computer, and the deck captain's PDA can link by a wireless network to the registrar's computer and display sections of the program, making it unnecessary to print sections of the program for them. A small number of data entry functions are allowed for scrutineers and others. To read more, click here.
COMPMNGR's on-line registration feature allows your attendees to visit your web site and complete dance entry forms, purchase packages, purchase admission tickets, and the like. If necessary they can revisit the site and make changes in the original entries and purchases. Periodically the competition organizer, with a few button clicks in COMPMNGR, downloads the information, imports it into the COMPMNGR database, and emails an invoice/confirmation form to the attendee.
The on-line registration feature is an $100 optional feature but requires purchasing the $100 web page creation feature, so you get both features for $200. To read about those two features click here. The on-line registration feature requires some set up, which the COMPMNGR vendor will do for you at no additional cost.
Invoicing is a standard COMPMNGR feature. When you invoice a studio the invoice pops up in a report view. At the top of the view there is a menu bar containing the item 'Email'. When you click on the menu item COMPMNGR creates an RTF (rich text format) file which can be attached to the email. If you use an email program which is compliant with Microsoft's MAPI standard, like Outlook or Outlook Express, COMPMNGR will even create the email for you. When the studio receives the email the attached invoice file can be viewed and printed.
COMPMNGR has the capability of creating and posting a number of different web pages. To see a list of them click here. One of them is a heat list page. This allows an attendee to view and print a complete list of the heats in which he or she is competing along with the session, the time and his or her partner.
The web page creation feature is an optional feature which costs $100.
Registrar/scrutineer data exchange over a network
COMPMNGR provides features for the registrar and scrutineers (and others) to exchange data over a network. The first feature is based on the same merging technique that has been used in the past by running diskettes (or USB drives) back and forth, but eliminates the need for diskettes. With a few mouse button clicks the registrar can initiate the merge procedure and in a short time the databases on the registrar's computer and all the scrutineers' computers will be updated and made identical. This method does not require a particularly high speed network connection, but the faster the network the faster the merges will go.
The second feature allows the registrar and the scrutineers to share one database file located on the registrar's computer. In concept, this means that merging of data occurs almost instantaneously as data are entered. A write-in made on the registrar's computer appears very quickly on the screen of all the scrutineers' computers. Placements made on the scrutineers' computers appear very quickly on the screen of the registrar's computer. This method does require a high speed network. The current 802.11 standard wireless network is too slow for the method to work effectively.
The third feature provides a limited exchange of information between the COMPMNGR computer and other computers running standalone programs designed to display the competition program (i.e. the heats and their entrants) and allow limited data entry. This feature is suitable for use with a wireless network. To read more, click here.
Judge's handheld marking devices
COMPMNGR provides an interface for judge's handheld marking devices which transfer information back and forth with COMPMNGR over a wireless network. A judge's handheld marking device is a PDA (personal digital assistant) into which judges enter their marks; the PDAs then send the marks directly to the COMPMNGR computer. The PDAs run the standalone HandheldMarker program which is included in the COMPMNGR setup