Scouting Options

[007agentHP]

As the scouting captain of a second year team, i prefer to use the system i plan on running this year, a hybrid system.
1. In the stands, the field scouts do their job on paper and hand their sheets to a digitizer once they are done.
2. said digitizer takes the information on the sheets and enters them into a excel spreadsheet for easy access to information where i may be.

its the same thing for the pit scouts. this provides 2 layers of protection. the ease of use in obtaining information anywhere, but we still have the information on paper in case electronics fail us.

[youngace89]

Last year we were able to have two scouts per laptop because it was fairly easy to remember and/or see at the end how many totes/containers your robot scored and then record these numbers after the match rather than writing down numbers as the match went along. With only three laptops at a time it was easy to form a rotation so charge wasn't really an issue. This year, though, the actions of the robot you're following aren't standing on the field at the end for you to see. We're thinking of having scouts take notes on paper during the match, then enter the official data into excel on their laptop between matches. This should eliminate whatever conflicts may arise from two scouts using the same laptop.

[SamcFuchs]

Originally Posted by anishde

It all really comes down to where you place the bulk of your scouting. In most years, stand scouting has been the obvious priority for teams over pit scouting. When it comes to the stands, paper is often the better solution if you have up to 6 people scouting at a time, but often gets disorganized to the point of no return. However, pit scouting (usually handled by the same 2-3 people) may work better with an app or other technology, and is definitely easier to work with. As a side note, not using paper in the pits gives off a slightly better impression to other teams than scrawling on some paper scrap.

Clipboards look pretty professional though...

[VexisDarksteele]

We used paper back when I was still a student of 3641, and I hated it because it was such a mess. 6 sheets of paper x 80 matches = yikes! And it complicated things when someone accidentally misplaced a sheet or two. Now, I think the Toasters are using another team's scouting database that they're sharing for both teams' benefit, and it's all digital.

That being said, I'm not yet sure how the team I'm currently mentoring does scouting, if at all. We'll most likely end up going the paper route in the meantime for simplicity, perhaps with the goal of developing a digital solution for the future.

[peterl]

We use PDF Forms on Android based tablets. The only downside is the amount of time it takes to prep them. Last year, we would wait until Friday night to gather the data, but this season we are going to try to gather data from a few tablets every few matches so we can assist the drive team with picking the field defenses. For teams looking to start going digital, I would suggest the Amazon Fire 7, if you are on a tight budget.