====== Scoutradioz News and Updates ====== Scroll down to see the latest updates as well as any earlier updates you might have missed. Use the **Table of Contents** to jump straight to an update if needed! ---- ===== February NNth, 2025 - Now Pit and Match Scouting Forms Can Include Images! ===== ---- ===== February 6th, 2025 - Improved Tuning and Customization of Scouter Accuracy Analytics ===== Scoutradioz uses a metric called [[scoutradioz:what_is_spr|Scouter Performance Rating (SPR)]] to help Scouting Leads see which scouts are being the most accurate vs. which ones may need some assistance or attention. Through the 2024 season this was done using a specific per-robot metric key called ''contributedPoints'', adding up the three robots on a given alliance and comparing the total points contributed by those three robots //(as calculated from that robot's scout's data)// to the official alliance score //(not counting points from fouls, which came from the other alliance)//. This works great when alliance scores are built up by individual robot actions. However, some games have additional scoring elements - e.g., "links" in 2023, or (in 2025) human player shots into the barge. These extra elements can make it difficult for Scouting Leads to develop a good formula for ''contributedPoints'' which still accurately reflects an individual robot's performance **but** also incorporates all the non-robot-specific scoring elements so that **all** the points //(aside from other-alliance fouls)// are included. That's why today we're releasing additional design capabilities to allow teams to **[[scoutradioz:what_is_spr#customizing_spr|customize how SPR is calculated]]**: * Teams can create additional 'total points' metrics which //just// reflect individual robot actions (and not other scoring elements such as "links" or "human player shots") * They can then define which scoring elements should be subtracted from the alliance score so the comparison is correctly "apples to apples" Check out the details on [[scoutradioz:what_is_spr|Scouter Performance Rating (SPR)]] and specifically the **"Customizing SPR"** section for details! ---- ===== January 30th, 2025 - Improvements to Form Design and Derived Metrics ===== //**BIG CHANGES!**// It's always been the core value proposition of Scoutradioz to enable FRC teams to... * Customize their own pit and match scouting data collection forms * Along with incorporating complex analytics * Within a 'low-code' "scouting-as-a-service" platform, without needing to develop or deploy your own servers or dedicated hardware However, the process of defining the custom analytics - known in Scoutradioz as **derived metrics** - has historically been somewhat clunky and verbose. For example, in Team 102's schema for 2024, calculating the "total points contributed by a robot" across auto ('//totalAutoPoints//'), teleop ('//totalTeleopPoints//'), endgame ('//totalEndgamePoints//'), and overall ('//contributedPoints//') required //186 lines// of JSON. **With the new system,** here is that same information encoded in just **20 lines** of easily-readable mathematical formulae 👀 //(also check out the improved online JSON-aware editor!)// {{:scoutradioz:annouce_202501_newjsonschema.png?direct}} Additionally there have been usability and coding improvements to other form elements, such as labels, counters, sliders, and so forth. For a fully-fleshed out example, check out [[scoutradioz:forms:2024_team_102_match_form_new|Team 102's form from 2024 refactored for the new system]] Then jump over to [[scoutradioz:howto_scouting_forms|the form design guide]] to see the details! //NB: The system is backwards compatible, so any form definitions using the old schema will still work!// ---- ===== January 4th, 2025 - Wiki, Reefscape, and More! ===== It's officially the 2025 season! **Reefscape!** Has it been a while since you've visited? Are you [[scoutradioz:newly_onboarded|newly onboarded]]? Looking for info on [[scoutradioz:howto_scouting_lead|manage your scouting operation]] or getting started on [[scoutradioz:forms:overview|how to design your own forms]]? Or looking for [[scoutradioz:forms:start|JSON definitions shared by other teams]]? Or perhaps even [[scoutradioz:programming:howto_getting_started|wondering how YOU can get started as a Scoutradioz contributor]]? There's a lot here!