Instructions for Using Au424.exe Scrabble Tournament Software

The au424.exe programme for pairing players in Scrabble® tournaments was written by Barry Harridge, barry@axs.com.au of Melbourne, Australia. Au424.exe is the latest version in the series generically known as AU PAIR.

These instructions were originally written by Dylan Early, and amended and updated by Steven Gruzd, both of South Africa, with suggestions by Bob Jackman, Australia. Bob adapted the instructions to incorporate teams events and instructions for running ratings, in November 2004, and incorporated many other aspects not previouly documented. Questions, anomalies and possible improvements to these instructions should be reported to Bob by email at rjackman@ozemail.com.au

Note: Au424 has a limit of 100 players, and the ratings software has a limit of 30 rounds

This documentation last update May 2005

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. OPENING THE AU424.EXE PROGRAMME
2. GETTING HELP
3. STARTING A NEW TOURNAMENT
4. ENTERING PLAYERS’ NAMES
5. ADDING A NEW SECTION
6. SAVING A TOURNAMENT
7. CORRECTING A MISSPELLED NAME
8. ADDING OR DELETING PLAYERS
9. PERFORMING THE DRAW FOR THE FIRST ROUND
10. ANCHORING PLAYERS AND MARKING NOVIVES
11. MOVING WITHIN AND BETWEEN SECTIONS
12. ENTERING THE SCORES AFTER A GAME
13. PERFORMING THE DRAW FOR THE NEXT ROUND
14. SETTING UP A PRINTER
15. PRINTING THE ENTIRE SCHEDULE
16. SAVING THE RESULTS
17. PRINTING THE RESULTS
18. OPENING A PREVIOUSLY SAVED TOURNAMENT
19. CLOSING THE PROGRAMME
20. RUNNING RATINGS FOR A TOURNAMENT JUST COMPLETED
21. PRINTING RATINGS FOR A TOURNAMENT JUST COMPLETED

1. OPENING THE AU424.EXE PROGRAMME

  1. Switch on your computer and let Windows load.
  2. If there is an icon on your desktop called AU424.exe, double click on it. If not, follow steps 3 to 5, below.
  3. Right click on the Start button, and click on Explore.
  4. Find the folder containing the file au424.exe (might be in c:\swiss).
  5. Double click on au424.exe

2. GETTING HELP

  1. Press F1.
  2. Press any key to leave HELP

3a. STARTING A NEW TOURNAMENT (STANDARD EVENT OR ROUND ROBIN)

  1. Press ESC to invoke the menu bar.
  2. In the FILE menu (top left corner), arrow down to NEW and press ENTER.
  3. Use BACKSPACE to delete the date and type in the title of the event and press ENTER. Include a date if there is space, e.g. 2000 DECATHLON.
  4. With the arrow keys, highlight WINS AND MARGIN and press ENTER (Wins & Margins is the most commonly used option). Alternatively, you can choose AGGREGRATES.
  5. Type in the name of the section and press ENTER (You can add other divisions later).
  6. NOTE: if the sections are named MASTERS, ADVANCED, INTERMEDIATE AND RECREATIONAL, one can move between them by pressing Alt M, Alt A, Alt I and Alt R.

3b. STARTING A NEW TOURNAMENT (TEAMS EVENT)

  1. Press ESC to invoke the menu bar.
  2. In the FILE menu (top left corner), arrow down to NEW and press ENTER.
  3. Use BACKSPACE to delete the date and type in the title of the event and press ENTER. Include a date if there is space, e.g. 2000 DECATHLON.
  4. With the arrow keys, highlight WINS AND SPREAD and press ENTER. Alternatively, you can choose AGGREGRATES.
  5. Type in the name of the Section as the two teams separated by a colon eg NSW:VIC Up to 12 characters are allowed.

4a. ENTERING PLAYERS’ NAMES (STANDARD EVENT)

(1)Using ratings list
This method may be adopted prior to the day of the tournament, using Au424.exe loaded onto the organier's computer, or just before the event, based on a listing of expected players. Using this method on the day of the tournament wil have the effect of delaying the start of the tournament:

  1. Type in each person's name and surname in descending rating order, for standard tournaments i.e. with the top rated player first, then the second rated player and so on. Unrated players should be entered last. After typing each name, press ENTER.
  2. Doing so in this order means that the draw will pair say 1 vs. 11, 2 vs. 12, 3 vs. 13 etc, if Australian Draw is chosen. The start will always be given to the lower rated player in the first game.
  3. NOTE: The computer needs an even number of players to make its calculations. If there is an odd number of players, type in an extra person named "A Bye". (This means that someone will have a bye each round.)
  4. When you have entered all the players in the section, press ENTER.
  5. To sort the players alphabetically by first name, press ESC to invoke the menu bar, and use the RIGHT ARROW to scroll across to the OTHER menu. Use the DOWN ARROW to move to SORT ALPHABETIC, and press ENTER.
(2)Using manually prepared draw
This method is always done on the day, by the computer operator after the commencement of the first game. This method obviates the need to alter names using the program, as it always reflects the posted first game pairings. After the manually prepared draw has been adjusted for unexpected arrivals and no-shows, these steps should be followed:
  1. Using the manual first round pairings posted on walls, type in the players name and surname in playing pairs. After typing each name press ENTER.
  2. Doing so in this order will pair 1 vs 2, 3 vs 4 etc when King of The Hill is chosen to perform the draw. For first round King of the Hill, the start is always given to the second player.
  3. When you have entered all the players in the section, press ENTER.
  4. To sort the players alphabetically by first name, press ESC to invoke the menu bar, and use the RIGHT ARROW to scroll across to the OTHER menu. Use the DOWN ARROW to move to SORT ALPHABETIC, and press ENTER.

4b. ENTERING PLAYERS’ NAMES (ROUND ROBIN)

  1. Type in the the players names in random order. After each name has been entered, press ENTER.
  2. If there are an odd number of players type A BYE in lieu of the last name

4c. ENTERING PLAYERS’ NAMES (TEAMS EVENT)

  1. Enter the players names with the first named team (eg NSW in NSW:VIC) in the odd positions and the second named team in the even positions. Press ENTER after each name as been added.
  2. Do not attempt to enter players in ratings sequence
  3. When you have entered all the names, press Enter

5. ADDING A NEW SECTION (STANDARD EVENT)

  1. Press ESC to invoke the menu bar.
  2. In the FILE menu, arrow down to ADD EXTRA SECTION and press ENTER.
  3. Follow steps 1 to 3 from the section entitled “TO ENTER THE PLAYER’S NAMES.”
  4. SAVE.

6. SAVING A TOURNAMENT

  1. Press ESC to invoke the menu bar.
  2. In the FILE menu, arrow down to SAVE TOU FILE and press ENTER.
  3. Type in the filename and path of the tournament (e.g. c:\swiss\SYDNEY04.TOU) and press ENTER (nb. up to 8 characters only are allowed in the name)
  4. It is a good idea to SAVE EARLY and SAVE OFTEN!

7. CORRECTING A MISSPELLED NAME

  1. Move onto the misspelled name with the ARROW keys.
  2. Press the LEFT ARROW key, and use the BACKSPACE key and correct the name.
  3. Press ENTER.

8. ADDING OR DELETING PLAYERS (STANDARD EVENT OR ROUND ROBIN)

  1. Adding or deleting players should be done BEFORE performing the draw for round 1.
  2. To add a player, press the PLUS (+) key.
  3. Type in the new player's name and press ENTER.
  4. To delete a player, press the MINUS (-) key.
  5. You may have to alphabetise the players again, or add in A BYE if the numbers are uneven.

9a. PERFORMING THE DRAW FOR THE FIRTS ROUND(STANDARD EVENT)

  1. Press ESC to invoke the menu.
  2. Use the right arrow to highlight DRAW.
  3. Use the down arrow to highlight AUSTRALIAN DRAW and press ENTER. (nb if King Of The Hill is required, select that option)
  4. Shortcut: Alt+S for the Australian (Swiss) Draw.
  5. The programme will ask whether you want BALANCED STARTS? Typing Y for Yes will count the starts and balance the starts throughout the tournament. The person to start each game is indicated by an asterisk (*) next to her name on the printout. Typing N will not assign even starts, and players may draw for starts each game.
  6. The games for the first round will be drawn.
  7. The player starting will have a dot (.) next to her name. To change this, type .. The opponent will now be starting. To remove the start, type .. again. Every time you type .. the function toggles - i.e. first it will indicate that player 1 starts, then player 2, then that no-one starts.

9b. PERFORMING THE DRAW (ROUND ROBIN)

  1. Press ESC to invoke the menu.
  2. Use the right arrow to highlight DRAW.
  3. Use the down arrow to highlight ROUND ROBIN and press ENTER.
  4. The schedule for the entire event will be carried out

9c. PERFORMING THE DRAW (TEAMS EVENT)

  1. Press ESC to invoke the menu.
  2. Use the right arrow to highlight DRAW.
  3. Use the down arrow to highlight TEAM ODDS VS EVENS
  4. The schedule for the entire event will be carried out
  5. The starts will be balanced by having the first named team (odd) having the start in odd rounds. For an odd number of players in each team, this needs to be taken into account when planning the event.

10. ANCHORING PLAYERS AND MARKING NOVICES

  1. To anchor a player to a table, type @nn aftre the players name, where nn is a valid number eg JIM SMITH @18.
  2. To mark a player as a novice, type (N) after the player's name eg MARY SMITH (N)
  3. These annotations can be carried out at the time of entry of names, or during the tournament, using the same method as in Correcting a Misspelled Name in 7 above.

11. MOVING WITHIN AND BETWEEN SECTIONS (STANDARD EVENT)

  1. Within sections (e.g. ADVANCED), Press PAGE UP/PAGE DOWN to switch between games.
  2. To move between sections (e.g. between ADVANCED and INTERMEDIATE, press CTRL+PAGE UP/PAGE DOWN. The section name is visible on the bottom of the screen (e.g. ADVANCED GAME 1).
  3. Shortcut: ALT+M, Alt+A, Alt+I and ALT+R to move between MASTERS, ADVANCED, INTERMEDIATE AND RECREATIONAL SECTIONS.

12. ENTERING THE SCORES AFTER A GAME

  1. Arrow UP and DOWN to highlight the relevant players.
  2. A good shortcut is to type the first letter of the name of a player whose score has not been entered e.g. typing capital S will bring up players with first name S whose scores have not yet been entered.
  3. Type the score of Player A (e.g. 405) and press ENTER.
  4. Type the score of Player B (e.g. 398) and press ENTER.
  5. If a player has a bye, the player may be awarded 400 and A BYE 350, i.e. a win by 50 points.
  6. If the score is under 100, type in a zero before the score, e.g. 098.
  7. To produce a list of list of gammes with results missing, type '?' (question mark)
  8. SAVE.

13. PERFORMING THE DRAW FOR THE NEXT ROUND (STANDARD EVENT)

After all the scores have been entered and the tournament has been saved, calculate the draw as follows:
  1. Press ESC to invoke the menu.
  2. Use the RIGHT ARROW to highlight DRAW.
  3. Use the DOWN ARROW to highlight Australian draw and press ENTER.
  4. The programme will say FRESH STARTS WITH GAME 1. Press ENTER.
  5. If you wish rematches to occur, say in the final games of a longer event, type in the Round Number from which you wish rematches to be allowed eg 16 game event with rematches allowed in last 4 games, type in 12 for each of last four games
  6. The games for the next round will be drawn.
  7. Shortcut: Alt+S, where S = Swiss.

14. PRINTING THE NEXT ROUND DRAW

  1. Press ESC to invoke the menu.
  2. Use the right arrow to highlight PRINT.
  3. Use the down arrow to highlight PRINT TO and press ENTER.
  4. Type P to print to the printer. The option exists at this point to produce multiple copies.
  5. Note that draws for each Section need to be printed individually
  6. Shortcult Alt+P, where P = Print

15. PRINTING THE ENTIRE SCHEDULE (ROUND ROBIN AND TEAM EVENT)

  1. Press ESC to invoke the menu bar.
  2. Use the right arrow to highlight PRINT.
  3. Use the down arrow to highlight MATCHES All Rounds and press enter
  4. Press ENTER again.
  5. SAVE

16. SAVING THE RESULTS (SUITABLE FOR PUBLISHING)

At the end of the tournament, save the results as follows:
  1. Press ESC to invoke the menu bar.
  2. In the FILE menu, arrow down to SAVE RESULTS and press ENTER.
  3. Type in the filename and path for the results (e.g. c:\swiss\2000DECATHLON.RES) and press ENTER. Results should always have a .RES extension.

17. PRINTING THE RESULTS

  1. Press ESC to invoke the menu.
  2. Use the right arrow to highlight PRINT.
  3. Use the down arrow to highlight RESULTS (All Sect) and press ENTER.
  4. SAVE

18. OPENING A PREVIOUSLY SAVED TOURNAMENT

  1. Double click au410.exe.
  2. If not already visible, press ESC to invoke the menu.
  3. Arrow down to LOAD TOU FILE and press ENTER.
  4. All saved TOU files will be listed.
  5. Arrow down to the tournament you want and press ENTER.

19. CLOSING THE PROGRAMME

  1. Press ESC to invoke the menu.
  2. Arrow down to QUIT and press ENTER as many times as necessary for the programme to close.

20. RUNNING RATINGS FOR A TOURNAMENT JUST COMPLETED

Provided the latest rating.dat, ratings.exe and the *.tou (where * is the name o the tournament) file for the tournament just completed are located in the same directory, ratings for the tournament can be run immediately. Also, the palyers names in rating.dat must exactly match the names as entered for the tournament just finished, otherwise the program may treat a player as new when this is not actually the case.

To run the ratings:

  1. Open MS DOS
  2. Locate the directory containing rating.dat, rating.exe and *.tou eg C:/SWISS
  3. Make a backup copy of rating.dat in the working directory
  4. Type in ratings *.tou NN 20YYMMDD where NN is the State. and YY, MM, DD represent year, month, day. Options for State are OS (for overseas), NSW, VIC, WA, SA, QLD and TAS.
  5. Answer questions with Y or N when prompted

21. PRINTING RATINGS FOR A TOURNAMENT JUST COMPLETED

  1. Locate the directory above used to run the ratings eg C:/SWISS
  2. Type edit *.STA, where * is the tournament name
  3. Select Print from the edit menu
  4. Note that Word Pad can also be used, especially if landscape printing is required.