Banana Split!
Race/Split Timer for the Palm OS
Version
3.7 – March 2002
Introduction
The Banana Split Sport timer is a full function timer that is designed to capture lap, pace, and finish times. Because of the flexibility of its completely programmable and configurable screen and databases, it surpasses the capabilities of all dedicated hardware timers and is the most sophisticated timer available for the PalmOS handheld.
It can be integrated with desktop data systems such as Excel spreadsheet, Access database, or race management software.
It accommodates interval starts (where racers start at staggered intervals) and delayed starts (where a class of racers starts after a given delay) as well as combinations of delays and intervals.
Results can be filtered and sorted in various orders and saved to the MemoPad for printing and syncing with the desktop.
You can “beam” results directly from one Palm to another to collect results from multiple timing units into one consolidated result list. You can also use this feature to collect interim results before the race is over.
Results can be edited to incorporate changes necessary due to operator error. (We realize that the real world of race timing is not the well controlled laboratory and there are numerous distractions that can lead to missing or incorrect times. Banana Split lets you correct these errors.)
Banana Split offers unusual flexibility in that you can exchange racer lists and result lists with the Palm MemoPad. The results are then available on the Palm Desktop via HotSync.
This allows you to set up multiple races (racer lists) before race day, save these lists to the MemoPad and then load them into BananaSplit just before the race starts.
You can also do the same thing with racer lists stored on a desktop or laptop computer with a serial port. You can move racer lists into and out of the Palm through a direct serial connection. You don’t even need the Palm desktop software installed. All you need is a simple terminal program such as the Windows Hyperterminal.
You can also save results (sorted in numerous ways) to the MemoPad. The result lists can be loaded back into Banana Split from the MemoPad if you want to make corrections or sort the results differently.
Results can also be sent through a direct serial connection to a desktop machine for further processing.
We’ve included an Excel spreadsheet template that you can use for registering racers on a desktop machine and importing them into Banana Split.
Features:
Unlimited number of racers
Unlimited number of laps
Displays Pace in any of seven units (/Mile, /Km, /100Yards, /100Meters, /400 Meters, Miles/Hour, Km/Hr)
Displays projected finish time for multi-lap races.
Display time in up to 1/100 second.
Racer registration with Name, Class (for competition class), and Group (for team results)
Advanced Race Management Features:
- Beam racer lists and results from one unit to another.
- Print preliminary results before all racers are finished.
- Edit start time to synchronize multiple timers.
- Add or edit times.
Special Features for Special Sports:
Interval Start Split times:
Banana Split will properly calculate split times when you have staggered or interval starts. This is particularly useful for cross-country ski races and other sports with “wave” starts.
Cross-country Running Team Scoring:
Banana Split instantly calculates team scores for cross country running races. It correctly calculates scores for full five person teams, omits runners that don’t have a full team, and will correctly calculate scores for up to two “displacers” for each full team.
You can use it to calculate the scores at the finish line and it is also handy to calculate scores midway through the race and give this information to your coaches and racers to motivate better performance.
Demonstration Version (Unregistered Version)
The Demonstration version is limited to the entry of 50 results and the maximum bib number is 50. It does not have the ability to import and export racer and result information.
When you register as a Coach or Professional version, you will receive a registration code that you enter into the BananaSplit program on your PalmOS handheld using the Menu/Show/Register selection. This unlocks all of the features of the version you have registered.
Coach Version
Coach version does not have racer and result import and export capability. In addition, you cannot add a new result or adjust the clock.
Professional Version
All features are enabled. This is the most sophisticated and easiest to use race timer for your Palm handheld. You can use this to manage multiple races and collect intermediate results via the Palm infrared “Beaming” capability.
One program performs race timing and racer management and can transfer information back and forth to desktop and laptop PCs.
You also get the ability to transfer preliminary results during the race so that you can post intermediate results before the race has finished.
|
|
Demo |
Coach |
Professional |
|
Unlimited Racers (approx 50K memory per 1,000 racers)* |
50 |
Ö |
Ö |
|
Unlimited Results (approx 25K memory per 1,000 results)* |
50 |
Ö |
Ö |
|
Racer Registration with Class and Group |
Ö |
Ö |
Ö |
|
Interval Start |
Ö |
Ö |
Ö |
|
Wave Start |
Ö |
Ö |
Ö |
|
Edit Time of result |
Ö |
Ö |
Ö |
|
Edit Bib number of result |
Ö |
Ö |
Ö |
|
Racer splits, pace, and projected finish time |
Ö |
Ö |
Ö |
|
Save Results to Palm MemoPad |
Ö |
Ö |
Ö |
Race Management |
|
|
Ö |
|
Racer Import/Export (MemoPad, IR and Serial port) |
|
|
Ö |
|
Result Import/Export (MemoPad, IR and Serial port) |
|
|
Ö |
|
Add new result |
|
|
Ö |
|
Adjust elapsed time and results |
|
|
Ö |
|
Cross-country running team scores |
|
|
Ö |
* The number of racers and results that you can store is limited by the amount of free memory on your PalmOS handheld. A race with 1,000 racers would take up approximately 100K (0.1 Meg) of memory (using typical racer names, classes, and groups). Most current PalmOS handhelds have 8 Megs of memory.
Banana Split can be used for Race Timing and Coaching.
Race Timing
The Race/Split Timer can be used to perform complete timing functions for accurate race timing and scoring. It can be used to time and score a race. It can register racers and place them in classes that can be scored separately. You can also register team groups that may have members in different classes. The groups can be use to calculate team totals.
Banana Split can perform all of the functions necessary for race administration and timing.
- It can be used for race registration to enter racer names, classes, and groups.
- During the race it can be used to enter racer times (including lap times if you wish).
- After the race it will produce reports showing overall finish order as well as breakdowns by lap, class, and group.
- You can even use multiple Palm computers for registration and consolidate the racers into one Palm that will record the results.
Coaching
Banana Split tracks laps and split times and can calculate pace and projected finish time. It records the time for each lap for as many racers as you wish and can compare racers’ performance on each lap as well as overall.
These functions make it an excellent timer for on field coaching.
Split Timing
In the sport of cross country skiing (and others) you often have an "interval start" where racers don't all start at once but start at designated intervals. Because each racer has a different start time, it is difficult to tell during the race just how a given racer is performing compared to other racers. Interval start split timing allows coaches on the track to enter times for racers as they pass a given point. The timer knows the start times of each racer and therefore can calculate the time for each racer at that point (their "split time"). The split timing display shows how the racer of interest is performing compared to the first three racers and compared to the racers just ahead and behind.
The split timing feature was designed to work with cross-country skiing races which as far as I can determine are the most complex events to time and coach. Cross-country skiing races frequently have interval starts (with one or more skiers starting at intervals of typically 30 seconds.) Interval starts are difficult for racers. Since everyone has a different start time, racers can’t easily determine where they are in relation to the other competitors. Cross-country ski races also often have multiple laps and racers on their first lap may be at the same place on the course as racers from a later lap. Racers in different classes may compete in the same race even though they will only be scored against other racers in their same class.
All of these factors add up to making timing a very complex activity. Coaches typically will position themselves on the course and capture the times of all racers as they pass. When their own racers pass, they can then give these racers accurate information on how they compare to the field of racers. The timing needs to take into account start time (which can be different for every skier), racer class, and racer lap.
In order to accommodate these complex timing functions, the Race/Split Timer allows for very flexible start times, automatically calculates interval starts, can accommodate multiple waves with time delays between waves, and allows placing racers in classes and groups so that racers can be easily compared. The timer keeps track of laps for each racer and accurately places skiers in their current lap.
Since faster skiers may start later pass the timing point after your skiers, the timer can also be used to give “back splits” which are calculated after more racers have passed the test point and can be radioed ahead to another coach further down the course. These back splits give racers a better idea of the competition since they are calculated after more skiers have passed.
The timer compares in functionality with expensive dedicated timers that perform similar timing. The advantages of this timer are that it is much easier to learn and use and there is more flexibility in display and configuration. It is also much less expensive (even if you count the cost of the Palm Pilot computer).
Fast, Easy Time Entry
The program is designed to make it easy to quickly and accurately enter racer results. In the real world of races, it is common for a pack of several racers to cross the finish line in close proximity. The timer allows you to “pre-record” up to four bib numbers in Enter buttons. You pre-load a bib number by entering it on the numeric keypad or by using Graffiti and then tapping the “Up Arrow” in the middle of the screen.
You can also enter times without a bib number and then quickly edit them after the pack has passed to add their bib numbers.
When you press the Enter button, the bib number that is on the button used as the bib number for this time. You can later go back and assign a bib number to this result.
If there is no bib numbers on the Enter button, the program will look on the bib entry line (to the left of the number pad) for a valid bib number. If no bib number there, then you’ll get a race result with bib number 0.
If you don't have time to pre-record the bib number, you can enter a racer time without a bib number and go back and enter the proper bib number once the pack has passed.
The two Palm hardware buttons on the right (ToDo and MemoPad icons) are mapped to the first two Enter buttons. You can press these buttons and enter a time. These buttons are active regardless of what screen you are viewing. This is handy if you are viewing another screen (such as a list of results) and need to enter a time. Just press the hardware enter button and the time will be entered even if you are viewing another screen.
You also have the option of keeping the bib numbers in the “Enter” list or clearing the bib number out of the list when you enter a time. You can use the “Settings” screen “KeepBib” checkbox to retain the bib number in the Enter button. Then you won’t have to re-enter the bib number for each lap. (See the section below on “Settings Information” for further information.) This is handy when you want to record a large number of lap times for up to four racers.
Show Menu
The “Show” menu has options to switch between various screens of information.
It includes:
- Settings (Set your defaults for interface and display)
- Racer Setup (Setup your Racer information)
- Racer Edit (Edit individual Racers)
- Timer (Switch to the Time enter screen)
- About (Version and contact information)
- Register (Enter your registration code)
Settings Information
The “Setup Options” screen (Menu/Screen/Settings) lets you define several options.
Display Decimals
This lets you select the level of precision that you want to display for your time values. Banana split keeps time in milliseconds internally and you can display the time with a precision of whole seconds, tenths, or hundredths. The accuracy of your time keeping is limited to the accuracy of recording times. The manual pressing of the time enter button determines the accuracy of the time recorded.
Race Distance, Number of Laps, and Pace Units
If you want the timer to display a “Pace” on the
The Number of Laps is also used to check to make sure you don’t too many laps for a racer. This can happen if bib numbers are entered incorrectly. When you try to enter a bib number for a racer who has already completed the number of laps you set, you are given a warning. However, you can override the warning and enter an extra lap for that bib number or you can enter that time with a bib number of 0. This warning tells you that you have an extra lap for that bib number which you need to correct.
You must enter a distance for the race if you enter a number of laps greater than one. (You can enter “No Pace” for Pace Units if you don’t want pace displayed.)
You can enter a Distance, the units for the distance, and the units for the pace. You can enter any combination of units. (For instance, you can enter the distance in Yards, and display the Pace in Kilometers/hour if you really want to do that).
You also have the option of entering “No Pace”. When you do this, the pace will not be calculated or displayed.
If you leave the distance blank or zero, the program cannot and will not calculate a pace.
In this case, the result lists will calculate a “% effort” where the fastest racer is 100% and everyone else is a fraction of that expressed as a percent. These numbers will all be less than 100%. The Racer Splits screen will display the lap time instead of the pace.
The
Delimiter for data output
When you export data to the MemoPad, you can specify the delimiter used to separate fields.
We have found that a “tab” delimiter works well for exporting to Excel spreadsheets. You can also set this to a comma or space.
X-C Scorers and Team Size
This option lets you set the size of your cross country team for team scoring purposes. Standard meets are 5 scoring members and 7 maximum team size (i.e. 2 pushers). However, some meets may have different size teams due to local rules.
You can set the number of team members who will be counted for scoring and the number of team members who will push up the scores of other racers. The Team must be greater than or equal to Scorers. The maximum team size is 9.
Serial Speed
When you send data to the
The remainder of the parameters for the serial port are the default for the Palm device which is:
N,8,1,XON/XOFF
No Parity, 8 data bits, one stop bit, Xon/Xoff protocol
You should make sure that the receiving device at the other end of the serial port is set to the same parameters.
The IR port speed is always set to 9600 for infrared beaming.
Sounds
The timer has the option of playing a tone for data entry. If you check the “Sounds” checkbox, it will play various tones to indicate number input, time entry, etc. Many people find these tones useful.
If the Sounds checkbox is not checked, you will only hear a faint “click” for data entry.
Keep Bib
This checkbox determines whether or not the bib number is cleared from the “Enter” button after you have entered a time.
If this checkbox is empty, when you press an “Enter” button that has a bib number on it’s face, the bib number is cleared and the button will again say “Enter”.
If the checkbox is checked, the bib number will stay on the “Enter” button after you have pressed it to enter a result time. You can clear the bib number from the “Enter” button by pressing the “down arrow” button on the main screen.
When you have four or fewer racers and lots of laps, it is handy to check the “KeepBib” checkbox. Then you won’t have to repeatedly enter the bib number for each lap.
Racer Setup Screen
Select Function from scroll box and fill information.
This screen has a wide range of options to make it fast and easy to setup your racers. These options include:
- Add New Bib Numbers
- Class
- Group
- Interval Start
- Delay
- Delete Bib Numbers
- Store Racers in Memo
- Add Racers from Memo
-
Add Racers from
- Delete All Racers
Add New Bib Numbers
Enter starting and ending bib numbers.
Bib numbers must be positive numbers and must be greater than 0.
New bib numbers will be added if they don’t exist.
If the bib number already exists, no changes will be made to the existing information.
Class
Class is typically used for all members of a single race (such as Men’s Varsity, JV, etc.)
Members of a class compete with each other in the same class.
Enter starting and ending bib numbers.
Enter the new class. (Letters are converted to uppercase automatically).
The Class for the range of bib numbers is changed to the class you entered.
Any old class information is overwritten.
The class information is used by the program when calculating place order.
The program will only display members of the same class and only count members of the same class.
Each class will have its own place order.
Group
Group is typically used to assign bibs to Teams.
The Group can also be used to assign racers to different distance races that are being run simultaneously. (You might have a 5K and 10K race run together. Assign the 5K racers to group 5K and the 10K racers to group 10K). You can then get results for each race separately. You can also assign classes to these racers. You may have J2 and J1 running the 5K race and OJ and M classes running the 10K.)
Members of a group can compete is multiple classes.
A team can have members in more than one class.
Groups can be displayed together but their places will reflect class places, not group places
Interval Start
Enter starting and ending bib numbers.
Enter a DELAY in number of seconds (must be a positive number).
Delay is the number of seconds that will be added to the start time of all bib numbers in this range.
(Delay is useful when you have a group of bib numbers such as Junior Varsity that will be starting after a fixed delay.)
Enter the INTERVAL in number of seconds (must be a positive number).
Interval is the starting interval for each group.
Enter the number of people that will be starting in each interval (must be positive).
The program calculates a total delay in start time as delay + interval.
This calculated delay will overwrite any prior delay information for these bib numbers.
Delay
Enter starting and ending bib numbers.
Enter a DELAY in number of seconds (must be a positive number).
Delay is the number of seconds that will be added to the start time of all bib numbers in this range.
(Delay is useful when you have a group of bib numbers such as Junior Varsity that will be starting after a fixed delay.)
This calculated delay will overwrite any prior delay information.
Delete Bib Numbers
This will delete all bib numbers in the range you enter (inclusive).
Copy to MemoPad
Enter starting and ending bib numbers.
All of the information in the racer setup (bib number, name, class, group, start delay) will be copied to the MemoPad
If more than 100 racers are copied to the MemoPad, the program will divide them into separate pages on the MemoPad.
A header is affixed showing the bib number range in each page.
This is useful to have a record of your setup.
You can also use this to restore a race setup.
Store Racers in MemoPad
You can setup the races and save them to the MemoPad and then load each as needed.
You can select a range of bib numbers that will be saved to the memo pad.
You should also enter a label for the racer set. The first line in the memo pad will look like:
Racers: label
Bib: x to: y Page: x
The program can save a maximum of 100 racers to each memo pad entry. If you have more than 100 racers, it will create additional Pages in the memo pad with the additional racers.
Add Racers from MemoPad
You can use this to add racers that you have previously saved to the MemoPad.
This is useful is you are using the MemoPad for multiple races with duplicate bib numbers.
You can setup the races ahead of time and save them to the MemoPad and then load each as needed.
When you select this option, the program will look through your memo pad for racer sets that you have saved. It looks for memo pad entries starting with "Racers:"
When you find the racer set you want to add, select it. It will add these racers to the racers already in the program. If you want only the racers in the memo pad set, you should delete all racers before you add the new racer set.
When you add racers from the MemoPad, the program will first ask you what to do with duplicate entries. You can choose to skip duplicates or overwrite duplicate bib number.
If you choose "Skip", the racer information from the MemoPad will not be added to the racer list.
If you choose "Overwrite", the new racer information in the MemoPad will overwrite the existing bib entry.
This option can be used to add racers that have been previously entered in the Banana Split program and saved to the Memo pad with the "Store Racers in Memo" selection.
It is also possible to use your desktop computer text editor or spreadsheet program to enter racers into the Palm desktop and synchronize the memo pad with your Palm. We have included an Excel spreadsheet template that you can use to enter racer lists in Excel, copy to the Palm MemoPad (do a “Save as…” to Tab delimited text file in Excel and then copy this text file to a new MemoPad entry on the Palm Desktop) and then load this list into BananaSplit.
Text File
In order to do this, you must carefully observe the following format. Any deviations from the format will have unpredictable consequences.
The first line of the Memo must start with the word: "Racers:" (without quotes and must include the colon). You may type anything else you wish on this line as a title or reminder. The line ends with a carriage return.
The program expects a new racer on each following line. The fields on each line are separated by "tab" characters and each line ends with a carriage return character. There should be no extra spaces in the fields. Spaces within the name field are acceptable and you may put a comma between the last and first name in the name field.
The fields are:
· Bib number
· Name
· Class
· Group
· Start Delay (in seconds)
Each field should be separated by a tab character and the entire line should have a carriage return at the end.
Spreadsheet
You may also use a spreadsheet such as Excel to record racer information and then use the "Save as…" function to save the data as a tab delimited file.
Set Excel "Save as…" type to: Text (Tab delimited) (*.txt).
You can copy this file to the desktop MemoPad, hotsync it to your Palm computer and then import it to Banana Split.
The spreadsheet should have these five columns:
Racers:Bib Name Class Group Delay
The spreadsheet tab delimited format puts quotes around any text (such as names) that has a comma in it. The Add Racers function will remove these quotes (as well as the characters !"#$%&' and leading/trailing blanks).
Note on Result Display: Pace-
If “Distance” on setup screen is zero, then results won’t display a pace column.
Add Racers from Serial Port
This option uses a direct serial connection to any computer to load racers directly into Banana Split. The computer does not need to have the Palm Desktop software installed and does not need to perform a Hotsync operation. You only need a terminal emulation program or other program that can send data through the serial port. This makes is easy to directly load large numbers of racers into your Palm.
This imports racers in same tab delimited format as they are exported to MemoPad. You do not need to have the “Racers:” as the first line of the input. It will be ignored if it is present.
Access from Menu/RacerSetup and scroll to the
selection “Add Racers from
Press "Update" button when ready to send data from the attached computer. If using Hyperterminal - use the option Transfer/SendTextFile.
After the complete file has been received, tap button AddNew to load the receive racers into Racer db.
Will ask to Skip or Overwrite duplicates.
You’ll need to see which serial port speeds work for you. Different model PalmOS machines have different processors, processor speeds, and serial ports (USB or RS232). All of these factors influence the maximum speed at which the Palm will accept data. If the speed is set too fast, you’ll get incomplete garbled data. The baseline lowest common denominator Palm (16MHz, RS232 serial, Dragonball processor) will run at 1200 baud. Newer faster PalmOS handhelds will work at faster speeds. However, even at 1200 baud, you can load 1000 racers in a few minutes.
Step by step procedure:
1. Set your desktop serial program (i.e. Hyperterminal) to 1200, N, 8, 1
(Note: you need to exit Hyperterminal and re-start it when you make changes.)
2. Set the Banana split to 1200 baud. (Don't need to exit and restart)
3. Got to Menu/Racer Setup and choose the "Add Racers
from
4. Tap the "Update" button. (Should say "Serial Ready")
5. From Hyperterminal, menu Transfer/SendTextFile
(You should see data flashing in the lines on the right and the counter on the left updating.)
6. When all racers have been received (data stops flashing and counter stops), the "AddRacers" button appears. Tap it.
7. Choose to Skip duplicates or Overwrite duplicates.
(You'll again see the counter updating as it adds racers.)
Delete ALL Racers
This is the easiest way to start fresh with a new database
This option completely clears out the racer database.
It deletes all bib numbers.
Racer Edit
You can register racers with information about their name,
class, group, and start delay (for wave or interval starts). This gives you a
lot of flexibility in setting up races and reporting results.
Bib Number
Each racer is identified with a bib number. This is used to link racers to results. It is possible to run the timer without entering bib numbers but then you need to manually keep track of the bib numbers in finish order.
You can easily enter ranges of bib numbers using the "Racer Setup" screen.
Bib numbers must be unique. The timer will only keep track of one racer for each bib number.
If you are running multiple races where there are duplicate bib numbers in the different races. You should set up the races separately. This is easy to do using the Racer export/import functions of the Racer Setup screen.
Name
You can enter a name for each racer, the name can be as long as 256 characters.
Class
Each racer can be assigned to a class. The class is used to sort results so that you can view results by place in class as well as overall results.
Group
Each racer can be assigned to a group. Groups are commonly used to identify teams or they can be used to identify racers in different distance races that are run simultaneously (see the Example #1 at the end on how to set up a race with racers running different distances during the same race).
Members of a group can be in different classes.
You can use the group assignment to view results for members of the group. This is commonly used to produce a list of each team’s members and their results at the end of the race.
Delay
The delay is used by the timer to calculate racer’s times when they start at different times. The program can accommodate wave starts (where there may be multiple waves of racers that start at different times) and interval starts (where one or more skiers start at fixed time intervals).
The “Racer Setup” routine makes it easy to set up these times and easily accommodate combinations of delays and interval starts. You can edit individual delay times on the “Racer Edit” screen.
Result Menu
Each result is entered with a bib number and a time which takes into account any start delay. The racers class and lap number are also stored so that the results can be calculated for their current lap and class.
There are multiple display formats that display the result data in various orders so that you can easily get the information you need.
There is also a specialized split time screen that gives detailed information on how the current selected racer is doing in comparison to the first three racers and in comparison to the racers just in front and behind the selected racer. This is very useful for cross-country skiing (where you have interval starts) and other sports with multiple laps.
The Result Menu has the following options:
- Place Order
- Bib #
- Racer Splits
- DNFinish
- XC Run Score
- Edit Result
- Add New Result
Setting Result Display Options
You can change the fields that appear on each of the results screens by setting various options in the “Settings” screen.
This table shows the various screen titles when you select pace units of “Time/Km”. If you select different pace units, the units you select will replace the “/Km” in the titles.
|
Laps |
Result by Place
Screen |
Result for Bib#
Screen |
Racer |
|
1 |
Pl-Lp Time % /Km Racer |
-Lp Time /Km Total Racer |
Pl /Km Diff Bib Name |
|
>1 |
Pl-Lp Time % /Km Finish |
-Lp Time /Km Total Finish |
Pl /Km Finish Bib Name |
|
0 Dist. |
Pl-Lp Time Diff Racer |
-Lp Time Total Racer |
Pl Time Diff Bib Name |
Notes:
Pl This is the Place counter and shows the racers place in the competition.
Lp is the Lap counter and shows the lap number.
Time is the racer’s time at the indicated lap.
% is an indicator of effort and is derived from the formula: [1st place time]/[current racer time]
/Km is the pace in time per Km. This will change depending on which units you select for pace. You have the option of: /Km, /Mi, /100m, /100yd, /400m, Mi/Hr, Km/Hr. If you select “No Pace”, then the pace column is omitted from the display.
Finish is the projected finish time based on the time elapsed for the number of laps completed and the total number of laps.
Diff is displayed on the split screen and is the time difference from the currently selected racer to the other racers (first three and the racers just ahead of and just behind the current racer).
In addition, the “Display Decimals” option will determine the number of decimals that will be displayed in each time display. You can set this to show whole seconds, tenths, or hundredths. The timer keeps track of time internally in milliseconds so you can display any of these selections. Of course, the final accuracy of the timer depends on the accuracy of the time entry (manually pressing the buttons or trigger signals).
Place Order
The Place Order screen gives you the racer’s order. It starts with the current highest lap. You can press the buttons at the bottom to see the racer’s order as of any particular lap. If you get to the “All” laps, it gives you all results for all racers for all laps. You also have to option of setting a particular “Class” of racer. When you do that, it will show you the results for that class only.
You can also jump to any Place in the result file by entering that number in the top right corner of the screen and pressing the “>” button.
Bib #
This option shows all results for a bib number that you choose. It’s useful for looking lap splits for a particular racer. The display shows lap split time and accumulated time for each lap.
Racer Splits
This takes you to the Racer Split screen to see how your selected racer is doing in comparison to other racers on any lap.
D N Finish
In every race, you want a list of racers that did not finish. This is useful for double checking your data entry to make sure you didn’t miss any finishers as well as a list to confirm those who did not finish the race.
The DNFinish option from the Result menu give you this list. It has a further feature for multi-lap races where it will give you the list of racers who don’t have the required number of laps.
Racers are listed in bib number order with the number of laps they completed, their Class and Group, and their Name.
You can look at the list for each lap by pressing the <Prior and Next> buttons at the bottom of the screen. This will give you results for each lap.
You can also look for a specific bib number by entering it at the bottom of the screen and pressing the Find button. If the bib number is present on that lap list, it will be displayed at the top of the list. Otherwise, the list will go back to the start.
XC Running Score
This option calculates cross-country running team scores by designating the number of racers that “score” for a team and the total number of racers that are counted on the team. The usual is a team of 5 scorers and a total team of 7 (i.e. 2 “displacers) but you can change these numbers to meet your local meet rules. The total team must be greater than or equal to the number of scorers. The maximum team size is 9.
Teams are scored by adding up points for the places of each team member. First place is one point, second, two points, etc. Lowest overall score is first place.
Team members above the number of “scorers” are “displacers” and don’t count points for the team but do displace the scores of other racers.
You must set up teams using the Racer Setup and Racer Edit screens.
You should use the racer “Group” to assign the team name.
If you want to have individual runner times in addition to team scores, you should enter each team member bib number individually. If you only want team scores, you can assign one bib number to the entire team and enter that bib number for each member of the team that passes. (If you will be using the same bib number for all of your racers on a team, set the “Number of Laps” on the “Settings” screen to the maximum number of racers that you’ll be entering for a team and enter a distance for the race.)
Make sure you have a team (Group) assigned to each bib number or they won’t count for the team.
The XC Running score shows you the scores for the complete teams with the number of runners on each team
As an example, if you had set the number of scorers to 5 and the number of racers to 7, your results might look like this:
35
North Tahoe (7 racers)
47
62
Incline (6 racers)
It then shows you the incomplete partial teams:
--
Partial Teams –
Finally, it will give you the number of racers with no team (bib=0 or no team Group assigned in racer setup):
--
3 Racers with no team
Edit Result
This menu option lets you edit any result. This is handy if you made an error in data entry and want to edit the result time, bib number, etc.
You first show the Results in Place Order, select the result you want to enter, and then choose the Menu option Edit Result.
Add New Result
Sometimes in spite of everyone's best efforts, a racer time does not get recorded. Hopefully your spotters will have recorded the racer crossing with those in front and behind in proper order. In this case it is possible to add a time to the result list. Use the menu option Results/Add New Result and enter that racer's bib number and time. Use this format for the time hh:mm:ss.s
If you are recording multiple laps, the program will renumber all of the laps for this racer and put this time in the proper lap order.
The options to edit bib numbers, edit results, and add results give you complete control over your timing to ensure the most accurate recording of results.
I/O Menu
To Memo
The results can be exported to the MemoPad for printing or synced with the desktop where it can be printed or imported into a spreadsheet for further formatting and manipulation. The advantage of sending data to the Palm MemoPad is that this is automatically Synced with your desktop. You can then easily copy the data from your Palm desktop to other applications such as spreadsheets and databases. The program gives you several options for delimiting text (Tab, Comma, Space) to make it easy to import the desktop data into different programs.
There are multiple options in exporting data to the MemoPad in terms of how the results will appear.
You start the export to the MemoPad by choosing the Menu option Results/To Memo.
You then are asked: "How should the results be sorted?"
- Time - The primary sort order is by the finish time. If you do not have laps and want to see the finish order, you should choose this option.
- Lap - If you have recorded laps, you should choose Lap sort order. This will sort results by Lap first (and then by time). You can use this option to see the order of racers on each lap.
- Bib# - This will sort the results by Bib#. This is useful when you want a list of finishers where you can easily locate their time by their Bib#.
You are then asked “Finish Line or Elapsed Time?
- Finish gives you the finish line crossing order without adjustment for any wave or interval start delay.
- Elapsed gives you each racers “net” time which is adjusted for any start delay set by the interval start or wave start.
If you have chosen “Time” or "Lap" above, you are then asked: "How should results be grouped?" Note that the terminology is somewhat confusing here in that you can "group" the results by "Class" or "Group".
- No Group - Use this when you have not assigned racers to groups or you do not wish to separate results into groups.
- Class - If you want to print results for each Class separately, choose this option.
- Group - If you want to print results for each Group separately, choose this option.
After you have made these selections, the program displays a confirmation box to show you the options you have selected and remind you of the delimiter you have assigned in the "Settings" screen. You have the option on continuing (OK) or Canceling the copy to MemoPad.
The format of the output varies somewhat depending on the options you have chosen but includes a title listing the options you have chosen and the order of the fields:
Sorted to MemoPad Formats
Sort by Time
No Groups:
Fields: Place, Bib, Time, Lap, Name, Class, Group, StartDelay, Place in Class, %Back
Group by Class:
Fields: Place, Bib, Time, Lap, Name, Class, Group, StartDelay, %Back
Group by Group
Fields: Place, Bib, Time, Lap, Name, Class, Group, StartDelay, Place in Class
Sort by Lap
No Grouping, Class
Grouping, or Group Grouping
Fields: Place, Bib, Time, Lap, Name, Class, Group, StartDelay
Sort by Bib
Fields: Bib, Time, LapTime,
TotalTime, Name, Class, Group, StartDelay
Notes:
%Back is
calculated by this formula:
(RacerTime-1stPlaceTime)/(1stPlaceTime) * 100
StartDelay is used for interval starts and for start delays where you have a class that starts later than the first group. The start delay is subtracted from the elapsed clock time to arrive at that racer’s Time. The start delay is displayed in the reports so you can verify that each racer had the proper start delay entered.
Format of “Results:Time”
This assumes the first three lines are title and heading information (discards these) and then assumes that the bib number and elapsed time are in the 2nd and 3rd fields (tab delimited).
The rest of the line is ignored.
It will not add a result if the bib number is not registered in the system first. Therefore, you should load in your racer set before you load in your results set.
From Memo
Banana Split offers unusual flexibility in that you can exchange racer lists and result lists with the Palm MemoPad.
The “From Memo” option allows you to import result lists that you have previously saved to the Palm MemoPad back into BananaSplit for further analysis, editing, and sorting.
You can use this in combination with the options to import Racer lists that are on the “Racer Setup” menu to restore a complete race set to BananaSplit.
You can also save results (sorted in numerous ways) to the MemoPad. The result lists can be loaded back into Banana Split from the MemoPad if you want to make corrections or sort the results differently.
When you save results in Time Order to the MemoPad, you will end up with MemoPad records that start with the string: “Results:Time”
You can load these results back into Banana Split to make corrections and to sort them in different orders.
This is useful if you have several races and you need to clear out the results and racer lists from your Palm to prepare for the next race.
Later, you can load the racer list and results back into Banana Split to make corrections and to prepare the results in different formats.
You can also use this function to combine result lists from different Palms into one result list.
D N Finish to Memo
This option publishes the complete DNFinish list to the MemoPad where it is easy to view and will be transferred to the desktop when you HotSync.
Send Results
This option lets you send the results that BananaSplit has collected to another computer during or after a race.
You have the option of sending through the serial port to another Palm handheld or a PC laptop or desktop.
You also can use the infrared (IR) beaming capability of the Palm to send results to another Palm handheld.
We also let you send your results through the serial port to any computer that has a serial port including another PalmOS handheld running BananaSplit. This makes it easy to share information with many desktop race programs as well as BananaSplit. You don’t need to copy the results to the MemoPad and don’t need to have the Palm Hotsync software installed. You can send your results to any device that can read a serial port.
You set the speed of the serial port in the Menu/Screen/Setting screen. Set the “Serial Output” speed to match the speed of the device that will receive the information. These must be set to the same speed. You have options of 300 through 19,200 for the speed.
The remainder of the parameters for the serial port are the default for the Palm device which is:
- N,8,1,XON/XOFF
- No Parity, 8 data bits,