Frank Dixon's suggestions for rebuilt CFC website

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  • Frank Dixon's suggestions for rebuilt CFC website

    It is unfortunate that hacking of the CFC website has necessitated that a new one be built. Work on that is ongoing, and I want to salute and thank those undertaking this challenging project.

    White the website is being re-created, I thought I would offer some 'constructive' suggestions for positive features which the project could develop and use, going forward.

    1) One thing the FQE website has, which the earlier CFC site did not, is an index of TD's. There is an 'underline' link on the TD's name, which enables a 'click connection' to other events which that TD has done. This would be a positive feature for the CFC to incorporate for its events and TDs.

    2) IA David Cohen has done exceptional work in documenting Canadian chess history, during the past several years. This is really important. David's work is ongoing and wide-ranging, and he has had assistance from people across Canadian chess. My suggestion here is that the CFC do some of this as well, with the new website, in creating a history section listing its past governing officers -- CFC Presidents and FIDE representatives -- year-by-year. As well, people who have earned advanced organizer credentials, such as IA, FA, NTD, and so on, could be listed as well.

    3) The previous CFC website had tournament cross-tables going back into the mid-1990s, if memory serves. These are being re-constructed now. How far back does the CFC archive contain, regarding historical cross-tables? It would be wonderful if we could have a complete index of every CFC-rated event available, on the website. This would take years to achieve. The BC Chess Federation website has done much of this, for provincial events, and some national events as well.

    4) This next one is very ambitious, and would certainly take many years to attain. Hugh Brodie's CanBase database, of Canadian chess games has been developed by Hugh, over a period of several years, into an exceptional resource of the important games in Canadian chess history. Right now, this site cannot be accessed on a 'play-through-the-game-on-screen' method, in the same way certain other sites, such as chessgames.com and 365chess.com, offer. The database has to be downloaded to one's computer, and then used. But having a online usable connection between the cross-tables of events, and games directly from them, on these website(s), would really be an extraordinary feature to develop. Not all games would be accessible in this way, of course, since they may derive from other scenarios not directly connected to the cross-tables on the website. The amazing site olimpbase.org does some of this -- it is a website dedicated to chess Olympiads, and everything about them. There, one can connect from cross-tables to games in a user-friendly manner.

    Respectfully submitted,
    Frank Dixon
    NTD, Kingston

  • #2
    1) Added TD-list to the list of things to do.
    2) Capturing history is already on the list. Some from the old website. Some from other sources (adding ones you mentioned).
    3) Getting cross-tables back to mid-1990s already on the list. More recent data (back to ~2007) was in MS-Access and is already on the new website. Older data (back to ~1997) is in Drupal only; now working on a way to extract and merge it.
    4) Added CanBase to the list although not sure what to do with it or when. Eventually we'll be looking for "content contributors": you write it; we'll put it up (or show you how).

    Comment


    • #3
      Originally posted by Don Parakin View Post
      3) Getting cross-tables back to mid-1990s already on the list. More recent data (back to ~2007) was in MS-Access and is already on the new website. Older data (back to ~1997) is in Drupal only; now working on a way to extract and merge it.
      .
      there are, or at least used to be separate Access files for data 1996-2000 and 2000-2006. I'm surprised that the CFC has not provided to you.

      As it happens, I have sql format files for those periods :-) Also Access ( ".accdb" and ".mdb").

      If that helps.... :-)

      Comment


      • #4
        Thanks to Don and Roger!
        I was suggesting, on the cross-tables topic, that once the data that was once on the site is restored to the new one, that the CFC paper archives be further utilized, to create a complete cross-tables archive online. This is years in the making, I know.

        Comment


        • #5
          I really admire what Don is doing for our website, thanks man!!

          Comment


          • #6
            I will second that!

            Comment


            • #7
              Don is an inspiration.

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              • #8
                The only error on the website is an expiry date for Don's CFC membership. Can we make him an honorary life member?

                Comment


                • #9
                  In the immortal words of...

                  Originally posted by Hans Jung View Post
                  I will second that!

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    I will second the seconder

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Great work so far, looking forward to seeing the finished product.

                      One old and hilarious feature of the old Alberta Chess Association website was a thing called "Who owns who", which allowed you to look at any individual player, then put in an opponent. It would pull the cross tables and cross reference for games vs that opponent, and create a record of your wins-losses-draws vs that opponent. Whoever won more was said to "own" the other. It was a silly bit of fun that the players in the ACA held some affection for. I'd love to see that again.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Originally posted by Frank Dixon View Post
                        It is unfortunate that hacking of the CFC website has necessitated that a new one be built. Work on that is ongoing, and I want to salute and thank those undertaking this challenging project.

                        White the website is being re-created, I thought I would offer some 'constructive' suggestions for positive features which the project could develop and use, going forward.



                        2) IA David Cohen has done exceptional work in documenting Canadian chess history, during the past several years. This is really important. David's work is ongoing and wide-ranging, and he has had assistance from people across Canadian chess. My suggestion here is that the CFC do some of this as well, with the new website, in creating a history section listing its past governing officers -- CFC Presidents and FIDE representatives -- year-by-year. As well, people who have earned advanced organizer credentials, such as IA, FA, NTD, and so on, could be listed as well.


                        Respectfully submitted,
                        Frank Dixon
                        NTD, Kingston
                        Over the years the CFC magazine has published many memorial biographies. It would be nice to scan and post them (pdf). I've also written a couple of bios (with games) of Toronto masters for Bob Armstrong's Toronto Chess News. As a goal, it would be a nice project to have writers across the country write bios of all of the Canadian and provincial Champions.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Thank you, thank you very much (said with an Elvis accent while blushing). And thanks to everyone for your patience. A website re-write is normally started full-time 2-3+ months pre-mortem instead of part-time 2-3 weeks post-mortem. Once the new website has most of what the old website had, work can start on gathering more of the archival content that's around.

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