Request for squad AC chart

[ImADot]

Just out of curiosity, why do you need to wait for CM permission to parse a published log file that anyone can see? 

I see this as a very useful tool for any CiC to help them "share the love" with regards to flight assignments.

[oneway]

Just out of curiosity, why do you need to wait for CM permission to parse a published log file that anyone can see? 

I see this as a very useful tool for any CiC to help them "share the love" with regards to flight assignments.

Their is a chain of command or protocol...its a matter of respect and allowing them to comment and have input.

All of my work up to this point has been Scenario centric...where is each event is comprised of 4 or more frames and their is no corollary between other events.

This request (the OP's) is unique in as much as it requires bridging events across many frames.

While they (CM's) ponder, I am writing a new code block and library tree exclusively for this sort of a request to have in place the mechanism to execute cross event requests.

I will be ready if and when warranted to provide the information the CIC's want...

Oneway

[oneway]

That's a good idea for the vast majority of FSo squads.

Except my squad the 132 DW Bomber Group.  We prefer flying bombers 100% of the time.

To add a comment concerning Kuya's point...

If a squad has a preference to fly one sort of aircraft over another...in his case its bombers, the squad object can be tagged with its preference...and the table can indicate as much.

Subsequently, a listing of squads that want to fly the bomber instead of the fighter, can be listed in an ordered manner to show which squad that wants to fly bombers that has flown the bomber the least in the past X number of frames...making it simple for the CIC to make sure that the bomber drivers who have flown the least bombers lately get to fly a bomber...

The same goes for the fighters...

Kuya's comment is feature request...not a problem, but an opportunity to provide a more robust mechanism for fair balancing of ride assignments.

Oneway

[WxMan]

With respect to the Viper's request and to your efforts so far Oneway, I ask the question why is this even needed? The AH Events sign up page has a category for preferred rides. All the Squad Co's have to do is fill in their requests for each frame before each event. 

Now it's true that not every squad gets the side they request, and when this occurs, many do not go back to update their preferred choices of aircraft. In the last event, I saw plane choices that were not even in the setup.  Also there are CiC's who never even look at these requests and make the aircraft assignments on an as needed mission basis.  Giving them another tool would be a waste of effort.

I fear what is being asked for is that those conscientious CiC's who makes the effort to look at these requests and grant them, will be asked to take up the slack of the Squad CO's who are less conscientious in filling out those requests. 

Finally, a CiC will not make everyone happy with regard to plane assignments.  Most everyone wants to fly the best fighters, few squads select bombers....even as an alternate. It's the nature of the game. His job is to put together a cohesive plan, but it would be easier with an updated request roster from the CO's.

[APDrone]

With respect to the Viper's request and to your efforts so far Oneway, I ask the question why is this even needed? The AH Events sign up page has a category for preferred rides. All the Squad Co's have to do is fill in their requests for each frame before each event. 

I fear what is being asked for is that those conscientious CiC's who makes the effort to look at these requests and grant them, will be asked to take up the slack of the Squad CO's who are less conscientious in filling out those requests. 

Finally, a CiC will not make everyone happy with regard to plane assignments.  Most everyone wants to fly the best fighters, few squads select bombers....even as an alternate. It's the nature of the game. His job is to put together a cohesive plan, but it would be easier with an updated request roster from the CO's.

First off, the ride requests only specify the desires for the future, there is no tracking of what happened in the past. - aside from digging through previous logs

Secondly, a lot of COs ( not all ) will request the best ride all the time.  Unless ALL COs monitor their history and make plane requests that balance the assignments.. and, even then, their perception of what is 'good' vs. 'sub-par' differs, you will have a hard time balancing it out.

Thirdly, the OP pointed out they got bombers in 4 of 6 frames.  Unless you're a bomber specific squad, that's not very equitable. With the current information immediately available, without having to dig through the logs for each of the 15 - 20 squads you're assigning missions to, this stuff can happen a lot.

The way around that, of course, would be that if a squad discovers they are assigned another bum ride, yet again, they can appeal to the CiC for an assignment change, however, with the tight timeframe of when objectives are converted into orders, the orders distributed to the players, and the event happens, this creates chaos with having to redo such orders.

Squads that get stuck with bum rides, often, will not be happy. I know this directly.  Granted, all you have to do is speak up.. I have yet to meet any CiC that will refuse to accommodate your request given proper evidence. 

The beauty of a type assignment history is that the CiC can look at the types of planes he has to staff.. quickly glance over the new sheet and see which squads haven't flown bombers in awhile and make those assignments first.. then tackle the next aircraft.. and so on.

Yes, you could place the full responsibility on the COs to inform the CiC of what they would like, given what they have been stuck with in the past.. and, to be honest, that may still be necessary, since the proposed format doesn't differentiate between a KI-84 and an A6M2 ( or P51 vs. P40b.. etc ), but I still think that this proposed list would be helpful.

[gyrene81]

      uh, what qualifies as a "bumb ride"?

[APDrone]

     uh, what qualifies as a "bumb ride"?

Depends on the event and the people involved. IMHO, the P40b in just about anything it participates in.    F4F, if the other aircraft are F4Us and F6Fs.. for fighters.  B5Ns and D3As for bombers.. JU87s..   

Sure, there are afficianados that love to fly these birds. I like any of them, but I would wager that doesn't describe the majority of FSO participants.  BUT.. to follow the premise of FSO, there must be quantities of these aircraft and they must be flown by somebody. 

If nothing was considered a bum ride, then this thread, ride requests, and others like it, wouldn't exist.

[oneway]

     uh, what qualifies as a "bumb ride"?

Nothing and everything.

It depends on the squad's preference.

If a bomber squad gets a P51D and Pony loving squad gets a B-17 they would both wish they were in each others plane.

Though both rides are killer rides...you get the idea

Oneway

[CRYPTIC]

I know this talk is for the FSO but I'm a Scenario guy. This type of thing would help on setting up squads and players together. It's very time consuming to go through the logs,with this it could be a push of a button. This is a tool that not everyone will use or be interested in,but their are some that might like to use it. It does many different things that I've seen in other posts that will be helpful for the ones that would like to use it. Just because some don't see it as useful or don't want to see the output that this can do don't have to use it. For the ones that do like seeing output or who rode this type of plane the most I hope that they would be able to use this program.

By the way Oneway does it have a name. Or do we keep refer to it as said program?

[gyrene81]

Depends on the event and the people involved. IMHO, the P40b in just about anything it participates in.    F4F, if the other aircraft are F4Us and F6Fs.. for fighters.  B5Ns and D3As for bombers.. JU87s..   

Sure, there are afficianados that love to fly these birds. I like any of them, but I would wager that doesn't describe the majority of FSO participants.  BUT.. to follow the premise of FSO, there must be quantities of these aircraft and they must be flown by somebody. 

If nothing was considered a bum ride, then this thread, ride requests, and others like it, wouldn't exist.

i understand what you mean...guess it's a matter of perspective, just personally i look at it more as "bumb mission tasks"...which is what happens a lot. sometimes it's totally unavoidable, many times it's not.

[daddog]

Sorry for the delay in the reply.

First of all anything that would benefit FSO and the community I would be all in favor for so long as it does not add to the work load of the CM's. You all know and as Viper already pointed out this is done for free and the FSO CM's already put in several hours every week to manage an FSO event.

I like the idea and it sounds like oneway already has done most of the work involved in this. I know in the past our squad, as most FSO squads have been assigned rides that are at the bottom of the food chain 3 weeks in a row. Not any fun.  This would point out that kind of imbalance in assigning rides.
What is being suggested here would be a great tool for CiC's to avoid doing that in the future.

It is important that everyone understands it would not be a requirement. At least at this point I don't intend it to be. Sometimes the orders are late due to real life issues and more than one person drops the ball. Next thing we know the orders are thrown together and come out last minute on Thursday night. A chart outlining what squads have flown in the past 6 months would only be of use if it is employed. I can tell you right now sometimes CiC's will not use it.

In the back end of the events site the FSO Admin's have a tool that is similar to what you are asking for. It lists all the squads and how many times they have been assigned CiC duty in the past year. I ask my Admin CM's to be diligent about using it and pick the 6 squads that have been the longest without CiC duty. That keeps things rotating and shares the responsibility/burden of CiC duty. It is tough sometimes because the Admin CM's over the years have seen how reliable some squads are and tend to want those to be assigned CiC duty come their FSO.

CiC's who use this chart will be faced with similar dilemma. Do you assign the Hellcat to the VF-15 who had it in the first two frames, or assign them the B-25? How about the Fw190 to III/JG11 who flew it in the first two frames, but you need a good LW squad for a CAP? I hope you all see what I am getting at. Sometimes it is not just about making the rides equitable. We have some CiC's who are VERY competitive and want to assign rides to fit the squad because of their experience and expertise in a particular ride. Should they be faulted for giving VF-15 3 frames of the Hellcat their dedicated ride? Don't ask me because I don't know the answer to that.

Feel free to make the chart. Anyone can step up and update it. CiC's can use it as much as they like, but check your 'expectations' at the door. What you think  is right and what someone else thinks is fair may be the difference between a Hellcat and a TBM assignment.

[oneway]

Excellent...

One of the issues I am running up against is the same issue I run up against in dealing with Scenario data across a group of frames: Squads change their names slightly from time to time (frame to frame).

Their are many reasons for this, such as the guy with the invite privileges didn't show up..and they had to reform the squad quickly on the fly before frame start....or the squad adds or changes a tag line after their official name perhaps to honor a fallen friend...million different reasons it can occur.

Not a big deal, but I does require human intervention to determine that squad "X Y Z" is also squad "XYZ"...

I will have a sample up here in a few hours and you all can comment on its layout and the information it contains.

For now and for simple testing I will restrict the scope to the last 6 frames, though it can be expanded to any number of frames desired by simply changing the value of an argument...

Stay tuned...

Salute

Oneway

[Viper61]

Lively debate one and all.  Was out of pocket for a week and my first time back in here.

Oneway really appreciate the offer to step up and offer your help.  That being said.  Back to my original request for what ever historical FSO information that could be provided very simply and very easily would be appreciated.  The key point here is simple and easy.  As for format whetever is easiest for you will work for us.  Simply we don't have anything now so whetever you could do would be a 100% improvement.  I would suspect that we will have comments after the first sample is provided and request a change or two.

And to some of the other comments and concerns:

Intent here is to add a simple planning tool for the CIC's to use.  Doesn't mean they have to.

This would not effect in any way a squads ride request.  Or a squads ability to email the CIC personally to request a ride or assignment.

What it would do is provide the public facts in an easy format on who has been flying what and how often.  I believe that CIC's going into the planning of an operation would take that information into account before placing their assigned squads into AC and roles.  Again the intent is to better even out the AC types to all squads and the missions they preform.   

[oneway]

Note:

Squads who never managed to fly at least one frame with at least 4 players have been left out of the list
ZZZ No has also been eliminated
Some squads had slight name changes across frames...they have been merged into a single squad.
Known bomber groups are bold.

F = Fighter
B = Bomber

 

Oneway

FSO Squad Ride Assignments:
Last 12 Frames

Squad Name

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

!68th Lightning Lancers!

F

B

F/F

F

B/F

F

B

F

F

F/F

B

{The Gun Fighters}

B/F

F

F/B

F

F/F

F

F

F

B/B

B

F/F

F

~ ~ ~FATE~ ~ ~

F

F

F

F

F

F

F

B

F

B

F

F

~~~THE UNFORGIVEN~~~

F

F/F

F

B

F

F

F

F

F

F

F

F

~364th C-HAWKS FG~

B

F

F

B

F/F

F

F/F

F

F

B

B

F

~Air Raiders~

B

F

F

F

F

F

F

F

F

F

F

F

-=DIRTY ACES=-

F

F

F

F

F

F

132 DW  Bomber Group

B

B

F

F

B

B

325th Checkertails VFG

B/F

B

F

F/F

F/B

F/B

F/F

F

B

B

B

F

327th Steel Talons

F

F

F

F

F

F/F

B

F

B

F/F

332nd Flying Mongrels

F/F

F

F/B

F

F

F

F/F

F

F/B

B

F/F

F

334th FS \"The Eagles\"

F

F

F

F

F

F

F/F

F

F

F

B

F

353rd Fighter Group

F

F

F

F

F

F

F

F

F

F

F/F

B

367th Fg Dynamite Gang

F

F

F

F

F

F

B

F

F

F

B

F

412th FS Braunco Mustangs

F

F

F/F

F/B

F

F

F/F

F

B

F/F

F/F

F

49th Fighter Group \"Fightin 49ers\"

F

B

F

F/F

F/F

F

B

F

B

B

77th FS \"Gamblers\"

B

F

F

F

F

F

B

F

F

F

F

801 Sqn FAA

F

B

F

F

F

B

F

F

F

F

F

F

9GIAP VVS RKKA

F

B

F

F

F

B

F

B

F

B

F

B

Arabian Knights

F

F/B

F

F

F/F

F

F

F

F

F/F

F

CLAIM JUMPERS

F

F/B

F/B

F

F/F

F

B/F

F

F/B

Duxford Wing RAF

F/F

B

F

F

F

B

F

B

F

B

B

F

Freebirds

B

B

B

II/~JG-27~

F/F

F

F

F

F

F

F/F

F

B

B

F/F

F

III/JG11

F

F

F/F

F

F

F

B

F

F

F

F/F

F

JG2

F

F/F

F

F

F

F

B/F

F

F

B

F/F

F

JG77 Herz-As

B

F

B/B

F

F

F

F

F

F

F/F

B

F

Jokers Jokers

F

F

B

F

F/F

F

F

F

B/F

F

F

F

JV44 Butcher Birds

F

F

F

F

F

F

F

F

F

F

F/F

F

Kommando Nowotny

F

F

B

F

F/F

F

F/F

T/F

F

F

F/F

F

LCA

F

F

F/F

F

F/F

F

B/F

F

F

F

F/F

Nightmares VMF-101

B/F

F

B/F

F

F

F

F

F

F/F

F/F

B

RollingThunder

F/F

F/B

F

F

F/F

F

B

F

B/F

B

B

B

Sick Puppies

F

F

F

F

F

F

F

B

F

B

B

F

SWAMPDRAGONS

B/F

F/F

B/F

F

F/F

F

B/F

F

F/F

F

B/F

USMC/71Sqn

F

F

F

F/B

B

F

B

F

F

F

B

F

VF 15 Satans Playmates II

F

F

F/F

B

F

F

F

F

F/B

B/F

F/F

F

VF-17 Jolly Rogers

B

F

F

B

F

F

F/F

F

F

F

B

F

VMF-222 Flying Deuces

F

F

B/F

F

F/B

F

F/F

F

F/F

B

B

WD40

F/F

F

F/B

F

F/F

F

F/B

F

F

F/F

F

1)  2011-05-20, ID # 1903, Burma Backwater frame 3
2)  2011-05-13, ID # 1898, Burma Backwater Frame 2
3)  2011-05-06, ID # 1894, Burma Backwater
4)  2011-04-15, ID # 1877, Ketsu Go - Frame 3
5)  2011-04-08, ID # 1868, Ketsu Go - Frame 2
6)  2011-04-01, ID # 1864, Ketsu Go - Frame 1
7)  2011-03-18, ID # 1852, 1943: Tunisia - The Verdun of Mediterranean Frame 3
8)  2011-03-11, ID # 1846, 1943: Tunisia - The Verdun of Mediterranean Frame 2
9)  2011-03-04, ID # 1840, The Verdun of Mediterranean Frame 1
10)  2011-02-18, ID # 1824, Dillengers Wake Frame 3
11)  2011-02-11, ID # 1817, Dillengers Wake Frame 2
12)  2011-02-04, ID # 1812, Dillengers Wake Frame 1
Function: Scenario.Writers.BBSWriter.FS OSquadRideReport (FSOBlock block, int count)
Number of Auto-Generated Chars == 7620 of 10000

Known issues:
Squads change names slightly
Some pilots in a squad simply fly the wrong plane
No public data indicating what squads like to fly that could be leveraged

[oneway]

To the OP,

For now...

I can reproduce the above report and advance the frames as frames are played out automatically and provide it on a weekly basis...

The scope can be extended to any number of back frames...

The ride label can be filtered to show only the predominate ride (the ride most flown by that squad for that frame)...

.............

I think it needs some tuning and additional features...but for now...

All it takes to produce this properly formatted table for BBS is to grab the most recent log, and then run the function...and post it or PM it...

Practically speaking it can be complete and delivered moments after a log is up...

You guys let me know if this is something you want...

More than happy to oblige

Oneway