Questions after scoring my first game

[Joe Siegler]

OK, I went and scored my first game with this software - Game 3 of the 2010 World Series, which was still sitting on my TiVo. Overall, it went well. Some bits were quite nice, and some bits were puzzlingly odd. Below is a list of questions I compiled during my usage.

1. Why does it ask me what happens to the batter after a single? I just told you that you goofy software. It's a single. Why do I then have to say what happens to the batter? Seriously, why am I asked what happens to the batter after I've just told it the batter got a hit? That really seems odd.
2. Is there any way to log the umpires in the game? Doesn't appear to be.
3. This game was played about three months ago, but when I scored it, it used the current date/time. Is there a way to alter the game date/time BEFORE (or during) the scoring of a game? I found a way to change it after the fact, but I'd like to change that before I start.
4. iOS4 support? Be nice to go straight back to the game instead of popping out, and having to hit like 5 keystrokes inside the program before getting back to the game. Failing that, it might be nice if the program starts, and knows there's an "incomplete" game in progress for it to ask you if you wanted to to go straight to that instead of having to press all the other keys you do to get to a game.
5. Can you see the previous at bat results on field graphic longer? They're there for the first pitch in an at bat then they go away. I'd like to see what that batter did during his entire at bat, not just before the first pitch.
6. If I have a runner on first, and he steals second, why am I given the opportunity to have first as the stolen base? I just assumed it would send the runner to 2nd when I said stolen base, so I didn't think to look and ended up with the strange line of "Ian Kinsler steals first base".
7. The game ended on a strikeout. I could not enter pitch type for the last pitch, the game was "over", there was no way I saw to go back and enter the details of the final pitch.
8. I bought the iPad version. If I also buy the iPhone version, I presume I can transfer games between them, as I'd use my iPhone as a "remote scoring device" for the iPad, which I rarely actually take with me to the ballpark.
9. If I bought the 2011 MLB Roster thing for $20, is it tied to one device? Basically if I buy both the iPad and iPhone versions, I don't know if I'd want to buy the roster thing twice. I thought about this where if I bought the roster subscription for the iPad and then transferred to the iPhone, that could work, but I don't know if it would take the roster stuff with it. Plus it would require me to be in a position to transfer games before I scored them, which practically might not be possible all the time. It would be easier for me if the subscription would work on both of my devices.

Overall, I enjoyed the experience, and will probably stick with this software going forward. But I wonder about the stuff above. None of it is dealbreaker stuff, but the last question about the roster subscription could affect whether or not I'd get the iPhone version, too.

[FTMSupport]

1. Many times things happen to the runner after he is safe at first on the single, and this gives you a way to capture that. He may get a single, and then advance to second on an error be a fielder for example. This happens during this player's at bat, not during the following player's at bat. Once you have this occur during a game, it will start seeming logical. If the play entry ended, and the next player was at the plate before you entered the player advancing to second for some other reason, then it would be recorded during the next batter's at bat which is not correct.

2. You can put the umpires in the notes for the game. We do not currently have a field specifically for it, but it is on our enhancement list.

3. You can edit the "title" of the game to reflect the actual date played when you are creating the game just by tapping in the field where the title of the game is shown. To edit the actual start time of the game, you can edit it from the Game Info screen any time after you have started the game.

4. We have iOS4 support already on the iPhone, and our next release will include it on the iPad. We have not had an update on the iPad since iOS4 was introduced on the iPad, but the next update adds it.

5. Just tap in the area where the "previous at bat results" are displayed, and it will toggle through showing the previous at bat graphic again.

6. Rather than having buttons appearing and disappearing while the user is entering the play, we leave all the options constant. We do have on our enhancement list to ignore if a user enters Stolen Base for the base they are already on. In fact, it MAY be in our next release already, but I don't have it in front of me to check right now.

7. Interesting find. Since it is the last pitch of the game, and you would therefore not be rushed, you can switch to "Pitch Location First" mode for that last pitch, and enter the data, then the 3rd strike. You can switch to that mode by using the little "tools" icon at the bottom of the scoring screen.

8. Yes, you can use Data Sharing to transfer rosters and games between devices.

9. No, you would not need to buy it twice. Just send us the Customer ID of both of your devices after purchasing one time, and we will be able to transfer the MLB Roster key to your second device as well.

[Joe Siegler]

1. Many times things happen to the runner after he is safe at first on the single, and this gives you a way to capture that. He may get a single, and then advance to second on an error be a fielder for example. This happens during this player's at bat, not during the following player's at bat. Once you have this occur during a game, it will start seeming logical.

That makes sense, but the resultant text seems weird. "Player X hit a soft single to right. Player X advanced to first.". Well, duh - he hit a single, of course he's at first. If anything else other than just a single, go to first occurred, I'd expect addtl text. But with just a single and that's it, "so and so advanced to first" seems pointless to me.

4. We have iOS4 support already on the iPhone, and our next release will include it on the iPad. We have not had an update on the iPad since iOS4 was introduced on the iPad, but the next update adds it.

Well, since I don't have the iPhone version, I haven't tried that. It does raise the issue of software parity. I just assumed they'd behave the same. This wouldn't affect transfer of game data from one version to the other, since they're not precisely the same thing, would it?

7. Interesting find. Since it is the last pitch of the game, and you would therefore not be rushed, you can switch to "Pitch Location First" mode for that last pitch, and enter the data, then the 3rd strike. You can switch to that mode by using the little "tools" icon at the bottom of the scoring screen.

Well, IMO, until you finish entering the data for the last at bat, the game isn't "over" as such. I mean I understand WHY it's marked as over, but realistically, the at bat isn't over until I logged that info. I don't think I should have to change those parameters just to enter that specific data.

9. No, you would not need to buy it twice. Just send us the Customer ID of both of your devices after purchasing one time, and we will be able to transfer the MLB Roster key to your second device as well.

That's cool. I wasn't looking forward to buying both. Any idea if the price is remaining the same for 2011 vs 2010?

[FTMSupport]

1. Use "Held Up" instead of Advanced by Batter and you will not see the extra text.

4. No, does not effect data transfer. The versions do the same things. At the time of the last release, only iPhone had iOS4 capability. The iPad did not. This was not an iScore issue, but rather an iOS issue.

7. We will add this to our enhancement list for future prioritization. We offered the switch as a workaround to allow you to capture the type of the last pitch with the current version of the software.

9. Yes, price will be the same in 2011.

[OhioTex]

Joe... As I said before you started your evaluation...user experience is different than you prior palm version.. How did it hold up? in some ways sounds 'harder' for you,,, but in others better? Is that right?

FTM.as usual, .typical outstanding customer service on the MLB subscription offer for multiple devices...

Joe, the interface becomes even more robust when scoring less routine games, -and some of the oddities that occur in games at all levels, but especially youth ball ...baseball and softball

Joe - nice find on the end game on strike out not allowing the last pitch info.. (that should get corrected, as it happens routinely) I suspect FTM will figure out a real fix for that in future release, but in the meantime the workaround will have to do.

[Joe Siegler]

1. Use "Held Up" instead of Advanced by Batter and you will not see the extra text.

I'll try that next time, but to me, as a new user, it struck me as "held up" means "held up at home", it wasn't obvious to me that the player was already at first.

7. We will add this to our enhancement list for future prioritization. We offered the switch as a workaround to allow you to capture the type of the last pitch with the current version of the software.

Fair enough. Tkx.

9. Yes, price will be the same in 2011.

Joe... As I said before you started your evaluation...user experience is different than you prior palm version.. How did it hold up? in some ways sounds 'harder' for you,,, but in others better? Is that right?

In general, I like it a lot better. The biggest thing is that it's not as easy to get to a couple of things. In the other program I used, there's a lot less "keystrokes" to get to things - like a 4-3 grounder required one keystroke, because there's a "popup" from the main score display of the most common fielding plays. If you need something deeper, you can go into other menus, but some of your routine plays require more "keys" here than I'm used to. Getting into the program in general has way more, too. Some of that will be alleviated with iOS4 support on the iPad, as well as the roster update when it happens. I didn't keep track of the negatives like that since I generally had a good time with it.

Joe, the interface becomes even more robust when scoring less routine games, -and some of the oddities that occur in games at all levels, but especially youth ball ...baseball and softball

Youth ball is of no concern to me. I just score MLB games. Nothing more.

Joe - nice find on the end game on strike out not allowing the last pitch info.. (that should get corrected, as it happens routinely) I suspect FTM will figure out a real fix for that in future release, but in the meantime the workaround will have to do.

Agreed. I will add that a strikeout to end the game isn't that odd. I'm surprised no one has run into that before, to be honest.

[FTMSupport]

If you slide your finger up across the "Out" button, a whole selection of "Quick Plays" comes up where you can select the "4-3 grounder" for example. There are also quick plays that can be selected for Double Plays when there is a runner on first base.

[Joe Siegler]

If you slide your finger up across the "Out" button, a whole selection of "Quick Plays" comes up where you can select the "4-3 grounder" for example. There are also quick plays that can be selected for Double Plays when there is a runner on first base.

Tkx - I'll have to look at that next time. Which, unless I score the same game again, won't be until spring games start.

Or I look at some game on mlb.tv's archives.

[OhioTex]

Joe, similar "slide on" tips worth noting,

* slide finger on a strike for "strike swinging"
* slide finger on "ball" for intentional walk
* slid on out for quick plays (generally double plays)