WWTBAM Bored

I just finished up the transcript, and had another thought:

Since we now have (and have for a while) a Spoiler button, could we maybe use a spoiler space for each question, giving its answer, instead of putting them all together at the bottom? That would allow for putting the DD stuff and ATE comments in a spoiler instead of just "out there", as well.

Just a thought.

KillerTomato wrote:I just finished up the transcript, and had another thought:

Since we now have (and have for a while) a Spoiler button, could we maybe use a spoiler space for each question, giving its answer, instead of putting them all together at the bottom? That would allow for putting the DD stuff and ATE comments in a spoiler instead of just "out there", as well.

Just a thought.

Just a thought, Would that make it more difficult for someone compiling an audition study list?

IMHO, it would actually make it more useful. There's just memorizing the questions (which is OK, I guess, as far as that goes), and then there's actually READING the questions, figuring out what you would answer (preferably within the 15 or 30 or 45 second time allotted), and practicing PLAYING rather than just quiz-cramming.

But I'm thinking only of how *I* use the 'scripts.

KillerTomato wrote:IMHO, it would actually make it more useful. There's just memorizing the questions (which is OK, I guess, as far as that goes), and then there's actually READING the questions, figuring out what you would answer (preferably within the 15 or 30 or 45 second time allotted), and practicing PLAYING rather than just quiz-cramming.

But I'm thinking only of how *I* use the 'scripts.

I agree that spoilers would be better online, but I was thinking about someone copying and printing them. Then I though screw that, I'll never do that again, and maybe we actually have a permanent home here.

themanintheseersuckersuit wrote: I agree that spoilers would be better online, but I was thinking about someone copying and printing them. Then I though screw that, I'll never do that again, and maybe we actually have a permanent home here.

Actually, if you copy and paste the text, even the spoilers will paste over. And if all you want to do is print them, then you just click all th spoiler buttons to reveal the spoilers, and print as normal.

KillerTomato wrote:

themanintheseersuckersuit wrote: I agree that spoilers would be better online, but I was thinking about someone copying and printing them. Then I though screw that, I'll never do that again, and maybe we actually have a permanent home here.

Actually, if you copy and paste the text, even the spoilers will paste over. And if all you want to do is print them, then you just click all th spoiler buttons to reveal the spoilers, and print as normal.

Oh.... nevermind

KillerTomato wrote:I just finished up the transcript, and had another thought:

Since we now have (and have for a while) a Spoiler button, could we maybe use a spoiler space for each question, giving its answer, instead of putting them all together at the bottom? That would allow for putting the DD stuff and ATE comments in a spoiler instead of just "out there", as well.

Just a thought.

I don't like the idea. I don't like to go through the effort of looking at the spoiler, not only for transcripts but for any posts that have spoilers. I would imagine I am in the minority.

kusch wrote:

KillerTomato wrote:I just finished up the transcript, and had another thought:

Since we now have (and have for a while) a Spoiler button, could we maybe use a spoiler space for each question, giving its answer, instead of putting them all together at the bottom? That would allow for putting the DD stuff and ATE comments in a spoiler instead of just "out there", as well.

Just a thought.

I don't like the idea. I don't like to go through the effort of looking at the spoiler, not only for transcripts but for any posts that have spoilers. I would imagine I am in the minority.

You're from North Dakota, of course you're in the minority.

kusch wrote:

KillerTomato wrote:I just finished up the transcript, and had another thought:

Since we now have (and have for a while) a Spoiler button, could we maybe use a spoiler space for each question, giving its answer, instead of putting them all together at the bottom? That would allow for putting the DD stuff and ATE comments in a spoiler instead of just "out there", as well.

Just a thought.

I don't like the idea. I don't like to go through the effort of looking at the spoiler, not only for transcripts but for any posts that have spoilers. I would imagine I am in the minority.

Is it really an effort for you, kusch? A simple click on the button which reveals the spoiler immediately--no delay for reloading a page or anything? The traditional approach, putting all the answers at the bottom of the post, would seem to require more effort to scroll down to read that and then scroll back up to where you were reading the question.

It's my turn to do the transcripts tonight. I'll give the spoiler approach a try and then ask what our readers think.

MarleysGh0st wrote:

kusch wrote:

KillerTomato wrote:I just finished up the transcript, and had another thought:

Since we now have (and have for a while) a Spoiler button, could we maybe use a spoiler space for each question, giving its answer, instead of putting them all together at the bottom? That would allow for putting the DD stuff and ATE comments in a spoiler instead of just "out there", as well.

Just a thought.

I don't like the idea. I don't like to go through the effort of looking at the spoiler, not only for transcripts but for any posts that have spoilers. I would imagine I am in the minority.

Is it really an effort for you, kusch? A simple click on the button which reveals the spoiler immediately--no delay for reloading a page or anything? The traditional approach, putting all the answers at the bottom of the post, would seem to require more effort to scroll down to read that and then scroll back up to where you were reading the question.

It's my turn to do the transcripts tonight. I'll give the spoiler approach a try and then ask what our readers think.

MBFFB® says he doesn't like the new suggestion. MBFFB® believes that this will end the discussion.

Let me ask, is the point of the transcript simply to capture the content of on episode or to all someone who hasn't seen the episiode to play along? Given the new rules, maybe it makes sense to even put the 4 choices in a spoiler, that way if someone wants to practice being in the hot seat, they can read the question and then after finishing reading the question exposes the choices and start a timer (15, 30 and 45) to get a better feel for how well the would do in relation to the contestant. By keeping the answers visible eleminates this new aspect of the game. If you are going to add a spoiler for the answer, grouping another spoiler around the choices doesn't seem to hard.

I'm also thinking that it would be a service to those who are either in the pool or have gotten the call and want to practice as close as possible to the new rules - as well as giving everyone a chance to see how it feels with the new approach.

---Jay

MarleysGh0st wrote:

kusch wrote:

KillerTomato wrote:I just finished up the transcript, and had another thought:

Since we now have (and have for a while) a Spoiler button, could we maybe use a spoiler space for each question, giving its answer, instead of putting them all together at the bottom? That would allow for putting the DD stuff and ATE comments in a spoiler instead of just "out there", as well.

Just a thought.

I don't like the idea. I don't like to go through the effort of looking at the spoiler, not only for transcripts but for any posts that have spoilers. I would imagine I am in the minority.

Is it really an effort for you, kusch? A simple click on the button which reveals the spoiler immediately--no delay for reloading a page or anything? The traditional approach, putting all the answers at the bottom of the post, would seem to require more effort to scroll down to read that and then scroll back up to where you were reading the question.

It's my turn to do the transcripts tonight. I'll give the spoiler approach a try and then ask what our readers think.

I don't read the transcripts all the time (or even most of the time) but, as somebody who is usually using a laptop, clicking is always much easier than scrolling. In just about every case, not just transcript wise.

frogman042 wrote:Let me ask, is the point of the transcript simply to capture the content of on episode or to all someone who hasn't seen the episiode to play along?

The transcript has multiple points: to serve as a framework for discussing the episode, to allow those who didn't/can't see the show to read what they missed, and to archive data for those who want to analyze trends and study for audition tests.

Would putting the choices in spoilers make that much of a difference to those trying to play at home using a clock? Couldn't you start the clock when you begin reading the question, instead of pausing between the question and answers?

I'm thinking incremental changes here, instead of drastic revolutions...

MarleysGh0st wrote:

frogman042 wrote:Let me ask, is the point of the transcript simply to capture the content of on episode or to all someone who hasn't seen the episiode to play along?

The transcript has multiple points: to serve as a framework for discussing the episode, to allow those who didn't/can't see the show to read what they missed, and to archive data for those who want to analyze trends and study for audition tests.

Would putting the choices in spoilers make that much of a difference to those trying to play at home using a clock? Couldn't you start the clock when you begin reading the question, instead of pausing between the question and answers?

I'm thinking incremental changes here, instead of drastic revolutions...

Actually I think it would. It takes some time to read the question and the clock isn't running then, nor are the answers displayed. It seems to take Meredith between 5-7 seconds to read out the choices - for the bottom tier that is already 1/3 to almost 1/2 of the time you have to make a decision. If you start the clock when even reading the question that will cut into it even more. If you see the choices while reading the question that gives you a jump on the clock.

For good or bad, the game has changed. It now requires you to do some pretty rapid analysis and make some relatively quick decisions on how you approach the question. Knowing how long it takes you can be critical - jump the gun to soon and you walk or waste a lifeline, take too long and you may not have enough time to use multiple lifelines or analyize the result of the lifeline. I think if you are trying to either prep for the show or see how you would do on a particular stack - you really need to develope a sense at how quick you are, after you read the question, to read and comprehend the 4 choices and analyze them effectively. Knowing how long it might take you to figure something out is going to be real important and something that is impossible to gauge in your mind alone - having a clock and starting at at preciesly the right point when you have some but not all of the info, I think is critical to the experience of the new game. The key is how do you manage your thoughts and your time when you are not sure of the answer - jump to the lifeline right away or analyze it first - and how long should you analyze it.

Basically, if we want the transcript to act as a study guide for future hot seaters and/or provide a way to really 'play at home', having the transcripts mimic the new approach to me makes sense. Read the question, start the clock, expose the answers, make your choice in the time that is left.

---Jay

frogman042 wrote:

MarleysGh0st wrote:

frogman042 wrote:Let me ask, is the point of the transcript simply to capture the content of on episode or to all someone who hasn't seen the episiode to play along?

The transcript has multiple points: to serve as a framework for discussing the episode, to allow those who didn't/can't see the show to read what they missed, and to archive data for those who want to analyze trends and study for audition tests.

Would putting the choices in spoilers make that much of a difference to those trying to play at home using a clock? Couldn't you start the clock when you begin reading the question, instead of pausing between the question and answers?

I'm thinking incremental changes here, instead of drastic revolutions...

Actually I think it would. It takes some time to read the question and the clock isn't running then, nor are the answers displayed. It seems to take Meredith between 5-7 seconds to read out the choices - for the bottom tier that is already 1/3 to almost 1/2 of the time you have to make a decision. If you start the clock when even reading the question that will cut into it even more. If you see the choices while reading the question that gives you a jump on the clock.

For good or bad, the game has changed. It now requires you to do some pretty rapid analysis and make some relatively quick decisions on how you approach the question. Knowing how long it takes you can be critical - jump the gun to soon and you walk or waste a lifeline, take too long and you may not have enough time to use multiple lifelines or analyize the result of the lifeline. I think if you are trying to either prep for the show or see how you would do on a particular stack - you really need to develope a sense at how quick you are, after you read the question, to read and comprehend the 4 choices and analyze them effectively. Knowing how long it might take you to figure something out is going to be real important and something that is impossible to gauge in your mind alone - having a clock and starting at at preciesly the right point when you have some but not all of the info, I think is critical to the experience of the new game. The key is how do you manage your thoughts and your time when you are not sure of the answer - jump to the lifeline right away or analyze it first - and how long should you analyze it.

Basically, if we want the transcript to act as a study guide for future hot seaters and/or provide a way to really 'play at home', having the transcripts mimic the new approach to me makes sense. Read the question, start the clock, expose the answers, make your choice in the time that is left.

---Jay

This seems like overkill to me. Taken to the next logical level of attempting to simulate the hot seat experience, all questions should be spoilerized, so you don't risk glimpsing at them before they come up in the stack, which theoretically might affect your risk tolerance or use of lifelines if you happened to see some of the upcoming questions. No one has ever said that was a problem before, in the past 8 or 9 years of transcribing the show.

I mostly refer to the transcripts to get a clarification of the wording of a question or to see what happened if I missed an episode. For my purposes, the current transcript format is fine.

TheConfessor wrote:This seems like overkill to me. Taken to the next logical level of attempting to simulate the hot seat experience, all questions should be spoilerized, so you don't risk glimpsing at them before they come up in the stack, which theoretically might affect your risk tolerance or use of lifelines if you happened to see some of the upcoming questions. No one has ever said that was a problem before, in the past 8 or 9 years of transcribing the show.

I mostly refer to the transcripts to get a clarification of the wording of a question or to see what happened if I missed an episode. For my purposes, the current transcript format is fine.

I was going to propose next that they embed wave files at various points to have the correct music cues - I'm guessing you think that is too much to as for as well?

Killing without overkilling is like a day without sunshine.

---Jay

frogman042 wrote: I was going to propose next that they embed wave files at various points to have the correct music cues - I'm guessing you think that is too much to as for as well?

The good, old music or the crappy, new music?

The pay you get for doing the transcripts would have to go way up before those kind of changes could be implemented. It is a volunteer job. JMHO. I know the amount of time it took me to do it. Time I could have certainly been doing something else as I'm sure is the case with all the others.

It's a pretty stressful assignment. Make one tiny typo and people are all over you in no time!

kayrharris wrote:The pay you get for doing the transcripts would have to go way up before those kind of changes could be implemented. It is a volunteer job. JMHO. I know the amount of time it took me to do it. Time I could have certainly been doing something else as I'm sure is the case with all the others.

It's a pretty stressful assignment. Make one tiny typo and people are all over you in no time!

So artist renderings of the contestant's expressions at each stage of the questions is not something the transcribers are willing to do as well.

All seriousness aside, I think it is fine the way it is - I do know that it is a lot of work and it is truly appreciated - I just thought it would be fun to run with as many ideas I could come up with ...

---Jay

PS - I really did want to raise the subject for those on deck to appear on the show to practice as much as possible in a realistic way - especially if they think they are going to freak-out about the clock. I really didn't expect that the burden of this should fall on the transcribers.

PPS - what is the point of a Post Script in the age of electronic messages when you can easily re-edit the text of the body of the message. I find them so annoying

frogman042 wrote:

kayrharris wrote:The pay you get for doing the transcripts would have to go way up before those kind of changes could be implemented. It is a volunteer job. JMHO. I know the amount of time it took me to do it. Time I could have certainly been doing something else as I'm sure is the case with all the others.

It's a pretty stressful assignment. Make one tiny typo and people are all over you in no time!

So artist renderings of the contestant's expressions at each stage of the questions is not something the transcribers are willing to do as well.

All seriousness aside, I think it is fine the way it is - I do know that it is a lot of work and it is truly appreciated - I just thought it would be fun to run with as many ideas I could come up with ...

---Jay

PS - I really did want to raise the subject for those on deck to appear on the show to practice as much as possible in a realistic way - especially if they think they are going to freak-out about the clock. I really didn't expect that the burden of this should fall on the transcribers.

PPS - what is the point of a Post Script in the age of electronic messages when you can easily re-edit the text of the body of the message. I find them so annoying

I think Evil Squirrel would do the renderings for peanuts.

kayrharris wrote:The pay you get for doing the transcripts would have to go way up before those kind of changes could be implemented.

And along with that, the appropriate tax bracket.

kayrharris wrote: It's a pretty stressful assignment. Make one tiny typo and people are all over you in no time!

Not to mention frequent audits.