Downloading from a ShotMarker without breaking it
Before you download a backup
- Ask first. The access point belongs to someone: the club, the match, or a shooter. Get permission from its owner, or at a match from the match director, before you download a backup. A backup holds every shooter's names or initials and scores from that ShotMarker, not just yours.
- Never during a match. Wait until the shooting is over and the scores are final.
- Check how full it is. The "% full" on the access point is how close a backup comes to not fitting in its memory. The fuller it is, the bigger the backup and the more likely it is to stall. If it's nearly full, ask the owner before trying.
- Use a quiet line. Download when few people have the page open. A computer is better than a phone: a slow download keeps the access point busy longer.
- One at a time, at least 30 seconds apart. The access point deletes each file 30 seconds after making it, and that cleanup needs memory too. If the page is slow, stop and try again later.
What the access point is
The access point is the small box with the antenna that every target reports to. It runs the ShotMarker page you open on your phone. It's a small computer with very little memory. That's plenty for showing shots, but not for everything at once.
What it's good at
Showing shots. With dozens of phones watching the line, it keeps up. A phone in your pocket with the screen off costs it almost nothing: after about 20 seconds without an answer, the access point stops sending to that phone.
What makes it struggle
Three things use a lot of its memory:
- A backup. The access point builds the whole backup file in its memory before sending it. With years of strings on it, that's a large file.
- The strings list. Opening the folder of saved strings sends that phone the full list, which can be over half a megabyte on a busy access point. Every phone that opens it gets its own copy.
- Many phones with the page open. Each open page is a connection the access point keeps up to date.
Any one of these is fine. Together they can run it out of memory. In our test, with five years of a club's strings on it:
| What was happening | What the access point did |
|---|---|
| A backup, nobody else on the page | Done in about 11 seconds |
| 20 phones on the page, some opening the strings list, plus a backup | Took a minute; the page froze for up to 18 seconds |
| 40 phones on the page, some opening the strings list | Froze for up to 25 seconds at a time |
| 40 phones on the page plus a backup | Its software stopped |
| The same 40 phones, strings exported a year at a time | Every file came through |
How to be easy on it
- Don't open the strings list during a match. Look at your strings afterwards.
- Don't download a backup or a CSV during a match. If you want your data, ask the match director for a copy afterwards.
- Phones are slower downloaders than laptops. If you must download, use a computer, on a quiet line.
- One download at a time, at least 30 seconds apart.
For match directors: keep it light
- Back up when nobody else is on the page: before the first relay, or after everyone has gone. If it has been acting up, turn it off and on first.
- If the backup won't finish, export the strings a year at a time from the strings list. Each file is small.
- Then erase old strings. The access point can erase everything before a date, so you can keep the recent season and archive the rest in your backup files.
- After clearing, take one more full backup. It's quick now, and it keeps the settings (target sizes, calibration, squadding) that string exports leave out.
A light access point makes everything faster: saving strings, opening the page, and backups. The match director checklists put this into steps for match day.