Page 1 of 2

ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Wed Dec 09, 2009 6:56 pm
by Duncan Idaho
Furman University will be hosting a T-Party mirror on February 13, 2010 in collaboration with the Southside quizbowl team.

As per the guidelines set by Harvard, all teams attending this mirror are required to submit packets. Packets should be sent to [email protected].

QUESTIONS

This set will feature at least fifteen packets unless something goes terribly wrong. It will contain packets of at least twenty powermarked tossups and twenty bonuses. The tossups will obey a strict length cap: no tossup will feature any words on the seventh line, and ideally most tossups will not be six full lines. Good teams should, consequently, be able to expect to buzz early on tossups. People who have committed to working on this project include Rob Carson and Bernadette Spencer; I imagine Dallas will tell me fairly soon for sure if they're in, and Mike Cheyne is being asked as we speak if he'd like to edit the old man distribution. (A serious breakdown of what each of us is working on will appear here when appropriate.) (UPDATE: Mike Cheyne is secured.)

We're going to try to playtest these pretty extensively (early and often, as they say, but since packet-submission tournaments never seem to allow for "early" maybe we'll just playtest the editors packets a WHOLE lot), so if you don't think you'd want to play this event (which targets the ever-nebulous "regular" difficulty, but will have a buzz distribution less shaded towards the end than most contemporary "regular" difficulty events), feel free to volunteer to contribute in that way!

PACKET SUBMISSION DETAILS

We want packets. We don't (here's the part where I say "don't" again, but somehow you miss it both times) want packets to come in the week before the tournament. That is quite unpleasant! You wouldn't want me to start coming up with particularly horrifying things to compare it to, now would you? In a submitted packet, we'd like to see:

5/5 literature (1/1 American, 1/1 British, 1/1 European, 1/1 World, 1/1 additional of any category)
5/5 history (1/1 American, 3/3 European [of which one question is on British history and one is on ancient history], 1/1 World)
5/5 science (1/1 physics, 1/1 chemistry, 1/1 biology, 1/1 other science [math, CS, earth science, astrophysics; don't do two of the same], 1/1 additional of any category or difficult-to-categorize topics)
3/3 RMP (1/1 mythology, 1/1 religion, 1/1 philosophy; try to ensure that your mythology is about dudes and deeds and your religion is about worship)
3/3 fine arts (1/1 painting, 1/1 non-opera music, 1/1 other arts [opera, architecture, sculpture, dance, photography, film, jazz, questions about Bob Dylan if you are Chris White; please do one vis and one aud])
2/2 social science (at least one question must be geography; no more than 1/1 can be geography)
1/1 trash
24/24 total

Here's the submission schedule, based off the date we imagine most mirrors will take place, 2/13:

12/20: -$50 (-$75 for teams that don't have to submit by ACF guidelines) -- if you gift-wrap your packet and mail it to one of us, you are discounted whatever that would cost you because it would make me SO HAPPY
1/3: -$25 (-$50 for teams that don't have to submit by ACF guidelines)
1/17: $0 (-$25 for teams that don't have to submit by ACF guidelines)
1/24: +$25
1/31: +$50
2/7: +$100
After 2/7, we'll grant twenty-four hour extensions one at a time; each one will cost $10.

Here's something that is a little unclear sometimes: when does this amorphous blob we call "12/20" end? This is particularly difficult because of time zones. So here it is: if your packet isn't in one of our hands by 4:00am Central time on the night of the deadline day (so your clock would, technically, read 4:00am 12/21, for example), then you have missed the deadline. There won't be leniency here because leniency gets exploited. End of story.

DO I HAVE TO SUBMIT A PACKET? As per ACF guidelines, if your teams has one or more players on it who's played a tournament before September of 2008, then you have to submit a packet.

FEES/DISCOUNTS

The base fee for this tournament will be $100. The following discounts will be offered:
-$5 for each buzzer set
-$5 for laptops (maximum of one per team)
-$10 for staffers
-$55 for new quizbowl teams (as per ACF guidelines)
-$30 for high school teams
and packet discounts (and penalties) as listed above. Buzzer, staffer, and laptop discounts apply to your school's total fee, not to each individual team's fee.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/27)

Posted: Wed Dec 09, 2009 8:17 pm
by Nuclear Densometer Test
I'll staff. :D

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/27)

Posted: Wed Dec 09, 2009 8:30 pm
by Mettius Fufetius
By the way, if you want to register for this tournament or if you have any questions, contact either me at [email protected] or Ben at [email protected]

(EDIT: This is going to be awesome.)

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/27)

Posted: Wed Dec 30, 2009 10:17 pm
by gwaustin4
Any update on the field?

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/27)

Posted: Wed Dec 30, 2009 10:39 pm
by Mettius Fufetius
You guys were the first team to register. I'll do field updates in this post.

FIELD UPDATES FIELD UPDATES FIELD UPDATES

Field as of 2/11:
Adam Liem [1 buzzer]
Clemson
Dorman [1 laptop]
FSU
USC (2) [1 buzzer, 2 staffers, 2? laptops]
Austin/Ragab [1 buzzer]
Slade/Weinstein
Southside/Furman house

Total field size: 9

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/27)

Posted: Sun Jan 03, 2010 9:37 pm
by Penguin
Joy joy, I am yet another staffer.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/27)

Posted: Tue Jan 05, 2010 12:45 pm
by Eric Huff
We'd love to come, but we're going to Hunter on February 27.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/27)

Posted: Mon Jan 11, 2010 12:37 pm
by Mettius Fufetius
It appears that this tournament is going to be moved to 2/13.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/27)

Posted: Mon Jan 11, 2010 2:19 pm
by Eric Huff
Great news! Dorman's in for two teams.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/27)

Posted: Mon Jan 11, 2010 6:57 pm
by Duncan Idaho
Marchbanks wrote:It appears that this tournament is going to be moved to 2/13.
Clemson has emailed me asking to register with one team, no buzzers.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Sat Jan 23, 2010 6:46 pm
by Mettius Fufetius
This tournament continues to be a thing that exists. We hope to see the field take shape so we can figure out how many rooms to reserve, how many readers we'll need, and other related things. So, if there are any other teams interested in playing this thing, please let us know soon.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Mon Jan 25, 2010 9:04 am
by Ethnic history of the Vilnius region
South Carolina will be there with 2 teams, 2 moderators, 1 buzzer, and a couple of laptops.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Sat Jan 30, 2010 8:14 pm
by Mettius Fufetius
Eric Huff wrote:Great news! Dorman's in for two teams.
Could somebody from Dorman please e-mail one of us (or post, I guess) regarding whether they will be bringing any buzzers or staffers?

(Edit: Also, if anyone besides USC is planning on bringing laptops, please let us know.)

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Sat Jan 30, 2010 10:01 pm
by ClemsonQB
Please don't actually try to run a paperless tournament. In theory, they're great for the environment and all that, but in reality, they make the tournament take much longer.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Sun Jan 31, 2010 12:46 am
by Mettius Fufetius
ClemsonQB wrote:Please don't actually try to run a paperless tournament. In theory, they're great for the environment and all that, but in reality, they make the tournament take much longer.
Ben and I haven't finished discussing this, so please don't consider my post an official declaration that this will be a paperless tournament.

But, there's one huge problem with trying to run a paper tournament at Furman. That is: the campus library with its precious printers closes on Friday afternoon at 6, and doesn't reopen until Saturday at 10. Yeah, there's one 24-hour printer, but it's usually broken. And since Ben comes to the Furman library to print out packets, he may not have access to anything better. So, unless we got the questions insanely early, which would really be a lot to ask, we might be stuck with paperless.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Sun Jan 31, 2010 1:01 am
by Auroni
ClemsonQB wrote:Please don't actually try to run a paperless tournament. In theory, they're great for the environment and all that, but in reality, they make the tournament take much longer.
Not really. I've been to paper tournaments lasting till 6 in high school, and we've hosted paperless tournaments that have had finals taking place at 4.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Sun Jan 31, 2010 4:44 am
by Sen. Estes Kefauver (D-TN)
The only tournament I've attended before that I feel would have gone significantly faster with printed packets was ACF Nationals, and the reason that didn't work out was because it was difficult for them to export the packets, not because running them off a computer inherently meant the games ran longer or anything.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Sun Jan 31, 2010 10:50 am
by ClemsonQB
jpn wrote:
ClemsonQB wrote:Please don't actually try to run a paperless tournament. In theory, they're great for the environment and all that, but in reality, they make the tournament take much longer.
Not really. I've been to paper tournaments lasting till 6 in high school, and we've hosted paperless tournaments that have had finals taking place at 4.
Well of course there are going to be paper tournaments which last longer than some paperless tournaments, but that's probably because of the people running the tournament, the questions themselves, or any number of other things. Paperless tournaments can and do work really well sometimes, but for example, the last tournament I went to (ACF Winter at UGA) took way longer because it was paperless. The tournament director wouldn't send out the questions until (I believe) every game had finished, and of course this caused extra delays. Also, the questions got screwed up in the process because of different formatting and all that, so the readers stumbled over words.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Sun Jan 31, 2010 12:44 pm
by Ethnic history of the Vilnius region
Like George, I have been to a number of events that were adversely impacted by computer troubles. That said, I don't think T-Party should have too many issues if paperless is the way you all go. It's a smaller tournament, so even if there is a problem or two, it shouldn't be a huge deal. The main thing I would suggest is having a thorough knowledge of your school's wireless capabilities (Is it reliable? Are guests easily signed on?), and having a bunch of flash drives ready. Also, a surfeit of computers should be available in case of compatibility problems.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Sun Jan 31, 2010 1:16 pm
by Duncan Idaho
ClemsonQB wrote:Well of course there are going to be paper tournaments which last longer than some paperless tournaments, but that's probably because of the people running the tournament, the questions themselves, or any number of other things. Paperless tournaments can and do work really well sometimes, but for example, the last tournament I went to (ACF Winter at UGA) took way longer because it was paperless. The tournament director wouldn't send out the questions until (I believe) every game had finished, and of course this caused extra delays. Also, the questions got screwed up in the process because of different formatting and all that, so the readers stumbled over words.
Is it unusual to wait until all games are finished to start the next round? I know that this is what we do at our high school tournament, and I just kind of assumed that this was the way every tournament was run.

I have messaged Andy Watkins about the format of the questions. I would prefer what happened at Winter not to happen to us. If the questions will be in PDFs, then we will make sure all laptops have Adobe.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Sun Jan 31, 2010 7:16 pm
by Mechanical Beasts
T-Party will not do crazy things with the questions, and it will certainly not do crazy things without mentioning them to hosts well beforehand. T-Party encourages paperless tournaments because there aren't issues (save question security, which can be accomplished perfectly using passwords written on scoresheets distributed to moderators) that affect the timing of paperless tournaments run properly any more than paper tournaments.
ClemsonQB wrote:the last tournament I went to (ACF Winter at UGA) took way longer because it was paperless. The tournament director wouldn't send out the questions until (I believe) every game had finished, and of course this caused extra delays.
You say this, but you mean "a TD's incorrect decision, which wouldn't have been an option in the case of a paper tournament, caused delays." Moreover, the TD behavior you cited itself doesn't make a tremendous difference most of the time. The difference it makes is proportional to the difference in reading speed between the fastest and slowest moderator. Moreover, in most games most rounds, moderator-related delays would cause teams to show up late anyway. This effect essentially has an effect when a match between teams (numbered in the order that they got our of their previous round) 1 and 4 has to wait for the previous round's match between 5 and 6.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Fri Feb 05, 2010 4:59 pm
by gwaustin4
'UGA' is now almost definitely me solo, and if I do make it out I won't have any buzzers.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Sun Feb 07, 2010 6:11 am
by SnookerUSF
I, like Wes, will likely be playing solo for USF. I, unlike Wes, can provide one buzzer.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Sun Feb 07, 2010 3:08 pm
by Mettius Fufetius
Thanks for the registration. We're considering capping the field at about this level, so if your mirror fell through and you're interested in coming, please let us know now.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Sun Feb 07, 2010 3:13 pm
by Mechanical Beasts
SnookerUSF wrote:I, like Wes, will likely be playing solo for USF. I, unlike Wes, can provide one buzzer.
Playing without a packet gets expensive, but it can be negotiated. Talk to me about that.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Sun Feb 07, 2010 7:36 pm
by Central_Slade
Although it is short notice, a friend and I would like to possibly be allowed to somehow participate in this event. Until only very recently, we both believed that we would have conflicts with dates the last three Saturday's of February, but have both recently gotten this Saturday free. Obviously it would be too late to submit a packet, but if open teams are allowed by the TD and head editor, then we would take whatever we could get. Arrangements and details can be worked out.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Sun Feb 07, 2010 10:09 pm
by Duncan Idaho
Central_Slade wrote:Although it is short notice, a friend and I would like to possibly be allowed to somehow participate in this event. Until only very recently, we both believed that we would have conflicts with dates the last three Saturday's of February, but have both recently gotten this Saturday free. Obviously it would be too late to submit a packet, but if open teams are allowed by the TD and head editor, then we would take whatever we could get. Arrangements and details can be worked out.
Open teams are allowed, but Nathan and I will need to consider whether your particular team is allowable for our field. We'll need to know who the friend who would like to join you is before we can do so.

Andy Watkins (above) is the head editor, so you should speak to him about whether you will be allowed to play without having submitted a packet.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Sun Feb 07, 2010 10:27 pm
by Nick
SnookerUSF wrote:I, like Wes.
me too

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Sun Feb 07, 2010 11:47 pm
by gregpweinstein
I am the said friend from Robert Slade's post

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Mon Feb 08, 2010 2:23 pm
by gwaustin4
Nick wrote:
SnookerUSF wrote:I, like Wes.
me too
It's on.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Mon Feb 08, 2010 2:49 pm
by Mechanical Beasts
OFFICIAL DELIBERATION approved both those teams. Have at it.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Mon Feb 08, 2010 2:51 pm
by Duncan Idaho
Crazy Andy Watkins wrote:OFFICIAL DELIBERATION approved both those teams. Have at it.
I assume you're referring to their packet responsabilities? Nathan and I are still discussing whether or not to allow their open teams.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Mon Feb 08, 2010 3:30 pm
by Mechanical Beasts
Ben Cole wrote:
Crazy Andy Watkins wrote:OFFICIAL DELIBERATION approved both those teams. Have at it.
I assume you're referring to their packet responsabilities? Nathan and I are still discussing whether or not to allow their open teams.
I mean we approved their open teams from our side; I guess you can reject them as open teams if you really want to. We've worked out something with Ahmad that sounds good; he'll be playing without a packet (and paying concomitant penalties) but helping us work on a packet of our choice (which will defray said penalty some).

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Mon Feb 08, 2010 5:17 pm
by Mettius Fufetius
Crazy Andy Watkins wrote:
Ben Cole wrote:
Crazy Andy Watkins wrote:OFFICIAL DELIBERATION approved both those teams. Have at it.
I assume you're referring to their packet responsabilities? Nathan and I are still discussing whether or not to allow their open teams.
I mean we approved their open teams from our side; I guess you can reject them as open teams if you really want to. We've worked out something with Ahmad that sounds good; he'll be playing without a packet (and paying concomitant penalties) but helping us work on a packet of our choice (which will defray said penalty some).
I haven't heard from Ben since last night. My opinion is that Robert Slade/Greg Weinstein is absolutely okay for the field. I have serious concerns about Wes/Ahmad burninating teams, but I'm leaning toward letting them play if Wes otherwise can't afford to come.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Mon Feb 08, 2010 10:41 pm
by Mettius Fufetius
Okay, it looks like we're going to cap the field at eight (8) teams, to ensure we have enough buzzers/laptops/rooms/staffers/etc. Due to some recent drops and consolidations, we currently have a maximum of seven teams. So, you can still get in on this tournament, if a) you've written a packet, b) you've made arrangements with Andy, c) you're a new team that's not required to write a packet by the tournament guidelines.

EDIT: Yes, Wes/Ahmad, you can join up.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Wed Feb 10, 2010 8:57 am
by Ethnic history of the Vilnius region
Do we know what building this will take place in and the time we need to be there for registration?

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Wed Feb 10, 2010 5:13 pm
by Mettius Fufetius
Ethnic history of the Vilnius region wrote:Do we know what building this will take place in and the time we need to be there for registration?
As soon as I can confirm some stuff with Ben, this and other things will be revealed in a mass e-mail sent to participants. Hopefully that occurs this evening.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Fri Feb 12, 2010 12:09 am
by wd4gdz
We're coming, so I think it's safe to move FSU from tentative to registered.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Fri Feb 12, 2010 10:04 am
by Ethnic history of the Vilnius region
Snow

Granted, it's only supposed to be a few inches, but South Carolinians sort of forget how to operate motor vehicles when it snows, so be careful. Of course, we sort of forget how to operate motor vehicles when it doesn't snow too....

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Fri Feb 12, 2010 12:50 pm
by wd4gdz
What's snow?

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Fri Feb 12, 2010 2:26 pm
by Mettius Fufetius
So, due to this mess (Accuweather!):
Image
--we are planning to cancel this tournament. Furman doesn't have to announce closures until 6AM tomorrow, but based on the way past storms have been treated, I expect us to be closed, at least in the morning.

We will try to reschedule this tournament. We'll let you know as soon as we have any more information.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Fri Feb 12, 2010 2:28 pm
by KevinL
So this definitely isn't happening tomorrow?

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Fri Feb 12, 2010 2:29 pm
by gregpweinstein
Is it a definite cancellation? Need to know before we hit the road. And sorry if it does get cancelled, would have been fun

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Fri Feb 12, 2010 2:32 pm
by gwaustin4
When will you know whether or not this is officially canceled?

I know the people coming from Florida have already rented a car and left, and were supposed to be arriving in Athens around six. I don't have their numbers, but they should really be warned somehow.

EDITS: ellipses turning into exclamation points

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Fri Feb 12, 2010 2:33 pm
by Nick
I know our situation is different than teams coming from farther away but Clemson would still attend. If this is just a matter of not being able to get inside the building, then I guess it doesn't really matter.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Fri Feb 12, 2010 2:44 pm
by Crimson Rosella
wd4gdz wrote:What's snow?
ACF Regionals 2009 wrote: This material's deep layers are home to solid formations called depth hoares that can cause structural weakness in formations of it. At high altitudes, this material can form spike-like objects known as penitentes. When it is denser than 550 kilograms per cubic meter, this material is known as firn, and its compacted, resolidified form is called nivi and formed via nivation. The calculation of mass balance compares the accumulation of this material to the rate of ablation; a positive measure indicates glaciation. For 10 points, name this form of solid precipitation that generally falls in white flakes during the winter.
Answer: snow [do not accept "ice"]

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Fri Feb 12, 2010 2:56 pm
by gwaustin4
Its currently snowing pretty hard in Athens.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Fri Feb 12, 2010 3:26 pm
by Nick
We only need like 3 or 4 rooms. We ought to just have this at somebody's house, if somebody doesn't mind volunteering. I actually already asked my mother but surprise surprise, she said no, hahaha.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Fri Feb 12, 2010 3:36 pm
by KevinL
If Furman is closed in the morning (2 hour delay?), we could still have a tournament. It may go a little longer, but certainly it wouldn't go longer than other tournaments Clemson has recently attended.

Re: ANNOUNCEMENT: T-Party Southeast at Furman (2/13)

Posted: Fri Feb 12, 2010 3:41 pm
by gwaustin4
Nick wrote:We only need like 3 or 4 rooms. We ought to just have this at somebody's house, if somebody doesn't mind volunteering. I actually already asked my mother but surprise surprise, she said no, hahaha.
Thats actually a really good idea. I was able to reach Ahmad and he's already in Tifton, and its likely FSU also left already. Perhaps we could use some public office rooms at a library? Or even Southside HS as opposed to Furman University?

Then again, looking out my window it is really, really snowing.