Wednesday Wheeler Attendance App

OK, it's not really an app, it's a web page that you can use from your smartphone (Android or iPhone) to take attendance at Wheeler rides. Here's how it works.
On the web browser on your phone, navigate to this page:
http://wpp.crw.org/ww/attendance.php
You will see this page:
The date will be auto-populated with today's date. You need to select the number or rides (1,2 or 3) and enter a title for the ride. Enter your email address if you want a copy of the list of riders, leave blank otherwise. Here is an example of the completed form with ride title "Ride Title" and two rides selected.
When the form is complete, press the "Continue" button. You will then go to this page:
Here you can select riders and check them off as doing the appropriate ride. The list contains all riders that have signed the Wheeler Safety Policy Agreement:
http://wpp.crw.org/ww/SafetyAgreement.php
To select a rider, type a few letters of their first or last name in the box that says "Find riders .." This will reduce the number of names displayed to one or more that match the letters. For example, typing "Jack" will yield this result:
Select the approriate name and ride (S = short, M = medium, L = long). To select another name, first clear the search line by tapping the X on the right.
You may have to close the popup keyboard to see all the choices. Either do that or swipe down the list.  If someone turns up who is not on the list, you can enter their name in the comments area at the top.
When you've logged in all the riders, you can use the roll call function to make sure that you have everyone. Tap the "Roll Call" button and you will get a popup list of names, one list for each ride.
When you're satisfied that all the riders are counted, tap the "Submit Form" button. tap "OK" button on the confirmation dialog, and you're done. The information will be sent by email to the Wheeler attendance coordinator and you if you supplied your email address on the opening form.

QUESTIONS


What do I do if someone shows up late after the form is submitted?
You may have to enter their name alone and resubmit the form. I've found at least for Android phones, if you tap the back button at the confirmation screen, the page you return to will still have the list of riders you submitted. In that case, just add the new name and submit the form again. You can check that the names are still there by tapping the "Roll Call" button.
What do I do if someone is not on the list?
This theoretically shouldn't happen since everyone on a Wheeler ride should have signed the agreement, but it does. In that case, just type in the text field at the top below the title. We should encourage them to sign the agreement so that they will be on the list for future rides.
What do I do if I can't find someone who is on the list?
You may be searching for the wrong spelling of the name. For example on a recent ride, I couldn't find "Stuart Kaufman" because I was looking for "Stewart" or "Coffman." Try different search strings, for instance, if you can't find "Bob" try "Robert" or "Rob."
Does this work offline?
Yes and no. You need to be online to download the list of names. So you need be online to complete the first form and get to the page with the names. Having done this, you can enter the names offline, and the data will be contained on the page. As long as you don't close the page in your browser, you should be able to submit the form when you get back to an internet connection.
Should I use this for a ride?
To quote Dirty Harry, "Do you feel lucky, punk?" You can increase your luckiness by doing a dry run with the app before using it for real. If you haven't used it before you might find yourself overwhelmed in the heat of the moment when lots of riders are arriving. Try entering a number of names, then use the roll call feature to make sure they're all there. Try it for one or two rides. You can submit your test case, but put something in the comments so the attendance coordinator won't think it's for real.
I'm trying to use this for another ride, but it still has data from the previous one?
When you create a new ride and go to the list of riders, it will have created an unique url, something like
http://crw.org/m/ww/attendance.php?options=options&rides=2&date=July+28&title=Ride+Title&email=
Your browser remembers pages visited so you might find yourself coming back to this page. Make sure the url you enter is:
http://wpp.crw.org/ww/attendance.php
to make sure you have a fresh copy.

5 comments:

  1. Jack --

    Looks very nice, though I haven't tried it. And, good, alphabetized on family name rather than on first name as on the paper list.

    Just one comment: OTOH the list you sent by e-mail in Excel is not alphabetized. I know how to sort in Excel but some people don't. what does the Excel list get used for?

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  2. Jack, I ended up using paper to take attendance, but used the app to report the attendees. I would use the app by itself next time. Here is a little feedback:

    I entered the ride name ("To the End of the World" or "To Hull in a Handbasket") but it didn't appear in the email I received. Not sure if it's because of the quotes, the length of the name, or something else I did, but I figured I'd mention it.

    The blog entry says that the information goes to the WW attendance coordinator. Is it still expected that the ride leader include it in the ride report, or does the coordinator now handle this?

    On my phone, there is a lag as I type in the letters of the name I'm searching for. On the computer, there isn't. I assume it is the speed of my phone or its connection, rather than a problem with the app.

    I like that the app (by not finding someone) identifies the people who need to sign the waiver, rather than relying on "who here is not a member and hasn't signed the waiver?"

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  3. > I entered the ride name ("To the End of the World" or "To Hull in a Handbasket") but it didn't appear in the email I received. Not sure if it's because of the quotes, the length of the name, or something else I did, but I figured I'd mention it.

    Haven't seen that before, title showed when I do it. I'll look into it.

    > The blog entry says that the information goes to the WW attendance coordinator. Is it still expected that the ride leader include it in the ride report, or does the coordinator now handle this?

    I think the preferred approach is for the leader to send it in with the ride report. Sending it to the coordinator is more or less a backup.

    > On my phone, there is a lag as I type in the letters of the name I'm searching for. On the computer, there isn't. I assume it is the speed of my phone or its connection, rather than a problem with the app.

    This is a function of the browser on the phone and the touch interface. The page has all the names loaded, there is no further communication with the mother ship until you submit the form.

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  4. Three years later - I've used the app every for every WW ride I've led, and it works fine. Thanks!

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