Introducing Our New Submissions System

[JDMEK5]

I forgot to ask, but with our arrangements sitting in the last submission thread.. do we resubmit those using the cool new system? Or will they be done old-fashioned-like for the last time?

[Olimar12345]

Anything currently accepted is fine. You will not have to resubmit those.

Everything that was not accepted will need to be resubmitted through the new system. And a note for those of you who had arrangements looked at: it'd be faster for everyone if you'd revise your arrangement before simply resubmitting it.

[braix]

Um so will there be new topics for each submission? Will they be deleted after the updates?

[The Deku Trombonist]

Yes there's a new topic for each submission. They get archived after they get accepted and then you can submit more sheets once they've been uploaded in an update.

[Cobraroll]

By the way, has the uploading process been sped up since "the old days"? I seem to recall the uploaders having trouble finding time to actually do the uploads, because it was a time-consuming task. Is that being updated too now? A "click-and-it's-up" system would be ideal, but I suppose there are other ways to do it too. Especially since we have a tradition of announcing all site updates, listing off the uploads as they are being done (which is a smart move, since it makes every update very visible).

However, that tradition has a downside too. As far as I've understood, part of the reason why updates are so rare is that they are being done in one big process, with loads of uploads, then an announcement in one sitting. Splitting it up, such as already was being done with approvals and uploads, might ease the load on the uploaders a little.

For instance, and I'm hypothesizing here, a way of "hiding" uploaded arrangements, a sort of "limbo" to put uploaded files in so that big updates can be done in small batches. An uploader may upload, say, one single arrangement (or even just a single file) if he has ten minutes to spare, and it'll be put on site but not visible for regular users. After a while, across all uploaders and their ten-minute commitments to The Cause, there would have been enough files uploaded-but-not-visible for it to warrant a real annoumement. At that point, somebody could write the update text, make a new topic, and so on and so forth, then click on the "unhide" button and everything appears visible in an instant as the announcement is published. No need to do it all in one sitting, the uploading could be done in one big batch or sporadically across a few weeks, depending on how busy the uploaders are. It would also allow for sheets to be approved and instantly uploaded, guaranteeing a well-made sheet a spot in the next big update. Having a "backlog" of approved and uploaded sheets would also make an incentive to make updates at higher frequencies (at least we should push for 0.25 microhertz or more).

[The Deku Trombonist]

Pretty much all of that is supposed to be taken care of with this upgrade (hopefully).
man I've never been good at writing nice long replies...

The segmenting of everything in large submission threads was part of the reason I undertook to make this mod. It was just a frustrating system to deal with.
Once sheets are accepted (with a handy 'accept' button) they are moved into a queue. When an updater thinks there are enough, they can upload the queue to the site with the click of a button. It's also much easier for multiple updaters to work together at once because the discussion is really split up on a sheet-by-sheet basis.

[DonValentino]

Is there any possibility that the number of maximum submissions is increased? Maybe Veteran Arrangers could have 3 or 4 submissions.

[Sebastian]

The veteran arranger thing never really took off as planned. (Is correct formatting really that hard?) Don't be surprised if that member group disappears.

Oh man....I was looking forward to the vet arranger thing...

[Bloop]

I wanna keep the veteran arrangers thing because I like the black name and the big stars :3 But I do think there's a way to interpret it into this new system, like submission raise.

That, or veteran arrangers could be like semi-updaters. Fierce and I got the title because we make arrangements without too much flaws, so we know what to fix in other arrangers' submissions. We wouldn't be able to upload them, though. When everything's fixed, a button could be made to send it to actual updaters for a second opinion on the sheet, so they can accept it. This could save updaters some time.
Just an idea, though.

[JDMEK5]

Veteran arrangers could be like semi-updaters. Fierce and I got the title because we make arrangements without too much flaws, so we know what to fix in other arrangers' submissions. We wouldn't be able to upload them, though. When everything's fixed, a button could be made to send it to actual updaters for a second opinion on the sheet, so they can accept it. This could save updaters some time.
Just an idea, though.

I do like that idea. It would save time and sheets would be processed faster. But more responsibility gets added to the VA title then so VAs must be worthy.

[Olimar12345]

Post.

In my experience, though the actual uploading process was tedious, the most time consuming part was (and is) the actual reviewing of arrangements.

That, or veteran arrangers could be like semi-updaters. Fierce and I got the title because we make arrangements without too much flaws, so we know what to fix in other arrangers' submissions. We wouldn't be able to upload them, though. When everything's fixed, a button could be made to send it to actual updaters for a second opinion on the sheet, so they can accept it. This could save updaters some time.
Just an idea, though.

That idea has loads of potential.

[Sebastian]

I wanna keep the veteran arrangers thing because I like the black name and the big stars :3 But I do think there's a way to interpret it into this new system, like submission raise.

That, or veteran arrangers could be like semi-updaters. Fierce and I got the title because we make arrangements without too much flaws, so we know what to fix in other arrangers' submissions. We wouldn't be able to upload them, though. When everything's fixed, a button could be made to send it to actual updaters for a second opinion on the sheet, so they can accept it. This could save updaters some time.
Just an idea, though.

I also agree.

[Bubbles]

I've known about this for a while but it just hit me how great this is

[FierceDeity]

Lol yeah, I feel like giving up on the whole VA thing before many people become qualified kinda defeats the purpose. Raising the limit seems like a reasonable adaptation. As for the semi-updater thing, I feel like Bloop and I already kinda do that informally via private feedback (well, I did before I kinda disappeared from the face of the earth), so it wouldn't really change what I do all that much when I'm actually active. There are a few concerns I have with this idea, though:

-If we add VA evaluation as a mandatory part of the submissions process, while it has the potential to speed things up considerably on the updaters' end (as major issues would likely be weeded out, or at least identified, by that point), it also has the potential to bog things up, just as requiring multiple updaters' approval has in the past.

-If we don't make it mandatory, it just seems like a wishy-washy appropriation of the title. Like, "Congrats on your consistently high quality arrangements! Now go ahead and fix other people's sheets, if you want, I guess"

-Not that personal arrangement threads are always the best spots for workshopping sheets, but many arrangers could possibly begin to bypass that altogether, and start submitting less prepared sheets, as some of the people who were giving them that advice in the past would now be focused on the actual submissions process.

-If this remains the only feature of the position, it seems very arbitrary. Those who don't hold the position would still be able to give feedback on others' pieces (as they should), so it'd basically just be like naming us "senior advice-givers". While I have full confidence in Bloop's (and decent confidence in my own) ability to help people fix up sheets, you put us at this position because we can make our own arrangements with very few (or sometimes no) fixes necessary, in the first place. If we don't take advantage of that with at least a raised limit on submissions, then it really is just a title.

Question, though: when you say you can submit more sheets after your existing submissions are accepted, does this mean that they apply (or are able to apply) to the same update, or does this just mean getting a head start on the next one? If it's the former, it seems like it'd be very difficult to maintain equal consideration for all arrangers' submissions, even if updaters cut out an arbitrary "I will spend __ time on each person's arrangements per update".

[MaestroUGC]

I think what this new system does is just put everybody's submissions in a queue for the updaters to go over, first come first served. Once they see 10/15/20 arrangements have been reviewed and approved, then they make them public.

I could be wrong, but this all still seems to be at the whim on when the updaters will actually be able to do some updating.