Fantasy Buddy Reads discussion

EDIT: 2020 Sheet has launched: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/...

ORIGINAL: I'm going to use the term WE loosely here, and say I'm watching Virginie work on the 2020 version of the Spreadsheet.

We've got some exciting updates going on (I really like how the score page now recolors based on which team is #1)

We've removed the Book Form that nobody was using last year, and simplified some formulas.

We're also working on several templates for next year, so we can more easily give people sheets with the data they care about.

1) For people that just use the sheet to input books for the points, and don't really care about bells and whistles, we have a simplified sheet, that should ease the workload for the sheet running formulas on launch.

2) For people that liked seeing the monthly breakdowns at the top (hideable 10 rows for January thru October/December), we have a monthly template.

Anybody that had custom work done in 2019 (extra columns, extra info tables), we're just going to copy your 2019 sheet and wipe the books and adjust the formulas for 10/31/2020, it looks like...

To that end, tho, we'd like a quick response similar to the Signup Sheet, where you just tell us if want a Simple Sheet or a Monthly Data Sheet. The Simplified Sheet will still have the top row info that's used in the ranking tab and tracks yearly books/pages/points/etc.

For new participants, here's the 2019 sheet to get an idea what you're choosing from: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/...

EDIT: Don't feel like you have to choose the simplified sheet to improve performance... the 2019 sheet ran well enough with 50-60 Participants and Monthly Formulas on all sheets... it just started to slowdown over the Summer/Fall, as people read more and more books, and sometimes there were update delays that led to some instances where sheets seemed bugged when running slow... everything resolved on reloads, usually...

Choose the sheet with the data you want... I think there are only about 40 signups for 2020 (including mods), based on the signup thread... hopefully everyone that expressed interest in the Team Point Overlords thread also filled out the Signup thread...

Thanks for all your hard work Iain and Virginie!

Could I please have the Monthly Data sheet?

I'm not sure if my sheet for 2019 was custom or not, but I had a bar chart at the right hand side. I really liked that. :)

Siobhan wrote: "Thanks for all your hard work Iain and Virginie!

Could I please have the Monthly Data sheet?

I'm not sure if my sheet for 2019 was custom or not, but I had a bar chart at the right hand side. I r..."

The monthly point/page bar graphs on the right are a default of the monthly sheet, since they use the monthly data to generate.

Custom graphs in 2019, were my Pie Chart of genres, Em/Manju's graph plot of publication dates, the Standalone/Series bar graphs on the left side of some sheets, and the Short/Novella/Book/Tome graphs some people had...

Thanks for all the hard work Virginie and Iain.

I'd like the monthly data sheet please.

I had a couple of customization on my 2019 sheet. I'd like to keep the tome tracker if possible but I'm taking a break from tracking what series I'm finishing/starting in 2020 so that particular data can be scrapped for this year.

Thanks again guys

I'd like to have the monthly sheet, please. :)

Thanks for all the hard work.

I modified my sheet a little last year, because I don't need the GN?-question and therefore added a language column, so if it's no problem I would like to keep my layout? :) Thanks!

For those wondering what stats are in the Monthly Data sheet, here's a screenshot of the template (not completely finished):

https://imgur.com/1IPqOxE

Monthly Data Sheet please. =)

Thanks for all of the hard work!

Fab, thanks for clarifying Iain and Virginie. The Monthly Data one is great for me.

Monthy Data Sheet for me as well, please !
Thank you guys for doing your Spreadsheet Magic !

Great work. Monthly data sheet for me please.

Wow, this spreadsheet is next level lol.

From looking at the 2019 one, I'm gathering you can add all genre books that you read not just fantasy right?

I'd like the Monthly Data Sheet too. Thanks!

Beena wrote: "Wow, this spreadsheet is next level lol.

From looking at the 2019 one, I'm gathering you can add all genre books that you read not just fantasy right?

I'd like the Monthly Data Sheet too. Thanks!"

The way I setup the Genre tracker/pie chart last year, it could support 10-12 genres (depending if you added support for tracking November/December, after the competition ended on Halloween)... you need to store the genres you care about at the top right, then it will populate the drop-down lists in the rest of the sheet, and tally up how many of each drop-down result there are and build a pie chart on the far right...

The system could be expanded to allow more genres, but then you'd need another column in your sheet... once you reach the rows for inputting books, that column is used to turn star-ratingsi into numbers for monthly rating averages (at least on my sheet... I lose track of what all everybody modified, since mine is one of the most heavily modified)... in less complicated sheets, it might be the column that tracks months for the monthly counts... each sheet has 1-2 hidden columns for conditional monthly formulas and the like...

I guess the monthly works. Julia and I don't need breakdowns for anything beyond books, audiobooks, and graphic novels though I think.

thanks for taking over the whole spreadsheet thing!

Rob wrote: "I guess the monthly works. Julia and I don't need breakdowns for anything beyond books, audiobooks, and graphic novels though I think.

thanks for taking over the whole spreadsheet thing!"

It started from such humble beginnings, in early 2018, back when we still had nascent plans to do all the math ourselves in the team threads... then you came along, and revolutionized... and nobody needed to do math, again :D

Timelord Iain wrote: "Rob wrote: "I guess the monthly works. Julia and I don't need breakdowns for anything beyond books, audiobooks, and graphic novels though I think.

thanks for taking over the whole spreadsheet thin..."

There was no way in hell I was going to do math by hand in a thread :) I had to make a sheet!

Yes, now we just have to know if>then conditional situations :)

Monthly data for me as well! And for me, please add the separate section for my manga! Virginie knows what I mean! :)

Also, is it possible to add genre stats? Like how many fantasy/scifi/ historical fiction books you read this year?

Virginie wrote: "For those wondering what stats are in the Monthly Data sheet, here's a screenshot of the template (not completely finished):

https://imgur.com/1IPqOxE"

Ooh, I like the distinction between short stories etc!
I'd like to have the monthly sheet too, please.
Thank you so much.

I like my page the way it was in 2019. I did not customize it. If you are adding new tabs for short stories that would be cool. I also liked looking at the main page with all the stats, totals, and rankings, and the rankings and participants data pages from time to time. I don't think this requires the monthly thing, but just add me to which ever that fits.

I would love the monthly data sheet again. Thanks much! I will be posting the teams list shortly so spreadsheet makers can actually input the names for the teams. :)

Silvana wrote: "Virginie wrote: "For those wondering what stats are in the Monthly Data sheet, here's a screenshot of the template (not completely finished):

https://imgur.com/1IPqOxE"

Ooh, I like the distinctio..."

My math rules for story length were 1-100= short, 100-250=novella, 250-600=book, 600+= tome... those numbers are adjustable, and anthologies basically require extra work to track correctly...

I will go with monthly data sheet.

Thanks for al the hard work that you're doing, guys! I'll go with the monthly data sheet too.

Petrik wrote: "Monthly data for me as well! And for me, please add the separate section for my manga! Virginie knows what I mean! :)."

Yes I do!
Don't worry, I'll take good care of you :p

@Ian, Ah I see, thanks! Yeah I won't be reading that many different genres! lol

Virginie wrote: "Petrik wrote: "Monthly data for me as well! And for me, please add the separate section for my manga! Virginie knows what I mean! :)."

Yes I do!
Don't worry, I'll take good care of you :p"

Always super nice! :')

The manner in which I had my data last year work for me.

You both are such badasses. Thank you for such a cool setup. If left to me we’d still be commenting in the thread to report our scores.

Monthly data :)

I'd like the Simple Sheet, please

OMG I love how detailed the spreadsheet is! :O

I would like the monthly sheet please!

This should come as no surprise... I want ALL THE BELLS AND WHISTLES!!!
Thank you spreadsheet gods.

Yanique wrote: "This should come as no surprise... I want ALL THE BELLS AND WHISTLES!!!
Thank you spreadsheet gods."

Haha! You may worship me, human!

Your 2019 scoresheet was even more advanced than the 2020 Monthly Template, with genre & publication year graphs. Do you want to reuse it, or do you want the new template?

Virginie wrote: "Yanique wrote: "This should come as no surprise... I want ALL THE BELLS AND WHISTLES!!!
Thank you spreadsheet gods."

Haha! You may worship me, human!

Your 2019 scoresheet was even more advanced ..."

I really enjoyed these stats for 2019, so I'll opt to keep them this year.

Niki Hawkes wrote: "You both are such badasses. Thank you for such a cool setup. If left to me we’d still be commenting in the thread to report our scores.

Monthly data :)"

You should see Virginie's new avatar on the Main Page... no more Invader Zim, now it's a bloody Eternal Empress...

Navi wrote: "OMG I love how detailed the spreadsheet is! :O

I would like the monthly sheet please!"

Some of us go above and beyond... my sheet has an entire second layer, tracking monthly pages read per day, genres, authors/series, average rating, etc... kinda overkill, but I love it...

Timelord Iain wrote: "You should see Virginie's new avatar on the Main Page... no more Invader Zim, now it's a bloody Eternal Empress..."

Muhahaha. I may or may not have locked it, so that only Rob, you or me can move/change/delete it :p

Virginie wrote: "Timelord Iain wrote: "You should see Virginie's new avatar on the Main Page... no more Invader Zim, now it's a bloody Eternal Empress..."

Muhahaha. I may or may not have locked it, so that only Ro..."

My long response to your new avatar:



Larger: https://img.buzzfeed.com/buzzfeed-sta...

Monthly data sheet for me too please :)

Virginie last year you did something so that when you double clicked on the cell to input the date a calendar appeared. Can you do the same again coz I found that so useful? You might have already done this but I thought I'd ask just in case.

Plus I'd like my dates to display in the following way e.g. 26 Jan 2020. I think I altered it myself last year because the default was the American way (1/26/20) and I could not get my head around it 🤯🙃 but I can't remember how I changed it so it might be safer for someone who actually knows what they are doing to set it up.

Thanks

Actually, I'd like the dates that way too, I'm not used to the American way of writing dates. Thanks!

Thank you for all your hard work organizing the spreadsheets! I just love gazing at all that beautiful, beautiful data! *swoons*

Monthly spreadsheet for me too please. :)

Hailee wrote: "Virginie last year you did something so that when you double clicked on the cell to input the date a calendar appeared. Can you do the same again coz I found that so useful? You might have already ..."

Yup, you're right, all the sheets have the little calendar thingy when you double-click. You can thank Iain for it, he's the one that found out about this (I think?).

The templates are set up so that the dates are displayed as Jan 26 by default (the American way of writing dates messes with my head too haha), I changed your sheet to set it up as 26 Jan 2020 :)

Maria wrote: "Actually, I'd like the dates that way too, I'm not used to the American way of writing dates. Thanks!"

Done! :)

Ooh Virginie can you please change mine and Charlie's to the day/month/year date format too?
Can't handle the American way us Brits! Thanks so much ❤️

Would a monthly data sheet from Jan-Dec with Genre tracking be possible?

//sorry I'm late I missed this thread

Non-American for the dates, please. I don't want to mess anything up by changing the format again.

Virginie wrote: "Hailee wrote: "Virginie last year you did something so that when you double clicked on the cell to input the date a calendar appeared. Can you do the same again coz I found that so useful? You migh..."

Yup... it's a nice Sheets feature, once you setup data validation for the column... it ended up being the easiest way to make sure everyone was inputting their data correctly, since the Sheet couldn't parse the difference between American dates and the rest of the world's format... clicking a calendar and allowing it to display regionally with some fiddling, ensured accuracy...

Siobhan wrote: "Ooh Virginie can you please change mine and Charlie's to the day/month/year date format too?
Can't handle the American way us Brits! Thanks so much ❤️"

The funny this is you grow accustomed to the way your country does things, but for file sorting, Year/Month/Day is the only way to keep files in chronological order, which neither use...

Siobhan wrote: "Ooh Virginie can you please change mine and Charlie's to the day/month/year date format too?
Can't handle the American way us Brits! Thanks so much ❤️"

Uh me too, please :)

At work I have to fill out some forms for US-hospitals and I always have to remember myself that I can't write 1 and 7 as I'm used to, because it always lead to confusion.
Plus the date and time format... You're always a little extra over there 😂

Sha wrote: "Would a monthly data sheet from Jan-Dec with Genre tracking be possible?

//sorry I'm late I missed this thread

Non-American for the dates, please. I don't want to mess anything up by changing the..."

We'll get it sorted... adding November/December is easy... we just only count January to October in the official tracker numbers, then have a second, hidden row, we pull out around Halloween, that tracks January to December but doesn't affect the group tallies... me/Silvana, and a couple others, had something like this in 2019...

Sir Anni wrote: "Siobhan wrote: "Ooh Virginie can you please change mine and Charlie's to the day/month/year date format too?
Can't handle the American way us Brits! Thanks so much ❤️"

Uh me too, please :)

At wor..."

We're SPESHUL... we got our independence / moved out of our parent's colony, and wanted to distance ourselves ;)