OTPC v2.10 and ARA Scoring Changes

Spent most of the weekend working on the programs and website. I was never really happy with the flow of the website. A few days ago I received a few suggestions from one of the testers and decided to clean things up a bit. The biggest improvment is that I removed about one-third of the words on the pages. Then I added in some information that was missing. I still need a few new graphics on the Home page and a redo on Quick Start page but overall I think it's looking a lot better.

I've been looking into the text size issues when printing and saving to graphic in the Precision Calculator. The text size and line spacing are not adjusting correctly. After I get everything working I'll be adding more target information to the bottom of the printout. Then it's time for the first update. Should come out as v2.15 some time in March. After that, if everything is stable I'll start the language translations.

The ARA Scoring program is moving along nicely to its release later this month. This weekend I added code that will read and write Excel spreadsheet files. Now I can open the Scoring Program that everyone uses at the matches and export the scores direct into the score sheets. It's the last step in the automation process for scoring targets.

And, an ARA Scoring program report. I had a call last night from one of the guys testing the ARA Scoring program. They had a couple matches on Saturday and Sunday. There were about 240 targets(6000 bulls eyes) scored using the program over the weekend. All the targets were scored using one computer/scanner/printer setup. He told me that the system ran fast and with no problems. Best of all, by the end of the match there had been only three scores challenged and only one that was changed. That's a very successful outing for the program and it's generating a lot of interest from the ARA match directors.

Thanks for visiting and shoot safely.

- Jeff

Mobile Apps

I've been in contact with the creators of a couple mobile apps that should be of interest to users of the OnTarget programs.

The first has developed two programs for the iPhone. iSnipe is a very comprehensive ballistics calculator that has numerous advanced features built in. The other, ShotPlot, is a shot plotting program used to keep records and provide stastistical analysis of your personal shooting diary. Here are the links:
iSnipe™ - The Original Ballistics Calculator for the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. (http://www.isnipe.ca)
ShotPlot™ - The Original Marksmen's Plotter for the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch. (http://www.shotplot.ca)

The other is: Target Calculator for Android. Target Calculator is the first mobile app for measuring target groups. It uses the camera in your Android phone to take a picture of the target. Then place the circles over the bullet holes to measure the group and generate statistics. Results can be posted to the web directly from your phone.

Check them out and let the creators know you found them here on the OnTarget Shooting blog.

- Jeff

Article in Shooting Sports USA

The OnTarget Precision Calculator is mentioned in the February issue of Shooting Sports USA. The article is titled Making Sense of MOA. The author does an excellent job of explaining how minute-of-angle (MOA) is calculated, how to measure groups and shot positions, and how it all relates to the sights on your gun. He also explains the math calculations behind sight adjustments and how to use that information at the firing line. Check it out, it's a great look into the science that goes into successful shooting.

- Jeff