This blog will be continually updated to include information on new and existing applications/software/technology, along with news on any potential developments. If you have information which you would like to see in this blog and share with the community, please send a mail to info@visualperformanceanalysis.com

 

September 2012

 

António Lopes – Videobserver

 

Hello readers,

Firstly, I would like to thank Josh Bryan for the opportunity to drop some lines here about Videobserver, and Darrell Cobner for challenging us and for his insightful ideas.

Videobserver is an innovative project that allows you to analyse your sport videos, both online and offline!

It has a unique look and feel, and is simple to work with. You can easily start to use the preset player-based actions (where, who, what) and create your own custom team-based actions (collective actions).

With Videobserver you are able to share specific videos, actions and statistics with your team (coaches and players). You can decide everything!

During the Olympics, we followed the Women’s Handball Tournament, and you can check out some of the results @ http://handball-london2012.com/

Feel free to download a trial version and share your experience here with us @ www.visualperformanceanalysis.com

We have prepared a Videobserver video tutorial and some FAQ’s to help accelerate your start:

– Video tutorial: http://www.videobserver.com/dashboard

– FAQ’s at http://www.videobserver.com/support/get-help/introduction

 

 

August 2012

 

Automation Software

 

Within this popular blog post by Simon Barbour (Leicester Tigers Head Analyst), we were shown iKey, a Mac automation software which you can use to “do your work for you”. Due to the nature of analyst’s work, where you may be required to create and share videos in different formats and use multiple programs to create your feedback resources for example, some medial tasks such as organising and compressing data have to be carried out. Using automation software gives you the chance to set-up your machine to carry out these tasks at the press of a button, providing you with more time to focus on processes where your knowledge and expertise can be better applied.

Looking at Windows automation software so you can carry out similar workflows on PC based software (e.g. Nacsport, Dartfish, Siliconcoach), WinAutomation is recommended for its ease of use, functionality and highly documented support. By using automation software on either your Mac or PC, you can speed up your workflows by making your machine do the work for you. After all, that is what they are there for!

 

 

July 2012

 

Lee Dunn – wetransfer.com

 

Many of us are taking advantage of structured Internet file sharing through sites like Dropbox and TPE, which improve our workflows when sharing analysis material with players and staff.

For one off file transfers, I have come across a site called wetransfer.com that enables file sharing of up to 2GB via email. The process is really simple and effective. I have used this to share games with other analysts which has proved quite effective, taking royal mail out of the equation. It offers quick upload and download speeds whilst maintaing video quality. Best of all this service is free of charge!

Hope this is of some use.

 

 

June 2012

 

Steven Montgomery – I-Coachrugby

 

 

 

 

I-Coachrugby – Your Rugby Team Statistics System

I-Coachrugby is a revolutionary app for Apple or Android platforms, but it started as a simple idea from an intelligent man.  Tony Hargood has been in rugby longer than New Zealand went without a world cup (thank you to all our New Zealand clients). Tony is the Director of Rugby at College Riffles in Auckland.

I-Coachrugby is his brainchild developed through years of the game and wanting to give back to coaches and players.

Simply put, ICR allows you to watch a game live with your mobile device and tag what you see.

The use of a home screen controls the major aspects of a rugby game. One touch of a button records the event, who was responsible for the event and when it occurred.

 

 

From the analysis and programmers point of view, it is a unique system that allows the user to take a real time feed, recall the information at anytime and send the information upon conclusion of the game.

The interpretation of the occurrences are your own. An example of this being coaches following players in selection processes for representative teams. Where you have the incident button “Linebreak”, we have coaches using this for the “pick & go” from their forward pack. You can decide what you want the data to be for your club or team. This aspect from an analysis point of view is exciting.

 

The genius of the system is it’s ease of use. Many products on the market are costly and time consuming, ICR is done in 80 mins, with stats accumulated and sent to anyone you wish to receive the game information. There are no longer wasted hours in front of the computer screen trying to make sense of the game, its already been done for you.

I discovered ICR through many years searching for a system that would deliver the information from the game with ease and without having to send my club into bankruptcy.

 

Since my first use of the system I haven’t looked back. Players now expect data on their game, are immediately conscious of their performance prior to the next training session and are therefore keen to improve.

The greatest benifit for a coach? Players engaging in communication about their game according to the stats they have received.

 

ICR delivers the key aspects of the game on a mobile device, live on game day for the duration of the game. Its simplicity to use has seen coaches from all corners of the globe use it. Apple and Android users have the same consistent approach.

• The analysis you want – real statistics in real-time, captured from the sidelines
• Share Instantly – send full game reports, including breakdowns and timelines
• Find a way to win – target your weakness or your opponents
• Develop your skills – compare matches, players and teams

 

 

May 2012

 

Mark Davies – Excel for iPad?

 

Rumours are spreading across the ether (again) that Microsoft are planning to release MS Office for the iPad.

This has happended before back in February, but this time reports claim to have seen the app first hand. The claim is that Microsoft are planning to release in Autumn 2012. Now that will really be an interesting development and I for one will be looking forward to seeing what functionality will be included within the Excel package.

Will let you know if I hear any more.

 

Darrell Cobner – Productivity

 

In the comments of this blog, two apps were mentioned. Custom Keypad, which allows the user to link with their machine through the use of hotkeys and Pocket Coder which produces a time stamped XML that can be emailed at the end of your coding. For more information on these, please read the original blog and video. Don’t forget to check the comments for more information on the apps! Click Here to View

 

David Fulcher – Handy App

 

Found a very handy app for PA’s using the iPad to check out,

AVPlayerHD £1.99

 

It gives you the ability to play most video types without converting to mp4,

Variable speeds available on videos,

Can organise your footage into files and folders,

Quick upload speed via USB connection.