Published on April 21, 2012 11:46 PM by dbo.

Step inside as we take a look at what has changed around here.

This iteration of the site unlinks the subdomains more, allowing them to evolve on their own. CFLdb Statistics is ready to stand on its own and now gets its own title and tagline. There have been a few changes to the page design as a result. More changes will come in the future.

What will be of most interest to our visitors is the expansion of the data on CFLdb Statistics. After 1970’s data was added in March, we went back and revamped our system, correcting issues, making changes to accommodate older data and changing how we present some things. Here is a partial list of the improvements:

• Information from 1950 to present
• Improved data quality/verification of schedules, results, attendance, franchise owners, coaches, stadiums and standings. We found a lot of errors (we knew there were some) in the data and have done are best to verify it against known sources.
• Added weather data for games where start time is known (almost 100% coverage from 1983 on). We will continue to add this data as we fill out start times on games.
• Additional cities and franchises and improved accuracy in franchise information. We are still thinking of the best way to represent this data.
• New dashboard shows count of information categories.
• All-time categories page for each league.
• Improved franchise playoff representation (especially important on older years).
• More specific information on sources, data accuracy, conventions and acknowledgement.

Not satisfied, we have a list of things we would like to bring to the site based on information already in the database:

• League and franchise all-time and yearly stats
• League and team records, high/low, opponent records, etc.
• Filling in the data for the years in the db

There is a need for a lot of improvements to the site outside of the data:

• Improved navigation
• Better search/findability
• Improved interaction/drill down/summarized to detail

Finally, we have a list of information we want to add to the stats database. In most cases, the issue isn’t not having the information, but not having the time to implement. Here are some of our pending projects:

• General managers, player personnel staff, assistant coaches
• Awards, all-stars
• Draft choices, territorial exemptions

Let us know what you prefer or send us your idea. A visible preference for items will move them up on the priority list.

I expect that we will not be going back further in time for a while until we tackle some of these other projects and utilize the data we already have in additional ways. We will continue to plug away at improvements on CFLdb Statistics while updating other areas of the site regularly. Of things we have to maintain, we want to make improvements to the books section, rulebook (add additional years), glossary and FAQ. There is never a shortage of things to work on, so if you are so inclined, let us know and we can put you to work.

One More Thing

Before you go, take a look at the new sister site, CFLdb Razzle Dazzle. It will be the place for our more creative stuff on Canadian football. It will feature video, documents, images and infographics. This is a new outlet for creativity and we are still perfecting our craft. Hopefully we can improve quickly and produce some deserving items that razzle and dazzle our visitors. Let us know what you think. We would be remiss without crediting Craig Robinson as the inspiration for this new section of the site.

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Another Jump Forward was published on April 21, 2012 11:46 PM by dbo.

608 words.

This article is categorized under cfldb.ca and tagged with launch.

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