Joining the Data Team

Data Team Q&A

Welcome, we are glad that you have decided to Join the PCGen Project and would like to join the illustrious Data Monkeys (Also known as LST Monkeys). That's something we like to hear.  :)

QUESTION: I was wondering what would be required. How much time (per week) would be asked for example?

ANSWER: The amount of time you volunteer is strictly up to you. That's why it's called being a volunteer  ;) Give 10 minutes, or 12 hours, nobody logs your time, and nobody will hound you. Though from time to time we do check up on each other to see how things are going. If you need a break, or real life comes at you, then don't code. Above all else, family comes first. We understand. Again, do what you can, when you can.

QUESTION: Would I be required to buy a copy of the books being coded?

ANSWER: Buying the books - Well, that is a personal choice. In some cases, the publisher will give us a book (normally in PDF format) to use for the use of coding up the book for PCGen (This is pretty frequent, especially when the publisher wants a data set ready to go at release time, or wants to promote their book at an upcoming event). In other cases another user will buy a book for the data monkey to use to make the set (I've had this happen twice that I can recall for myself). If it's something you really want included, then naturally I'd expect you would already own the book. Again, it all boils down to what you want.

QUESTION: I can dedicate some time to coding. What would I be required to do?

ANSWER: Excellent. The other great thing about being a volunteer, you get to choose what you want to do.

For data monkeys the following are good choices to look for things to do or work on:

• Data Bug Fixing & Data Feature Requests
• Data Wish list (User submitted requests for book inclusion in PCGen)
• Coding up a book you want to see included in PCGen.
  • (My personal favorite, you really get to be creative and make an entire book come together, though this is one of the more challenging tasks a data monkey takes on, both in time spent and figuring out how to make things work as the publisher intended)

If you need help, direction, guidance, or anything else, your best resources are Data Chimps, the really experienced monkeys. Additionally anyone on the data team can give tips, advice and get you started. For the list of approved publishers, you'll want to check out HERE

QUESTION: I have some coding/scripting experience with other things. Can I contribute to other teams?

ANSWER: Yes, as a volunteer project, you can choose which teams to be on and where to focus your efforts. Be mindful that different teams have different requirements to join, and rules... Check with the Silverback (The Team Leader) of the other team for more information.

Another Great Resource is our PCGenListFileHelp Yahoo Group. We have several helpful monkeys that hang around that list to give out advice and tips.

QUESTION: What should I begin working on?

ANSWER: Well, let me ask you this, is there anything you want to do? Cause if you stand around and say, 'hey, what can I do for you?' you'll get a full plate really fast. Beyond that, we can always scrounge up a few easier tasks to get your feet wet, if that is what you want to do.

Never be afraid to ask questions. Others lurk and wait for someone else to ask questions so they can learn a thing or two.

Rules for new LST Monkeys

DO NOT mess with any core set (SRD, RSRD, MSRD, Pathfinder) unless you have prior approval from the Content Silverback, or have attained the rank of DATA CHIMP. If you break a core set, that will affect all the supplement sets that rely on it.

Good Practices - You should test your changes. Run PrettyLST, then load it up in PCGen. PCGen itself is a great debugger tool, highlighting any potential problems you need to look at. Every new release gets better at detecting errors at load up.

Ask if you have a question regarding code interactions. A simple change might have unintended consequences.

Don't fret if you accidentally break something. It happens to all of us. If you don't know how to fix it, let one of the other data monkeys know and they can either help you through it, or fix it.

From your friendly LST Monkeys.

Cheers!