Step 1 - Setting up a match

Start ProTracker Tennis from an icon on the Start screen.

Enter the players' names, or select them from the drop down lists (if you have tracked them previously). For doubles matches use '+' or '&' symbols between the player's names. Then enter information about the match, the date (which defaults to today), the Event, court surface and match format.

Make sure the match format is correctly entered, especially the minimum number of games needed to win a set (usually 6), the number of sets and the format of the last set of the match (which is sometimes different from other sets, maybe just a tie-break).

You can also set the current score if the match has already started (Options > Set Current Score) - make sure you start tracking at the start of a new game.

If you are not happy with the Court or Text Colors, change them using the Options menu.

Tap the Start >>> button to start tracking.
 

Step 2 - Tracking

The Score screen is displayed. The first thing you must do is indicate which player is to serve first - Tap on the radio-button next to the player's name. For Doubles matches you will also be prompted for the Receiver.

Now tap the Continue >>> button.

A Tennis court will be displayed on the screen. At this time you may want to change a couple of options. If you are standing at the side of the court, rather than the end, Tap on Options > Court View > Side-On - you can then hold the PDA in landscape mode and menus will appear correctly. If you are in bright sunlight, you can also select the option to view in Black and White.

During a match flashing text will indicate the action needed, as follows:

Tap Server End - Tap on the end of the court from which the server will serve.

First Serve and Second Serve - Tap on the court on the position where the ball bounced (or hit the net) and select an option from the pop-up menu of outcomes that appears. (TIP: the first option in the list is usually the one required and it will be Tapped automatically for you after a short pause) To move the server position, Tap to the left or right of the racket. Tap on the Racket itself to record a Foot Fault.

Return Outcome – This prompt will appear only if you have chosen to track Serve Returns. If so, Tap on the court at the position where the ball bounced (or hit the net), and select the option from the pop-up menu of outcomes that appears, the default option will indicate the ball was In. The position from where the Return was played is assumed from the angle and depth of the serve.

Shot Position and Type - When the point ends decide if the key shot was an error or a winning shot, Tap on the court at the position where the shot was played from. Two pop-up menus of shot types will appear in sucession from which the type of shot that was played can be entered. If you are tracking a doubles match, you will also first be prompted for the player's name who played the shot.
 

Shot Outcome - Tap on the court at the position where the ball bounced (or hit the net), and select an option from the pop-up menu of outcomes that appears. (TIP: the first option in the list is usually the one required and it will be Tapped automatically for you after a short pause).
 

If you make a mistake Tap the small button by the net marked '?', and select Undo. You can press undo as many times as required to reverse multiple mistakes. Other options are available from this button. In particular you can record missed serves, returns, points or games - if you don't know who won the point or game that you missed, assign it to '?' and resume tracking - when you next discover the score record the missed Point or Game again against the correct player.

An important aspect of tracking is to record comments for future reference. This can either be done from the score form (Actions menu), which is displayed after each game or rest break, or on the court input form. Pre-defined comments can be entered by clicking on the drop-down list or you can tap-in a new comment (which will then be added to the pre-defined list for another time). Tap the Add button, and select the player that the comment refers to on the pop-up menu that appears. The comments will appear on the Momentum Chart.
 

As well as the classic Stats that are used in Tennis, you may want to keep a count of something during a match, for example the number of times the Serve-and-Volley tactic is used, you can accumulate these by using the 'Add to Custom Stat' feature. New stats can be entered at any time. The resulting stats are viewed on the Stats screen by selecting 'Show Custom Stats'.

At each change of ends the score screen will be displayed. On here is a summary set of stats, and you can analyze the match so far. Press the Continue >>> button when the players resume.

TV-style Commentaries are displayed during a match on interesting shots and points, such as Aces, Double Faults, Set and Match Points. These will appear for a short time - you can hide them immediately by pressing the X in the corner and re-show them by selecting the option on the menu. By tapping anywhere other than on the X the Commentary will stay shown. Game summaries can also be shown after each game. Commentary options can be set on the Settings form.

Tracking will stop automatically when the match is won or lost. Or, if the match ends prematurely tap the 'Early Match End' menu option. Just after the match finishes you can record a summary of the key aspects of the game: what went well, what could be done better etc.

Step 3 - Saving and Loading matches

Every point tracked in a match is automatically saved to a match file - so you can either analyse a match immediately or load it for later analysis. You could also send the match to someone else to analyse - for example a parent could track a match and e-mail the match file to the player's coach. Match files are stored in a folder (in 'My Documents/ProTracker Tennis' by default); file names consist of the two players' names plus the date. Match files produced on the Mobile device version can be loaded on the PC version or vice-versa.

To load a saved match, enter the players names and the date of the match and tap the 'Load >>>' button. Alternatively you can browse for the match you want from the Browse menu option. On the PC version you can also 'Open' the file itself (double-click it).

If you entered a Player's name incorrectly, you can correct it by Tapping on the name or by selecting the File > Re-Name Player menu option. After correcting the name tap on another area of the form to save the change.

An 'Analyze >>>' button will be displayed at the end of the match, or the Analyze menu option on the Score page can be tapped at any time. The following types of analysis are provided:

Stats - Detailed statistics can be shown, which can be filtered by Set or Player if required. Filtering by Player is useful in doubles matches to get the Serve %age etc for each partner. There are some options as to how Stats are counted: Serve Winners can be separated or they are counted with other Winners Forcing an Error; Forcing Error Winners can be separated or counted just as Winners; Pressing Errors (those caused by the player pressing the opponent) can be separated from Unforced Errors. Any custom stats that have been accumulated can be displayed using the 'Show Custom Stats' menu option.

Scatter Diagrams – Serves, Returns and Key Shot directions and outcomes can be viewed graphically. Optionally a line is drawn from the shot position to the bounce position, at which a coloured ball is shown (green for winner, red for out etc) - a key can be displayed if required. Filters let you select the player, shot, set and game score - so that you can home-in on particular aspects of the play. Useful information can be obtained from the displays, such as which shots are producing errors and where winners are coming from. Numerical Counts and %ages can be overlaid on top of the shots or separately. By default shots from each end are grouped together but they can be separated if required - for example, to illustrate the affect of a strong wind.
 

Momentum Chart - The flow of points in the match can be seen to pick out momentum swings and turning points. Often an incident during a match, such as a disputed line call or long deuce game, can change the outcome - this chart helps identify this and graphically illustrate it to the player. Each time the player named at the top left of the screen wins a point a line is drawn diagonally upwards, and downwards when the other player wins a point. The score and set times are shown along with any comments that were recorded, and the line colour reflects which player is serving. You can also Overlay shot outcomes on the chart; coloured balls as on the Scatter Diagrams are used. Serves and Returns are shown near the player names and key shots along the match flow line - these enable you to see at what stages in a match points are being decided by winners or by errors, and the impact of serves. By Tapping on the chart you will be taken to the Replay screen so you can see the details of the particular point that was played at that time.

Replay – The shots that have been tracked during each point are shown, with coloured balls used to indicate shot outcomes. You can step through each point in the match and set it to replay automatically.

Summary Text - A template is used on which text can be keyed to record a summary of the key aspects of the game: what went well, what could be done better etc. The template can be edited using the Settings form, so you can record the same factors for every match tracked.

Report – (this feature is only available on the PC version).
Printed reports on the match can be produced, click here to view an example match report. A set of pre--defined page layouts are provided or you can design your own layouts. Report pages consist of component forms such as the match score, stats, scatter diagrams, Momentum Graph and free text. The Report page format can be changed to match your printer using the File > Page Setup. To edit one of the individual pre-defined layouts, Click on the Edit menu and un-check the Lock Layout option; after doing this, when the mouse is moved over a form it is activated and you can change the options, move it or delete it. To add a new component form Click on Edit menu and select the form type you want to add - it will be positioned in the middle of the screen from where you can re-position it and set the options required. Free Text forms can be used for titles and other information - you can insert player names and other variable text by clicking the Options button and Add AutoText. To help with alignment a grid is used - after a form is moved it will 'snap' to the nearest grid point, if this option is active.
(TIP: prior to printing a report, check that each page is displayed as you need - aspects of the match may mean that the layout needs some alteration.)

On the PC Version you can compare matches easily by loading multiple ProTracker Tennis Windows - do this by selecting the New Window menu option. You can even open more than one Window onto the same match file, which might be useful to compare the players or a player's performance in different Sets. You can also Print individual screen images, rather than a report.

Player Profiles

You can keep information on Players using the Profiles facility. Tap on the Players Name or select File > Edit Player Profile. A Template profile is displayed on which text can be keyed-in. The Template can be edited using the Settings form so that the same factors can be recorded for each player.

Player profiles can be included in printed match reports using the PC version of the software.

Settings and Options

The Settings menu option lets you define the level of tracking you want to do and lets you set up information in advance. Various Tabs are provided:

Tracking Tab - you can decide how long you want Shot menus and Commentaries to appear for before an option is automatically tapped, and you can choose if you want to track Serve Returns. The individual shot outcomes can be selected using the 'Select Shot Options' button - this gives you a fine level of control of what information is captured during your matches. A tracking profile (Umpire, Parent, Player and Coach) can be chosen from the Options menu to provide a default set of values.

Data Tab - Player names, Court surfaces and their default color, Events and other items can be keyed-in - this will save time later and allow for mistakes to be corrected. After making a change, Tap the corresponding Save or Delete button as appropriate.

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Templates Tab - Comments and Custom Stats can be keyed-in and the templates used for Match Summaries and Player Profiles can be set up.

Advanced Tab - you can define the folder used for match files and the various other settings. On the PC version you can press the 'Sync Folder' button after you have established a shared data folder with your PDA - this way your match files and player profiles will be automatically synchronized. Other settings include the ball size to be shown and whether you want to see the summary stats and score after each game, or only at rest breaks.








 

During a match other options are available. In particular you can choose just to record the points in a match rather than the shots - to do this, select Track Score Only from the Options menu on the score screen. (TIP: this option can be used to catch up if you miss a few games)
 

Moving matches from the Mobile device to the PC
Before you can use the PC to analyze or print a report for a match tracked on the PocketPC, it needs to moved. To do this, Sync your Device to the PC then use Windows Explorer to browse to the match file, which you will find in the folder called 'ProTracker Tennis', drag the file and drop it into the 'ProTracker Tennis' folder in your Documents on your PC. You can then either open it with the PC version using the File menu, or just double-click on it.

If you want to Sync match files automatically every time you cradle your PocketPC, please follow the instructions here