wgeoff

Many of you post your records on this website in the form of lists of species and numbers. It would save a great deal of time and effort (yours and mine) if we could use these lists directly as input into our annual records without me having to ask you to compile a separate file.
So I have been experimenting with taking records direct from the website and converting them to the form required for the annual record.

I find this is quite easy to do PROVIDED you use a simple standard way of submitting your lists.
All I am asking is that you put the English name of the species first AT THE BEGINNING of each line, and follow this with the number of birds or any other comment you wish to make. So the format should be like this

Daurian Redstart 3 all males
Red-flanked Bluetail 1 first winter but difficult to find
Japanese Thrush male - if no mention of a number, I will assume 1

If you follow this format, I can take the website record and fairly easily process it into the required Excel format. I can take the date, location and observer name from other parts of the record. Very simple for you and me, and I will not need to ask you to reproduce your records in another form at the end of the year.

Note, the following are NOT correct

3 Daurian Redstart all males – why? The name should come first
Male Daurian Redstart – why? The name should come first
  Daurian Redstart 3 – why not correct? NO SPACES AT THE BEGINNING OF THE LINE please, the line should start with the first character of the English name

Please note, I am not attempting to degrade the literary merit of individual reports. I hope Mr Tai will still continue to stimulate us with his artistic creations and I will continue use a report style because I have another way of keeping my own records. But many of you use the list format, so why not save us both a great deal of effort by using a standard format – English name first, at the beginning of the line.

Thanks

PS since most individuals have not used this method consistently up to now, I still need your 2012 records in the conventional form (by end February please). The new method will apply from now onwards IF you follow the simple rule –

for lists of species, put the English name first at the beginning of the line

[ Last edited by wgeoff at 9/03/2013 07:36 ]

wgeoff

Reference my request to follow a simple way of recording daily lists on this website, I attach a copy of those I have collected from the website in January, converted into the format we use to maintain our historical records.

http://www.geoffwelch46.com/2013Website_Jan.xls

This took me less than one hour to prepare using automatic processes, since most people are now using the format I requested, which is

English name followed by number or other comments.

My only problems have been with incorrect English name, the following being common errors

forgetting to use a hyphen '-' e.g. yellow browed warbler (incorrect) instead of yellow-browed warbler (correct)
spelling - Daurian Redstart not Durian Redstart (Matthew). Dylan - grey is spelt 'grey' not 'gray' (is he an English teacher or something?)

Thanks

[ Last edited by wgeoff at 3/02/2013 18:13 ]

subbuteo

Thanks, Geoff.  Possibly e-birder automatic lists or my bi-lingual ability.  Duly chastised, noted and I prostrate myself at the alter of the English language.



Dylan

PS altar (tee-hee)

wgeoff

Oh yes. Must be the American influence. Beware e-birder.

thinfor

Well done, Geoff.  Hope I can send my bird records this year on time.

wgeoff

I am continuing to collect 2013 records direct from the website from those individuals who publish lists, the latest set for February is here

http://www.geoffwelch46.com/2013Website_Feb.xls

Please continue to submit your lists in the format

English name followed by number or other comments.

Forgetting to use a hyphen '-' e.g. yellow browed warbler (incorrect) instead of yellow-browed warbler (correct) is still the most common error, followed by incorrect names in the form of either a shortened form of the name e.g. YBW or spelling errors.
The automated software I'm using can't recognise the bird name with missing hyphens or spelling mistakes so I have to make these corrections manually.

[ Last edited by wgeoff at 9/03/2013 08:10 ]

wgeoff

I am continuing to collect 2013 records direct from the website from those individuals who publish lists, the latest set for January to March 2013 is here

http://www.geoffwelch46.com/2013Website_All.xls

Please continue to submit your lists in the format

English name followed by number or other comments.

Forgetting to use a hyphen '-' e.g. yellow browed warbler (incorrect) instead of yellow-browed warbler (correct) is still the most common error, followed by incorrect names in the form of either a shortened form of the name e.g. YBW or spelling errors.
The automated software I'm using can't recognise the bird name with missing hyphens or spelling mistakes so I have to make these corrections manually.

I am also collecting individual records where they are significant, and these are here

http://www.geoffwelch46.com/2013Records_Website.xls

I will publish both these lists each quarter in future, the next one will be from January to June 2013

[ Last edited by wgeoff at 9/04/2013 09:08 ]

thinfor

Hi Geoff, thanks for your effort again.

From your significant records excel, there is a place called 大樹灣 where the hoopoe is found.  FYI, the place in English is Tai Shue Wan, the minor exit/entrance of Ocean Park at the end of Shum Wan Road.