Course planning with Condes 10

Condes stores all the course planning data for an orienteering event in a Condes event file (a WCD file).

In Condes, you create a collection of controls. Each control holds a complete configuration including location on the map, control description symbols, punch pattern etc.

Then you create one or more courses.  You design a course by adding control codes for the controls that the course will visit.

You can design the course by “drawing” it in the graphical editor, or you can enter control codes via the keyboard.  The focal point in Condes is the Course Layout Editor, where you see the map in the background, and you overlay control circles onto the map, and you connect the control circles to form courses.

Finally, you can create (optionally) one or more classes.  More classes (or categories, or age groups) can run the same course, so you configure each class to run one of the courses that you have created.

Any of the above steps can be done in any order, and you can change your mind and re-configure as often as you like.

Once you are done with your courses, Condes prints them on a color printer, or you export a PDF file that you send to a professional print shop.

Course Planning

In the Course Layout Editor, the map is shown in the background, and you design your courses on the screen by drawing on top of the map.

The Course Layout Editor has three basic “modes”:   Edit controls, Edit courses, and Browse courses.

In Edit controls mode you can add new control circles, move existing control circles, and reconfigure existing controls.  The controls created in this mode are available when you form courses.  A toolbar lets you select tools such as “new control”, “new start”, “new finish”.  So, Condes helps you keep track of the control sites.  When you move a control, all the courses that use the control will automatically use the new location.

In Edit courses mode, you can add new courses, add or delete controls to/from existing courses etc.
When you create a new course, it will be “empty”, ie. it will not have any controls.   With this course, you can use the “insert controls” tool. This tool lets you “draw” the course by pointing to existing controls (created in “Edit controls” mode, or creating new ones by pointing to the location on the map where the control should be.  An empty course starts with a rubber band between start and finish, and you pull the rubber band to the control you want to insert. When you click on the control, it will be inserted, and the rubber band moves so that you can insert the next control.

In Browse courses mode, you can see multiple courses at the same time.

Maps

Condes uses a digital map file.  This can be an OCAD file,  or a bitmap file (JPG/BMP/GIF/PNG/TIF) exported from Adobe Illustrator, or it can be a Windows Metafile (WMF) file.

Graphics Layout

With Condes, you can create your own graphics layout without modifying the map file.  You can add graphics coming from an external file, excerpts of the map, texts, logos, frames, masked areas etc.

You can add standard texts and free format texts.  A standard text is for example: course name, event name, map scale…  A Free format text is anything you type

For external graphics, bitmap files (BMP/JPG/GIF/PNG/TIF), Windows metafiles (WMF), and OCAD files (OCD) are supported.

Multiple Canvases

An event file has 5 “canvas”-es that you can use in different ways.

The same controls and courses can be shown on different maps, one on each canvas.

  • If the courses extend across two maps, you can place the two maps on each their canvas.
  • If you use two different maps at different map scales, you can place them on two canvases and reuse the same controls and courses on both canvases.

Control Descriptions

can be printed on the map or separately, as pictorial or textual

Condes supports:

  • Individual courses (Foot-o, Ski-o, MTB-o, Trail-O)
  • Loops (butterflies and diamonds)
  • Relay courses (extended FARSTA)
  • Composing relay teams
  • Calculates course lengths and control site loads
  • Shows attack angles for each control
  • Punch patterns for pin punches and Emit backup slips

Course Data and GPS Export

Condes exports course data to event administration systems for punch checking.
The format is

  • IOF standard, XML based, or
  • CSV format

Condes also exports course data to a GPS application for route choice display.
The format is

  • based on KML/KMZ, which includes the map, or
  • based on GPX – which does not include the map

Reports

Condes can print listings of the information that is stored for an orienteering event:

  • All controls
  • All courses
  • All classes
  • Control/course relationship
  • Relay course variations
  • Suggested relay team combinations
  • Relay team compositions