Okay folks, there are a lot of questions about whether we can use Draft Buddy on an iPad. It seems we might have a half-decent answer to this question. While Draft Buddy still needs Excel to run (and Excel does not run directly on an iPad), there is a service we've become aware of called OnLive Desktop that lets you run Excel files "in a cloud" (meaning over the Internet) which you can access and modify on your iPad... and I think Android tablet as well.
I tried the service and it worked well for a short test. I'm going to continue to test it out, but I wanted to post instructions here for those interested in trying it themselves.
1. Go to the App Store and install OnLive Desktop on your iPad. This is a free app.
Note for the Canucks in the crowd, and perhaps other non-U.S. residents, it wasn't available in the Canadian iTunes Store. I had to backdoor myself into the U.S. iTunes Store to get the app.
2. Go to their website at http://desktop.onlive.com and sign up for a free account. They have some pay subscription services, starting at $4.99/month, cancel anytime, but I've just gone with the free version so far.
3. Once you are registered, login and upload a copy of Draft Buddy to your OnLive account. They give you lots of room, so size won't be a problem.
4. Start the app on your iPad, login and you'll see a virtual desktop. Click on "Documents" in the upper-right and you'll see the Draft Buddy file you uploaded. Click the file once and Excel will start, opening Draft Buddy. Use your finger as the mouse and go to work.
Check my next post for experiences and early suggestions.
Run Draft Buddy on your iPad
Started by Mike MacGregor, Jul 10 2012 09:04 AM
8 replies to this topic
#2
Mike MacGregor
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Posted 10 July 2012 - 09:19 AM
EXPERIENCES / SUGGESTIONS:
* The first few days I tried this, OnLive kept telling me my Internet connection or network connection was not good enough. I would often get to the point of loading Draft Buddy on the iPad, but then a network error occurred, the app would test my connection and kick me out. I use Netflix quite a bit, download big files, etc. with no problem, but this still didn't come as a huge surprise since I've felt for some time my modem/router is old and should be updated. The OnLive documentation does say you need a steady, stable and fast connection.
* I contacted my ISP and swapped out my old modem/router (which I rent - probably stupid, but I do) for a new one. Now I have with the same level of Internet service, a connection over twice as fast. Should have done that sooner! Tried OnLive last night and didn't get the network error. To check your connection speed, try http://www.speedtest.net
* From what I can tell, you're still going to want to do all of your league settings and set up your cheatsheets on a laptop or desktop. Then upload the file to do the drafting. I think it might be too onerous to input the settings and scoring on the iPad. Also, I didn't try "Compiling Cheatsheets" or "Update Projections" on the iPad. In theory, you could use Draft Buddy even if you don't have Excel, doing everything on the iPad through OnLive, but I would be skeptical it would work at this time.
* Someone suggested to me trying a stylus on the iPad, because if you get to the "point" of trying to touch drop-down boxes with your finger, it can be tricky, depending how fat-fingered you are.
* The file you are using is the one uploaded to OnLive, so it does not connect to your home computer and modify that file. You can save the changes to the OnLive version and download it later by accessing your account on the website. You can also save multiple versions with different names. In fact, it seems to automatically save versions for you online as you are using it, which is pretty handy.
* You're still going to want to really test this thing a lot before trusting it for your draft. If your draft is not at your house, you need to somehow test the internet connection where you are going to be drafting from. We've always told people you don't need an internet connection to use Draft Buddy at your draft. This idea would clearly change that answer. You need one, and a good one.
* No telling how reliable the OnLive service is, and particularly the free subscription version. Again, test it, test it, test it if you are serious about using this.
* I have an original iPad. My battery length is pretty good, but say I'm at a 3.5.-4 hour draft of straight use... hmm... not sure. I've probably never used the thing for that long consecutively. I'd bring a charger and sit next to a plug.
* The sound effects don't work, well, because the sound files aren't there. I'm not sure if that would change if I upload them. I'll try it later.
* You can get rid of the green-triangles that indicate error checking (and we know there are no errors in the formulas), by clicking Formulas > Error Checking > Options, and then unchecking all of the Error Checking Rules in the bottom section of the window that pops up. I would uncheck all of them except the first one.
That is all I have for now. If anyone else tries it, please chime in with your experiences. Even with all of the caveats, this is a very exciting development.
* The first few days I tried this, OnLive kept telling me my Internet connection or network connection was not good enough. I would often get to the point of loading Draft Buddy on the iPad, but then a network error occurred, the app would test my connection and kick me out. I use Netflix quite a bit, download big files, etc. with no problem, but this still didn't come as a huge surprise since I've felt for some time my modem/router is old and should be updated. The OnLive documentation does say you need a steady, stable and fast connection.
* I contacted my ISP and swapped out my old modem/router (which I rent - probably stupid, but I do) for a new one. Now I have with the same level of Internet service, a connection over twice as fast. Should have done that sooner! Tried OnLive last night and didn't get the network error. To check your connection speed, try http://www.speedtest.net
* From what I can tell, you're still going to want to do all of your league settings and set up your cheatsheets on a laptop or desktop. Then upload the file to do the drafting. I think it might be too onerous to input the settings and scoring on the iPad. Also, I didn't try "Compiling Cheatsheets" or "Update Projections" on the iPad. In theory, you could use Draft Buddy even if you don't have Excel, doing everything on the iPad through OnLive, but I would be skeptical it would work at this time.
* Someone suggested to me trying a stylus on the iPad, because if you get to the "point" of trying to touch drop-down boxes with your finger, it can be tricky, depending how fat-fingered you are.
* The file you are using is the one uploaded to OnLive, so it does not connect to your home computer and modify that file. You can save the changes to the OnLive version and download it later by accessing your account on the website. You can also save multiple versions with different names. In fact, it seems to automatically save versions for you online as you are using it, which is pretty handy.
* You're still going to want to really test this thing a lot before trusting it for your draft. If your draft is not at your house, you need to somehow test the internet connection where you are going to be drafting from. We've always told people you don't need an internet connection to use Draft Buddy at your draft. This idea would clearly change that answer. You need one, and a good one.
* No telling how reliable the OnLive service is, and particularly the free subscription version. Again, test it, test it, test it if you are serious about using this.
* I have an original iPad. My battery length is pretty good, but say I'm at a 3.5.-4 hour draft of straight use... hmm... not sure. I've probably never used the thing for that long consecutively. I'd bring a charger and sit next to a plug.
* The sound effects don't work, well, because the sound files aren't there. I'm not sure if that would change if I upload them. I'll try it later.
* You can get rid of the green-triangles that indicate error checking (and we know there are no errors in the formulas), by clicking Formulas > Error Checking > Options, and then unchecking all of the Error Checking Rules in the bottom section of the window that pops up. I would uncheck all of them except the first one.
That is all I have for now. If anyone else tries it, please chime in with your experiences. Even with all of the caveats, this is a very exciting development.
#3
rwren
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Posted 11 July 2012 - 07:18 AM
The way this appears, you don't have to have Excel on your home computer because you are not accessing your pc from our iPad, you are accessing Excel from a cloud server. Is this correct?
#4
Mike MacGregor
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Posted 11 July 2012 - 08:30 AM
That is correct. That is why I'm saying that in theory, you could run everything on the iPad and you don't need to have Excel. Excel is provided by your OnLive Desktop account. Of course that would mean doing all the settings and scoring and such on the iPad, making sure Compile Cheatsheets and Update Projections work, etc.
#5
rwren
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Posted 15 July 2012 - 03:20 PM
Just don't know if I can trust it in a live draft situation. 
#6
Mike MacGregor
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Posted 15 July 2012 - 09:22 PM
Definitely agree. I would have to do a lot of testing before feeling comfortable. And figure for a 3+ hour draft, not sure I'd ever be 100% confident. Gives me hope we will get there sooner than later though.
#7
rwren
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Posted 07 August 2012 - 04:25 PM
Has anyone tried this with the paid version? I have only tried with the free version and it freezes up every time.
#8
Mike MacGregor
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Posted 07 August 2012 - 08:30 PM
Haven't tried it with the paid version yet. Maybe I should give it a go... when I have time! 
#9
rwren
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Posted 12 August 2012 - 05:39 PM
Another alternative to utilizing the iPad would be to convert the worksheets from Draft Buddy to pdf and then get an app called pdfpen from the app store which allows you to mark up PDFs highlight etc..
. I'm thinking of using another app for drafting and use draft buddy as my cheatsheet. I love the tiers and can't live without them.
. I'm thinking of using another app for drafting and use draft buddy as my cheatsheet. I love the tiers and can't live without them.
