All you ever wanted to know about Scythe Complete

Scythe complete is a new feature that allows Scythes to check over cells and declare when branches have been completed.

Declaring cells complete is one of the most important jobs we have in Eyewire.  Admins spend approximately 15-20 hours completing each cell, depending on the cell type.  That’s a lot of time!  With your help we can expedite this process to make sure new cells are going live as soon as the old ones are done.

Here are some important notes to remember when using Scythe Complete:

• You don’t have to check every cube, but you should check a lot of them.  A completely smooth section could be skipped, but any branch with a nub, bouton, or questionable content should be checked.
• Always check the end of every branch before you declare it complete.
• Check cubes by entering them using the “Inspect” button.  Doing an overview check for a questionable cube is not enough.

The most important part about using Scythe Complete is doing a thorough job.  We would rather have you work slowly and accurately than quickly and sloppily.  In the end, it will save time, because when cubes are marked complete without a thorough check, an admin will have to do a re-check later on.

*If every Scythe spent even 15-20 minutes a day using Scythe Complete, it would help us immensely.  To reward you for your hard work we will post the name of all the Scythes that helped us complete a cell when we announce it as complete.

Logistics

Every time you use Scythe Complete you’ll want to clock into the Scythe Complete timesheet in the Scout’s Log.  You will enter your name, cell number, date, and start time.  When you finish marking you will enter your end time and any notes.  Please mark your time in EST.  The time and date EST can be found at the top of the spreadsheet (thanks nkem!).  

Now it’s time to get started!  Log into Eyewire.  In your menu you will see two buttons.  One marked “Complete Ancestors” and one marked “Complete Children”.

Pick a branch to inspect and get started.  Any branch where the majority of the cubes are above weight 3 is ready to be checked.  Start at the very end of the branch, or the very beginning (near the cell body).  It is good to start near the cell body if you believe the branch has not yet finished growing.  Check a few cubes from at the end of the branch.  If they are all complete and no changes need to be made, select the cube furthest from the end of the branch (or from the cell body if that is where you started) and declare it complete.  If you started at the end of the branch click “Complete Children.” If you started near the cell body click “Complete Ancestors.”

Click “Complete Children” to mark all of the children of a selected cube as complete.  Click the button again to uncomplete all children.

Click “Complete Ancestors” to mark all of the ancestors of a selected cube as complete.  Click the button again to uncomplete all ancestors.

As you can see in the images above, the Scythe Complete buttons turn a portion of cell light purple.  You may also notice some branches marked in dark purple.  You do not need to check any branches that are dark purple, as they have already been completed by an admin.  An admin may also override your Scythe Complete color with their Admin Complete.

If you find a cube that has an issue (missing branch, merger) please flag it and add it to the Scouts’ log as you normally would.

Those are the basics!  Here are a few more tips to help you get started:

• You can use the “Show Ancestors” and “Show Children” buttons to see all children/ancestors of a given cube.  This gives you a preview of what will be marked “complete” when you use the Complete Children/Ancestors buttons.  Don’t forget to “Hide Ancestors/Children” when you want to see the branch you have completed.
• If you want to complete only the middle of the branch:  Click “Complete Children” to turn the the branch purple.  Then move further up the branch and click “Uncomplete Children” to turn the very end of the branch back to the normal turquoise color.
• To prevent completion overlap, make sure to log which cell you are completing in the Scouts’ Log.  You may also note which branch you are working on in the comments section.  Another good way to claim a branch is to begin marking it “complete” as soon as you have checked the first few cubes on your branch.  This shows other players and admins that someone has started checking.  (Thanks to galarun and susi for the suggestions!)

Things to watch out for:

• Uncompleting Ancestors/Children will uncomplete everything marked Scythe Complete on the branch, even branches marked by another player.  Be careful!
• Branches that have been reaped, or flagged by a Scythe/Scout will not be effected by Scythe Complete.  Neither will any branch marked Admin Complete (dark purple).
• When a branch is very close to another branch, part of the adjacent branch may be flagged as Scythe Complete.  This can be tricky with cells that have dense arbors with many branches. There is not much you can do about this issue, just be aware and do your best!  If you are working on a branch that may have been marked partially complete due to this issue, please still check the “completed” part.

We appreciate your help using Scythe Complete.  It is a very important feature to Eyewire that greatly helps our efficiency when used correctly!  FOR SCIENCE!