Scouts and Scythes Manual: Condensed Edition

If you want to get a feel for what it means to be a Scout or Scythe, but are feeling a little overwhelmed by our extensive manual, we’ve created a condensed version!

 Overview

Duties of both Scouts and Scythes:

• Check cells for missing branches and/or mergers
• Flag cubes with missing branches/mergers
• Report mergers/missing branches to HQ and/or log them in the Scout’s Log

Scythes only:

• Remove mergers/add branches where needed

Getting Started

As as new Scout or Scythe you will have access to the following toolbar:

Let’s look at the “heat map.”  The drop-down menu gives the following options:

• None – What everyone sees in the overview
• Created – Shows which branches have been created most recently
• Confidence – Shows the relative confidence in the consensus
• Subconfidence – Shows which branches are mostly likely to disappear
• Scythe Vision – Shows where other players have flagged/made changes to the cell

How to search for mergers and missing branches

To begin your search for problem areas of a cell, first select a cell.  Once you have selected your cell, go into “Scythe Vision” to begin.

Once in Scythe Vision, select a branch to begin your investigation.  You will want to choose any branch that is turquoise (normal) to inspect.  Branches marked in other colors have already been inspected by other players.  More on those later.

You don’t need to check every cube on a branch. When you select a branch there are certain cubes that you can target.  Let’s take a look at a branch on the Spokes Neuron.

I’ve highlighted four main points that should be areas that need to be checked.  I chose these points primarily because they have jagged ends and look like they might continue. I didn’t choose one spot because it’s smooth and ended in a bulb-like structure.

Once you’ve found a spot that needs to be checked you will begin your investigation.  You will need the following keyboard commands to complete your inspection:

• Right-click + drag — rotates the cell
• Left-click + drag — moves the cell across the screen
• Scroll wheel — zooms in and out
• ALT + Right-click — centers the cell where you click
• SHIFT + Right-click — selects a cube in the spot where you click

Select a cube to inspect.  You can select a cube using SHIFT + Right-click, or by typing a cube’s ID into the search box and pressing the “jump” button.  Once you have selected a cube you will see the following toolbar at the bottom of your screen:

This is the toolbar available for Scythes.  Scouts see a similar toolbar, but they do not have the “complete” buttons.

The toolbar shows you the cube ID, what weight the cube is, and how many children and ancestors the cube has.  Any cube weight 3+ on a Mystery cell, or 2+ on a Starburst is ready to be inspected.  Cubes below these weights are still growing.

Once you hit “Inspect” you will be taken inside your selected cube.

If you are a Scout you can only look at the cube.  If you see any changes that need to be made press “flag” and the cube will turn yellow in the overview.

If you are a Scythe you can make any needed changes (adding or removing segments) to the cube and then hit the “reap” button.  This will add your changes to the cube’s consensus, and turn the cube orange in the overview.

Using the Scout’s Log

The Scout’s Log is a vital part of Scouting and Scything.  This is where players help each other out, and alert admins to any problems.  You can record any problem cubes in the Scout’s Log, and report any major problems (such as large mergers) to HQ via email — support@eyewire.org

Once you open the Scout’s Log, you should go to the ‘New Scouts’ tab.  Until you are used to using the Scouts log and promoted out, you should log everything on the ‘New Scouts’ tab, no matter what cell it is for.  This makes it easier for you to learn from the other Scouts and Scythes and you’ll get some valuable feedback.  After you get the hang of the Scouts Log you should start logging cubes and problems on the appropriate page.  You can search for your cell ID in the tabs at the bottom of the log.  Once you find your cell, click the tab to open that page.

Enter your information in the correct boxes of the log.  Under the “Username” column, Scouts will enter their name in parentheses and Scythes will enter their names as normal.  Multiple players may work together to fix a problem cube.  Screenshots may be uploaded to image sites such as imgur, and then linked to the Scout’s Log.

Once the issue in a cube has been remedied, the player who fixed it will change it’s status to “good” in the drop-down menu. If an Admin fixes it, they will usually write a comment in the “Admin comments” box.

That’s the short version!  For a more in-depth detailed explaination of Scouting and Scything, please refer to the original Scouts and Scythes Manual.

If you are interested in becoming a Scout or Scythe, you can request those promotions here.