What is stratboard
stratboard.com is the central hub to the stratboard application which is essentially a real-time internet based stratboard for individuals or teams wanting to create strategies that they can use and develop over and over again.

What makes our stratboards so unique is that you can have multiple users (team members) connected to your stratboard at any one time, allowing you to share and discuss your tactics or manoeuvres with your team, squad or clan mates in true real-time.

The name stratboard has been adopted as the naming standard for our gaming stratboards because in the gaming community the term strats is referred to as strategies or tactics for many online games played across the world. And with that the word board comes from the term stratboard bringing you stratboard.

Stratboards have been developed specifically for the gamers by gamers, and its sole purpose is to improve online game play and teamwork.

The image below shows what the default stratboard looks like when connected to it:



As you can see, it’s pretty basic with a set of common markers and a blank screen.
This is where strat packs come in. You can attach strat packs (which are simply gaming templates) to your stratboards at anytime.

Strat Packs are what makes the stratboard extremely useful for a specific game title, by giving you the right set of markers and overhead maps on your stratboard allowing you to create strats meaningfull for the game you want to create them for.

Furthermore, you can switch strat packs at a click of a button anytime for the game you need through your team management page. (which is discussed later).

Here’s a list of the games we currently have strat packs for:-



We aim to produce strat packs for all the popular online games.

And here’s some screenshots of what the stratpacks do for the stratboard

Battlefield Bad Company 2



As you can see, this stratpack turns the stratboard into a Battlefield Bad Company 2 Strat system providing all the markers and overhead maps images straight from the game.

Any strats saved using this pack are saved with a proceeding [BC2] so you know that the strat was developed with this strat pack.

Here’s another example

Call of Duty 4



This stratpack turns the stratboard into a Call of Duty 4 Strat system providing all the markers and overhead maps images straight from the game.

Any strats saved using this pack are saved with a proceeding [COD4] so you know that the strat was developed with this strat pack.

You can see all the other strat pack screenshots by clicking on the info button next to the strat pack on our home page.


How Stratboards work
The stratboard application is hosted across 2 application servers located in 2 separate data centres, one in the USA and one in the UK. They are both high end servers connected directly to the internet backbone and backed up every night.

The stratboard engine itself runs on the servers, so when you and your team connect to your stratboard most of the application is actually being run on the servers themselves. This is how we keep all users connected to the stratboard in sync.
The image below shows how this works.



Above we have 8 users connected to a team stratboard, all spread over the world in different geographical locations. The user with the pen draws a red line on the stratboard canvas, as the user draws on the canvas all the other users see what the user is drawing. They can at anytime also draw on the stratboard canvas as well. This is what we call real-time collaboration.

The stratboard engine is built using java technologies and the client side uses the flash player


Security Model
The stratboard hosted solution uses a 2 tier security system, one for joining a team and the other to connect to the team stratboard.

Team Security
Before a team is created on stratboard.com, one of the mandatory fields that must be filled in is the team join password field. This is the password that other members will need to use to be able to join your team. Generally a team leader or co leader would create a team and provide their team members with the password to join it on stratboard.com. This password can be changed anytime by the leaders or team managers through the team management page.

Stratboard Security
During the team creation phase, a unique stratboard is automatically assigned to the new team,

When the creation phase is complete, the team owner (leader or co-Leader) will receive an email containing information about their new team and stratboard. Included in the email is a predefined admin password for the stratboard. We recommend that this password is not to be given out to any team members apart from co-leaders or tactics admins.

When connecting to the stratboard for the first time we strongly advise the owner to use the admin password when prompted (or pre-enter it on a gateway before connecting) to gain access to the admin features of the new stratboard.

The first thing the owner should do when connected is set up a user password to take advantage of the 2nd tier security system. This is done by navigating the admin dropdown menu and clicking “Board Info” (which will display the update board information screen as below)



From here the owner can set the user password or change the default admin password to a simpler one to remember. Simply enter the info you wish to change and click ok for the new settings to be applied. (This admin feature is only shown if the admin password is used to connect to the stratboard)

Leaving the user password blank will allow members who have joined your team to connect to the board without having to enter a password. (This is why we advise you to set a user password when the board is 1st created) That way you can ensure that only the right people are granted access.

Leaving any password blank on your stratboard can potentially compromise your strats.


Team Groups
We have spent some time setting permissions to the stratboard to eliminate the hassle team leaders or tactics managers have when members play with the board during strat sessions. This is achieved through group permissioning.

In total, there are 4 groups you can add members to:

Leaders Group
Members have complete control over team and strat session. An important thing to note about this group is that leaders cannot be removed from a team straight off. They must be demoted to a lower ranking group first.

When the team is first created, the creator is automatically added to the leader group of the team. This gives them complete control over the team and the stratboard.

Members of this group will see the “Manage” button on the gateways and client.

Tactics Management Group
The tactics management group allows the member to see the admin controls on the stratboard, If they have the admin password then they can access the admin functions to get complete control of the strat session.

Team Management Group
This group has control over the team admin functions; members in this group can manage team players and modify the team settings through the team management interface.

Members of this group will see the “Manage” button on the gateways and client.

Members of this group do not have access to the admin functions on the stratboard and have access to the following controls:-

Menus
Export the strat image
Print Strat
Load team chat client
Open the manual
Open about us

Operations Menu
Navigation controls have now been removed.

Stratboard Canvas
Scrollbars and right click functions have been completely removed.

Members Group
This is the default group new members are placed into.

Member’s access to the team management area is restricted to view only

Also, members of this group only have access to the following controls on the stratboards:
Menus
Export the strat image
Print Strat
Load team chat client
Open the manual
Open about us

Operations Menu
Navigation controls have now been removed.

Stratboard Canvas
Scrollbars and right click functions have been completely removed.

Viewing your status
You can view your status anytime by clicking “My Teams” on the nav menu or by looking at your status on the gateway and client.

Clicking “My Teams” will bring you to your team’s page where you can see the teams you are a member of.

As you can see below, here’s the status of our demo user who is a member of 2 teams.



TB-Test Board #1 - User is the leader of this team.
Tbboardtest 1 – User is only a member of this team

This means our demo user has full control over the first team, but only has standard member access to the second team.

So, if you want to have a multi user planning sessions without the hassle of members messing with the board then you can simply move them into the members group for the duration of the session then move them back to their original group once the session is finished.

This will ensure leaders or tactics managers get complete control.



How to change a members group
By navigating to your team management page (via the gateway or by clicking "My Teams"), you will see at the bottom of the screen under "Team Management" the members of your team. (as below)



This is where you can change the players access level or kick them completely form the team.

Clicking on manage will bring up the player management page for that player. (as below)



Now you can change the status that the member should have in your team by selecting the group you want the player to be a member. Clicking update will make the necessary changes and let you know what been updated.

A quick note about kicking players:-
Players that are set to inactive cannot be kicked from your team, first you must retain their active state by clicking on the "Manage" button again, and by setting the "Active" state back to Active and clicking update.

Only now can the player be kciked from the team.

Another thing to remember here is that team leaders cannot be kicked form any team. They must be demoted first by another leader then kicked.


Getting setup
First you must create an account on stratboard.com; you only need to enter your username, password and a valid email to get started.

After you register you’ll automatically receive an email with a link that you need to click to authenticate yourself. Once authenticated you’ll be able to log onto stratboard.com

When you log on at stratboard.com you will be directed to the member area where you’ll see the Navigation Menu (as below)



Here’s a quick view of what the buttons do (hovering your mouse over the icons display the names):-



From here you can either create a team or join an existing one.

Creating a team
To create a team, click on your “My Teams” Navigation menu icon
Under the “Create New Team” heading, fill in the new team name.
This will take you to your team configuration page that contains the following attributes:
Name (Your team name)
Active (Setting this attribute to no will stop your team from being displayed on the dropdown list)
Tag (your team tag)
Leader (Creator name will appear here)
Join Password (The team join password used by other members to join your team)
Board Team Logo (This is an optional field where you can assign a logo to your team page)
Strat Pack (Strat Pack assigned to your stratboard. This can be changed anytime)
Logo (Team logo shown on your team page)
Website (Team website)
Achievements (Achievements to show off your team)
Country (Residence of team)
Recruiting (Set to yes or no to show other members that you are looking for played)
Recruiting Message (Message to show other members if you are recruiting players)

Enter the details of your team as you wish and hit update to complete the team creation phase. You will be presented with a message advising that your profile has been updated.

You will also receive an email with your team and stratboard details (as mentioned earlier)

You can now connect to your new stratboard through the gateway or client and configure it as you wish.

Once configuration is done, you should send the team join password and the stratboard user password (if created) to your team members so they can join in the sessions.

Joining a team
(It is assumed that you already have a stratboard.com account and are logged into the site)

Click the “My Teams” icon where you’ll be taken to your team page. Under the Join Team heading, select the team you wish to join from the drop down list of teams and input the correct team join password and click join.

If the password with correct then you will be shown a welcome to your team message.

Clicking continue will take you to the members area on stratboard.com where you will now see you team stratboard on the gateway. (if you are using the client then your team will show when the client is refreshed)

You can now join your team stratboard. (if the leader has assigned a user password then you must enter the password on the gateway or when prompted before joining the stratboard.

Now you know how to create/join a team and permission your members, let’s now run through the user interface.


Stratboard user interface
Below is an image showing the different areas of interest to you on the stratboard.



Menu System
The menu system consists of several dropdown menus, FILE, ADMIN, EDIT, VIEW and HELP
Which allow you to access the many features of your stratboard.

An example of one is the “Load Map” menu item within the file dropdown menu.

This will bring up another window with a list of default map overheads for the pack you have applied to your stratboard.

For more information on how these features work, have a look at the manual under the help menu.

Markers and Tools
This section displays your stratboard toolset and markers. The markers will change depending on the strat pack you have applied to your stratboard.

The tools however will basically stay the same on all strat packs. These tools allow you to manipulate your stratboard canvas.

Stratboard canvas
The stratboard canvas is the main work area where strats are created.

Any changes to this area will be updated on everyone’s screen connected to the stratboard at that time.

Strat Text notes – (stratboard planner only)
Leaders or members of the tactics management group will be able to input strat text notes on the stratboard that will be saved when they save the strat out. Once saved, strat notes can be updated without having to save the strat out again by the leader or tactics management.

Standard members do not have access to update the strat text. They can only refresh them if they have been updated during the session.

New members connecting to the stratboard will automatically see the updated strat notes.

Admin Controls – (stratboard planner only)
Admin controls allow team leaders or tactics managers to disable certain features on the stratboard to control the session.

Note: If you want to use the admin features below then you must be logged onto the stratboard with the admin password.

Disable Draw: (Stops members from drawing on the stratboard during the session)
Disable Load: (Stops members from loading new strats onto the strat board during the session)
Disable Clear: (Stops members from clearing the stratboard during the session)

The above features are either turned on or off. (the image below shows the disable draw activated)



Gaming News
The news tickers give you the latest info on the gametype you are currently using on your stratboard.

Updates Ticker
This ticker shows you the latest updates fron stratboard.com

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Connecting to your stratboard
Gateways
Stratboard gateways allow you and your team to connect directly to your stratboard from your own websites and are very easy to implement. Gateways use a logon system to authenticate the user and display the available stratboards that the user is a member of.

Our main web gateway is displayed on the home page at stratboard.com; alternatively you may see gateways on many sites as member sites use them to connect.

Below are some examples of our themed gateways that you can use on your own websites:

Modern Warfare 2 center and side gateways:



Call of Duty 4 center and side gateways



Operational Modes
You can connect to your stratboard from the web gateways like the ones above that are hosted on stratboard.com or member sites, or from the client (which is described later in this article)

When connecting to a stratboard, you have the option to connect in 3 different modes by selected the required mode from the dropdown list (default mode is planning)

Planning Mode
This mode is generally used by the tactics admins or leader so they can create the strats ready for members to load them up.

The image below shows an example of what the planning mode stratboard looks like:-



(Image taken from the cod4 v2 strat pack)
As you can see, this mode pretty much shows everything.

Trainer Mode
The trainer mode is geared more towards training sessions where leaders and members have a cut down version of the stratboard with all the controls available.

The image below shows an example of what the training mode stratboard looks like:-



(Image taken from the cod4 v2 strat pack)
As you can see, this mode displays the stratboard in a much more slim lined mode for simplicity.

Match Mode
Match mode displays only the bare essentials of the stratboard that is mainly used during game play or matches.

The image below shows an example of what the Match mode stratboard looks like:-



(Image taken from the cod4 v2 strat pack)
As you can see, this mode displays the stratboard in a very much cut down state..

Stratboard Client



The downloadable stratboard client makes it easy to connect directly to your team stratboard and team management area straight from your desktop without having to open up a web browser.

Some of the many benefits of using the client include:

User Experience Improvements
The client automatically matches your account details against our databases and provides you with one click access to manage your team or connect to your stratboard application.

Menu System
The redesigned menu system is now embedded into the application itself, allowing us to increase the overall size of your stratboard work area.

Performance Increase
.Net framework technologies allow us to improve overall performance with the Stratboard engine by eliminating the additional web browser components that normally load when you launch a browser, thus providing you with a much faster working environment.

The stratboard client works exactly the same way the gateways do and adhere to the same permissions.


Chat System
Team members who connect to the team stratboard will automatically sign into a team chat system in the background. So, if they don't have a team voice comms then they can simply open the team chat system and chat to members directly.



The chat system is accessed from the VIEW dropdown menu

That concludes our overview of the stratboard stratboard system. We hope you enjoy using it.