expat.dyndns.org

Head over to the AFL Widget page to get the latest version.

Version 1.5.1 introduces the option of selecting between 3 different sources for ladder data:

• afl.com.au
• sportal.com.au (default)
• finalsiren.com

This is due to the fact that the AFL keeps changing their website faster than I can fix the widget!

Sportal.com.au is the default for now because the AFL site isn’t showing any ladder data as of 26/03/07, but it might come back on line one day.

Having 2 or 3 different sources for the ladder data makes it less likely that the widget will break if one of the sites decides to change format because it is unlikely that all the sites will change at the same time.

So let me know if there are any problems with the new widget, once again, it may need tweaking once the season starts later this week!

EDIT: I have a new version in the works, it allows you to select between 3 different sources for the widget to use for fetching the ladder data. I’m hedging my bets on the fact that it is hightly unlikely that all 3 sources change their website layouts at the same time! It’s going through the final stages of testing and should be out in time for the first round.

No sooner do I release a new “fixed” version of the widget for season 2007 then the bloody AFL go and change things on me again!

The AFL Ladder Widget v1.5.0 has been updated for 2007 to use a new ladder data link from the AFL Website. This link was active during development of the widget. However soon after releasing it, the link has stopped producing valid data, resulting in the “Error with Data� message reported by the widget.

The page reference I found the ladder on has even stopped displaying the ladder but hasn’t disappeared entirely, which leads me to hope that the ladder will start working at the address once the season starts.

I am aware of this problem and monitoring the situation, but the widget might not be ready in time for the start of the season, it might depend on when the AFL brings their own ladder on line or me giving up on the AFL site and using a different source for the data.

Ok, so I think I’ve got a new version of the AFL Ladder ready for action in 2007, shoot on over to the AFL Ladder Widget page to get it. The new widget has an option to show more team information in the tool tips that appear if you hover over each team name.

I say “I think” because since the major rework of the AFL website for this season (it now uses AJAX and XML files all over the place) there is a potential problem if the AFL doesn’t actively update the XML data file the widget now downloads and uses to generate the ladder. The AFL hasn’t brought the season 2007 ladder page on line yet so there’s no way to tell 100% if the widget will work properly until the season starts and they update their own ladder.

But I have been monitoring the contents of the XML file over the last couple of weeks and it has been changing to show the results of the pre-season games so that gives me some confidence that the XML source file is at least somewhat ok. There are still some quirks with the data in the file (all in the recent results and past results data) which will become clear if you use the new option to display the extra information, but I am hoping that will improve as the season proper begins.

So here’s hoping the thing works ok, otherwise I might have to tweak it again after the season starts…