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RDSS Info, Reference How to obtain RDSS2, get started and learn to use it. (Video and other tutorials)

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Old 03-09-2009, 05:55 PM   #1
Ted Craven
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Lightbulb Release Notes - Version 0.98.8

This version adds an Export to Excel feature, enabling you to send all Analysis data from RDSS to an Excel 2003 (XLS) format file. What you do with this Excel file is up to you! There is a Master Template XLS file provided which you can use as a template to create Excel model worksheets for each track you work. The file exported by RDSS contains one row for each paceline in your Analysis screens (e.g. 5 lines/horses = 5 rows in the Excel file). With just a few keystrokes, you can Copy and Paste the line for the race Winner (or the Place horse) into your model worksheet. There are a few example formulas supplied to show Min, Max Average and % of rank #1s and #2 for any ranked Factor. Of course you can add your own formulas, formatting, sorting, grouping, graphs, multiple Tabs, etc to your own worksheet - RDSS's job is to provide you with a file of data to plug into it. If you don't use Excel, you can have RDSS create a CSV (Comma Separated Value) format file, usable by most other spreadsheet programs. Let's get started!

As usual, you can download the latest RDSS version here: www.PaceandCap.com/rdssdownload (you have to be registered for RDSS)


What this is NOT

Models are not the magic bullet to finally making money using Sartin Methodology tools (e.g. RDSS)! The matchup of horses' running styles and typical energy disbursement abilities and patterns in a given race often supersede the energy demands of a track, distance, surface (and accounts for a certain percentage of the variance when a strong factor sometimes does not apply). You don't have to begin using a model if the Matchup alone is working well enough for you. But knowing which factors are strong either recently or persistently on a given surface and distance, or what their range of values are (for example the Early/Late range) helps at minimum to identify non-contenders, and weaknesses in public favourites.

This new Export to Excel feature is not intended as a Wager Decision Form, or a wager tracking mechanism. It's intended to provide the input data on RDSS Factors, ranks ranges of values, which may be more or less impactful at certain tracks, distances, surfaces or for certain classes of races, for example Maidens versus Non-Maidens, young horses versus older horses, etc. You can certainly merge your wager tracking with your factor modeling if you want to: you'll have to organize a worksheet where you can sort and group across track and date (i.e. by wager).

This is not a track profile maker, where you track how Winners run from Result Charts. The RDSS output file comes from Past Performance lines you select and place in the Analysis section (presumably using a consistent paceline selection strategy).

This is also not intended to be the end-product of RDSS Modelling capabilities. A full, built-in modeller (and profile maker, and wager bookkeeping) will be an integral part of the upcoming (and largely rewritten) RDSS Version 0.99, later this Autumn. You will be able to slice and dice model information how ever you want, and also keep track of your wagers and mutuel results (more than you really need, actually), without relying on Excel for anything. This current Export to Excel feature is simply a stop-gap until then. If you don't know how to use Excel, no worries: in the meantime, just continue using pen and paper, or whatever software tools you might currently be using (try the CSV file export, though).


What's Provided

When you install RDSS Version 0.98.8, you get a new sub-folder within your RDSS folder: Models. I suggest you make a shortcut on your Desktop (using Windows Explorer) to this new Models folder for easy access. In the Models folder are initially 2 files: MasterTemplate.xls and DMR20090725-03.xls. If you want RDSS to create export files is CSV format, make another sub-folder within the Models folder named CSV, and look there for the CSV files.

DMR20090725-03.xls is an example of an Excel file exported by RDSS. MasterTemplate.xls is an example of a file you can make copies of to make Excel worksheets (e.g. one for each track) into which you copy (for example) the Winner's data from the exported file. The MasterTemplate contains 1 Tab (1 worksheet) named 'MasterTemplate', per the file name. Before you start to add data from RDSS, you may want to rename this to the name of the Track (e.g. DMR in our example), and you may wish to add several new tabbed worksheets with the same MasterTemplate format - one for each common distance and surface (right-click the MasterTemplate tab and choose Move or Copy, then check 'Create Copy').


How to Get Data from RDSS into the Model Worksheet

(Note: the Excel screen shots below are taken from Excel 2007, but earlier versions of Excel should appear pretty similarly).

1. Work a race the way you normally do: select pacelines to place in the Analysis section to evaluate and decide if a wager is possible. Keep as many pacelines as you normally do (e.g. 5)

2. On the Bottom Line/Betting Line screen, you will see a new button 'Export to Excel' (and not the Export button on the Original or Adjusted screens). Click on this button to create an Excel (and optionally a CSV) export file for the current race on the new Rdss\Models folder. The message box tells you if the export succeeded and where the files were placed.
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If you are connected to the RDSS toteboard, tote information is included. If the race is Official, the mutuels are also included and the Top 3 finishers are identified as W, P, S. Otherwise this information is left blank. The exported data is sorted according to the BL/BL screen.

3. Now switch to your Rdss\Models folder (use your new Desktop shortcut). If you have not yet made a copy of the MasterTemplate.xls file for your current track, make a copy of it and rename it, for example, DMR.xls (don't keep models in the MasterTemplate file!). Keep all your model files in the Models folder. Open the DMR.xls worksheet file. Now look for the export file you just created (e.g. DMR0725-03.xls - the sample export file) and open it also by double-clicking it. You now have your export file and your model file both open in Excel.

4. In the DMR0725-03.xls file, right-click along the left edge of the worksheet on the row for the Winner (look for the W in the Results column, or just look at the Horse Name). With that row highlighted, choose Copy (or simply highlight the row and use Ctrl-C to copy it).
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5. Now switch to the model worksheet (e.g. DMR.xls). Find the first blank row (row 3, initially) and right-click on the rows identifier (along the left-hand edge of the worksheet). Choose Paste Special (not Paste), then choose Values from the Paste Special dialog which pops-up, then click OK.
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6. The copied row (for the Winner) from the Excel worksheet exported from RDSS now appears in your DMR model sheet, and all the data Values are formatted according to the layout of the Master Template (hence the Paste Special | Values choices).

Congratulations - you now have 1 entry in your DMR Model! Take less than 60 seconds for each race you work from now on and store the Winner's line in a Model file. Soon enough, you will have an abundance of information on, generally (i.e. subject to Matchup considerations) what it takes to be in Win contention at the different tracks, surfaces and distances you work.


(continued next post...)
...
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Last edited by Ted Craven; 07-28-2009 at 09:44 PM.
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Old 07-28-2009, 05:22 PM   #2
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Take a look at the Model worksheet (e.g. DMR.xls). The Master Template layout provided has a few interesting features.
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It has a horizontal and a vertical splitbar, so you can always keep the headers visible (horizontal) and so you can scroll to see distant parts of the worksheet on the right (vertical). The template provided has only 1 Tab (renamed to DMR), but you may wish to create several Tabs to organize data for the track: for example one Tab for each distance and surface, or group together similar distances. Or you can put all lines in one Tab and sort and group them by distance, surface, race type.

At the bottom, between the 2 dark horizontal lines, are an initial set of formulas which apply to all the data above the formula section. You can use these formulas or create your own. Provided are Max, Min, Average and Percentage of ranks #1 and #2. When that percentage exceeds 61%, the cell shows RED, meaning it may be an interesting factor.

Factors with Rank #1 and Rank #2 are highlighted in RED and GREEN respectively.

If you get too much data in the section above the formula section (i.e. some of it is too old), simply highlight the rows you wish to remove, Cut them (Ctrl-X, or right-click and Cut), and place them below the formula section. That way, you retain the data, but they no longer figure in the formulas you may be applying to more current data.

Scroll along the worksheet and familiarize yourself with the columns and the groups. Everything is there from the various Analysis screens (omitting some readouts which appear twice or more, or are redundant to other readouts). In general, the worksheet contains mostly ranks, as the compuond factors actual values are generally not standardized, or interesting. At the far right of the worksheet, the actual adjusted PoH and PoR velocities are shown, along with Adjusted Call Times, running positions and Beaten Lengths for those who wish to make their own calculations, or to tinker (beware spending too much time tinkering...). Check the Early/Late Difference Column (BF). The Min/Max and Average formulas at the bottom can help to establish what the normal E/L range for the surface and distance is. Consider adding a Median formula for this factor, and consider discarding Min and Max values which are way outside of the central Mean (average) or Median distribution.

Note about E/L Difference Rank (column BG): this E/L rank does not appear in RDSS currently and I am not adding it in until a later version, but I made a place for you to track it if you wish, by recording it manually. If the Winner was the Earliest of the E/L early (RED) sticks, he would be rank #1. The 2nd Earliest would be rank #2, etc. Similarly, if the Winner (e.g. in a route) is the most Late, you would record it as rank -1 (negative, to correspond to how Early E/L values are positive, and Late E/Ls are negative), rank -2 for 2nd most Late, etc. Scanning the E/L rank column may eventually indicate to you, for example, that the Top 2 Early ranks win an interesting percentage of the time for a (e.g. sprint) distance, or win at net positive ROI mutuels, perhaps if their corresponding Total Energy (and perhaps BL/BL) happens to be also ranked low. There are other ways to record E/L ranks, but this use of negative ranks for Late and positive ranks for Early is the way I propose to do this within RDSS in future.

If there is too much information for you (and there is!) you can hide the columns you tend not to use by using Excel's Hide Columns feature (right-click on a group of columns and choose Hide, and check Help to Unhide!). As long as you maintain the same contiguous column specs and data type as supplied by the RDSS export file, you can import to your model regardless of what columns you Hide or what extra columns (at the end) or Header changes, or extra formulas, or distinct sections within a worksheet you may create. You can make your own Template file, add macros or VBA code to manipulate the incoming data from the export file however you want.

Addendum:

Richie has made a short tutorial video showing how to do the whole export, copy and paste routine described above: http://www.SartinMethodology.com/med...xcelModels.wmv (Tip: you can create new, blank model files for a track by opening the MasterTemplate then Save As a new Excel file, named for your track).
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Last edited by Ted Craven; 08-06-2009 at 09:14 AM. Reason: added video tutorial
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Old 07-28-2009, 05:43 PM   #3
Ted Craven
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Notes:

If you have a particular knowledge of Excel and want to volunteer to help others with less skill, feel free to respond to any posts asking for help. If you develop any interesting Excel Templates which use the RDSS export file layout or enhance (or replace) the supplied MasterTemplate, feel free to post them (please post in Excel 2003 XLS format).

I myself am only a few steps ahead of the beginners with Excel, and will be learning and not advising much at all (at first) how to use it. (And that will be my answer, at first, when asked how to do stuff in Excel ).

However, if there are any questions unrelated to Excel about what RDSS is doing, or the export to Excel process itself, please feel free to post your questions!

Let me know what you think of this update. My aim is to not release ANY more updates (except, always, in the case of dire bugs) until I can start showing, then release for testing the version of RDSS I am really shooting for (V 0.99 - sometime later this Autumn).

Happy Modelling!

Ted
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Old 07-28-2009, 08:35 PM   #4
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A final word of thanks to several early testers of this Export to Excel update, and those who supplied me with Excel formulas, formatting and advice or reviewed my efforts! Couldn't have done it without you!
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You all should re-download and install the finished RDSS Update V 0.98.8 and switch to the new MasterTemplate format, as there have been a few changes in the worksheet column order layout.

Ted
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