Monster Media 1993 #2/Image.iso/personal/bpe_100.zip/BPE.DOC

Text File | 1993-06-12 | 25KB | 449 lines

                           Baseball Player Evaluator

                          Version 1.0, Copyright 1993

                               by Rich Heimlich

          SHAREWARE LINGO SECTION.

          Baseball Player Evaluator is distributed as SHAREWARE.  You
          have the right to use this software for a reasonable period
          so you can evaluate it in relation to your needs.  I'm
          defining a reasonable period as 30 days.  If after this
          time, you still want to use BPE for any reason, you are
          required to send $10 (check or money order will do) to
          Rich Heimlich at the address listed at the end of this
          document, or cease using BPE FOREVER!  That's a stiff
          sentence to incur over ten bucks.  What do you get for your
          $10?  BPE and a clean conscience.  Also, I'd be very keen
          on listening to input from paying customers about features
          they'd like to see in future versions of BPE.


          WHAT IS THIS PIECE OF GARBAGE I JUST DOWNLOADED?

          Baseball Player Evaluator (or BPE) is the result of a
          program I wished I had in order to help me during the
          trials and tribulations of my Rotisserie baseball league.
          During the season you're often called upon to improve your
          team by adding a new player to the mix of players you
          already own.  You can trade, and that's the most fun, but
          often it just doesn't work out, so you go the free agent
          route and pick up an un-owned player.  Most likely, you
          want a new player for one of two reasons, to replace a
          currently injured player or to replace a less productive
          player.  In either case, you usually have a specific goal
          in mind like "I need to improve my stolen bases to make up
          lost ground".

          In the past, I would dig through the papers and stat files
          I had and compare all the players looking for just the
          right player, but, this data doesn't help you in any way to
          quickly find what it is you're specifically looking for.
          That's where BPE comes in.  BPE, once configured and fed
          the appropriate stats, can help you find just the player
          you're looking for.  If you need to improve in stolen bases
          change the current BPE data field to Stolen Bases and every
          batter in the league is sorted by Stolen Bases.  Simply go
          down the list and find the first un-owned stolen base
          leader for consideration.  You'd be surprised how often
          this comes in handy.  I've used it to find little gems that
          no one else in our league, including myself, considered
          worthy of even mentioning let alone actually signing.  It
          works equally well for hitters or pitchers and is limited
          only by the data you supply it.

          You can also get good use out of this if you're just a
          baseball stat fanatic and want to know who's on top of
          numerous categories.  I'm just fairly sure most people
          using this will be Fantasy Baseball owners.


          WHAT DO I NEED?

          A computer. Hint: If YOU downloaded this program
          personally, then there stands a very good chance that you
          already meet this criteria and can go on to the next
          paragraph.  BPE should work on almost any computer system
          but as it's rather new, I suspect it might choke on a few
          oddities I hadn't anticipated.

          BPE requires two specific items, configuration files and
          stat files.  I've included samples to get you started but
          you'll want to supply your own stats at some point, of
          course.

          From time-to-time I'll add new .DAT files within the .ZIP
          file as I get information on differing stat services but
          for example sake I'll refer to a specific pair of .DAT
          files. They'll work just fine with every service under the
          sun just as long as that service happens to be QUICK-STATS.
          (Sorry, couldn't resist)  Don't be concerned if you don't
          get your stats from QUICK-STATS or don't even know what it
          is, any stat service will do as long as they can provide
          stats separated by hitters and pitchers (which includes
          virtually every stat service I've encountered such as USA
          Today and Computer Sports World).

          In fact, even if your stat service provides only a single
          file of stats, it's most likely that what you really have
          are two files just combined into one.  All you'll need to
          do is separate that file into Hitter and Pitcher files
          before using them.  CompuServe Fantasy Baseball stats work
          this way.

          The .DAT files (for instance, QSSH.DAT, which is a QUICK-
          STATS SERVICE HITTERS config file) are very simple ASCII
          text files and can be created or edited with little effort.
          So, in only a few minutes you can create a set of .DAT
          files (one each for hitters and pitchers) that define your
          stat service so that BPE understands its specific format.


          WHAT'S THE STRUCTURE OF THE .DAT FILES?
          (skip a bit if you don't care about this right now)

          The first line of the .DAT file MUST always be as it
          appears in the samples, that is, it must start with the
          word "Header" (just LIKE that!) and then give a number as
          to how many header lines to skip before the real data
          starts.  Most stat services have a line or two of header
          information that describes all the columns of data.  What
          we're looking for is the first line of real data like the
          line the first player is on.  (If you want an example of a
          real header, look at any of the sample stat files)  Blank
          lines at the beginning of stat files should also be counted
          as part of the Header.

          On the next line of the .DAT file you MUST place the Name
          field; what column that data starts at; how long it runs
          and if the field should be sorted Ascending (A) or
          Descending (D).  Name fields MUST sorted in ascending order
          but that only makes sense and applies to no other field.
          The line:

          Name 1 15 A

          would say that you want to call the Name field Name (you
          could call it anything you like); that names begin in the
          1st column and continue for 15 spaces and should be sorted
          in Ascending order.

          A word about spacing.  You can use as many spaces between
          items as you see fit, BUT, there can be NO spaces in the
          name of a field.

          Player Name 1 15 A         (Incorrect; space between name)
          Player_Name 1 25 A         (correct)
          HitterName 1 14 A          (correct)
          RICH_PAINS  1   12     A   (correct, and maybe accurate)

          What comes after the name field is entirely up to you as
          long as you follow the above rules.  The first QSS .DAT
          samples I include (called QSSH.DAT and QSSP.DAT) include
          instructions to define every single stat QUICK-STAT offers.
          You don't have to include every stat and if there is one
          you don't like or want, simply don't define it in your .DAT
          file (oh, did I forget to mention that you should use the
          extension .DAT for your .DAT files?  For instance, if you
          wanted to create new .DAT files for USA Today you might try
          calling them USAH.DAT and USAP.DAT or something similar as
          long as it ends in .DAT, which only makes it easier for you
          once you get into the program and want to pick new ones as
          my .DAT file picker defaults to .DAT extensions.  Wow, what
          a wordy bunch of text in a set of parenthesis 'eh?).

          What I'm saying is that if you don't want Games Saved to
          appear as an option under BPE, just forget it's even there
          and don't define it.  Since BPE looks only at where a field
          begins (in what column) and how long that field is, as
          described by the .DAT files, it simply won't pay any
          attention to any field you don't define.

          Oh, another good tip.  Think about each field before you
          define it.  Most people will start their .DAT files very
          early in the season so they'll see that Vince Coleman has 5
          stolen bases in the first week of the season (if he isn't
          actually injured again) and theorize that since the 5 is
          listed in column 50 that you should define StolenBases as
          starting at column 50.  Wrong.  In a week or two, when
          people go over 10 stolen bases your data will be all wrong
          since it's trimming the tens field right off.  12 becomes
          2, etc.  Since it's possible for someone to steal 100 bases
          (or more) you need to prepare for that.  In the example
          above, stolen bases wouldn't start at column 50, but
          actually at column 48.


          THINK ABOUT IT.

          I've also included a SLIGHTLY modified version of .DAT
          files called QSSH2.DAT and QSSP2.DAT (quite original).  I
          included these just to take up slightly more disk space.
          Well, actually, I also threw them in there to show you a
          small example of creative .DAT files.  The original .DAT
          files for the QSS service are quite fine as they are, but,
          if you try them out you'll notice one thing that a friend
          of mine noticed and complained about (and he's a whining
          pain anyway but I had to shut him up or go nuts so).  Each
          player gets listed along with his appropriate stats, but my
          friend thought it would be nice if the players' team was
          listed next to him all the time as well.  Hmmmm... I must
          admit, it's not a bad idea.  So, a little cheating and I
          had the answer.  QSS and most services list players names
          right before their respective team names.  Okay, what if I
          defined NAME a little creatively.  In the new files I've
          defined it as lasting 21 characters, not the standard 15.
          Those 6 additional characters overlap the TEAM data for
          each player.  So now, each players name actually contains
          his name and his team.  So now you may want to change the
          name of the NAME field from NAME to something like
          Player&Team or something similar.  Now the really neat part
          (actually it's as neat as these things get and would be
          quite dull if viewed on its own merit).

          This change works quite nicely except one small problem.
          Since I included the team name in along with the name I
          could no longer sort by Team Name.  Not that you'd really
          need to, but, if you wanted to, it should work.  So, I
          simply defined TEAM as starting right where it is and for
          the proper length.  It doesn't matter that the Name
          definition overwrites this, BPE doesn't care.  The ONLY
          drawback to this is if you sort by TEAM, you'll see the
          players team listed twice, once as part of his name and
          once as it appears in the stat file as TEAM.


          LIMITATIONS

          This is a simple program so limitations are just as simple.
          First, BPE currently can only work with data that is
          actually part of the stats you give it.  In other words, if
          Batting Average is a stat you want to sort by but your
          stats don't include it (Many don't including QSS) you're
          outa luck.  BPE does not actually do any calculating on its
          own, YET.  If people actually find this thing useful and
          send the rather small pittance I've requested, then version
          2 will appear and should include calculated fields among
          other goodies I've been thinking about, along with ideas
          from paying customers, that are within my abilities.

          Sorting is also slightly limited, currently.  I wanted to
          keep the speed up so I used a fast sorting algorhythm which
          is limited to sorting on only one field.  So, for instance,
          if 5 people are tied with 15 home runs, the players will
          not be sorted in alphabetical order as well (unless luck
          totally intervenes and causes it to happen and in this case
          it's so unlikely that if it occurs I'd start thinking about
          all those masses you've missed each Sunday over the year
          and start praying valiantly as the world is probably about
          to come to a screeching halt).  If BPE goes well out there
          on its own, this will be dealt with immediately after I
          speed up some of the slower routines in the program.


          INSTRUCTIONS

          Thought I'd never get here I bet. There's a reason though.
          BPE is simple enough to jump into that instructions are
          sort of unnecessary unless you're the kind of person who
          needs instruction on how to operate a pen, in which case I
          don't think you'd have been bright enough to download a
          program with a computer.  However, in the unlikely event
          you've somehow gotten this far, stop reading right here as
          directions aren't going to get much deeper than this and
          you have better things to do than baseball player
          evaluation, like going back to high school.  Feel free to
          still mail me a check though, it's good practice for the
          future.

          Once everything is up and running you'll notice that all
          the hitters data is over there on the right side of the
          screen.  The program starts by displaying the hitters in
          ascending order by their names.


          WHAT ABOUT OTHER DATA?

          Come on, BPE wouldn't be very useful if this is all it did.
          I not that bad a programmer.  Let's say you wanted to see
          the pitchers now.  Just click on the button that says
          "Pitchers" up there under the heading "Player Type" and the
          display area updates to show the pitchers, also sorted
          alphabetically.  Now lets say you wanted to get daring
          (again, consider the application, this isn't an Oliver
          Stone production) and see who's who in Wins.  Either use
          the mouse, or tab (if you don't have a mouse or don't care
          to use it) to select the area just below the Hitter and
          Pitcher buttons (also under Player Type).  This selection
          box will open to show you all of the available stat fields
          you can choose from as they're defined in the appropriate
          .DAT files.  Just pick the one you want and presto, the
          display updates to now show all the players sorted in the
          correct order (Pitchers Wins as in the example).

          Now, hold on to your hat, here comes a new curve on the
          coaster (Hey, I have to make this sound somewhat exciting
          right?)  You look over and see that Frank Tanana (is he
          really STILL around?) is on the list.  Wouldn't it be nice
          if you could see more than just the information about him
          based on the current field you selected?  (this is an
          example of a leading question)  YOU CAN!!  Just double
          click (or Enter Key) on Frank and the display changes to a
          pop-up box with all the data that is available about him.
          Well, it doesn't include the good things, like how many
          babes he's gotten on the road, etc.  Once again, it's
          limited to the data you've provided.  But it's all here in
          a nice little box and if there's more stats than can fit on
          the screen, buy a bigger monitor.  Actually, just use the
          scroll bars to make the rest of the data appear (like
          magic?)  When you're done and fully recovered, click the Ok
          button on the pop-up and the main screen re-appears.


          SORTING

          This one is simple.  You want to see who the worst hitters
          are in Hits?  Bring it up and just click on the
          "Descending" button (under "Sort Order).  That's what it's
          called, the button doesn't actually descend off the screen
          or anything.  Once selected your field reverses sort order
          and you're a happy camper.  Want it right side up?  Stand
          on your head or, easier still, just hit the "Ascending"
          button which is also only it's name as it doesn't... oh
          skip it.


          ADVANCED TOPICS

          How advanced can something this simple get?  Well, you've
          basically got the idea.  In addition to all the wonderful
          features I've outlined, you can also experiment (at your
          own caution) with the pull down menu options.

          The "File" pulldown allows you to choose new stat files or
          exit the program.  The first part of this is really hot
          stuff while the last part, exiting, is rather mundane in
          nature.  In fact, it's SO mundane that I included an Exit
          button right on the main screen itself in an effort to
          reduce any suicide rates directly attributable to BPE.

          If you decide to change stat files, pull down File and
          select either "Hitter Stat File" or "Pitcher Stat File" and
          you'll get a file selection screen to appear.  Now's a very
          good time to actually choose that new stat file.  Just make
          sure you choose a stat file with hitter stats in it for
          Hitter Stats and visa-versa.  The odds of pitcher stats
          being defined exactly the same as hitter stats is nearly
          impossible and results cannot be predicted. So, in other
          words, DON'T DO IT!

          Another Advanced Feature (don't you just love the way that
          sounds?) is linked to this selection.  If you choose a new
          hitter file, that file gets saved for the next time you
          enter BPE, but what if you wanted to see it right now?
          Simple, once you choose a new file, and go back to the main
          screen, you'll notice that what was a word in a box is now
          a fully functional button with the same word as before,
          "Update".  Update knows which stat files you selected from
          the pull downs and when pressed, immediately puts them to
          use in the display window.  It makes no difference if you
          chose just a new Hitter file, Pitcher file or both, Update
          will cause BPE to use all the most recently selected data.
          In addition it will update the display on the lower left to
          show you that you're now working with the new files.

          Its work, and it was a TOUGH job, now finished, the Update
          button retires to its summer cottage and once again becomes
          just a word surrounded by a rectangle, until you once again
          select a different stat file.

          A last word about the File pulldown (okay, maybe a few more
          than one word).  Notice when it's pulled down that next to
          the Hitter Stat entry and Pitcher Stat entry are the
          letters CTRL-H and CTRL-P.  I thought they looked nice
          there so I left them there.  Then, I realized I could put
          them to use so, now they remind you that at any time (well,
          okay, not while you're in the shower or something, but
          while your actually in BPE), you can press those keys to
          instantly pull up those file selection options.

          Under the pulldown "Setup" you'll see selections for
          choosing new .DAT files which I confusingly refer to as
          Defs here (the program was perfect before this and scared
          me far too much so I added this to break up the perfect
          effort).  Choosing new .DAT files is simple enough.  Choose
          them.  That's it.  What about the Update button?  That's
          only for stat files!  .DAT file changes only take effect on
          your next BPE session.

          The "Other" pulldown is amazing.  It contains a multitude
          of information under the heading "About BPE".  Select it
          and all you commercial lovers will be happy.

          Happy evaluating.


          A WORD ABOUT QUICK-STATS

          The QUICK-STATS Service is a stat service I use for a
          simple reason, I've looked at countless services that
          charge incredible amounts of money when all I really wanted
          was raw stats and maybe just a bit more.  QUICK-STATS
          happens to be run by a small group that's been around for
          many years and run a first rate service for a GREAT price.
          If you haven't checked them out before, call their BBS at
          1-404-623-3870 and give them a look see.  You may just save
          enough money to register BPE!

          And, while I'm at it, everyone asks me about Fantasy
          Baseball stat programs.  I use SpinStats from Faulkner
          Strategics for equally simple reasons, it's the best, it's
          easy to use and, it's inexpensive.  They can be reached by
          phone at 1-404-378-7279.  Hey, why are the best of both of
          these items in Georgia?  Must be some real fans down there
          or just people with a LOT of time on their hands.  This is
          far more likely as I was stationed there a long time ago
          and it seemed like time was a favorite hobby there.


          IMPORTANT FILES I INCLUDED THAT NEED EXPLAINING!

          For those of you who just want to see BPE do something
          before getting HEAVILY into it (as if this were possible),
          I've included quite a few sample stat files for you to play
          around with.  Any file ending in .NLH or .NLP is a stat
          file in the QUICK-STAT format and is meant for use ONLY
          with the included QSS .DAT files (or appropriate ones you
          want to create).  I've also included one hitter and pitcher
          stat file in the CompuServe Fantasy Baseball format.  Those
          files are the files that end in .STA and should only be
          used with the CISFBB .DAT files.  This should give you
          enough to see what BPE is all about.

          At some point I'm sure I'll get around to creating .DAT
          files for all the other major stat services since most
          people are as lazy as I am about such things, but for now,
          it's easy enough to do them yourself.  If you come up with
          new ones from new services and think I might want to
          include them in future versions, track me down and send
          them off, I'm sure they couldn't hurt (or better not at
          least!)

          If you care to reach me, I can be reached on the following
          services:

          CompuServe             70670,2517
          America Online         RichH27
          Prodigy                GCJJ12F
          The Sierra Network     12524

          Also, feel free to write me (and possibly include a check)
          at:
                 Rich Heimlich
                 1180 E. White Horse Road
                 Box 703
                 Voorhees, NJ 08043