So here goes. I am attaching the scratch program. Officially it's called Headhawg's Datafile Scratch Tool or HDST. It seems to work fine but there are bugs left in it no doubt -- I just haven't come across them yet. There are also a few things that I haven't implemented yet either. But before you use it there are a few things to know.
Read the Readme.txt file! As people probably won't -- at least not at first -- I will summarize:
- The author is NOT responsible for any computer damage or data loss. HDST writes nothing to the Windows registry. There isn't even an installation program. However, if you have any doubts about my coding skills then don't download, install, or use it.
- No user support or warranty is expressed or implied. I will do my best to help out here on PA, but there is no guarantee of that. I almost quit writing the code for this darn program so I reserve the right to just let this thing die a natural death.
- HDST is released as freeware which essentially means there is no fee to use the program. It is NOT open source and the author retains all rights.
- From the Readme: If you use HDST and like it (and the author assumes that using = liking) please consider making a donation supporting the PaceAdvantage.com website. Details for doing so can be found at the site. If you're feeling really generous, please make the donation on behalf of headhawg. He would like to have VIP status, even if it is by proxy.
Installation and use: Extract the HDST.zip file to a drive/folder of your choosing. If extracted properly you should see the HDST folder with a couple of subfolders and some files. Don't mess with the contents or HDST won't run.
Double-click the HDST.exe file to launch the program. The main screen buttons are self-explanatory but include tool tips if you hover. You can manually scratch without the Equibase file, but the program will use the xml file as a starting point if you so desire. Be patient when downloading -- I haven't put in a progress bar yet but a message box will pop up when the download is finished. NOTE: I have not put in a date check yet, so you will experience some weirdness if you use mismatched data and xml files.
You can only load one datafile at a time. My suggestion is to put the data files in the main HDST folder. The files must be UNzipped.
The scratch screen shows running horses on the left (in black) and scratched horses on the right (in red). Of course, not literally horses but horse NAMES. Use the buttons to scratch/unscratch. Single click to select horses; the program accepts multiple item selection.
When done with scratches click the Save New File button. HDST will write a new file in the same folder as the original file. If you follow my suggestion that will be in the main HDST folder. HDST appends an "m" to the file name. For example, AQU0310.DRF would be named AQU0310m.DRF. Be smart and use copies of your data files. See #1 above.
I think that's it. I hope HDST works correctly and people find it useful. Please provide feedback and any bug reports by making a reply in this thread. Good luck.
