Introducing The SHARK

[Dave Schwartz]

Just wanted to give everyone an update on how my new software project is coming along. This is the Pace Makes the Race software, but renamed to be called The Shark.

After you read this, I know many will be expecting a a very high price tag.

*Small up front cost (Less than $200.)
*Small monthly cost, depending upon features.
*Small recurring annual cost to cover ALL upgrades.

Expected beta release: 1st Quarter 2017.


Key points:

Getting Data In
1. HDW download by subscription
2. Manual entry
3. CSV import in a pre-designed format. (Software Development Kit will be available.)

(Very few required fields for manual entry. Also, free entries can be copied/pasted directly into the software.)



Remembers everything forever.
If you've imported 6 months of data and a horse has raced 5 times since, he will show 15 pace lines (if you want to see that many).

If you have entered data by hand, it will remember every horse, every race, every paceline, and every workout, so you never have to enter anything twice. It will even remember your handicapping!

You can mix-and-match data sources.

Interesting idea: Download for a month and suddenly you have a whole bunch of horses, races and pacelines. Then you can enter data manually until you decide to pay for another month.


Thousands of Factors Available
Each user has thousands of programmable factors to choose from. What does that mean?

It means that you can select a factor called "Speed Rating" and decide how you want it to be used.

Key Points
Filtering - What races are considered.
Sorting - How are the races ordered?
Count - How many should be used?
Rank or Output - Various settings

Example #1:
*Filter: Dirt races in the last 365 days on a fast track, going back no more than 5 races.
*Sort: By highest rating
*Count: Average of 3 races.
*When you rank the horses consider 1 point as a "tie margin."

Example #2:
*Filter: Routes only, +/- 2 month of year from today
... Only races finished within 3.25 lengths of the winner.
*Sort: Closest Finish Lengths.
*Count: Weighted Rank
... Weight rank 1=1.00
... Weight rank 2=0.75

(Obviously, these are creative examples.)


The MASTER Grid
The data is organized into a "grid." Think spreadsheet, with rows (horses) and columns (factors).

The grid can have up to 800 factors per entry. (User selects from the factor list.)

The MASTER grid gets every race added to it automatically. This is your "master" database.

If you decide that you want to change some factors, you just recreate the Master Grid from the back data that you have. (It keeps everything forever, remember?) If you have (say) 50,000 races in your data, it will recreate the new grid entirely in a couple of hours.

You can also keep the old grid in case you want to go back!

In fact, you can actually have 9,999 different grids!


Getting Data Out
*Export to CSV.

*Write directly to an OPEN Excel file from the open race. This means you can click a button and write the race data directly to a file that you can write formulas in!
(This will not be in the original beta release.)


Lots more, of course. Like killer trainer and jockey stats, and amazing track models.

This is a 24-month project (currently 14 months in). It will be functional in the next couple of months, though not complete for quite a while.


Ask questions. Make suggestions. Give me ideas. Tell me what you want to see.


Dave

[PaceAdvantage]

No replies yet...surprising...I know I think this sounds interesting...

[Elliott Sidewater]

Dave:
Maybe I didn't read the description carefully enough, but will the software have utilities for testing and reporting results (win %, ROI) for different combinations of user selected or defined factors against a database of races?

Of course this is interesting, but activity in the forum has been a little slow lately, probably due to approaching holidays, preoccupation with politics, and perhaps also the negative sentiments expressed about the normally interesting Gulfstream meeting.

[Dave Schwartz]

No replies yet...surprising...I know I think this sounds interesting...

PA,

Give it time.

As we get closer I will talk about the simple side.

The whole purpose of complicated software is to make it simple.

Maybe I didn't read the description carefully enough, but will the software have utilities for testing and reporting results (win %, ROI) for different combinations of user selected or defined factors against a database of races?

Of course. Analysis is the point of life. :-)

[ReplayRandall]

Originally Posted by Dave Schwartz

PA,

Give it time.

As we get closer I will talk about the simple side.

The whole purpose of complicated software is to make it simple.




Of course. Analysis is the point of life. :-)

Dave, I'm going to blunt with you....What incentive are you giving ME to get in on the ground floor when you first release this? Wouldn't it be wise on my part to just wait and avoid any glitches or hiccups that may arise until the program is complete in 10 months?.....I need some reassurances here, that if I get involved, this "shark" doesn't tank before it ever gets completed.

[Speed Figure]

Hate to say it, but every time Dave makes a thread about new software that's coming out it NEVER COMES OUT!

[Dave Schwartz]

Originally Posted by Speed Figure

Hate to say it, but every time Dave makes a thread about new software that's coming out it NEVER COMES OUT!

Same software that I have been discussing for almost 2 years.

It is a very big deal.

Dave, I'm going to blunt with you....What incentive are you giving ME to get in on the ground floor when you first release this? Wouldn't it be wise on my part to just wait and avoid any glitches or hiccups that may arise until the program is complete in 10 months?.....I need some reassurances here, that if I get involved, this "shark" doesn't tank before it ever gets completed.

Don't know how I would provide that other than to say that what comes later is on the higher end of the price scale anyway.

In other words, when the product goes out, everything that is coming for that level of software will be available.

The continued development is for the MUCH higher-end stuff.

[upthecreek]

Originally Posted by Speed Figure

Hate to say it, but every time Dave makes a thread about new software that's coming out it NEVER COMES OUT!

Heard this song and dance before

[Dave Schwartz]

You guys just have no idea how complex a piece of software like this is.

I actually tried to hire a programmer to help but the work was so sub-standard that I tossed all his work out and began again.

The simpler a program is (and still has flexibility) the more complex the programming.

But I understand your attitude. Just wait and see.

[PaceAdvantage]

Originally Posted by upthecreek

Heard this song and dance before

And other than the time it takes to read the thread, I must ask....so what?

Plenty of software companies announce products that end up being delayed and/or shelved...

Maybe I missed it, but it doesn't seem like Dave is asking for $$ up front before the release of the software. So either he releases it, and you buy it or you don't...

Not really sure what the relevance is to him discussing projects he's working on - to the final end product released - as if this is some sort of negative.

Dave has a pretty long history in this game...he's been writing and marketing software since I first got into the game, which was almost 30 years ago...he has plenty of satisfied customers (and like any developer, he has his share of unsatisfied ones as well).

[upthecreek]

Originally Posted by PaceAdvantage

And other than the time it takes to read the thread, I must ask....so what?

Plenty of software companies announce products that end up being delayed and/or shelved...

Maybe I missed it, but it doesn't seem like Dave is asking for $$ up front before the release of the software. So either he releases it, and you buy it or you don't...

Not really sure what the relevance is to him discussing projects he's working on - to the final end product released - as if this is some sort of negative.

Dave has a pretty long history in this game...he's been writing and marketing software since I first got into the game, which was almost 30 years ago...he has plenty of satisfied customers (and like any developer, he has his share of unsatisfied ones as well).

His first offer was 5000 copies of a FREE software, never happened Then he ask for PA members input and ideas for the next software project which he was going to sell Now another announcement He gets PA members hopes up and they havent seen anything yet You ask in an earlier post why no replies, I think that is part of the reason.
Just My 2 Cents

[JimG]

Originally Posted by upthecreek

His first offer was 5000 copies of a FREE software, never happened Then he ask for PA members input and ideas for the next software project which he was going to sell Now another announcement He gets PA members hopes up and they havent seen anything yet You ask in an earlier post why no replies, I think that is part of the reason.
Just My 2 Cents

I am sure Dave would be willing to sell you HSH software if you are looking for software from him.

[upthecreek]

Originally Posted by JimG

I am sure Dave would be willing to sell you HSH software if you are looking for software from him.

Thats not the point See post #6 Im done Dont really care if it ever gets finished

[Dave Schwartz]

Thats not the point See post #6 Im done Dont really care if it ever gets finished

That would be your choice.

Meanwhile, I will produce this.

As for 5000 free copies - the market simply would not accept this. There simply was no way to recover cost.

When I said that I wanted to produce free software, I was told that it wasn't really free unless I provided source code as well.

We are a profit-motivated business. The reason we've been in business since 1990 is that I always test the waters before producing something.

Sometimes I put out an idea and it is rejected. If it is not going to be well-received, then why would I bother to produce something that will fail?


HSH is a giant, powerful program. It is not for everyone. In fact, it is for very few people. My focus groups tell me that the simpler the program, the more people want it.

People were always saying, "Why don't you build an "HSH-lite?" Or, "Why don't you release a starter version of HSH?"

For a developer to do that, it must be planned from the beginning. That is what this is:

The Shark is a program that, on its simplest level will be perfect for the low-end user; the guy that wants to use it just 3 times a month. He will be able to learn it because it will be simple - for him.

And it will be affordable.

Meanwhile, if he wants to step up to the next level, he loses nothing. He just adds a few features - in a small monthly fee increase.

Just so you get the feel for this project, the high-end package is called "Melville," and is a multi-user version of this, designed to support a real whale team.

Same product. Just expanded features.


THE POINT: This software is very deep design and programming. It is several thousand man hours.


Whether you choose to be part of it or not is up to you.


Dave

[upthecreek]

Originally Posted by Dave Schwartz

That would be your choice.

Meanwhile, I will produce this.

As for 5000 free copies - the market simply would not accept this. There simply was no way to recover cost.

When I said that I wanted to produce free software, I was told that it wasn't really free unless I provided source code as well.

We are a profit-motivated business. The reason we've been in business since 1990 is that I always test the waters before producing something.

Sometimes I put out an idea and it is rejected. If it is not going to be well-received, then why would I bother to produce something that will fail?


HSH is a giant, powerful program. It is not for everyone. In fact, it is for very few people. My focus groups tell me that the simpler the program, the more people want it.

People were always saying, "Why don't you build an "HSH-lite?" Or, "Why don't you release a starter version of HSH?"

For a developer to do that, it must be planned from the beginning. That is what this is:

The Shark is a program that, on its simplest level will be perfect for the low-end user; the guy that wants to use it just 3 times a month. He will be able to learn it because it will be simple - for him.

And it will be affordable.

Meanwhile, if he wants to step up to the next level, he loses nothing. He just adds a few features - in a small monthly fee increase.

Just so you get the feel for this project, the high-end package is called "Melville," and is a multi-user version of this, designed to support a real whale team.

Same product. Just expanded features.


THE POINT: This software is very deep design and programming. It is several thousand man hours.


Whether you choose to be part of it or not is up to you.


Dave

Wish you luck!