Copyright: © A & K S  McKay 30/08/94


¸ A & K S  McKay 30/08/94SOCCER.TOC000yesyesyesyesSoccer Scorecard Helpsocceryesyes18/02/95


Table of Contents

About

About Soccer Scorecard

About The Author

Further Information

Warranty

Support

The Shareware Concept

Distribution Rights

Registration

Game Status

Using Soccer Scorecard Dialog Controls

Installation Requirements

SOCCER.INI Settings

Acknowledgments

Dialogs

Main Dialog Screen

Team Review Dialog

League Definition

League Edit

Division Edit

Team Edit

Load/Save

Fixture Dialog

Calendar Dialog

Scores Dialog

Prediction Graph

Perm Test Graph

Printing

Coupon Statistics Dialog

Forecasting

Forecasting Football Pools Entries

Prediction Dialog

Match Prediction Configuration

Mixed League Definition


Help file produced by  HELLLP! v2.3a , a product of Guy Software, on 2/18/95 for    Andrew McKay.

The above table of contents will be automatically completed and will also provide an excellent cross-reference for context strings and topic titles.  You may leave it as your main table of contents for your help file, or you may create your own and cause it to be displayed instead by using the I button on the toolbar.  This page will not be displayed as a topic.  It is given a context string of _._ and a HelpContextID property of 32517, but these are not presented for jump selection.

HINT:  If you do not wish some of your topics to appear in the table of contents as displayed to your users (you may want them ONLY as PopUps), move the lines with their titles and contexts to below this point.  If you do this remember to move the whole line, not part.  As an alternative, you may wish to set up your own table of contents, see Help under The Structure of a Help File.

  Do not delete any codes in the area above the Table of Contents title, they are used internally by HELLLP!


About Soccer Scorecard

See also:	Further Information

About The Author

Warranty

Distribution Rights

Support

Soccer Scorecard is a Microsoft Windows 3.1 (c) application for managing information relating to football league results. It also provides facilities for managing pools coupon selections, and via user-adjustable configuration options offers the capability to suggest what it considers to be the most likely results of individual fixtures - of most interest to those who regularly submit pools coupons will be the matches which are anticipated to result in a draw. These predictions are based solely upon available statistical data using sensible algorithms based upon each teams recent statistical record.

This application is shareware, which allows the user to evaluate the software for a period not exceeding 30 days to see if it meets the needs of the individual. Continued use beyond the registration period requires registration. There are several benefits offered to registered users, explained in the section on registration.

Soccer Scorecard has been designed to be easy to use - if you have any difficulty in either using the application or understanding some feature it then please feel free to tell us (see the section on Support for details of how to contact us). Feedback is welcome, and will help us to improve our software for both you and other users.

What Soccer Scorecard Is NOT

Soccer Scorecard will probably not make you rich quick by providing you with a definitive shortlist of fixtures to mark on your pools coupon. We simply cannot promise that this software will do anything to help your personal bank balance - so do not blame us if you do not manage to get a yacht in the Caribbean as you might have set out to do. Actually, if someone were to set your expectations in that way then we would encourage you to be very suspicious about the individual concerned.

How you choose to use Soccer Scorecard is up to you - there is no hard and fast list of rules for everyone to follow, other than those necessary to define the data elements which are explained in this help text.


Warranty

Soccer Scorecard is supplied as-is and without formal warranty, either expressed or implied. Defective media will be replaced at no additional charge if the defective goods are returned to us within 30 days of shipment.

The authors will not accept responsibility for any damage, cost or expense which may result from use of this product. Use in this context includes but is not limited to simple installation.

Data files supplied with this application are believed to reflect actual fixtures and results, but the authors cannot be held responsible for errors and omissions which might be present - if you find an error or omission within the data, please tell us and we will do our best to correct that situation in our master copies. There are literally thousands of results which occur throughout one season of fixtures, and it would be unreasonable to expect that we got every single one right (but we do try our best to do so).

Whilst it is our policy and intention to supply reputable and reliable products of a high quality we cannot accept any liability whatsoever in the event that the software does not behave as expected or as suggested in this (and other) documentation. We would however like to know if you find this is the case so that we can try our best to correct the situation.

It is for the user to satisfy themselves that it performs acceptably. No refunds can be considered subsequent to registration, as the user has been given every opportunity to verify operation of the application prior to registration - that is one of the main benefits of the shareware concept.

In using (or supplying) this software the user (or supplier) is deemed to accept the aforementioned conditions and agrees to indemnify the authors against any risk associated with the installation and use of this software. If the user (or supplier) does not agree to these conditions then they must stop using (or supplying) the software immediately.

In the event that you are dis-satisfied with Soccer Scorecard please tell us (please refer to Registration). If we can resolve your concern or dis-satisfaction easily we will do our best to do so. Your feedback is valuable and will be appreciated.

However, in the event you like this software please tell your friends and colleagues!


Forecasting Football Pools Entries

See also:	Further Information

Whilst Soccer Scorecard provides user-adjustable functionality to suggest the likely results of football fixtures via analysis of available statistics, the authors do not seek to set unreasonable expectations or suggest that it will enable you to make any gain whatsoever from the football pools!

The reason for this is simple enough - there is no mathematical method available which will reliably predict the results of all (or even most) of the football matches which are ever played. If it were possible to achieve consistently high forecasting capability then the football pools would regularly be paid out to mathematicians and statisticians - and the fact is that very few people who have any expertise with statistical methods ever win enormous amounts of money on the football pools system.

However, it is also the case that the chances of winning anything on the football pools can be enhanced if a viable and formal method of selecting coupon entries is followed. Pure chance selections may occasionally pay dividends, but not anywhere near as regularly as entries which have been made through good skill, judgment, and analysis of available statistical data. For example very few people would choose a coupon entry where the home team had a good scoring record whereas the away team had lost every game away from home in recent history, even though on occasion such matches do produce an unexpected result - the main reason such a match would be included in a selection would be when the submitter had chosen a number of matches at random.

The important thing to remember is that if just one result on a coupon of some 58 entries (typical for a pools coupon) can be discounted as not likely to produce a draw, then nearly 2% of the entire entries have been eliminated! (Murphy will invoke his laws on this occasionally of course, and produce an unlikely result.....). Now 2% may not sound a lot, but remove several lots of 2% from a coupon and your chances of winning anything escalate rapidly.

What Soccer Scorecard may be able to do with regard to forecasting results is provide you with the following:

•	Immediate access to the statistical data for each team, so that individual fixtures can be properly assessed even without the capabilities of the in-built forecasting algorithms.

•	Immediate access to each teams playing record, and not just the statistical summary which will not take account of a recent change of form.

•	The ability to record the pools entries in a database, so that personal methods of forecasting can be reviewed and enhanced based upon real knowledge of which personal method(s) generally produce the most points on the coupon.

•	Automatic totaling of various statistical data which appears on a pools coupon - after the results come in and are made available to Soccer Scorecard.

•	Availability of user-adjustable algorithms which suggest the most likely outcome of all fixtures.

•	User testing of permutations to give an insight into which perms are most likely to return a dividend.

•	Immediate graphical feedback to indicate which pools coupon rows are hot and which are cold.

•	Graphical Analysis to show you exactly where the most points occur on your pools coupon, based upon your particular Prediction Configuration.

•	Printed reports for most data managed by the application, including graphical reports (the latter will be in colour if you have a colour printer and driver - although they will work fine for non-colour printers too).

Soccer Scorecard essentially sets out to reduce the number of pools coupon entries from which you might wish to make a selection. There are always 58 games listed on a standard pools coupon, and the basic rule is that you want to mark the games which are going to produce the most points on your coupon when the match results come in. On a single line entry you would mark perhaps ten or eleven games, and the best eight of these results would count towards your personal points total. Ideally you would select eight matches which all scored 1-1 draws, and gain the essential 24 points to win an instant fortune.

Whilst it is not too difficult to achieve 14 or 15 points on a pools coupon via a single line entry (this is the average number of points based upon analysis of such entry methods), getting your personal score up to and above 20 (where the winnings start getting paid out) is extremely difficult and virtually impossible to achieve, because you really do have to choose a large proportion of the drawn matches out of the total of 58 to get anywhere close to 20 points on the coupon.

The way that Soccer Scorecard attempts to assist you is by reducing the total of 58 to some number much lower - based up statistical evidence available from previous (and real) fixture data. Instead of having to select 8 out of 58 it is much better for you to try to choose 8 out of 30 or so (this 30 could be more or less - that is up to you). If you can identify from real evidence where the most points are scored (that is - points for you on the pools coupon) and then place your marked entries against these matches week after week then it stands to reason that your average personal points total over a period of time should rise.

The user should also take into account that some numbers on the pools coupon can be considered as being hot whereas others are cold. What this means is that some coupon rows will turn out to be score draws far more frequently than other rows, regardless of which teams are playing against that particular row on the coupon. This can be verified by the user manually analysing each coupon result for a season of results - but to help the user Soccer Scorecard includes this feature as standard - see the Coupon Statistics Dialog for further information.


The Shareware Concept

Soccer Scorecard is shareware. It is not free, and continued use beyond a reasonable evaluation period not exceeding 30 days requires that you pay the authors in order to become a registered user. Once registered you may continue to use the software with no further restrictions based upon a time limit, plus enjoy some benefits which are not available to non-registered users.

Shareware is not free software, although some people are known to treat it as such. It is a marketing method which has significant benefits for both users and software authors. Users can satisfy themselves that the software is worth investing in, without having to pay for the privilege up-front. Shareware also offers low overheads for authors - no pretty shrink-wrapped packaging or expensive distribution channels to worry about - but this does not mean that the software is any less viable. And these low overheads are passed directly on to the user - most shareware is offered at a price which usually cannot be competed against with commercial packages.

As with many shareware applications, Soccer Scorecard does provide several benefits to the registered user - the features which are missing from the unregistered version do not limit any functional part of the application. Soccer Scorecard is completely functional even in the unregistered version, but several features made available with the registered version will make it easier to use. For complete details please refer to the section on Registration.

Please also refer to the section on Warranty to ensure that you understand your obligations with regard to using and supplying this software.


Registration

See also:	Further Information

  Select Here To Register

Soccer Scorecard is shareware, meaning that continued use beyond a reasonable evaluation period (not exceeding 30 days) requires a one-off payment to the authors. Receipt of this payment will provide the following:

•	The latest personalised registered version of Soccer Scorecard on a diskette

•	The latest available league table(s) - this is subject to availability, but we will supply what we have when you register - we endeavor to keep the current league table up to date on a rolling basis, thus you should receive the current season of results already defined to the date on which your registration is processed

•	Registered users will receive support via E-mail and by letter as appropriate - we may be willing to offer some telephone support also, subject to availability

•	Preferential terms with regard to future releases of the software (this may even be free in some cases although we do not promise to do so)

Registered users should be able to acquire up to date league tables from us at any time after registration. This will be a chargeable option as we will need to cover the costs of providing this service. Please note however that such league tables as we may be able to supply will be limited to working with the latest version of the software which is available at that time, as we cannot guarantee forwards compatibility for any version - it is up to the user to ensure they upgrade to the latest version (at whatever cost is deemed appropriate) if they wish us to provide future data file updates.

Registration will make available the following features within Soccer Scorecard, which are not available in the unregistered version:

•	The Soccer Scorecard copyright information screen will have your personal details entered on it and will automatically clear itself on start up

•	Soccer Scorecard will not keep presenting a shareware reminder screen as happens in the shareware version

•	The ability to save and restore to/from an unlimited number of league table files, each of which may contain multiple league selection. Non-registered users will find the shareware version somewhat limiting over time.

•	When creating a new league the application will allow you to optionally copy the league structure of an existing league - so all divisions and teams will be copied across. Furthermore the current statistical data for each team will be auto-copied to the last seasons results fields - this feature makes rolling to a new season very easy, whereas a non-registered user will have to input all of the data over again for each new season.

•	The registered version allows you to set the perm test to a maximum of 500 cycles. In the shareware version this is limited to 50.

•	The ability to read both shareware and registered versions of the league table files (the shareware version can only read the shareware league files - any file written by a registered version is not readable by an unregistered version)

•	The ability to print to a disk file if you wish - not possible with the shareware version

•	The ability to select a page range for printing. This can be useful if you only need one page from a complete report (it also saves paper!)

Whilst the above features will not prevent anyone from using and evaluating Soccer Scorecard in its unregistered form, they will certainly enhance its capabilities for the regular user.

Registration Liability

Whilst registering this software is straightforward, you commit to certain obligations which you should understand fully before paying the registration fee, as explained below.

Registering this software provides you with a single user license to use the software, as provided by us, without time limit. It does not necessarily provide you with automatic (free) updates to later versions, however you can certainly expect preferential terms for upgrading to any later version as and when these occur. Pricing policy for upgrades will be determined as and when the need arises - but we guarantee a substantial discount on the new registration price for previously registered users for all future versions.

Whilst we maintain all rights, intellectual and otherwise, you are obliged to treat the supplied registered copy of this software and extents as though it were your own personal property and not allow this to be used, copied, modified, disassembled or distributed to/by others. This extends to any action which you might carry out which could be deemed to be against our (the authors) bona-fide interests. The registration fee provides you, and only you, the right to continue to use the software according to this policy.

The software (in all forms whether shareware or registered versions) belongs to us, the authors. You do not and shall never take formal ownership of the software.

You are not entitled to make multiple copies of the registered software, with the sole exception being a reasonable number of personal backup copies. In this context reasonable means no more than three copies total, including the master copy. Those copies must always remain in your possession and not passed or made available to others in any form whatsoever.

The data files which are written by Soccer Scorecard may not be made publicly available by you in any form - this includes via a BBS or other distribution means, and you may not charge others for such data files. We (the authors) are the only agents who may exercise the right to make available such data files publicly.

Payment

Payment is required in UK pounds (sterling). Full details regarding registration are provided in the accompanying file ORDER.FRM which you should print out, complete and mail to us at the address provided therein.

Alternatively you may opt to register this shareware via the CompuServe SWREG scheme. The details of this service are defined in the enclosed ORDER.FRM file.

The standard registration cost includes UK postage and packing.

International Registration

This application is primarily intended for use with UK football league and pools systems, and it is not anticipated that it will necessarily appeal to an international audience. The additional costs of servicing an international registration are not provided for in the standard cost of registration, but we would be happy to consider any such request on its merits. Please contact the authors if you wish to register outside of the UK - our intention is only to cover additional costs and not to charge a premium for users outside of the UK.

More Information

In addition to your registration details we would be pleased to hear your comments and possible suggestions for improvements.

On behalf of shareware authors worldwide, Thank You for supporting the shareware concept! It could not work without your help!


Main Dialog Screen

See also: About Soccer Scorecard

This is the screen which is first presented by Soccer Scorecard. All other operations take place from this dialog.

This screen presents and shows detail for the currently selected league and the teams which make up one of the divisions from this league.

This dialog screen automatically disables various options depending on the data which is currently defined and available. For example if there are no divisions currently defined you will not be able to perform any operations on teams - because teams must belong to (or be associated with) a specific division.

Note that the team points can be shown in two different formats - with or without a decimal place. Typically the decimal place is not shown, but the user could change this to suit their own preference. This would only really be necessary if the team points awarded for a win or draw were not integers (the values awarded for a win or draw are set via the League Edit Dialog).

Refer to the section on SOCCER.INI Settings for further information on changing this option.

About This Application

You may click on the logo shown on the main dialog screen at any time the main dialog is available to review the current version and registration information. This data is not modifiable by you, but will be useful should you need to contact us for any reason - we will need the version number and, if you are a registered user, your personal serial number. This copyright screen also provides you with the option of reviewing the README.TXT file which is shipped with the application - this may contain last minute information which did not make it into the manual or help file.

League Options

Select

Position the mouse pointer on the arrow of the league combo-box (top left corner of the dialog), and click the left mouse button.

A drop-down list of available leagues will be presented - move the mouse pointer to the one of interest and press the left button. Note that it is possible there will be no leagues at all, only one, or more than one.

Add

The Add button causes Soccer Scorecard to present another dialog which the user completes. See League Edit.

This function adds a completely new league to the table structure.

Del

The Del button causes Soccer Scorecard to delete the currently selected league after confirming this with the user.

Note that there is no recovery once a league has been deleted!

Edit

The Edit button causes Soccer Scorecard to bring up another dialog so that the user can change the details of the currently selected league. See League Edit.

Division Options

Select

Position the mouse pointer on the arrow of the division combo-box (top right corner of the dialog), and click the left mouse button.

A drop-down list of available divisions will be presented - move the mouse pointer to the one of interest and press the left button. This will also cause the team list for that division to be presented. Note that it is possible there will be no divisions, only one division, or more than on division shown in this list box.

Add

The Add button causes Soccer Scorecard to present another dialog for adding a new division to the currently selected league. See Division Edit.

Del

The Del button causes Soccer Scorecard to delete the currently selected division and all the teams which make up that division. This action is confirmed before being carried out.

Edit

The Edit button causes Soccer Scorecard to bring up Division Edit dialog so that the currently selected division definition can be modified.

Note that the order of the team listing currently shown in the team list box is modifiable via this option.

Team Options

The team statistics are shown in the large list-box on this dialog. Usually the entire season of results is shown, however the user can select a subset of the entire season by clicking on either the start or end dates in the Inclusive Date Range grouping. Doing so will present a pop-up Calendar Dialog from which a new start or end date can be selected.

These dates will be reset to cover the entire season of results whenever one of the main options are chosen from the main dialog using the buttons explained in detail below.

Select

Single-clicking a team simply selects that team. Double-clicking brings up a review of the team (see below).

Add

Causes another dialog to be presented to allow a new team to be defined. See Team Edit.

Del

Causes the currently selected team to be deleted, after confirmation of this action has taken place.

Edit

Causes a new dialog to be presented to enable the currently selected team definition to be modified. See Team Edit.

Review Team Record

This feature is not immediately obvious as there is no button associated with it. Double-click any team which is displayed in the list box and Soccer Scorecard will pop up the Team Review Dialog so that you can analyze the matches which have been played or scheduled.

Buttons

Causes Soccer Scorecard to close down. No confirmation is requested - any changes will be automatically written to a disk file (this is the file from which the data was initially loaded).

File save/load. On the shareware version this simply saves the current league table to a pre-defined disk file. The registered version enables loading from and saving to an unlimited number of files.

Accesses the fixture list. Soccer Scorecard first requests the date and then proceeds to display the Fixture Dialog.

Accesses the Scores Dialog.Soccer Scorecard first requests the date of interest.

Accesses the match prediction facility. Soccer Scorecard first requests the date of interest before proceeding to the Prediction Dialog.

Prints the league tables as currently defined. Please refer to the section about Printing.

Inclusive Date Range

It will not be immediately obvious, but the user can select the start and end dates for the current season thus causing Soccer Scorecard to use a partial season of results. This is particularly useful if you need to analyse team performance over a shorter period of time than the entire season - for example before and after the acquisition of new players, or perhaps when the team is under new management.

To use this feature click the mouse pointer on either the start or end date on the main dialog. This will cause a Calendar Dialog to be presented, from which the new date can be chosen. In doing so the application will automatically re-calculate the relevant statistical information presented on the main dialog - this can be optionally printed using the main dialog print dialog.

Note that these dates will automatically revert to cover the complete season when the user moves between the main dialog and either the fixtures or scores dialogs - there is no need to manually reset these to cover the whole season.


League Definition

See also:	Mixed League Definitions

Soccer Scorecard can manage information relating to several individual league tables - each of which is unique and not related to the others which are already defined. Each of these league tables can contain zero or more divisions, and each division can contain zero or more teams (having zero divisions or teams is obviously pointless!).

Each league is logically separate to the other leagues, and only one league can be operational (or current) at one time. Switching between leagues is very easy however, via the Main Dialog Screen. In the registered version of Soccer Scorecard the leagues may, and perhaps should, be kept in separate disk files (not available in the unregistered version).

Limitations

There are few restrictions imposed within Soccer Scorecard, however some are imposed by the Microsoft Windows 3.1 (c) resource limitations and also perhaps by your own personal computer configuration (for example memory and disk capacity).

The actual limitations which may be restrictive to your use are:

•	Recommended limit of 5 leagues per disk file. This is not a physical limit, but bearing in mind the number of teams and fixtures we consider this is probably a safe working limit. The shareware version only allows access to a single disk file.

•	Almost unlimited capacity regarding number of divisions in one league definition. However 20-30 divisions will probably tend to make division selection somewhat cumbersome to use - and will not be representative of typical league structure. A typical installation is not likely to require more than about 12 divisions in one league table.

•	There is a maximum limit of 600 teams imposed in any one league table, regardless of where these are configured into divisions. this feature will tend to restrict the number of divisions which are concurrently defined.

Without going into technical detail, other concurrent Windows applications may affect this application, and reduce the available resource pool which this application needs to use. This can be a problem for many standard Windows applications. It is unlikely you will ever meet this problem, however it needs to be clarified just in case you do.

Whilst the user is not likely to run into resourcing problems in using this or other applications in a reasonable way, any attempt to manage enormous amounts of data via one disk file full of league tables will eventually cause grief.


League Edit

In order to use Soccer Scorecard it is necessary to describe at least one league to the application. This is achieved via the League Edit Dialog, which is accessed from the Main Dialog league Add or Edit buttons. Soccer Scorecard comes with at least one partially complete league table so a starting point is provided. It is perfectly okay if you wish to delete everything and start again with your own configuration.

This dialog prompts the user for several pieces of data about the league as explained in detail below.

League Name

This is the descriptive name for the league being defined. The user may supply any reasonable name.

Note that where multiple leagues are defined the names are sorted alphabetically. It may therefore be prudent to bear this in mind when entering the description.

Team Points Awarded

These are the points awarded to the teams based upon the results of a match. Note that this only affects games which have league status. These points will be reflected in the division table shown on the Main Dialog.

No points are awarded to a team losing a match, but it will usually be the case that teams will acquire points for either a draw or a win.

Enter the number of points to be awarded to a team for either a win or a draw in a league match.

Pools Points Awarded

This section of the dialog has nothing to do with the points awarded to teams in the league tables. These are the points awarded by the football pools systems against marked coupon entries and the actual match result.

Soccer Scorecard will automatically total your marked entries according to match results when you access the Prediction Dialog screen. In order to do so you must of course have already defined the fixtures via the Fixture Dialog, and entered the match results via the Scores Dialog.


Division Edit

See also:	Mixed League Definitions

A football league system comprises one or more divisions, and in each division teams are defined. Prior to defining a division the user must have defined the league to which this belongs via the League Edit Dialog.

Soccer Scorecard provides the Division Edit dialog whenever the division Add or Edit buttons are selected on the Main Dialog. This dialog could be slightly confusing for the first-time user, but it is actually quite simple to use.

Division Name

This is the descriptive name of the division. The user may describe the division any way they wish - the content of this field is not really that important to Soccer Scorecard.

Division Ranking

This slider is important to Soccer Scorecard, and requires careful setting. Refer to the section Using Dialog Controls for information on how to use these sliders.

In any league structure the divisions will be ranked in relative strength, so for example in the English football league the Premier Division is the highest ranked. Teams in upper ranked divisions are typically better than teams in lower ranked divisions, and will invariably win over their lower division opponents.

This slider allows the user to rank divisions relative to the others in the same league system. The important thing to note here is relative. There is no absolute setting required, but the user will need to use their own skill and judgment in order to make this setting viable - it will probably be the case that this setting will require adjustment over a period of time, but this is entirely up to the user.

For example, if we used the English football league system and assumed that this slider has a range of 0 (Lo) to 10 (Hi), then the Premier League may well be ranked as about 9.5 or even 10. Division 1 might be ranked at 8.2, and so on.

This setting is used for two specific purposes within Soccer Scorecard:

1.	The divisions are sorted in high to low order of their ranking in the league table.

2.	The match prediction facilities provided with Soccer Scorecard will make use of the division ranking whenever teams from different divisions are playing each other, in order to give an advantage to the team from the higher division (this does not affect teams which are in the same division).

Flags

This field is used in conjunction with the following Team Sort Order. If this check-box is ticked (simply click on it with the mouse in order to change the setting) then the sort order explained below is inverted. This makes it possible, for example, to show teams listed so that the team with the lowest number of points is at the top.

Note that this option applies to an individual division - not all divisions at once.

Team Sort Order

On the main dialog teams will normally be shown with the team at the top being the one with the most current points. With the radio-buttons in this section it is possible to define a different sort order - and this may be convenient for reviewing teams for analysis purposes.

Note that this option applies to an individual division - not all divisions at once.


Team Edit

Every football league system consists of one or more divisions, and each division consists of one or more teams. The user defines teams within Soccer Scorecard via the Team Dialog, which is accessed from the Main Dialog by selecting either the team Add or Edit buttons.

The data requested by this dialog is quite straightforward, and the purpose is explained below.

Team Name

This is the descriptive name of the team. Soccer Scorecard may use this name for sorting teams in order where there is no other criteria for sorting (such as teams with the same points and goal differences).

Start Points

This value will usually be zero. The purpose is to offset the teams actual points total. One example where this might be used is when the English Football Association decide to adjust a teams points by way of a fine.

Last Season

This section is intended to be used to keep a record of the teams final statistics at the close of the last season - but the user can use it for other purposes if desired.

The values entered in this section can be used by the match prediction algorithms if the user so chooses (this can be enabled and disabled via configuration). If this feature is used then the user has a very direct input on the data used to arrive at predicted match results.

There are two instances where the availability of this alternative data becomes extremely valuable for prediction purposes:

1.	At the beginning of the season and for the first few games there is little or no current information to base predictions on, so the calculation algorithms certainly cannot work reliably - change the configuration to make more use of this alternative data at the start of the season.

2.	A team may have been through a bad period and the league table indicates this. The team then buys new players (or hires a new manager) midway through the season and the results begin to get better. However it takes time for this change to filter through to the current seasons results. By using this alternative data for match prediction it is possible to directly influence any teams perceived performance.

In the shareware version of this application the user is required to fill in all of these details manually - so each definition of a new season will become a chore. In the registered version the user can optionally have the application auto-copy an existing season, and these fields will be automatically updated from that seasons current values. This is a great time saver, and a new season will require only a small amount of editing to facilitate the divisional changes where teams have moved up and down.


Load/Save

Note this is a feature of the registered version of Soccer Scorecard. This dialog is not available in the unregistered version, and the functionality is restricted to saving to a known file.

When the file button is selected on the Main Dialog Soccer Scorecard pops up the Load/Save Dialog so that the user can choose whether to save the current league tables, or load a new set.

Buttons

(Save)

This option allows the user to save the current league tables to a disk file. The user is prompted with another dialog which allows the file name and location to be defined.

All Soccer Scorecard files are automatically given an extent of .DTA, so there is no need to add an extent to the chosen filename (if you do, your supplied extent will be replaced).

Note that Soccer Scorecard will overwrite an existing file without warning.

(Load)

This option allows the user to load new league tables from an existing disk file. The user is prompted with another dialog enabling the file and its location to be identified.

Soccer Scorecard always auto-saves the current league tables, so it is not possible to lose the current definition.

In the event that Soccer Scorecard cannot recognise the file to load (or the file does not exist), the file is renamed and a new file is generated automatically. The renaming follows a convention of changing the file extent to .000, .001 and so on.


Fixture Dialog

Matches between teams are described to Soccer Scorecard via the Fixture Dialog, which is accessed from the Main Dialog by selecting the fixture button.

The first piece of information which Soccer Scorecard requires is the date of the fixture(s). This is achieved via the Calendar Dialog. Once the date has been provided the Fixture Dialog is presented.

The purpose of the Fixture Dialog is to describe match commitments between teams on a specific date. This dialog is not interested in the results of the match(es), nor in any prediction capability. Both of these features are achieved after the matches have been described here via the Scores Dialog and the Prediction Dialog respectively.

Note that when fixtures are defined they are initially given a status of unplayed. This status will have to be changed via the Scores Dialog. From the instant a fixture is defined via the Fixtures Dialog it becomes visible to all other dialogs which have an interest in such information.

The Fixture Dialog mainly consists of two list boxes. On the left is the division/teams list box, and on the right the fixture list box. The use of both is quite straightforward, and described individually below.

One word of caution: Soccer Scorecard will not save partially complete fixtures, so if either or both teams in a fixture are not defined then the fixture will be discarded on exit.

Division/Teams List Box

This list box (the one on the left of this dialog screen) contains all of the teams in any one of the divisions in the currently selected league. The divisions can be cycled by using the Prev Div and Next Div buttons at the bottom of this list box.

Teams which are available for selection are shown in black, whereas teams which have already been committed for this date are shown in gray (the latter cannot be reselected once assigned to a fixture, unless that specific fixture is deleted).

The way this list box is used is simple - Soccer Scorecard will take care of most of the logistics involved - you just move the mouse pointer and click. Simply double-click on any team and it will be transferred to the fixtures list box on the right (as the home team if this is the first of a pair). Double click on another team and it also transfers to the fixtures list box (as the away team if this is the second of a pair of teams).

To make all of the match commitments for any date simply double-click through the teams in the order required, changing divisions as the need arises - the teams in any one match do not have to be from the same division.

Fixtures List Box

The purpose of this list box (the one on the right of this dialog screen) is to show the fixture list for the supplied date. As teams are double-clicked they will gradually build up the number of fixtures.

Note the automatic appearance of an incrementing number to the left of the fixtures. This number is just to help you and is otherwise not really necessary.

If a mistake is made in entering a fixture simply click on the fixture in the list box and then select the Del button at the bottom of the list box - the affected team(s) will be returned to selectable status in the division/teams list box.

It is also possible to insert a fixture anywhere in the list. Click on the fixture in the list box where the insertion is to take place, and select the Ins button at the bottom of the list box. Then double-click the two teams for this insertion via the division/teams list box.

Note the Delete All button at the bottom of the fixtures list box. This will delete all of the fixtures for the current date. There is no recovery once this has been actioned.

Select this button to change to a new fixture date. It is not necessary to return to the Main Dialog simply to change to a new fixture date.

Prints the currently displayed/selected fixture list. Please refer to the section on Printing for more information.


Calendar Dialog

Many operations within Soccer Scorecard require a valid date to be selected by the user. This is obtained from the user via a Calendar Dialog. This dialog allows a single date to be selected. One month at a time is displayed, and all the user needs to do is move backwards or forwards until the correct month is displayed then click on the day of the month required - it is that simple.

Any date which already has at least one fixture against it is shown in highlight. It is therefore very easy to identify those dates which have fixtures at all times.

Buttons

Back one month.

Back one year.

Forward one month.

Forward one year.


Scores Dialog

A fixture (or match) will eventually be played and will produce a result. Soccer Scorecard is advised of the result and match status via the Scores Dialog, which is accessed from the Main Dialog by selecting the scores button.

When the Scores Dialog is first selected from the Main Dialog, Soccer Scorecard will request a fixture date via the Calendar Dialog, and then proceed to display the Scores Dialog for the supplied date.

The Scores Dialog is potentially one of the most confusing of all the dialogs initially, but it is actually very easy to use.

This dialog does not allow fixtures to be set up - that is achieved only via the Fixtures Dialog. Neither is it interested in trying to predict the outcome of fixtures - for that functionality the Prediction Dialog is used.

The columns and buttons of this dialog are described below.

Cpn

Fixtures can be optionally marked as being pools coupon entries so that they will be used by the Prediction Dialog. By default when a fixture is defined (via the Fixtures Dialog) it will be marked for inclusion on the football pools coupon. You may select and de-select each pools entry via the buttons in this column - alternatively all fixtures can be updated at once via a single button press - see the section on buttons below.

The entries in this column are either an X, meaning the entry is a valid football pools entry, or blank. If this column is blank then the Prediction Dialog will ignore the entry completely.

Game Type

Each match (game) defined can have one of five different status levels. These status levels are pre-defined - see Match Status.

Changing the game type is easy - click in either the Cpn or Game Type with either left or right mouse buttons - left to increment the status, right to decrement.

Home Team

This is the home team for the fixture.

To change the score simply click on either the Home Team or Home Team Score fields with the left or right mouse buttons - left to increment the score and right to decrement.

Score

This is the home and away score for the fixture. This is adjusted by clicking with the mouse - left button to increment, right button to decrement.

Away Team

This is the away team for the fixture.

As for the home team fields, use the left and right mouse buttons to define the score.

Use this button to select a new date for which scores are to be entered. It is not necessary to return to the Main Dialog simply to change the date of interest.

This button sets/unsets the pools coupon flag for all fixtures defined for the currently selected date. This is not selective - it updates every single fixture regardless of what that fixture might currently be set at.

By default all fixtures are deemed to appear on a football pools coupon at the point at which the fixture is defined (see Fixture Dialog). This button allows all of the fixtures to be modified at once.

Use this button to set all matches which have unplayed status to league game status (it will not affect matches where the status is already defined). This is a great time saver when there are many matches on the current fixture list.

Causes the current scores information to be printed. Please refer to the section on Printing for more information.


Prediction Dialog

See also:	Further Information

Whether or not you intend to make use of the prediction capabilities of Soccer Scorecard, you may well want to record your pools selections and check on the statistical data generated for fixture dates. All of this functionality is provided automatically via the Prediction Dialog.

Upon selection of the Prediction Dialog, accessed from the Main Dialog, Soccer Scorecard will request a fixture date via the Calendar Dialog. Once this is supplied the Prediction Dialog will be displayed. Choosing a date for which there is no fixture information is not an error - but it is not very useful either.

The Prediction Dialog requires that the fixtures already be defined - it is not possible to do so via the Prediction Dialog. It may also be the case that the match results are already defined, however this depends on whether you are making a historical analysis or a future prediction, as having completed the match result table is not a pre-requisite for using the Prediction Dialog.

This dialog also requires that each of the relevant fixtures be marked as being a football pools entry - this is achieved via the Scores Dialog. If the fixture is not marked as being a football coupon entry then it will not be accessible to this dialog. By default all fixtures are deemed to be football coupon entries when they are created.

In the event that fixtures are defined but for some reason they do not appear on this dialog, the likely cause is that the fixture has not been marked as a football coupon entry - proceed to the Scores Dialog to change this status (ensure there is a mark in the Cpn field adjacent to this match).

This dialog is split into several related parts, all of which are explained below.

Prediction Table

This reflects the defined fixture list (see the Fixture Dialog). The columns and buttons of this list box are described below.

#

This is the pools coupon number (assuming that the matches were defined in the correct order via the fixture dialog). It is provided for your information only, but you do not have to make use of it if you do not want to.

Home Team

The name of the home team playing in the match.

Score

This is the actual result of the match - only displayed if the match is not of status type unplayed. This is set via the Scores Dialog.

Away Team

The name of the away team playing in the match.

Calc

This is the value which is calculated internally within Soccer Scorecard. It is related to and calculated from an aggregate of the goal differences between the teams in the match.

The actual value is not important - only the size of the value and its relationship to other values in the same fixture list. A large and negative value suggests that an away win is most likely to occur; a large and positive value suggests a home win; and a value somewhere around zero should suggest a draw is possible.

Pred

This is Soccer Scorecards prediction of the likely match outcome (regardless of whether the match has been played or not), and is directly calculated from the Calc value described above. This suggestion is directly influenced by many factors - see the section on Match Prediction Configuration.

A - L

These 12 columns are for your use, and similar to those you will find on a pools coupon. Each column reflects one single line of entries for the coupon.

You can modify these columns either manually or via the auto-fill features which the application provides. All changes to these columns will automatically be reflected in the statistical data below the list box.

To update one of these columns simply move the mouse pointer over the column and row which is to be marked, and double-click with the left mouse button. Repeat this operation to clear the mark.

This button is used to set the low point of the range of values (see column Calc above) in which a draw is assumed for the purposes of predicting likely match outcome. To use this button you will usually tend to have the list box sorted in order of the Calc column rather than the # column - however this is not restrictive.

To set the low range value, first click on the fixture in the list box which is to reflect the low range - or lower boundary of the draw window, then click on this button.

This button is used in conjunction with the high range button described below.

This button is used to set the high point of the range of values in which a draw is assumed for the purposes of predicting likely match outcome.

To set the high range, first click on the fixture in the list box which is to reflect the high range, then click on this button.

This button is used in conjunction with the low range button described above.

This button causes Soccer Scorecard to clear the marked selections the list-box above, thus allowing a completely new perm to be entered.

This button allows Soccer Scorecard to auto-fill the coupon according to the current draw window and the users defined perm settings. When selected Soccer Scorecard will prompt the user for confirmation, unless the option for ConfirmAuto is updated. Refer to the section on SOCCER.INI Settings for further information.

This button does not have to be used, but it may prove useful for just testing out a few random selections.

By default Soccer Scorecard will attempt to choose random coupon entries which fall into the draw window, using the current perm definition. If this should fail then selections will be made outside of the draw window. And if this too should fail for any reason the user will be notified via a pop-up message box. However no harm will be done if this does fail.

This button allows the user to auto-test the current perm definition. A series of tests will be performed (which emulate the Auto button just described), and on completion a Perm Test Graph will be presented. This graph will give an immediate indication of how good the perm is likely to be in real life at providing a return on the pools investment.

In the shareware version the number of tests is limited to 25 maximum - this is raised to 250 in the registered version. Note that whilst testing is taking place most of the dialog options remain static (that is, they will not update). This is because constantly re-drawing the whole dialog adds a considerable amount of time to the process.

Perm and testing arrangements are defined in the Prediction Configuration dialog.

Perm

This radio-button box allows the user to select any 1 of the 5 available perms, each of which is configurable using the Prediction Configuration dialog (select the perm here first).

Using this selection allows the user to try different perm settings against the fixture list. Each perm is independent of the others, and each has its own private draw window and other settings. It is therefore feasible to try out different perm arrangements without actually submitting entries to the pools companies - thus saving a good deal of money in the process. Eventually when a particular perm appears to give acceptable results regarding return on investment it can be used for submission purposes.

Statistics

The statistical information given refers specifically to the information which is contained in the list box, but summarized to make it easy to spot important trend data. Each of the statistical values is described below.

Please note that these statistics take into account whether fixtures are marked as football coupon entries or not. This is set via the Scores Dialog.

Columns A-L

These columns (in the matrix below the list box) apply specifically to the same column names in the list box above.

Take Best

This value indicates the number of selections which will be taken from all the marked entries in this column. Only the best values will be used for points accumulation purposes.

For example, take best 8 from 12 indicates that of the 12 marked entries in the column, only the best 8 of the 12 will be used for accumulation purposes.

This value is set (for each column) via the Prediction Configuration dialog.

From

This value works in conjunction the the Take Best value just described above. This is the maximum number of entries which can be marked in the given column - and Soccer Scorecard will rigorously maintain this upper limit if the user is manually defining entries.

This value is set (for each column) via the Prediction Configuration dialog.

Current

This is the current number of entries marked in the column. This will never be greater than the value shown in the From column just described.

Column Pts

Soccer Scorecard automatically accumulates the points for the column by taking the best n results (described in Take Best) from the total number of marked entries (described in Current).

On a single line entry this will be the total points available. However for permed entries any column may be amalgamated with other columns to provide a total score.

Draw Accuracy

This is a percentage derived from the total number of draws which currently fall into the draw window against the total draws on the coupon.

This figure can easily be 100 - which means that all of the draws on the coupon fall into the draw window. Unfortunately this is likely to mean that the draw window includes too many matches to be useful.

Ideally the user would want to see a figure of about 60% or above in this field. This is because on average there are 12 - 14 draws on a pools coupon, and 60% suggests that on average at least 8 of these draws will fall into the draw window. And the restricted set of matches within the draw window should make the chance of finding those draws higher than trying to find them at random from a total population of 58.

This figure is only available when the match results are provided.

Predict Accuracy

This is not really a useful statistic for prediction purposes. This is a percentage of how well Soccer Scorecard managed to predict all matches on the coupon. A figure of 100 would indicate that all matches were predicted accurately (this is however very unlikely to happen).

This figure is only available when the match results are provided.

Coupon Points

This is the maximum number of points available on the coupon - calculated by taking the best 8 results for pools purposes. If a user ever manages to predict this number of points he/she would be guaranteed a maximum payout.

This figure is only available when the match results are provided.

Window Points

This is the maximum number of points which are available from the draw window. Ideally this will be the same as the Coupon Points just described, which would mean that just by choosing entries from the draw window it would be possible to achieve a maximum payout.

However users may find that the maximum points available from the draw window is not quite as high as the points available from the entire coupon. This can be modified by expanding the draw window, but the trade-off is that there will be more matches to choose from in the draw window.

This figure is only available when the match results are provided.

Suggested Draws

This is the total number of matches which fall into the draw window. In an ideal world this would be just 8 matches, and all 8 of these matches resulted in a 1-1 draw on the coupon! However this is very unlikely to happen.

Typically a user should try and balance the draw window so that it contains 30 or less matches. Combined with the Window Points figure just described above, if there are 30 matches in the window and the maximum points for the coupon are available in the window then the users task is to choose 8 matches from just 30 - and not 8 from 58 in order to obtain a maximum payout.

Permed Total

This figure is arrived at automatically by Soccer Scorecard, and the perm accumulation. The actual perm is defined via the Prediction Configuration dialog.

The user should take care to define perms accurately, because it would be possible to find that this total could be much higher or lower than the pools companies would use. This would occur if the perm was badly configured.

This is the most important figure on this dialog for the pools punter, as it gives immediate feedback on how many points they scored for the currently defined configuration.

This figure is also used by the auto-test facilities in order to generate the Perm Test Graph. On each cycle of the test this figure is accessed to provide the statistical information about how well the perm performs under test circumstances.

Buttons

Select this button to change the date for which predictions (or analysis) is required. This will present the Calendar Dialog for setting a new date.

The contents of the list box can display the same information in two different ways. Initially the fixture information is displayed in ranked order of the result (actually the value of the Calc column described above), which is possibly most logical because then the predicted Away win, Draw and Home win results are grouped together rather than spread throughout the fixture list.

However it may sometimes be required to view the information in coupon number order (this is the order in which the definitions were defined). This is possible via this button which will cause the displayed information to be re-sorted.

This button simply toggles the two sorting display modes. The setting is saved between sessions.

Note that the current sort order is reflected in the printed report, so make sure the sort order is set to the required setting before requesting a printed report.

Select this button to bring up the Prediction Configuration Dialog. This allows you to influence the match prediction algorithms any way you want, in an almost infinite capacity. When you return to this dialog the results of the changes in configuration will be immediately visible in the displayed results and statistics.

Thus you can fine tune the prediction capabilities very rapidly via this option - making a minor change to any of the available configuration options can sometimes have a marked effect.

Accesses the Prediction Graph Dialog. This provides a powerful pictorial analysis of the same data as is available on the prediction dialog, this makes it much easier to visualize clusters of high points value on a pools coupon compared to the predicted results.

Note however that this button will only cause the graphics functions to execute if all of the fixtures for the currently selected date are fully defined. It is not possible to provide graphical analysis otherwise - this will not cause a problem, but you will be prompted with a message box advising you that this is the case. This graphical function is for historical analysis purposes, in order to compare the prediction algorithm accuracy against the actual results achieved.

This provides broadly the same functionality as the option above, but includes all dates and all fixtures which are determined to be completed matches and designated pools coupon entries. Providing there are a number of dates on which fixtures have been played and the results made available to Soccer Scorecard this option will immediately inform you where the aggregate averaged highest points totals are to be found on the coupon, according to the current settings of the prediction algorithms.

If the algorithms are working reasonably and there are a large number of dates available with results then the resulting graph should, theoretically, comply with the normal distribution curve according to statistical methods. That is, it should be bell-shaped with a peak somewhere between the two ends of the graph.

This button gives the user access to the Coupon Statistics Dialog, which gives a user-configurable graphical presentation of the actual results achieved across the season for each row on a pools coupon.

Whilst this cannot be scientifically proven it is definitely the case that some pools coupon rows will yield consistently better points than others, and the purpose of this dialog is to show which are the hot and which are the cold numbers on the pools coupon.

Selecting this button causes the current prediction information to be printed. Please refer to the section on Printing for further information.


Game Status

Every match which takes place has a certain status associated with it, whether the match be of type league, cup competition, or possibly VOID. Soccer Scorecard reflects these status levels by the user defining each match played as one of the 6 options explained below.

Note that it is generally the best policy to declare the match type after it has been played, otherwise Soccer Scorecard might infer that a 0-0 scoreline is actually the final result and update the league tables accordingly. This situation would cause the Main Dialog display to show incorrect information.

Match Types

Unplayed (designated as ---)

Initially all matches are declared as this type, and they remain so until the user specifically changes them from the Scores Dialog.

If a match is of type unplayed then it is as if it never took place (and if it is in the future then it quite naturally cannot have taken place). The result is determined by Soccer Scorecard to be invalid and is not used in any of the league table calculations.

League

This represents a league match which has been played, and the result is valid. This result will definitely be used in re-calculating the league table positions which are shown on the Main Dialog.

Cup #1

This match has been played, but it is not a league match. The result is perfectly valid but not used for re-calculating the league table positions etc.

The user can decide how to use this status level - for example it might be used for a specific cup competition.

Do not use this status for valid league games!

Cup #2

Ditto for Cup #1.

Cup #3

Ditto for Cup #1.

VOID

There may be occasions where a match is declared void, but you want to record a valid result anyway. This might be required in situations where the match was abandoned due to prevailing weather conditions and you still want to see the Graphics Dialog for a single date - this dialog will not be allowed unless all matches for that date have been declared.

A match with this status is not used in any of the league table calculations, and it is assumed (in general) that the result itself is void.


Match Prediction Configuration

See also:	Further Information

This dialog will probably prove to be one of the most complex of all dialogs to understand. However a little practice will make it easier.

From this dialog the user is expected to set the following:

1.	The perm definition

2.	The algorithm weighting values

Note the perm number shown on the title bar of this dialog. Perms 1 thru 5 can be selected from the Prediction Dialog, from where this dialog is initiated.

Perm Definition

The list box on the top-left of this dialog contains perm definitions for each of the columns A-L shown on the prediction dialog. This list box is used to define the perm which is used when the auto-fill button is used on the prediction dialog.

To change any definition in this list box simply move the mouse pointer over the row and column of interest, and double-click. This action will cycle the definition between -, ? and X.

If an X occurs on any line in this list box it is deemed to indicate that a similar X should appear on the prediction dialog. For simple perm arrangements there will be one X on each individual line in this list box, but there is nothing to stop multiple Xs appearing on any line.

When the user presses the auto-fill button on the prediction dialog each one of the lines in this list box is applied in turn, until all lines have been used up. As each line is processed a random selection is made on the coupon (within the draw window if possible), and the line as defined here will be implanted onto the coupon.

If an ? occurs on the line it infers to Soccer Scorecard that it does not matter if a X appears in that column or not for that line. A - indicates that no X must appear in that position.

Please note that Soccer Scorecard processes these perm lines In strict order. Therefore it is possible that a line processed later in the cycle will over-ride the requirements of an earlier defined line which may not have wanted a X in a certain position. This can only happen when the user sets ? entries into the later defined lines.

This adds a new blank line to the perm definition list box.

This deletes the perm line (after confirmation) which is currently highlighted in the perm definition list box.

Perm Title

This is the descriptive title that the user wants to give to this perm. It has no bearing on Soccer Scorecard at all.

Test Cycles

This is the number of tests which will be carried out when the user presses the Test button on the prediction dialog.

To increase the number of tests click on this button using the left mouse button. To decrement use the right mouse button.

The shareware version limits this value to 25 cycles maximum, whereas the registered version raises this to 250 cycles maximum.

Lines In Perm

This is an auto-calculated number of lines in the current perm definition, using a standard set of rules. For simple perms this figure will be accurate.

Note: For more complex perms this figure may be misleading! Always verify this figure independently when submitting a coupon with a fairly complex perm arrangement.

Unfortunately the algorithm used to generate this figure can be misled by perm definitions which are complex to understand.

Columns A-F / Columns G-L

These tables show the following detail in three columns:

1.	The list-box column name (A, B, etc.).

2.	Take the best n entries.

3.	Take the best n entries from x definitions.

The third column is automatically updated as the contents of the list box are defined. As each X appears in this list box the number against the column entry increments (or decrements if the X is removed).

The second column here is user-definable - position the mouse pointer over the figure and click with the left button to increment, and the right button to decrement. The minimum value allowed is 1, and the maximum is the same as column 3 alongside.

Note when these values are updated the Lines In Perm entry also automatically updates.

Select Best

This column of radio-buttons down the right hand side of the dialog allow the user to define how many of the defined columns A-L on the coupon are to be accumulated to give a total perm score on the prediction dialog.

Often the user will just set this to the number of columns which are defined in the perm definition list box. However some perms are more involved than this, and may operate on the basis of taking the best n columns from the total columns available. Providing this is itself a fairly simple arrangement the figure given in the Lines In Perm field should still be able to cope with the slightly more complex perms, but as suggested beware if the perm starts getting even more involved!

Current Season

On the bottom left side of the dialog there is a group box enclosing three horizontal sliders. These are used to apply a weighting value to the prediction algorithms using the current season of results.

The first slider relates to individual current/recent team form, using an exponentially decaying algorithm of recent playing history - home and away performance are measured separately. Thus if a team has recently been winning consistently whilst at home and the opposiing team has tended to lose consistently when playing away then this algorithm will tend to indicate that a home win is the most likely result.

The other two sliders relating to the current season adjust the weighting of values available in the league table - scoring record and overall season performance. These will not take into account a sudden change in team performance (such as when a team acquires/loses players or changes its manager).

These sliders are weighted according to a low value on the left side, and a high value on the right. They should be used in conjunction with the Prediction Graphs, as a change to these weightings will (or should) cause a visual change to the graph layout. Some changes may be subtle.

Last Season

On the bottom right of this dialog two further sliders are enclosed in a group box. These have identical methods to those just described for the Current Performance group, however the algorithms in this case will work with the team statistics set for last season (refer to the Team Edit Dialog). There is no equivalent slider for last season relating to recent team form.

It is up to the user to define weighting values as they see fit. At the start of a season there is no or little current data to analyse, and it may therefore be better to organise the weightings so that last seasons end results are used - phasing these out to be replaced with the current season as the season progresses.

On the other hand the user is quite at liberty to update the last seasons statistics figures individually according to personal skill - and then use these settings for analysis purpose. After all, the fields for last seasons statistics for each team do not actually have to be last seasons results!


Installation Requirements

Soccer Scorecard requires the hardware and software platform shown below for successful operation.

Hardware

•	80386 computer or better

•	Minimum 2 megabytes of hard disk space prior to installation

•	Minimum 4 megabytes of RAM

•	A Microsoft Windows (c) compatible mouse is essential. Whilst it might be possible to use most parts of Soccer Scorecard and Windows without a mouse this is not really a functional alternative, and the application has been designed for mouse use primarily.

•	A Microsoft Windows compatible printer and printer driver is desirable, but not actually necessary.

Better application performance will be achieved with more powerful and better equipped systems. Large volumes of statistical data are analyzed by the application and on slower machines this activity could be noticeable at times.

Software

•	Microsoft MS-DOS (c) version 3.3 or better

•	Microsoft Windows (c) version 3.1 or better

Alternative software platforms may work but are not tested, recommended or supported.

General

Soccer Scorecard is not disk intensive (unless the users configuration invokes the Windows swap file system in normal operation, in which case the application will be exceedingly slow - this situation would indicate a shortage of RAM in the PC). All calculations are carried out using memory arrays and thus tend to be very fast. However given the thousands of calculations which must take place during some operations delays could sometimes be noticeable.

It is obviously possible to define huge quantities of data and table information into this application, but it is not recommended to configure data which is not generally useful - the more data the application has to process then the slower the system will become.

There are really two factors which affect performance, and these are to some extent linked. The first is the number of  teams defined in any one league (note - not division!), and the second is the number of fixtures on a given date. It is a fact that there can be a maximum of n fixtures, where  n is the number of teams in the league divided by two (it is not possible for a team to play more than one match on a given date, and it takes two teams for a fixture to take place).


Distribution Rights

Soccer Scorecard is Shareware. The unregistered version may be passed around amongst friends and colleagues, and via amateur bulletin board systems (BBS) such as may be found on FidoNet.

Distribution of the unregistered version is subject to the following conditions:

1.	No charge is made for the software (a small handling charge for media and postal costs, which are not part of Soccer Scorecard, is acceptable - we do not expect to be part of this arrangement nor be seen to be associated with it). The only persons who can charge a fee for this software are the authors.

2.	The data files supplied with and generated by Soccer Scorecard may not be publicly distributed (for example via a BBS), and it is not acceptable for anyone to accept payment for these files.

3.	No modification or addition to the files supplied in the Soccer Scorecard distribution list is allowed, other than as expressed here.

4.	Many amateur BBS Sysops prefer to keep all of the files on their BBS in the same archive format (for example .ZIP and .ARJ are quite common formats), and it is permissible for BBS Sysops to re-package the files into their preferred archive type if they so wish - providing the total contents of the original archive are transferred to the new archive.

5.	Amateur BBS Sysops may, at their own discretion, add a single file (or similar) to the overall archive package to advertise their BBS - providing this does not in any way interfere with the installation and use of Soccer Scorecard.

6.	All copies of Soccer Scorecard in the distribution channel (i.e. on non-commercial BBS systems and so on) must be made available such that the software can be installed and used by anyone without making special arrangements. For example it would not be acceptable to place the software into a new archive format and then charge users a fee for the password required to access it.

7.	This software may not be distributed in any form by a commercial organization without the express written permission of the authors. This includes placing the software on a CD-ROM or disk for distribution with a magazine or other commercial venture. We do not seek to restrict such use - but we must be made aware and formally agree to it  happening before it takes place in case we need to make special arrangements to handle potentially excessive demands.

The Registered version may not be distributed or made available to anyone else under any circumstance. This also applies to the registration information and documentation supplied by the authors to registered users. Registered versions are licensed for use by one person, and only one person.

The only possible exclusion from the clauses listed above is if the authors have agreed to any change in writing.


Acknowledgements
Acknowledgments

Helllp!

This on-line help system was generated using the Helllp! shareware utility (registered version), copyright and available from Guy Software.

Contact

Edward Guy - CompuServe ID 71750,1036.

Install/Easy

The installation program provided with this application is a shareware utility (registered version), copyright and available from Kurt P. Herzog.

Contact

Kurt P. Herzog - CompuServe ID 72122,2023.

MS-DOS

Microsoft MS-DOS is the acknowledged trademark and intellectual property of the Microsoft Corporation.

Windows 3.1

Microsoft Windows is the acknowledged trademark and intellectual property of the Microsoft Corporation.

Borland International

This application was compiled using the Borland C++ version 4.02 development environment. The distributable file BWCC.DLL is shipped with the application. Both are the acknowledged trademark and intellectual property of Borland International.

Beta Test Team

We would also like to thank our Beta test team for their sincere help in testing this application, this is gratefully acknowledged and their many suggestions have enabled us to add many new and enhance several existing features. As they say in all the best acknowledgment sections, they know who they are without our having to cause them embarrassment by formally identifying them.....


Team Review Dialog

Soccer Scorecard allows the user to immediately review the match information for any team in the league system via the Team Review Dialog. This dialog is accessed from the Main Dialog by double-clicking any entry in the team list box.

The review dialog is colour coded to enable the user to immediately see the selected team in each fixture listed in either the home or away column. The fixtures are listed in date order and include all fixtures whether played or scheduled - if not yet played (or status type void) then no score is given in the dialog.

Buttons

This button causes the team review information to be printed. Please refer to the section on Printing for more information.


Using Soccer Scorecard Dialog Controls

Soccer Scorecard dialogs use a variety of different ways to interact with the user, including buttons, list and combo boxes, and so on. This section gives information about all of these controls and instructions on how these are used.

A dialog is a piece of terminology to describe a box full of user information displayed on the computer screen - typically each dialog has a specific purpose. Soccer Scorecard uses several dialogs to collect information from and display information to the user.

The term control is really a Windows specific piece of terminology - it just means that it is something that the user manipulates in some way in order to use the system.

Buttons

Buttons are probably the simplest of all controls to use. All of the buttons in Soccer Scorecard change appearance when they are selected - although this is generally momentary. Invariably as soon as a button is selected Soccer Scorecard carries out some pre-defined task.

To select a button simply mouse the mouse pointer over it and press the left mouse button.

Radio Buttons

These act like old-fashioned radio selectors, whereby when one of the buttons was depressed any other one that was active is released. Radio buttons allow the user to make a choice - but only one choice is active at any one time.

Sliders

Rather more involved that buttons, but just as easy to use. Basically these emulate the sliders which might be found on a stereo system, and they can be caused to move backwards and forwards between the end stops.

A slider can be operated in three separate ways:

1.	Move the mouse pointer over the slider button, depress the left mouse button, yank the slider to new a new position, and release the mouse button.

2.	Click on any part of the slider track either side of the slider button.

3.	Click on any part of the marked ruler underneath the slider control.

Sliders are used in two places within Soccer Scorecard - the Division Edit dialog, and the Prediction Configuration dialog.

List Boxes

List boxes contain strings of data which are meaningful to the user - for example a list of teams as shown on the Main Dialog.

Sometimes list boxes have a vertical scroll bar on their right hand side - and these scroll bars (different to sliders but very similar in most respects) can be used to move the list box window over the data. These scrollbars are only operational when the contents of the list box physically extend beyond the viewing window, so sometimes scrollbars are visible but do not do anything.

Combo Boxes

A combo box is a special sort of list box, in that only one string is seen most of the time. But if the user clicks on the combo box (or the down-arrow to the right of the combo box) then the list box magically appears. Then the user just has to select the item of interest by clicking on it.

Edit Boxes

Edit boxes (better known as edit controls) allow the user to input information by using the keyboard. Some limited mouse support is provided to enable the user to mark words or parts of words.


Mixed League Definition

It may initially seem odd to suggest that one league definition might be made which actually represents more than a single formal league system, but in fact this could well be the way that most users of Soccer Scorecard who have an active interest in football pools submission use the system!

The reason for this will become obvious when one considers the English football league and UK pools systems. There are (currently) 92 league clubs in the primary league system - but there are (usually) 58 entries shown on the football pools coupon. Now as it takes 2 teams to play each match then there has to be at least 58 x 2 = 116 teams defined!

For pools purposes in the UK it is established practice to combine both the English and Scottish league systems into one.

It is perfectly acceptable for you to define both English and Scottish league systems into one super-league, but there are considerations to take into account.

Defining Divisions For Mixed Leagues

If combining, for example, English and Scottish league systems into one Soccer Scorecard table then a problem which will soon be encountered is how to define the divisional rankings? But this is not actually a problem at all!

The reason is that English and Scottish clubs - at least for pools purposes - never play each other, so as far as Soccer Scorecard needs to be concerned the division rankings (refer to the Division Edit dialog) do not have to be meaningful and represent the true relative ranking between these divisional systems. It is therefore quite acceptable to group the English divisions together and then group the Scottish divisions together (or vice-versa if you prefer) as far as ranking is concerned.

So looking at this example where Lo = 0 and Hi = 10 we might decide to define the divisional system as follows:

English Premier League	=	10

English Division 1	=	9

English Division 2	=	8

English Division 3	=	7

Scottish Division 1	=	6

Scottish Division 2	=	5

Now this might tend to suggest that Scottish clubs are inferior to English league clubs - but it does not mean this at all, because English clubs never play Scottish clubs the Prediction ranking criteria can never be used.

Creating Dummy Divisions

Bear in mind that if the minor divisions in the English league system are included in your league table (as occasionally minor league clubs do play senior clubs in cup fixtures which appear on the pools coupon) then the relative ranking of these divisions has to be set relative to the divisional strength of the teams playing. In this case it might normally be expected that the club from a minor league will be at a severe disadvantage to a club in the higher division, so there would not really be a problem with creating a dummy division with a low ranking, and for the sake of simplicity just place all of the minor division clubs into this division.

Although some minor clubs do have moderate success in cup competitions most are knocked out by the second or third round of the competition so the actual divisional ranking will not be important most of the time - and it probably is not worthwhile trying to record the league data for the minor divisions (however, that is up to you!).

There really is no great problem in configuring a fairly large number of divisions in your league system if you want to (say 20 to 30 would be fine), but you must take into account that the total team count in any one league table must not exceed 600 - there is no limit on the number of teams in any one division though (apart from the 600 just mentioned, but you probably would not want to put 600 teams in one division anyway).


Support

Support for Soccer Scorecard is available via the following means:

•	Postal support - for address please refer to Registration.

•	Via FidoNet - send Netmail to 2:252/21.23.

•	Via CompuServe - send mail to 100025,1566.

Whilst support usually infers problem reporting, we are just as keen to encourage users (whether registered or not) to give us feedback on this application which could assist us to improve the software or its extents. Please feel free to give feedback via the above means which would help us to help you!

Requested Details

When requesting support the following information would be appreciated:

1.	The version of Soccer Scorecard you are using (to ascertain this click on the logo on the main dialog screen).

2.	Where you obtained this application from (in case we need to make arrangements to provide a later version to this source).

3.	The make, model and type of processor (80386/80486 etc) you are using.

4.	The amount of memory installed in your computer (RAM, in megabytes).

5.	The version of MS-DOS and Microsoft Windows which you are using.

6.	If you are a registered user, your serial number (click on the logo on the main dialog screen for this).

7.	The nature of the problem you are experiencing. Please clarify whether this is a solid or intermittent fault - and whether you are able to reproduce this easily.

8.	Detailed instructions on how we might reproduce this problem.

9.	How serious you consider this problem to be for you (for example cosmetic, inconvenient, enhancement request, serious malfunction).

We would appreciate any other information which may be helpful - for example if you are using a non-standard memory manager etc.

If the problem is possibly related to the data which you are using it would be greatly appreciated if you would send a copy of the *.DTA file for our analysis, either on disk or via E-mail (for the latter it would be best to compress it with PKZIP, LHA or other utility if you know how to do so - do not worry if not). This will help enormously, so thank you for your trouble if you decide to do so.


Prediction Graph

Whilst data when presented in a textual report format is extremely useful, a pictorial representation of exactly the same data can often make things much easier for analysis purposes. Soccer Scorecard provides instant access to two bargraphs (histograms) on which the results and prediction accuracy are immediately obvious. This is available from the Prediction Dialog.

The two available actual versus predicted bargraphs within the application are actually one and the same, but the data made available to the bargraph is different - either just the fixture list for one date can be displayed, or you may optionally choose to display the entire season of results (or results to date). The latter is potentially more useful as it will give a better picture of where the best results are on a coupon spread over a whole season - but the single date graph can also be useful to see visually where the results were with respect to the draw window on that particular date.

Both bargraphs display several related and important pieces of information which are explained below.

Bargraph Attributes

The prediction bargraph shows in visual form exactly the same data as is presented on the Prediction Dialog. Fixture results are represented as vertical boxes in different colours, where each colour represents a match result (either 1-1, X-X, 0-0, Home Win or Away Win). These coloured boxes are sized according to the number of results achieved on that part of the X-axis of the graph multiplied by the pools points awarded for that result. Typically this would mean that one result where the actual score was 1-1 would be equivalent to having two results where the result was a Home Win.

The X-axis (horizontal axis) of this graph relates to the magic number which Soccer Scorecard calculates for each match, which is shown in the Calc column on the prediction dialog - the left hand end of the axis suggests the area where Away Wins are most likely, and the right hand end where the Home Wins are considered most likely. Somewhere roughly in the middle - if the algorithms are working reasonably - should be our draw window. The X-axis is sub-divided equally and automatically by Soccer Scorecard to give an arbitrary 50 sections - it is therefore possible to have up to 50 different columns.

The Y-axis of this graph represents the number of points awarded for actual match results. There can be a mixture of match results in any column - the results are depicted by colour (the legend is shown at the base of the graph window), and are stacked into columns to form an aggregate total score of points awarded on the pools coupon. Therefore the higher any particular vertical bar appears across the graph (ignoring the multi-coloured elements of the bar for a moment), the more pools points were achieved in that particular calculated points range measured along the horizontal axis.

Neither of these axes are given a scale - it would be possible to do so, but absolute results are not useful - relative results are. All you want to see is where, relative to the two ends of the X-axis, most pools points occur - meaning you really want to see a small section of the graph where the vertical bar(s) are highest and clustered together. Then, if you position your draw window around that area, the prediction algorithms are most likely to indicate the pools entries where you ought to mark your coupon in order to achieve the highest points for future fixtures.

Immediately underneath the X-axis of this graph is the draw window - shown as a horizontal coloured bar consisting of three coloured boxes laid end to end (this assumes that the draw window does not exceed the currently displayed graph). On the left is a green box indicating Away Win, in the centre section is a red box indicating the draw window which you have set, and on the right is a blue box indicating Home Wins. This horizontal bar is exactly the same length as the horizontal axis of the graph itself.

Ignore the green and blue bars, and concentrate on the red box of this horizontal bar. What you need to do is move and resize that red box so that it covers the region on the horizontal X-axis where the highest points totals (vertical bar heights) are regularly achieved. You can move the draw window whilst in this graph dialog simply by clicking on the upper and lower draw window figures given underneath the graph - using the left mouse button increases the value and the right decreases the value.

To make things a little easier to see visually the actual draw window is shown on the main graph as a gray background. Your aim should be to physically adjust this gray background so that it sits astride the area of the graph which contains the highest vertical columns and/or drawn results, and if possible excludes winning results. Then when you return to the Prediction Dialog the list box will immediately show those entries in the draw window (that is, those which fall in the range where the highest bars exist on the graph) because they will have a gray background in the list box! This makes it possible to check previous match results and see just how accurately the algorithms are predicting match results - if the actual draws are mostly given a gray background by Soccer Scorecard then the algorithms are working well. And if not then you should certainly try changing the weightings of the algorithms via the Prediction Configuration dialog.

In moving and resizing the draw window (the horizontal red box) you should see the percentage of predicted draws figure change. Your aim is to make this figure reasonably high (say about 60%), whilst keeping the draw window to a reasonably small size. If you made the draw window the entire length of the X-axis you would achieve a figure of 100% - but then Soccer Scorecard would predict that all matches on the coupon were likely draws! A figure of 60% informs you that if there were a total of 10 draws on the coupon, 6 of these fall within the draw window you have set. Now if you had placed your faith in Soccer Scorecard and marked your coupon according to the entries in the draw window you would have stood a much better chance of finding those 6 actual draws - and if you were lucky enough to have done so you could easily be close to a win on the football pools!

In an ideal world all of the green boxes on the graph would cluster at the left hand end of the graph, the red boxes cluster in the centre section, and the blue boxes cluster at the right hand end of the graph. However it is unlikely that any 58 matches on a pools coupon would produce this arrangement - there are just too many shock results from actual matches, so do not be disappointed if this never seems to happen.

Once you have set your draw window, try displaying the graph for different fixture dates for which you have defined the final results. You should find that the percentage figure given is reasonably consistent - and this should in turn give you confidence that the algorithms used do actually produce meaningful predictions of match outcomes!

Suggestions

If you are using Soccer Scorecard for prediction purposes this graphical dialog could easily become one of the most important assets of the application, as you get immediate feedback on how good (or bad!) your current prediction configuration is, and how well the algorithms work.

Choose a particular date which has a lot of match results already defined. Then vary the prediction configuration options (refer to Prediction Configuration) by fairly large amounts, and select this graph between each change. Although the match results themselves do not change, the calculated likely result means the vertical bars on the graph will move sideways, and some coloured boxes will swap to different columns - but these boxes will not change colour as the actual result will always be defined!

To recap, the coloured boxes on the graph represent actual match results, and the X-axis represents the calculated match result - towards the left hand end of this axis indicates a higher likelihood of an Away Win, and towards the right hand end indicates the likelihood of a Home Win - with drawn results most likely to occur somewhere in between.

Once you are used to the effect of changing the prediction configuration, move and resize the draw window. Ideally the draw window (the red section of the coloured bar immediately under the bargraph horizontal axis) should be no longer than about one third of the whole bar length, but at the same time the draw accuracy figure should be relatively high - 60% or better would be ideal.

Once this situation is arrived at then Soccer Scorecard will often manage to find a similar percentage (that is, around 60%) of predicted drawn results for different fixture dates. From this you could if you wished start making your pools selections based upon the likelihood that about 60% (or possibly better) of the drawn matches that will be on the football pools coupon will probably occur in this draw window. In other words your chances of finding the greater number of draws reduce from finding 5 or 6 draws in about 58 fixtures to finding that number of draws in about 30 fixtures!


Printing

Soccer Scorecard supports printing of various reports to any Microsoft Windows (c) printer which you have pre-configured into the system. This is activated whenever the following button is selected on the dialog screen you are currently working with:

Selecting this button will cause Soccer Scorecard to prompt you for the printer you wish to use, and also for the attributes of that printer (the mode, resolution and so on).

The Shareware version does not allow you to divert output to a disk file, neither does it allow you to define a range of pages to print - in the unregistered version printing is an all or nothing option. These enhanced features are provided to registered users as a benefit of registration.

Although printing in landscape mode is possible (if your Windows printer driver allows this), it is not really recommended - if you do so you may find that the aspect ratio (that is, the page left to right vs top to bottom ratio) causes the report to look rather less than desirable. The best advice we can offer is for you to try it and see - if the result is acceptable for you then there is no reason why you should not use this alternative.

You can cancel a print job at any time the report is being prepared by selecting the Cancel button on the progress dialog - this will not cause a problem for either Soccer Scorecard or for Microsoft Windows (c).

Supported Printers

In theory Soccer Scorecard should be able to send output to any supported Windows print device for which the necessary printer driver is available - this could include fax devices and so on. However it is impossible to test every possible configuration - there are literally thousands of different configurations possible!

In the event that you experience problems with a particular printer we would appreciate your advice of this, together with a sample of any output which might be available to demonstrate what the actual problem is, and details of the printer and the driver. We cannot guarantee to provide a solution (this could be a feature of the driver you are using!), but awareness will help us to avoid any possible future problems and take these into consideration when new features are being reviewed.

Please refer to the section on Support for details of how to contact us.


Perm Test Graph

See also:	Further Information

One 5000-line perm is just as likely to produce a winning result as any other 5000-line perm, right?

WRONG!

Just because two perms appear to have a comparable number of lines, it appears to be the case that they may not necessarily be equivalent with regard to their likelihood of winning something on the football pools systems.

The user can prove this to themselves quite easily by defining different perm arrangements. Some perms with roughly the same number of effective lines will produce on average about the same results as other perms - but repeated testing of different perm arrangements should show that some perms appear to give an improved chance of winning on the football pools, because the average points scored for that perm will be higher, and also it will indicate more winning dividends. This perm test graph is the major feature which will demonstrate this capability.

The perm testing arrangements within Soccer Scorecard have been designed to be as completely free of bias as they can be. In other words they are not designed in any way to show a feature of the application which appears to benefit the sale or marketability of the application. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the facilities provided to test the perms, because the user can independently verify the results by repeated use of the AUTO button on the prediction dialog and verifying each result as it appears by marking it on a simple bargraph - such testing should easily confirm that the averaged results are broadly the same as running a sequence of tests using the Test button.

When the user selects the Test button from the Prediction Dialog, assuming everything goes well it will result in several repeated tests being performed, where each test is a random selection of matches from the coupon currently being displayed. On completion of these tests a perm test graph is displayed to the user.

This graph provides the user with feedback about each of the tests, and shows a horizontal bargraph where each column (row) of the bargraph is a points total, alongside which is a strip of test results - each block in the strip was one points total from each test cycle. From this the user is able to visualise how good (or bad) the perm under test was.

Note that the horizontal bars on this graph are coloured either red or blue. Red bars indicate bars which are deemed to be within the range of points values which may pay a dividend, whereas blue bars will almost certainly never win anything on any pools competition. By default this application assumes up to 7 dividends will be paid and displays the bars accordingly (7 dividends means that the 1st dividend on a coupon will be the maximum points available on the coupon, the 2nd dividend will be half a point less, and so on).

The user can change the number of dividends to be displayed in red by editing the SOCCER.INI file in the application directory, and giving a different value for the Dividends= entry (the range of acceptable values is 1 thru 7). Ordinarily users will not want to change this value, and it is not of vital importance to the application itself.

Underneath the bargraph is the average points total scored during the tests. The higher this figure is the better (potentially!) the perm is - although the user must also take into account that in any particular week there may not always be a complete 24 points available on the coupon. And the bargraph itself will show whether during the test cycles any potentially winning lines were achieved (arbitrarily this means 20.5 points or above on a coupon with a maximum 24 points), as the columns of the graph will change from blue to red. So any red column on this graph will potentially be a winning line - regardless of whether there are a maximum of 24 points or less on the coupon.

Dark Gray Shaded Area

The dark gray area shown on the graph (if shown) indicates an area of the graph where these points totals were not available. For example if there were only 23.0 points on the entire coupon then the columns for 23.5 and 24.0 points would be shaded dark gray.

It is impossible for the user to score points totals which are coloured with a dark gray background.

Light Gray Shaded Area

Any light gray area shown on the graph indicates a points value which lies outside of the draw window. Test results will not normally be able to find their way into this area, although it is possible nonetheless - but to do so Soccer Scorecard will have failed to find from its random selection process any entries in the draw window which are acceptable.

It is quite unlikely that any result shown on the graph will ever locate into an area which is shaded light gray.

If the light gray area is relatively large (in other words covers more than two points values) then the draw window is not well set and should be adjusted accordingly. The maximum points available in the draw window would ideally be the same as for the maximum points on the whole coupon. However, before changing the draw window try it across several weeks of results - it is entirely possible that one week of results is not representative.

Buttons

The following buttons are available on the perm test graph.

This button causes the graph to change from a straightforward bar graph to a pareto graph and vice-versa.

A pareto graph is simply a bar graph which is sorted by the frequency of occurrences. This can be useful in determining which points values were most prevalent during testing.

This button causes Soccer Scorecard to create a text file containing the results from testing of the current perm arrangement, which could then be imported into a spreadsheet or other application for further analysis. The format of the file is simple text, and each line in the file is commented automatically as to its purpose.

Files are created in a sub-directory called .\STATSDIR, which is automatically created if it does not currently exist.

Each date and perm selection creates a unique filename of the following format:

YYYYMMDD.T0n

where:	YYYY	=	Year of fixture date (e.g. 1994)

MM	=	Month of fixture date (e.g. 09 = September)

DD	=	Day of fixture date (e.g. 23)

n	=	Perm number under test (1 thru 5)

Note that once these files are created they will never be deleted by the application, although they will be over-written without warning. It is up to the user to maintain the contents of the .\STATSDIR sub-directory.

This button allows the graph to be printed.


Further Information

Users who feel they need more information about how to use Soccer Scorecard or how it works can find further information in the user manual, provided as a benefit of registration.

The large format user manual, which features screen images for all of the dialogs within the application together with fully descriptive text for all options and controls, includes a section on the football pools prediction methodology employed within the application. It explains in detail how to configure a perm (several example perm definitions are given), plus the mathematical information required in order to determine the number of effective lines a perm is calculated at. Various tables are included to assist the user make his/her own calculations.

The manual also details a method for testing different perms, thus providing a standard way of assessing whether any perm arrangement is better or worse than another perm - even though two different perms can have a similar number of effective lines, it is not always the case that they produce similar results, and this can be investigated using this methodical approach. Yet another section deals with best practices regarding football pools submission when combined with Soccer Scorecard.

Most of this information is not supplied with the shareware version in any form.


SOCCER.INI Settings

Various configuration settings for Soccer Scorecard are defined in the file SOCCER.INI, which is present in the applications home directory. Some of these options are updated via facilities built into the application, whereas others as noted will need to be manually adjusted using Windows Notepad or a similar utility to edit the file (usually these values would not need to be updated, but the user can do so if they wish).

The following is a listing from an example SOCCER.INI file:

[Pools]

File=pools.DTA

PredSorted=1

FreqSorted=1

ConfirmAuto=1

Dividends=7

GraphExclude=3

CursorDelay=200

SliderSnap=1

ShowDec=0

These options are explained in detail below. Note that they can appear in any order in the file, and this order is not significant.

File=pools.DTA

This is the last file accessed by Soccer Scorecard, allowing the application to remember the file next time it starts up.

This option is not available in the shareware version, as multiple files are not supported.

PredSorted=1

This option configures the sort order of the Prediction Dialog list-box, and may be set to either 1 or 0. This value is automatically updated when the sort button is selected on this dialog.

FreqSorted=1

This option sets the sorting order for the Perm Test Graph. Although the data in the graph is identical this can be presented as either a bargraph, or sorted as a pareto. This value is automatically updated when the sort button is selected on this dialog.

ConfirmAuto=1

If set to 1 then Soccer Scorecard will prompt for confirmation whenever the user selects the auto-fill button on the Prediction Dialog. To prevent this confirmation taking place set this value to 0 (zero).

This option will require setting manually by the user as there is no in-built option to do so.

Dividends=7

This option affects the Perm Test Graph. By default the top 7 dividends available on the coupon are shown in a highlight colour (red), if any test results fall into this area. However this can be adjusted by the user to any number between 1 and 7 inclusive.

This option will require setting manually by the user as there is no in-built option to do so.

CursorDelay=200

When Soccer Scorecard resets the cursor to not busy (after it was set busy), an automatic delay is incurred in the set not busy routine - this is to prevent the cursor flashing between busy and not busy states if a set busy call follows immediately after a set not busy.

This delay is by default set to 200 milli-seconds, which should be reasonable for most circumstances. However the user can adjust this delay to suit their own personal preferences. The range of acceptable values are 100 - 2000.

GraphExclude=3

This option is used by the Prediction Graph when showing the entire season of results, and represents a percentage. Values can be between 0 and 10.

Invariably when calculating the complete season there will be some results which fall a long way outside of the normal range. That is to say, most of the calculated values will tend to cluster centrally on the graph but there will be some which are a long way outside of this cluster.

If these values are simply allowed to stand then when the graph is drawn it will squeeze most of the results into the central section (horizontally) - with just one or two shown at each end of the graph. This is not very useful and will lead to problems trying to set an optimal draw window.

The value of this option causes Soccer Scorecard to adjust its horizontal access to effectively ignore the values which are at either end of the horizontal axis of the graph. It represents the percentage of the total population which can be ignored. For example, if the total number of results on the graph was 100, a value of 3 here would allow the application to ignore up to 3 values which are at either end of the graph.

Note that the results for these values are still shown on the graph - they will be automatically accumulated to fall into the horizontal graph range. This may be noticeable if GraphExclude is set to a relatively high value - this could be fairly significant columns to be presented at either end of the horizontal axis.

This option will require setting manually by the user as there is no in-built option to do so. A value of 3 should be sufficient for most purposes.

SliderSnap=1

This setting controls the action of the slider controls located on the Perm Configuration Dialog. By default, when this setting is set to 1 the sliders will snap to the divisions of the scale underneath each slider - just click on the scale to move the slider. This setting may be preferable for setting different perm configurations to be identical in every respect.

Set this value to 0 to allow these sliders to be minutely adjusted - they will no longer snap to the divisions of the scale beneath.

ShowDec=0

This option affects the data presented in the team list-box on the Main Dialog. If set to 0 (zero) the team points will be shown without a decimal place. This will be the normal setting. However if the user changes the points awarded to a team for winning or drawing to a non-integer (from the League Edit Dialog) then it may become necessary to show the team points with a decimal place.

This option will require setting manually by the user as there is no in-built option to do so.


Coupon Statistics Dialog

It does not matter which rows on a pools coupon are marked - every row is statistically as likely as any other to result in a drawn match as any other row, right?

WRONG!

From the evidence available and presented by this dialog it seems to be the case that some numbers on the pools coupon are hot, whereas other numbers are cold. If the user consistently chooses to mark the hot numbers as coupon entries then over a period of time the pools points awarded should be higher than if the cold numbers are selected. Although the user may be somewhat skeptical, this dialog will prove beyond any reasonable doubt that some coupon rows are better for selection purposes than others - and the user can also independently verify every piece of detail that this dialog provides!

This dialog, available from the Prediction Dialog, gives immediate graphical feedback on the results achieved on the pools coupon taking all results from the current season of results. An odd fact of football pools coupons is that some coupon numbers (rows) will result in score draws far more than other coupon numbers. Although statistical theory and simple logic should inform us that this should not happen, it most certainly does!

What this means is that, for example, on a season of results if the user had consistently placed a pools mark on the first row of the coupon (row 1) then that row may have achieved five 1-1 draws, two high score draws and no 0-0 draws. Coupon row 2 - using exactly the same season of results - might have achieved two 1-1 draws, two high score draws, and three 0-0 draws. Therefore the user was far more likely to achieve higher points on his/her pools coupon by marking coupon row 1 than if they had marked coupon row 2 consistently.

To be included on this dialog the entire season of results are analysed (the user can easily verify all of the data presented by analysing each pools submission in the season) and any fixture date which conforms to the following criteria will cause that date to be included:

1.	There must be exactly 58 matches defined as pools entries for that date (see the Scores Dialog). There can be more (but not less) than 58 matches on that fixture date but only 58 of these can be marked as pools coupon entries.

2.	Every one of these pools entry matches must be defined as a valid match (in other words the Match Type cannot be of type undefined). A VOID match is perfectly acceptable, because for pools purposes the result is usually set by the pools panel and therefore valid for pools purposes.

The presentation of this dialog can be modified by the user to include any or all of the following results by coupon number:

1.	1-1 draw

2.	High score draw

3.	0-0 draw

4.	Home win

5.	Away win

All the user has to do to include/exclude any of the above categories is to place a check mark against this result in the Include In Totals group box (simply click with the left mouse button in the check box). For example if the user places a check mark against just the 1-1 draw, then in analysing the season of results Soccer Scorecard will include in the totals presentation only that particular result if it occurs against the coupon row number - any other result would be ignored.

In practice it is likely that the user will choose to show results for just score draws which appear on the coupon, because these results provide the highest coupon points possible. Any other result is not really of interest, and if the user can identify those numbers on the coupon which are most frequently providing the score draws then a pools win becomes a little more likely.

The user may further refine the displayed (and printed) result via the other group boxes. Firstly the dialog can show either games or points, and secondly the results can be sorted by either the coupon row number or frequency of the total column, in either ascending or descending order.

The settings defined by the user are saved, so next time this dialog is called for it will remember to display the users favourite presentation format.

Note that the results of this dialog are not used by Soccer Scorecard for internal prediction purposes. Although the results clearly indicate that some pools coupon numbers will definitely yield better results for the user across a period of time, this is not a scientific approach and impossible to model adequately. The user should therefore take the results presented by this dialog and adjust their own pools submissions accordingly.

Buttons

This button allows the graphical dialog to be printed.