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GoogilyMoogily

United States
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March 16, 2006
238 Posts
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Dec 22, 2015, 9:17 am

Did Microsoft change something in the index() formula? I found an error that I had not seen before in the last 15 years. I should have validated the spreadsheet and recorded why I made some decision more often. I don't recall why I needed to start the index at 1, but that made every number from that point forward need a -1 to fix it. Today, the resultant array was wrong. I set the index to start at 0 and remove the -1 fix and everything was better.

What mistakes have you made along the road to find a better system?
SirMetro

East of Atlanta
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August 11, 2004
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Dec 22, 2015, 9:22 am

eh...wait till it's a massive bid and your behind schedule and 10 minutes after sending the bid out, you realize a formula was wrong
marcie

50

Ohio
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February 21, 2007
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Dec 22, 2015, 9:26 am

I always say oh, well back to the drawing board.. keep at it untill you get it right... Happy Hoildays!

http://www.lotterypost.com/thread/233413 Popular numbers

12345

67890

Use Mirror #'s Use prs. with your Key* numbers the most Vivid thing in your dream go up or down on #'s. Flip 6=9 `9=6 Bullseyes 0 or 1 for Pick 4 and the P. 5 Play the other part of doubles. Do the Whole nine yards for a P. 4* P. 5* or 0 thur 9 for P. 4 P. 5 from my dreams or hunches good Luck.. Write your Dreams down Play for 3 days. Good Luck All.
JADELottery

Eagle Sun

IA, MN, WI
United States
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December 7, 2001
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Dec 22, 2015, 11:22 am

I think this would be a pretty boring existence if nothing went wrong.

A Quantum Universe is a Fun Universe.

Thank God for Chaos.

The One Over None
I Know...
Kola

Rookie Time Traveler

Milky Way Spiral
United States
Member #28,944
December 25, 2005
1,657 Posts
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Dec 22, 2015, 2:15 pm

Quote: Originally posted by JADELottery on Dec 22, 2015
I think this would be a pretty boring existence if nothing went wrong.

A Quantum Universe is a Fun Universe.

Thank God for Chaos.

The Ancient Lottery LoreKeeper replied, "A past draw lies at the centerpoint of a circle - a black hole. Two overlapping circles whose centerpoints sit on the circumference of the other share a Common Radius. This Radius is a Wormhole, a Time Machine. It allows the past draw (info) to safely travel into and beyond the present draw's event horizon without negative distortion, thereby creating an entanglement (synchrony) between the two communicating draws. This entangled space or portal is the Vesica Piscis - the white hole or Stargate through which the next draw is born."
AllenB

California
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June 27, 2015
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Dec 22, 2015, 10:21 pm

I have found errors sometime after a few days of thinking I am really onto something. I came close to posting some startling results only to discover it was crap. I have the stinking feeling that there are more that I have not found.
Stack47

Kentucky
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February 14, 2006
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Dec 23, 2015, 12:06 am

Quote: Originally posted by marcie on Dec 22, 2015
I always say oh, well back to the drawing board.. keep at it untill you get it right... Happy Hoildays!

Excellent example by showing how easy it is to misspell complicated words like "until" and "holidays".
Tialuvslotto

Texas
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December 31, 2013
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Dec 23, 2015, 6:41 am

Quote: Originally posted by AllenB on Dec 22, 2015
I have found errors sometime after a few days of thinking I am really onto something. I came close to posting some startling results only to discover it was crap. I have the stinking feeling that there are more that I have not found.

I know that feeling, AllenB! My rule is "if it seems too good to be true, check your formulas"! And the more complex and sophisticated our spreadsheets, the more likely it is that some error is lurking somewhere.

"There is no such thing as luck; only adequate or inadequate preparation to cope with a statistical universe."

~Robert A. Heinlein
budward

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February 19, 2006
699 Posts
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Dec 23, 2015, 11:00 pm

That sinking feeling you get when you find an error and fix it and you had better results WITH the error.

Isabel, you are going to feel very silly when this turns out to be make-believe.
eddessaknight

LAS VEGAS
United States
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November 22, 2006
9,623 Posts
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Dec 27, 2015, 4:56 pm

Quote: Originally posted by Tialuvslotto on Dec 23, 2015
I know that feeling, AllenB! My rule is "if it seems too good to be true, check your formulas"! And the more complex and sophisticated our spreadsheets, the more likely it is that some error is lurking somewhere.

Even though a broken clock tells correct time twice a day, L@@K at how many times it's wrong for you!

EK
marcie

50

Ohio
United States
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February 21, 2007
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Jan 26, 2016, 10:33 am

Quote: Originally posted by budward on Dec 23, 2015
That sinking feeling you get when you find an error and fix it and you had better results WITH the error.

So true mistakes can give you better results sometimes..

http://www.lotterypost.com/thread/233413 Popular numbers

12345

67890

Use Mirror #'s Use prs. with your Key* numbers the most Vivid thing in your dream go up or down on #'s. Flip 6=9 `9=6 Bullseyes 0 or 1 for Pick 4 and the P. 5 Play the other part of doubles. Do the Whole nine yards for a P. 4* P. 5* or 0 thur 9 for P. 4 P. 5 from my dreams or hunches good Luck.. Write your Dreams down Play for 3 days. Good Luck All.
RL-RANDOMLOGIC

United States
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March 13, 2008
5,626 Posts
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Jan 27, 2016, 5:10 am

I once wrote a predictor program that had a build in back-test option. I had big plans and thought

it would do very well over time. I fired it up and hit the back-test button and it spit out a 3 of 5 for

the current game. Each time the back-test button is pressed it dropped one line in the database

and then using so many games from history it would try to predict the next draw. OK, second

click, another 3of5 on one line. Woo Hoo. I clicked it again and bam a 4 of 5 hit on one line. By

this time my heart was starting to pound. I hit the back-test button a couple more times and the

big one came up. Now I had to stand up and I was sure I could see a light from above shining

down on me. I was thinking I should push something up against the door to protect myself by

this time. I continued clicking the back-test button and was hitting a 5 of 5 around 1 in every 5

to 10 test. By this time I was trying control my heart and breathing rate. Long story short, it was

a error in the code. Somehow I added a extra input statement which allowed the program to

include the numbers from the line it was trying to predict in the data it used to predict. Talk about

a sinking feeling, that must be something like the pool who thought they won the power ball but

later found out they were using numbers from the previous draw. When I see something like this

now I start looking for the error.

RL

....