Nathan,

What is your recommendation as to the best way to imput jockey changes? Assume TSN files for this question.

Looked at field 33 (today's jockey name) and kind of figured that was the way to input the "changed" jockey's name but upon creating a test db this clearly is not the case.

The example file I used was Hou1128.pcs and to be specific for this question looked at jockey Quincy Hamilton.

Field 33 in the TSN file has him listed as "Hamilton Quincy" in his original 4 mounts so when he was a late change to ride the #4 in the 3rd and #9 in the 4th I chose "Hamilton Quincy" instead of "Hamilton Q". The query to the test db proved I should have used "Hamilton Q" instead.

Any insight you can provide as how ES 4.0 handles jockey names as it would relate to inputting jockey changes would be most helpful.

Thanks...Smick

Smick - this is unpleasant, so brace yourself... but, at least, there is a way.

You can manually make the jockey change in the form view. Go to a race, right click, select "Change Jockies". Now you can select the horse and then select a new jockey. HINT - if you type the start of the jockey name, and THEN hit the drop list arrow, it will drop to the approximate spot where you can then select the new jockey name.

This is for folks who are looking for something to do in between races.... What's really needed is an programmatic method. Other than having the time to do this, the big issue is where this data comes from. It's not in the results files that ES uses, and I'm not going to go parse HTML for jockey names (which then, BTW, need to match the naming convention used by BRIS/TSN). Yuck. Even if I did, then there'd still be the need for everyone to obtain this data (download, store in correct spot). Why BRIS/TSN does not have all of the relevant results/changes info in one nice, 25 cent results file is beyond me, but that's the way things are.

After re-reading your post I see that the real issue you are after is which name to choose.
Sounds like you have a mix of BRIS and TSN data files -- and, thus, two different representations of the jockey name tucked away in your db. Unfortunately I don't have a solution for that problem right now, other than to say some of the 4.0 features introduce an annoyance factor if your data files are not "homogenous", so to speak. If BRIS and/or TSN decide to use variations of the same name within their data files that will cause problems too. I can only hope that they wouldn't do something as silly as that, but we all know its possible. If someone has the 10 cent solution that solves all of the problems, I'm all ears....

Nathan,

In fact I do have 3 tracks that utilize Bris files (hou being one of them) and am in the process of converting them over (building new db's with TSN files from scratch) because of TSN's Advantage Plan, but as far as my question goes that particular mix doesn't apply.

See I keep seperate db's for each track and in_this_case made a specific new db for the Hou1128.pcs file..that's how I noticed my selection was incorrect (via the cnx report controls tool).

I opened the file (Hou1128.pcs) without being connected to a db and with Auto-simulate on open and Auto-Profile on open turned_off. After making the jockey changes I closed out the file.

Without exiting ES 4.0 I then selected "create new db" and only included the Hou1128.pcs file.

Now, it could be that having the ability to select "Hamilton Quincy" or "Hamilton Q" from the jockey drop down presented by the change jockey control list may be because his name was handled two different ways in the_single Hou1128.pcs file I used to create the test db.

I carefully looked twice at the file and only "Hamilton Quincy" appears in field 33 (today's jockey) yet "Hamilton Q" appears in the Form view as the jockey.

This led me to believe that ES 4.0 was manipulating the name somehow...ie perhaps truncating the name to better fit the form view.

I will redo everything and take another look at the file.

Still have a difficult time figuring out how the creation of a new test db from_only_the_ Hou1128.pcs file could contain 2 different versions of Hamilton's name.

I do have a totally seperate db for Hou using Bris files but like I mentioned created this test file from only 1 TSN file.

Is it possible that ES 4.0 stored in a buffer the previous info (from the Bris db opened earlier) and then interjected it into the new TSN db file since I didn't exit ES before creating the new TSN db...if (and I realize it's a big if) that could be the case then simply exiting and restarting ES after opening a Bris db and before opening or creating a TSN db should solve it correct?

Thanks ...Smick

Also, there is a DOS program out there that Bob & Tom kindly made me aware of that after a minimal amount of configuation takes most all the work out of identifying jockey changes. I'm dedicated but not nuts...I think?

[This message was edited by Smick on December 04, 2003 at 02:51 AM.]

[This message was edited by Smick on December 04, 2003 at 02:55 AM.]

>>Now, it could be that having the ability to select "Hamilton Quincy" or "Hamilton Q" from the jockey drop down presented by the change jockey control list may be because his name was
handled two different ways in the_single Hou1128.pcs file I used to create the test db

The names you see in the dropdown list do not come from the database -- they come from a cache of all the names the program has ever seen stored in the Settings.sdb file.

Nathan,

Thank you very much. The light bulb finally switched on!