topbanner_forum
  *

avatar image

Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.
Did you miss your activation email?

Login with username, password and session length
  • Monday March 18, 2024, 9:38 pm
  • Proudly celebrating 15+ years online.
  • Donate now to become a lifetime supporting member of the site and get a non-expiring license key for all of our programs.
  • donate

Last post Author Topic: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners  (Read 55678 times)

iphigenie

  • Supporting Member
  • Joined in 2006
  • **
  • Posts: 1,170
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #25 on: January 27, 2008, 10:21 AM »
That's a lot of very happy people  :Thmbsup:

I would suspect that the only reason some people won more than one is that there were not that many entrants for all the categories, and hey, in the end that is only fair.

I only picked I think 5 that I wanted to win, I could have picked more but I know I am a software addict so I watch myself... I made sure to only list things that I actually knew I would use (partly because I dont want to regret it when i see the giveaways for the next few months...) so I am super happy I won one of them   :-*
« Last Edit: January 27, 2008, 10:23 AM by iphigenie »

Jibz

  • Developer
  • Joined in 2005
  • ***
  • Posts: 1,187
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #26 on: January 27, 2008, 10:23 AM »
Just for the record, I was in no way complaining about the selection process -- I know mouser has put a lot of effort into making the program doing it as fair as humanly possible :Thmbsup:.

I just sat there looking at the winner list and pondered how many had actually won multiple times, which was of course more than enough of an excuse for me to write a perl script to sort through the data :lol:.

mouser

  • First Author
  • Administrator
  • Joined in 2005
  • *****
  • Posts: 40,896
    • View Profile
    • Mouser's Software Zone on DonationCoder.com
    • Read more about this member.
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #27 on: January 27, 2008, 10:29 AM »
Jibz, i certainly didn't get that idea I just wanted to give some background for anyone new to the site.

In case people don't know, Jibz is member #3 on this forum.  Members 1+2 are the default admin account and me.
One of the nicest people i know and he and i have worked together on some fun projects (e.g. Octane).

ps. any effort looking at stats of the site and stuff like this i support 100%, i think it just makes things more interesting and fun :)

jgpaiva

  • Global Moderator
  • Joined in 2006
  • *****
  • Posts: 4,727
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #28 on: January 27, 2008, 10:30 AM »
app: wise comments, as always. I also think that linking the probabilities of winning with the number of posts would be VERY unfair.

Right now, i think the prize optimizer works very well...
Winners of 'Help & Manual 4 Professional' (3):
jgpaiva
:D :D :D

Thanks a lot!!  :greenclp: :greenclp: :greenclp:

Now... I just need to get some courage to start working on GridMove's new help file ;)

cranioscopical

  • Friend of the Site
  • Supporting Member
  • Joined in 2006
  • **
  • Posts: 4,776
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #29 on: January 27, 2008, 11:21 AM »
It's always nice to win something - thank you!

Thanks, in fact, to everyone here at DonationCoder. As I see it, everyone here contributes to the success of the site and so -- directly or indirectly -- helps to make every aspect work well, including the giveaways and discounts.

Extra thanks to mouser and CThorpe and to others who worked directly on arranging (and donating) the current, very impressive list of items to win!

mouser: The fact that the optimizer does not keep track of how many times you've won, only that you've won in the recent past.  If I modified that those who have won many times would not be winning so often, even if they have been entering a lot and for a long time.
and
Should we more actively try to bump the weights of people who are actively contributing on the site?

It seems that the more you try to weight things, the more subjective the system becomes. My vote would be for the closest approximation to a truly random system that can be accomplished. That way, everybody has exactly the same chance to win, every time. When one tries to impose 'fairness' on a system the higher becomes the chance of introducing inadvertent inequities.

mouser: It might be nicer to put in some term which looks at how many times a person has entered and lost and boost their chances of winning if so.
Should the optimizer keep track somehow of whether you won the most prized prize or the least?

Again, my 2ยข goes onto the pile for random selection, same argument.

There are so many variables and imponderables to try to control -- entered and lost often, entered and lost seldom, didn't enter at all because no desired software in some drawings, entered every drawing no matter what...and on, and on...

To be 'fair' requires some subjective assessment of, and assumptions about, behaviour and you don't have access to the required motivational data. Seems to me that every attempt to 'deskew' the system will only skew it in another direction.

And, mouser, it's no small tribute to you that whatever you decide after taking the collective pulse will likely be just fine with almost everybody here!


iaksma

  • Supporting Member
  • Joined in 2008
  • **
  • Posts: 1
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #30 on: January 27, 2008, 11:51 AM »
I'm a complete noob here and must say thanks to DonationCoder!  I won a copy of RoboForm and couldn't be happier.  I don't know where I've been for the last 3 years - I only discovered this site last week  :o, but I will be visiting here daily from now on. 
Thanks again!
Jill

Rhutobello

  • Supporting Member
  • Joined in 2007
  • **
  • Posts: 42
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #31 on: January 27, 2008, 11:58 AM »
Congrat to all winners :Thmbsup:

Congrat to all site members to have such a bunch of good people working for the best of us all. :-*

Thx to Mouser and crew for all you do for us....even if most of us don't won this time  ;D

KenR

  • Super
  • Blogger
  • Joined in 2006
  • ***
  • Posts: 826
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #32 on: January 27, 2008, 12:35 PM »
I'm a complete noob here and must say thanks to DonationCoder!  I won a copy of RoboForm and couldn't be happier.  I don't know where I've been for the last 3 years - I only discovered this site last week  :o, but I will be visiting here daily from now on. 
Thanks again!
Jill

Welcome to DC Jill.
Ken
Kenneth P. Reeder, Ph.D.
Clinical Psychologist
Jacksonville, North Carolina  28546

KenR

  • Super
  • Blogger
  • Joined in 2006
  • ***
  • Posts: 826
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #33 on: January 27, 2008, 12:40 PM »
Congratulations to all the winners. I hope everyone enjoys their new software!

In the midst of all the excitement and enthusiasm, I would humbly request that people keep in mind THIS MONTH's giveaway is in preparation for the site's upcoming fundraiser. As the name suggests, DonationCoder requires us to give in order to keep doing what it has been.

Please consider contributing financially in addition to the other ways you contribute to the site.

Thanks, Ken
Kenneth P. Reeder, Ph.D.
Clinical Psychologist
Jacksonville, North Carolina  28546

Darwin

  • Charter Member
  • Joined in 2005
  • ***
  • Posts: 6,984
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #34 on: January 27, 2008, 12:44 PM »
Yes! Welcome Jill and congratulations on winning Roboform. I've been using it for several years and really can't imagine life without it!

A big, though belated, welcome to Rhutobello as well. I hope to see more of both of you here at DC over the coming months  :Thmbsup:

ThalSwe

  • Supporting Member
  • Joined in 2007
  • **
  • Posts: 48
  • On my way
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #35 on: January 27, 2008, 01:31 PM »
Just sending a big thanks as I ended up getting SyncBackSE  :-*
The estimated "100%" was correct as this certainly is what I wanted and,even more so, needed.
Hopefully clever usage of said program will allow me to not loose all my data (which happened recently).

:Thmbsup: for the DC community.

hamradio

  • Charter Honorary Member
  • Joined in 2006
  • ***
  • Posts: 825
  • Amateur Radio Guy
    • View Profile
    • HamRadioUSA.net
    • Read more about this member.
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #36 on: January 27, 2008, 01:48 PM »
WOW!


thebaglady608

  • Supporting Member
  • Joined in 2008
  • **
  • Posts: 8
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #37 on: January 27, 2008, 01:56 PM »
A...awesome!  My first time entering the giveaway (and my first post here :coughcough:), and I win!  Thank you so much!

I can understand your desire, Mouser, to try to give everyone a fair shot at the goods:  the folks who don't have cash but do participate, the folks who don't participate much but donate (like me  >_>), etc.  I have to say that as someone who essentially is brand new here, I appreciate you trying to take everything into consideration.  :)  And really, there's no better way to draw people into a community than to have them actually win something from a contest like this. Though I won't likely have a lot of time to post/watch, feeling like I'm not shut out from things like this just because I don't post all the time makes DC seem like a much more welcoming place.  Thanks again.

fiberhax

  • Supporting Member
  • Joined in 2007
  • **
  • Posts: 1
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #38 on: January 27, 2008, 03:04 PM »
Thanks DC for BB Flashback.  I mainly joined the site to support the ScreenShotCaptor program, it was too useful to me to not support, and I won another useful piece of software.  Thanks again!!  :)

Phil White

  • Supporting Member
  • Joined in 2007
  • **
  • default avatar
  • Posts: 6
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #39 on: January 27, 2008, 04:02 PM »
Like thebaglady608, my first time entering the giveaway (and my first post here) and I win. Thanks to all.

I have been trying Directory Opus for a few weeks and had just about made up my mind to make the purchase, so I am certainly 100% happy. I guess I had better support the fundraiser as an additional thankyou. :D

kanomie

  • Supporting Member
  • Joined in 2006
  • **
  • default avatar
  • Posts: 10
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #40 on: January 27, 2008, 04:34 PM »
Hi all,

Thanks for the software, True Launch Bar i won this time.

Normally i browse this site daily without login in, always enjoying the conversations here :)

Thanks and greetings,

K

y0himba

  • Charter Member
  • Joined in 2005
  • ***
  • Posts: 448
  • Yar.
    • View Profile
    • y0himba.net
    • Read more about this member.
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #41 on: January 27, 2008, 05:38 PM »
True Launch Bar!  NICE!  Thanks again Donation Coder!

KenR

  • Super
  • Blogger
  • Joined in 2006
  • ***
  • Posts: 826
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #42 on: January 27, 2008, 06:48 PM »
Wow. Lots of new voices. Welcome and congratulations to all of you. I hope you all come to like DC as much as I have.

Ken
Kenneth P. Reeder, Ph.D.
Clinical Psychologist
Jacksonville, North Carolina  28546

zj

  • Supporting Member
  • Joined in 2006
  • **
  • Posts: 7
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #43 on: January 27, 2008, 10:05 PM »
 ;D
Thank you mouser and cthorpe!

Perry Mowbray

  • N.A.N.Y. Organizer
  • Charter Member
  • Joined in 2005
  • ***
  • Posts: 1,817
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #44 on: January 28, 2008, 05:12 AM »
Wow. Lots of new voices. Welcome and congratulations to all of you. I hope you all come to like DC as much as I have.

I think this has summed up a great effect of these give-aways: the new voices (Congratulations and welcome!!  :Thmbsup: )

Concerning tweaking: I'd have make the winning history count forever but on a reducing scale: so that those that had never won would, in terms of the winning history, have a better chance than those that had won.

For pure randomness, I don't think if someone won last month that they should be excluded from wining next month, but it should be rare.

How about: if you had the chance of winning as inversely proportional to the weighted number of times you'd won (where the weighting decreased the further you went into the past)?

johnk

  • Charter Member
  • Joined in 2005
  • ***
  • Posts: 245
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #45 on: January 28, 2008, 05:15 AM »
I've been away from home for the last few days, with no internet access (not a nice experience). Came back to find a licence for Super Flexible File Synchronizer in my inbox!  Thanks to Tobias, cthorpe and the rest of the DC team.

TheQwerty

  • Supporting Member
  • Joined in 2007
  • **
  • default avatar
  • Posts: 84
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #46 on: January 28, 2008, 06:01 AM »
Well since I won, I have to say the selection process is perfect, and I'm glad it's not based on posts!   :P

Thanks mouser, cthorpe, everyone here at DC, and most of all, the developers who have had a part in creating and providing this month's prizes!   :Thmbsup:

gally

  • Supporting Member
  • Joined in 2007
  • **
  • default avatar
  • Posts: 19
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #47 on: January 28, 2008, 06:37 AM »
Thank you mouser, and the Donationcoder community, for the programs you all build, for the giveaways you conduct, and for a chance for us "unknowledgable in building programs/coding" to share in yours.

Thank you cthorpe, and all the companies that gave all the wonderful prizes.

I, also, joined the site mainly to support the ScreenShotCaptor program. As far as my "not posting" goes,... talk little, read, listen (and try to learn) much...

Thank you, again, to all of you!

cranioscopical

  • Friend of the Site
  • Supporting Member
  • Joined in 2006
  • **
  • Posts: 4,776
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #48 on: January 28, 2008, 09:36 AM »
How about...

The more you win, the greater the chance of winning again until one lucky member simply receives every piece of free software?  ;)


Darwin

  • Charter Member
  • Joined in 2005
  • ***
  • Posts: 6,984
    • View Profile
    • Donate to Member
Re: January 2008 Software Drawing Winners
« Reply #49 on: January 28, 2008, 03:42 PM »
How about...

The more you win, the greater the chance of winning again until one lucky member simply receives every piece of free software?  ;)

-cranioscopical (January 28, 2008, 09:36 AM)

Works for me  :P