Back HDW-JCapper Data - General Overview

When you purchase back JCapper Data from HDW, it is packaged in a different format than data downloaded directly from the HDW site. In this help document, you’ll find a description of how HDW packages back data along with one of the many strategies you can use for getting back data and results files onto the target folder(s) of your choice.

Prerequisite to using the material presented in this Help Doc

The material presented in this help doc requires that you have a basic understanding of the following:

You know what a zip file is. (It’s a special type of container file that contains other files inside of its container.)
You understand how to operate WinZip. Or, if you don’t have WinZip, you understand how to operate the default third party zip file app installed on your PC or laptop.
You understand how to use the Windows Explorer interface to: a.) Navigate your machine’s folder structure. b.) Find and highlight files. C.) Copy files from one folder to another.
How to use the Windows Clipboard to copy and paste files from one folder to another.

The above material relates to knowing how to operate your computer. It is essential that you have a basic understanding of this. If you have not yet learned how to operate your computer:

Stop!

Finding Web Tutorials for the above prerequisite material:

Google is your friend. There are literally thousands of pages on the Internet that contain web tutorials for the above subject matter. Navigate to Google.com and do a search for the following (or similar) phrases:

Zip Files Tutorial
WinZip Tutorial (or instead of WinZip, substitute the name of the default zip file app installed on your PC or laptop.)
Windows Explorer Tutorial (Alternately, do a search for the phrase My Computer Tutorial.)
Windows Clipboard Tutorial

You need a basic understanding of the above material BEFORE attempting to go any further. Believe me, the time spent learning how to operate your computer will be time well spent, and will go a long way towards making your JCapper experience a thoroughly enjoyable one.

Typical Packaging of Back HDW-JCapper Data

When you purchase back HDW-JCapper data, expect HDW to email you a series of download links. When you click the first download link, you will first have to login using your HDW userid and password. After that you will be able to download the each linked to zip file.

Each download link will typically get you a zip file containing a single month of either HDW binary race card files or a single month of HDW text chart results files.

HDW typically separates back data files from back results files. For example, if your order a single month of back data – expect HDW to provide a separate download link to a zip file containing the data files for that month. And expect HDW to provide you a separate download link to a zip file containing chart results files for that month. I suppose it’s possible, but I’ve yet to see HDW deliver links to back data where the data and results files are packaged in the same zip file.

HDW typically creates a separate folder for each month of back data files. HDW typically zips up the entire folder rather than zipping up individual files. This means when you first open a downloaded zip file containing back data, you will see the folder not the files. Hint: To expose the files, double click the folder.

HDW typically creates a separate folder for each month of back results files. HDW typically zips up the entire folder rather than zipping up individual files. This means when you first open a downloaded zip file containing back data, you will see the folder not the files. Hint: To expose the files, double click the folder.

HDW File Types

When you download back data from HDW, you are getting the following types of files:

Monthly Back Data Zip File. Each monthly data download link will get you a single zip file containing a one month block of past performance data for a prior month.
Race Card Data Zip File. Contained within each larger monthly back data zip file are hundreds of zip files, each one containing data for a single race card. Race card data zip file names contain the following elements: 3 character track code, 2 character month code, 2 character day of month code, the letter j, and the .zip file extension. For example, the file name for the race card data zip file for the Turf Paradise on 1/31/2010 would be: TUP0131J.ZIP.
HDW Binary Race Data File. Each race card data zip file contains several individual HDW Binary Race Data Files – one HDW Binary Race Data File for each race on the card. Individual HDW binary race data file names contain the following elements: 2 character month code, 2 character day of month code, the letter j, two character race number code, and a file extension bearing the track code. For example, the file name for the individual HDW binary race data file for R1 at Aqueduct on 01/01/2010 would be: 0101J01.AQU.
Monthly Back Results Zip File. Each monthly results download link will get you a single zip file containing a one month block of results data for a prior month.
Race Card Results Zip File. Each monthly results zip file contains hundreds of individual Race Card Results Zip files – one race card results zip file for each race card that ran during that calendar month. Race Card Results Zip file names contain the following elements: 3 character track code, 2 character month code, 2 character day of month code, the letter F, and a .ZIP file extension. For example, the Race Card Results Zip File for the Turf Paradise card run on 1/31/2010 would be: TUP0131F.ZIP.
HDW Text Chart Results File. Each race card results zip file contains a single HDW Text Chart Results File. Just like the name implies, each HDW Text Chart Results File is a comma delimited text file containing all of the data needed to compile a complete set of Equibase Charts for each official race on that day’s card. HDW Text Chart Results file names contain the following individual elements: 3 character track code, 2 character month code, 2 character day of month code, the letter F, and a .TXT file extension. For example, the HDW Text Chart Results file for the Aqueduct card run on 1/31/2010 would have the following file name: AQU0131F.TXT.

Downloading Back HDW Data

The steps for downloading back HDW data are:

Create a new target folder for the specific purpose of storing the downloaded back HDW data in its original format. Windows Explorer works well for this purpose. Note that I recommend using a new folder completely separate from your normal JCapper folder structure.
Click the first download link, login using your HDW userid and password, and download/save the zip file to your new target folder from step 1 above.
Click the next download link and download/save the zip file to the same target folder from steps 1 and 2 above.
Repeat step 3 until you have downloaded all of your back data onto the new target folder described above.

Extracting Back HDW Data

As mentioned in the General Overview section, each downloaded zip file typically contains a single month of either data files or a single month of results files. I recommend using a third party extraction tool such as WinZip to:

Open each downloaded zip file.
Expose the HDW data or results files within the downloaded zip file.
Highlight/select all of the exposed HDW data or results files within the downloaded zip file.
Drag and Drop all of the selected HDW data or results files within the downloaded zip file to the target folder of your choice.

Considerations: Think about the above steps in relation to your JCapper folder structure before getting started. You will typically be working with one month blocks of data. Stop for a moment and think about where you want that one month block of data to go before you drag and drop it onto a target folder. (Hint: You may even want to add a few new target folders to your existing JCapper folder structure.)

At a minimum you will want to:

Always Drag and Drop data and results files from the same month and year onto the same target folder.
Never mix data files from one year with results files from a different your on the same target folder.

IMPORTANT!

Using JCapper’s HDW File Manager to process back HDW data into .JCP and .XRD files.

Completion of the above steps will copy your HDW back data onto your JCapper folders in a format that is useable by the HDW File Manager module found in JCapper. You must do this FIRST before using JCapper’s HDW File Manager to process back HDW data into .JCP and .XRD files.

After completing the above steps, then use JCapper’s HDW File Manager to build .JCP and .XRD files on your JCapper target folders.

Screenshot Gallery:

I took the screenshots below after downloading zip files containing back HDW data from the HDW site. In these screenshots I am using a laptop running under Microsoft VISTA. On that laptop I had previously installed a third party app called WinZip for the specific purpose of handling zip files. WinZip is set up on that laptop (in the File Associations area of Windows Control Panel) as the default app for handling zip files.

You may be using a different third party app on your machine for zip file handling. No matter. All zip file apps may have their individual quirks. But all of them provide the same basic functionality and all of them behave in a similar manner.

Screenshot #1 above:

This screenshot shows the contents of a back data zip file after it was downloaded from the HDW site and opened up in WinZip by giving the downloaded zip file a double click.

Note that the back data zip file contains a folder named 2010_01. Even though they are not visible at this stage, all of the back HDW files for the month of Jan 2010 are sitting on this folder.

When packaging back data and results files, one of the programmers at HDW will sometimes, but not always, zip up the entire folder for that month rather than the individual files for that month.

When you open a downloaded zip file and your default zip file app displays the name of a folder instead of the names of individual binary race files:

That should tell you that the programmer at HDW who prepared the zip file zipped up the folder for that month’s files rather than the individual files themselves. No matter. Double-clicking the folder name inside of your zip file app will cause navigation within your zip file app to that folder – exposing the individual file names on that folder so that you can grab them.

When you open a downloaded zip file and your default zip file app displays the names of individual binary race files instead of a folder name:

That tells you that the programmer at HDW who prepared the zip file zipped up the individual files themselves instead of a folder. Perfect. The individual file names are exposed so that you can grab them.

Screenshot #2 above: The same downloaded file containing zipped up back JCapper data after being opened using WinZip and after

the user has double clicked the folder named 2010_01. Note that individual HDW binary data files are now exposed (visible) in the WinZip

interface.

Screenshot #3 above: The same downloaded file containing zipped up back JCapper data after:

The user has opened the file in WinZip.
The user has double clicked the folder named 2010_01 exposing the HDW binary data files sitting on that folder.
The user has highlighted/selected ALL of the HDW binary data files sitting on that folder using a CTRL-A key combination.

Screenshot #4 above: The Winzip interface showing HDW binary race card files as they are being extracted to the user’s target folder.

The user accomplished this by:

Launching Windows Explorer by right clicking the Windows Start Button and selecting Explore. Alternately, the user could have used My Computer.
Pointing Windows Explorer at the target folder of the user’s choice by double clicking drive and folder structure exposed by the Windows Explorer interface.
Dragging the highlighted group of files from Screenshot #3 above and dropping them onto the target folder.

Screenshot above: The user’s target folder after completion of the previous step. Note that all of the highlighted HDW binary race card files have now been copied from the WinZip interface to the user’s target folder.

IMPORTANT!

Using JCapper’s HDW File Manager to process back HDW data into .JCP and .XRD files.

After completing the above steps, then use JCapper’s HDW File Manager to build .JCP and .XRD files on your JCapper target folders.

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