Fun with math at DVinfo.net

Jim Michael · January 2nd, 2008, 08:42 PM

On another forum I was reading a discussion pertaining to pricing that had to do with the question of what's better - a large number of small jobs or a small number of large jobs? Since this boils down to an optimization problem I decided to crank out a little pricing optimization tool for folks to play with. It's written in Mathematica, which is a very powerful math tool from Wolfram. They recently came out with a player which lets those without a Mathematica license run Mathematica applications.

To use the pricing tool you'll need to:

1. Download the player which you can find at http://www.wolfram.com/products/player/download.cgi - it will run on your choice of OS.

2. Install the player

3. Download the pricing tool from http://10squaredcorp.com/analysis/Pr...imization1.nbp

4. Start the player and open the nbp file you downloaded.

5. Read the example and make adjustments for your products.

6. Profit!

Have fun. Let me know if you find it useful.

Daniel Lippman · January 13th, 2008, 11:00 AM

I downloaded it and everything. However, after reading the example, I scroll to the bottom and there is a blank grey box and some code. I have no buttons to push, and it will not allow me to edit anything. It seems like a really cool idea, but I am unable to do anything with it. I'm sure it's something I'm doing wrong.

Jim Michael · January 13th, 2008, 03:09 PM

How many bytes is your nbp file? I see 111287 bytes on the server.

You can verify that your player installation is OK by downloading some demonstrations from the Wolfram demonstrations site and see if they run.

I've tested on both PC and Mac and several other folks have given feedback on it, so I'm confident the file on the server is good. You should see several sliders for adjusting parameters and bar charts that show product mix and profit based on the parameter set.

Daniel Lippman · January 16th, 2008, 12:43 PM

My download was what was messed up. Thanks for the help!

Mary Angelini · March 15th, 2008, 01:18 PM

Thanks for sharing this. I saw you reference this post before and I couldn’t find it in this huge forum when I needed it. So I posted a new thread in the wedding/ event section trying to find it and no one knew what I was talking about.

I cannot wait to get home and download it!

Mary Angelini · March 18th, 2008, 01:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jim Michael

On another forum I was reading a discussion pertaining to pricing that had to do with the question of what's better - a large number of small jobs or a small number of large jobs? Since this boils down to an optimization problem I decided to crank out a little pricing optimization tool for folks to play with. It's written in Mathematica, which is a very powerful math tool from Wolfram. They recently came out with a player which lets those without a Mathematica license run Mathematica applications.

To use the pricing tool you'll need to:

1. Download the player which you can find at http://www.wolfram.com/products/player/download.cgi - it will run on your choice of OS.

2. Install the player

3. Download the pricing tool from http://10squaredcorp.com/analysis/Pr...imization1.nbp

4. Start the player and open the nbp file you downloaded.

5. Read the example and make adjustments for your products.

6. Profit!

Have fun. Let me know if you find it useful.

#3 link is a bunch of code. Any suggestions?

George Kroonder · March 18th, 2008, 02:11 PM

Use the player from the first list entry to open the .nbp file with the code.

George/

Bill Davis · March 24th, 2008, 01:28 AM

Curious as to whether the mathematical model factors in the reality that there will be significantly more competition for the small jobs, than there is for the larger ones? And that building a level of equipment access and expertise necessary to successfully compete for the larger jobs doesn't make competing for the smaller ones a tad inefficient. (I'll just let those HMI's sit there - the next 30 jobs only need an Arri kit)

In a practical sense, my gut tells me you're always better off working toward larger budget work - since many of the most tiresome factors of obtaining and successfully completing work diminish in an environment of fewer, larger projects.

I'd also be concerned that there are scads of similar relatively intangible factors that I'm not sure can be easily "quantitified" to make a mathematical model in video production that is fundamentally useful.

But I'd be interested in what those of you who are using the tool think.

Jim Michael · March 24th, 2008, 05:53 AM

Good points Bill. No one should equate this tool with a business plan. You can in fact model some of the points you raise. For example, the increased competition risk would probably be met with a marketing strategy that would have an impact on your overhead (labor and advertising). The labor component may or may not subtract from the availability of an employee for shooting depending on whether you are open Saturday and the employee(s) book sales. Other marketing support such as lead development would typically happen during the week.

January 2nd, 2008, 08:42 PM	#1
Jim Michael Major Player Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 895	Fun with math On another forum I was reading a discussion pertaining to pricing that had to do with the question of what's better - a large number of small jobs or a small number of large jobs? Since this boils down to an optimization problem I decided to crank out a little pricing optimization tool for folks to play with. It's written in Mathematica, which is a very powerful math tool from Wolfram. They recently came out with a player which lets those without a Mathematica license run Mathematica applications. To use the pricing tool you'll need to: 1. Download the player which you can find at http://www.wolfram.com/products/player/download.cgi - it will run on your choice of OS. 2. Install the player 3. Download the pricing tool from http://10squaredcorp.com/analysis/Pr...imization1.nbp 4. Start the player and open the nbp file you downloaded. 5. Read the example and make adjustments for your products. 6. Profit! Have fun. Let me know if you find it useful.

March 15th, 2008, 01:18 PM	#5
Mary Angelini Regular Crew Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Cocoa Beach, FL Posts: 141	I found it again. Thanks for sharing this. I saw you reference this post before and I couldn’t find it in this huge forum when I needed it. So I posted a new thread in the wedding/ event section trying to find it and no one knew what I was talking about. I cannot wait to get home and download it! __________________ "Perhaps I cannot change the wind, but I can adjust my sails" www.keymomentsonline.com

January 13th, 2008, 11:00 AM	#2
Daniel Lippman New Boot Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Orlando, Florida, USA Posts: 21	I downloaded it and everything. However, after reading the example, I scroll to the bottom and there is a blank grey box and some code. I have no buttons to push, and it will not allow me to edit anything. It seems like a really cool idea, but I am unable to do anything with it. I'm sure it's something I'm doing wrong.

January 13th, 2008, 03:09 PM	#3
Jim Michael Major Player Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 895	How many bytes is your nbp file? I see 111287 bytes on the server. You can verify that your player installation is OK by downloading some demonstrations from the Wolfram demonstrations site and see if they run. I've tested on both PC and Mac and several other folks have given feedback on it, so I'm confident the file on the server is good. You should see several sliders for adjusting parameters and bar charts that show product mix and profit based on the parameter set.

January 16th, 2008, 12:43 PM	#4
Daniel Lippman New Boot Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Orlando, Florida, USA Posts: 21	My download was what was messed up. Thanks for the help!

March 18th, 2008, 02:11 PM	#7
George Kroonder Major Player Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Utrecht, NL \| Europe 3rd Rock from the Sun Posts: 612	Use the player from the first list entry to open the .nbp file with the code. George/

March 24th, 2008, 01:28 AM	#8
Bill Davis Trustee Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Scottsdale, AZ 85260 Posts: 1,538	Curious as to whether the mathematical model factors in the reality that there will be significantly more competition for the small jobs, than there is for the larger ones? And that building a level of equipment access and expertise necessary to successfully compete for the larger jobs doesn't make competing for the smaller ones a tad inefficient. (I'll just let those HMI's sit there - the next 30 jobs only need an Arri kit) In a practical sense, my gut tells me you're always better off working toward larger budget work - since many of the most tiresome factors of obtaining and successfully completing work diminish in an environment of fewer, larger projects. I'd also be concerned that there are scads of similar relatively intangible factors that I'm not sure can be easily "quantitified" to make a mathematical model in video production that is fundamentally useful. But I'd be interested in what those of you who are using the tool think.

March 24th, 2008, 05:53 AM	#9
Jim Michael Major Player Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 895	Good points Bill. No one should equate this tool with a business plan. You can in fact model some of the points you raise. For example, the increased competition risk would probably be met with a marketing strategy that would have an impact on your overhead (labor and advertising). The labor component may or may not subtract from the availability of an employee for shooting depending on whether you are open Saturday and the employee(s) book sales. Other marketing support such as lead development would typically happen during the week.