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Originally Posted by leahbeatle
Mr. Kite- it's not *quite* true that data is data. Those trip meters round like crazy. Moving an entire tank four tenths of an mpg based on when you hit the start button to zero the reading, and when you pull over to fill up again makes a non-negligible difference. Some people here calculate by hand, compare, and use various techniques to 'correct' their tripmeter readings. Others top off or compete to get the longest 'tank' numbers in ways that many people would 'count' as 'fudging.' I've seen more explanations for coming up with different results here than I can remember, and there is a lot of competition; I just didn't want to go there, with any of that.
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Personally, I try to be super accurate and have gone so far as buying an accurate handheld GPS to calibrate my odometers (after realizing one of them was off quite a bit). I'm sure most would say that is a bit over the top. Anyway, I don't think it is that important and would not expect other people to do that. With the calibrations, it does increase my calculated FE in the HiHy by about an mpg and from tentative tests will probably lower my calculated FE in the HCH II less than an mpg. (It actually brings both of my calculated FEs closer in line with the display FE). As for seeing how far you can go on a tank, it is meaningless fun (for some) and I do not see how that affects the database. The database is about fuel economy and not how far you can go on a tank.
I don't know if you consider any of these things "fudging", but if I were interested in "fudging" and being at the top of the database, I would be. At least for me, the competition is more of a personal thing. Despite just flat out entering false information, I could have easily omitted ugly data. For example, I could have left out my winter tank in the HCH II that was sub 40 mpg, or I could have left out all of my interstate road trip in my HiHy that gave me fuel economy in the upper 20s. However, doing any of these things would not give me any personal satisfaction. I mean, I know the truth and that is what I consider important.
Quote:
Originally Posted by leahbeatle
Look, I don't really need to explain again, you can still not understand me, but I've made my choice and I'm fine with it; I don't particularly feel that I'm 'throwing away' data because I don't enter my numbers, and I'm sure I'm not the only regular poster who doesn't add to the database. It can be darn useless sometimes, with averages for the Insight posted at 25 mpg or whatever, giving a bad impression and looking ridiculous. I'm all for the database; I just could wish it worked a bit better.
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Where did you see an Insight entry at 25 mpg? Are you just talking about the text that was misaligned in the bar graph a while ago? That was not an error in the database.
BTW, I didn't ask you to explain anything to me, but I do understand better. It's not perfect so you choose not to participate. That's OK. It's not that big of a deal to me and I'm not trying to force anybody.
Quote:
Originally Posted by leahbeatle
If you're concerned about not counting data from the break-in period then maybe you need something other than eliminating people who don't file tank data regularly; maybe you should think about removing the first thousand miles or four hundred miles from any given car; we do input the car's overall mileage, after all.
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I think you misunderstood my point. I tried to clarify this a few posts ago. I'll try again. If somebody makes their first entry, it will most likely be a very low number of miles. I see nothing wrong with this. Although it is probably not a representative sample, it is a work in progress. However, if somebody makes a very small entry and then they go inactive (I believe GH defines that as 3 months), that sample will never become large enough to be representative of that person's driving.
I never tried to draw a line and define what is good and what is bad, but I did give some examples that I clearly think are bad. Do you think there is any value whatsoever in some of the examples I gave? In particular, is there any value in the inactive entries from the HCH II database I referenced (33.6 mpg over 1 mile, 19.9 mpg over 6 miles)?
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Originally Posted by leahbeatle
Don't use a proxy for what you really mean.
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This is absurd. Why don't you say what you really mean? Did I offend you? Did you take my post personally? That was not my intention.
I am very sincere when I say that I think a 33.6 mpg over 1 mile entry and a 19.9 mpg over 6 miles entry are of absolutely no use.
There is no hidden meaning.