I have so far read everything I was able to find about RAC. Everywhere I turn I see people telling me how it is calculated. Yet nowhere is there any layman's explanation as to what its utility is supposed to be.

Why is it calculated? And what, generally speaking, is it meant to show us?

As layman as it can get and take a good hour and a half off of your time at the present, for it's a long read: http://homepage.mac.com/pauldbuck/site-boinc/faq/credit.html


----------------------
Jordâ„¢
[url=http://www.boinc.dk/index.php?page=user_statistics&userid=41965]

RAC is a measure of the rate credit is accumilated.

John Keck
testing BOINC since 2002/12/08

It is the Credit per day.

But it's calculated by a complex algorithm

Yeah, the credits per day is certainly confusing.

Mine right now is:
Total credit 49.51
Recent average credit 4.38

Yet I see others like:

Total credit: 42.60
Recent average credit: 215.48

Not sure how this could be.

It's fairly simple. You can look at the recent average credit as the speed at which you are getting credit and your total credit as the distance you have traveled. To continue the metaphor, if you traveled 50km at 100km/h the speed you traveled at is greater than the distance you traveled. There could also be someone who has traversed a much greater distance at a slower speed so their total credit would be much higher than their average. In the opposite case however, recent credit exceeding total, this shouldn't last too long.
~~
When I was a child, I caught a Fleeting Glimpse.

Yet I see others like:

Total credit: 42.60
Recent average credit: 215.48

Not sure how this could be.
==========

Makes sense to me, I think, well at least the guy getting that is happy I'm sure...

The Recent Average Credit is designed to be very complex and completely confusing for one reason only. If somebody complains about it the Powers to be at BOINC can just say thats the way it is and point you to some FAQ that nobodys going to understand anyway.

It would have been even more confusing probably if a 1 Credit for 1 Work Unit System had been worked out, now how in the world would anybody have been able to figure that one out... :/

Recent Average Credit can be a useful tool for you to monitor a particular machine's performance. If the RAC suddlenly starts dropping on one PC, it must be having trouble. This is especially useful if you have a farm where you cannot always monitor the machine.

As to why RAC is rankable, is a mystery. I find that of no use. I could care less who's average is increasing.

Credits per day you say? That doesn't match with what I'm seeing. After participating for 2 days I have accumulated 215 credits granted. This should put my average per day at around 100. Yet my average seems to be pretty static at about Granted Credit x 0.1. My current RAC is at around 20.

So, I'm not seeing it accurately measure average credits earned per day. Not even close.

Did SETI mention someplace why they ditched the old 1 credit/1 wu system? Aside from the exploits which should not happen with the new BOINC system, why this measurement scheme? Was it just to make it fractionally more fair to measure smaller vs. larger wu's?

So where did you go wrong on the Getting Started page?

Learn More too difficult for you? Computing Credit and What is credit?.

Let's not forget the Unofficial FAQ that has many of your answers.

----------------------
Jordâ„¢
[url=http://www.boinc.dk/index.php?page=user_statistics&userid=41965]

The decay period for RAC is 7 days. So it doesn't really come out to credit per day. I've been running BOINC for a long time and I still don't really know a simple way to say what RAC is.

John Keck
testing BOINC since 2002/12/08

> Did SETI mention someplace why they ditched the old 1 credit/1 wu system?
> Aside from the exploits which should not happen with the new BOINC system, why
> this measurement scheme? Was it just to make it fractionally more fair to
> measure smaller vs. larger wu's?
>
Different WUs that will have VERY different crunch times for S@H Aericibo, Parkes, Re-validation of best candidates. Also using the same statistics are other projects with even more wildly different crunch times CPDN is planning on having a BOINC client crunch time of 1-4 Months. For a while Predictor was handing out crunch times that took 5 - 15 minutes. Totals sites could be made available to tell how much people have donated to all projects.

> Yeah, the credits per day is certainly confusing.
>
> Mine right now is:
> Total credit 49.51
> Recent average credit 4.38


Sure changed a lot for me in 24 hours.

Total credit 346.45
Recent average credit 32.72

It's going to take quite a bit of time to get used to this.
I'm liking it though... something different!!

I just hope that BOINC is better for the science. Sure, I like to track my numbers it's amusing, but really when it comes down to it I want us to find life out there.

> Sure changed a lot for me in 24 hours.
>
> Total credit 346.45
> Recent average credit 32.72



Another 96 Hours

Total credit 1481.63
Recent average credit 118.10


RAC is baffling :)



~Michael
"They better be out there, I think we need their help"

> Another 96 Hours
>
> Total credit 1481.63
> Recent average credit 118.10
>
>
> RAC is baffling :)


And Another 96 Hours

Total credit 2697.18
Recent average credit 174.76

Cranking Away!!

I need more PCs



~Michael
"They better be out there, I think we need their help"

> And Another 96 Hours
>
> Total credit 2697.18
> Recent average credit 174.76
>
> Cranking Away!!


I need to change the name of this post to "96 hours of BOINC = ????" :)

Maybe no one cares but i'm finding the pattern interesting, it sure is ramping up... not quite exponential but certainly not predictable

Yet another 96 hours... yippee

Total credit 7786.61
Recent average credit 552.55
Pending Credits ??????



~Michael
"They better be out there, I think we need their help"