Data Analysis Fundamentals: 3. Download Logged Data
3. Download Logged Data
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00:00 | - Once we bring the car back into the pits after an outing, we want to start by downloading the log data from your device. |
00:08 | This in itself isn't particularly challenging however so often I see people rushing this step, possibly due to the time constraints between sessions and fail to follow some basic data management protocols. |
00:20 | What I mean here is that we will want to ensure that our data is managed in such a way that we can easily reference it at a later time, possibly months or years in the future. |
00:31 | In general, we want to start here by saving all of the log data from a particular racetrack into the same folder on our laptop. |
00:39 | In some instances, this will be automatic however this may still be a manual process with some logging systems. |
00:46 | There's nothing worse than downloading your latest log file then realising you have no idea where it's saved when you go to open it on your analysis package. |
00:54 | We also want to make sure that the event, session and outing are noted so that we can then reference these later. |
01:01 | This may be something like sprint series round 1 for the event, followed by practice 1 for the session and DL3 for the third download of the event. |
01:11 | You will usually be able to add some notes to your log file as well which can make it much easier to make sense of the data at a later point. |
01:19 | I recommend taking the time to add enough context to your notes to be useful. |
01:23 | In particular, I'd suggest you note the weather conditions as well as any specific setup changes that you've made for that session. |
01:31 | This historic data can make it very easy to track setup changes and their effect. |
01:36 | And it can be a benefit the next time you visit the same track as it can fast-forward getting you into the setup window. |
01:43 | It's also a good idea to make a note about anything out of the ordinary that occurred in that session. |
01:50 | This might for example be a session where you encountered a fuel problem which resulted in fuel surge. |
01:55 | Lastly if you're sharing the same car with two or more drivers, it's also advisable to note who was driving for a given session. |
02:02 | This makes it much simpler to analyse the relative performance of different drivers at a later point. |
02:09 | While it's not strictly related to downloading the logged data. |
02:12 | This is a good place to consider your options around backing it up. |
02:15 | Whether you back up at regular intervals to an external drive or you use a cloud backup service is up to you. |
02:23 | But there's nothing worse than losing potentially years of valuable data if a harddrive fails or your laptop is stolen. |