What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

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nhoward
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by nhoward »

From a Monte Carlo run, if you graph one variable against another (‘Y on X’), Vensim does not pick up all the points. It is not clear which points a graph shows (perhaps the first simulation?) but it does not cover all, as those exported to excel can include points lying outside the range graphed.
Sometimes you may want to compare outcomes at the end of a series of Monte Carlo simulations, and you want to graph one outcome variable against another. For example, for a model of a project, you might want to look at a scatter of total costs against added scope from changes.
It would be useful if this could be done in a future version. For heavy duty runs you may want to export data to specialist programs but in the early stages you probably want to quickly get a feel for how outcomes of interest vary with the variables determined by random sampling, and a scatter plot using the end points of each simulation would be very useful. If anyone has already suggested this I apologise but I couldn't find anything like this.
SionC
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by SionC »

Hi,

I am doing a lot of sensitivity runs, with many iterations for a lot of different scenarios. I would like Vensim to be able to export the results that are plotted in the Sensitivity Graph (i.e., the values of the various percentiles over time). I am currently getting these values by importing the data from the VDF files and running statistical analysis in a separate application, which takes time to execute. Vensim is already calculating the numbers I want as they are being plotted within Vensim, so it would be great to be able to get them from Vensim itself rather than having to do this separate analysis.

Best wishes

Sion
SionC
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by SionC »

Hi,

I am running a .vpm Vensim model from an Excel spreadsheet using the dll. I would like to be able to define the size and names of the subscripts in the model from Excel, in a similar manner to using the GET XLS SUBSCRIPT function.

Thanks

Sion
billh
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by billh »

I really like the interactivity with the model provided by Synthesim. For those times when I'm using an overly long time span (many time steps), it would be nice to have a Dygraphs-like interactivity for graphs, too, so that one could see the full graph and zoom or pan in the graph rather than having to change the Time Axis in the Control Panel.

If I had a second magic wand, I'd like that Dygraphs feature to be available both in custom graphs and in graphs produced by a graphs tool.
billh
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by billh »

Oops: you're quick! You must have gotten that (dygraphs-like zoom) into a prior version, at least for graphs made by the graph tool, and I just discovered it. It would still be nice to have it in custom graphs, and pan would be nice in both.
billh
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by billh »

It could be nice to let one chain calls to GET DATA MEDIAN(); that is, allow the first argument to be something other than just a data variable.

For example, I'm using a median filter followed by a DIY first (backward) difference to filter accumulated precipitation over a year and turn it into precipitation. When the gauge gets full, the station owners dump the container, setting the accumulated precipitation back to 0. The first difference looks like a big negative spike. If I could run the output of the first difference through another GET DATA MEDIAN(), I could eliminate the spike.

I realize that there's the potential for abuse: one might try to add such a filter inside a loop to represent some idealized human information processing, where some exponential goal-seeking structure might be a more appropriate representation of what people really do. I also realize that I could move all of the data filtering outside of Vensim (and, in my case, into R), which I may do.
billh
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by billh »

I'd like a function GET XLS DATA NAMED() that's similar to GET XLS DATA() except that you would name locations instead of give column and cell references.

I don't think you'd need to use named areas; it could be as simple as passing the character string found in the first row of the two appropriate columns, perhaps with a new last argument that said how many rows to skip before the data starts (or before the row of column names).

I'm working on a model that's pulling in some 20-30 columns from an Excel workbook that was created by an R script. That makes it easy for the user to compare various unmodeled variables (or forecasted variables) to various modeled variables.

If I want to add a new column and keep the columns in a logical order, it can mean changing the column order in R (easy) and then finding and changing all the column references in various GET XLS DATA() calls. That's a bit tedious and prone to error.
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by Administrator »

Can you give an example? I don't understand how else you can describe areas in a spreadsheet other than named ranges or cell references. The existing functions work on both named ranges and cell references, plus you can use string variables to define these.
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billh
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by billh »

I read "'cell' names the cell that the first Data value is on." but didn't read to the notes that "You can substitute named Excel ranges for 'time row or col' and 'cell'. "

So the only difference seems to be that I might put "MyData" in cell C3 and want to reference it, not by C3 or by a named range but by "MyData".

I'll look into the named ranges, although I've mostly done what I need in the immediate future.

Thanks!
aliakhavan89
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by aliakhavan89 »

Hi,

There are several issues regarding Mac version fo the software. I am going to provide some of them and looking forward to see the resolutions in the future versions of the application:
1. Toolbar icons are totally old fashioned
2. The icons are also blurred
3. The texts related to icons are sometimes overlapped.
4. It seems the software does not fully support high resolution screens, especially for Mac Retina displays.
billh
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by billh »

Would it be possible to add an option to Tools > Options to set the default zoom level?

The default zoom works fine on my workstation, because I lay out the model to fit. When I project a model on a screen, I often have to zoom to fit to screen, and that has to be repeated on each new view. I think it would be nicer to be able to set the default zoom to a new value (e.g., "fit to screen") for the presentation and then not have to worry about it.
billh
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by billh »

It would be seemingly consistent and helpful to require--or at least allow--Vensim's trigonometric functions to accept units with arguments. When I have to use such functions, I likely have both radians and degrees in the model: the former to make Vensim happy and the latter for the user's convenience (I guess the user might even want grads from time to time). Allowing units lets me check whether I'm applying the right angle measurement to the function.

That only works, of course, if you make the trigonometric functions check for radians as units; ctrl-u to check for consistency may not seem like enough. And there are, of course, legacy models that use dimensionless arguments.

I do get that a radian is a (dimensionless) ratio of lengths.

The nicest solution I could imagine would be for sin() etc. to allow either dmnl or radian(s) for the argument units. That would let the modeler choose to track units or not and would enforce those tracked units to be radians.
Alisib
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by Alisib »

I think there should be a kind of help tool that when the mouse cursor is placed on anything, a quick help emerges.
John Swanson
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by John Swanson »

I've mentioned this before, but here goes. I have a large model that includes matrices of travel movements. It uses zone names as array subscripts, and I use EQUIVALENCE so that I can refer to arrays like this: TRIPS[livezone, workzone] - livezone and workzone are equivalenced to the same list of zone names, called zonenames.
I often want to look at a single row or column of this array. For example to report all trips from Zone A to all the other zones. This can't be done without reporting the entire matrix. If I choose specific zones, then I get the sub-matrix for them, but it's still a square matrix.
So can you introduce a way of choosing different subscript values for each of the equivalence lists?
LAUJJL
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by LAUJJL »

Hi John

One cannot select different subscripts values from different equivalent subscripts.

I have the same problem between different towns having different traffic between them.

Of course it is always possible to build a report custom table and specify the different couple of subscripts you want to see. but it can be tedious if you have large sized subscripts.

If i want to select one town and want only to see the incoming or outcoming traffic I use specific arrays as explained in the joined published model. You can change with the synthesim the specific town you want to visualize.

with this method one is only limited by one's own creativity. You can too define specific subranges etc...

Best regards.

JJ
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mhpb
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by mhpb »

Hi,
Since .xmile is the standard format of system dynamic models it would be perfect to have the option for uploading the .xmile file to the vensim. It is mentioned that it's possible but there is no option for opening .xmile file.
Thanks in advance
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by Administrator »

mhpb wrote: Wed Jan 23, 2019 10:07 am Hi,
Since .xmile is the standard format of system dynamic models it would be perfect to have the option for uploading the .xmile file to the vensim. It is mentioned that it's possible but there is no option for opening .xmile file.
Thanks in advance
It will be available in the next release in PLE (it's already in Vensim DSS).
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rodrigo?solis
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by rodrigo?solis »

Hello everyone!, I really like the suggestions that are being put forward, and totally agree with them. Here are my two cents:

Being able to:
-Take the results from optimization and load them permanently in the model (not just with Load changes from)
-To independently turn on and off the graphs of every variable while running synthesim (screens with several variables turn very laggy when drawing so many graphs at a time)
-Record in Gif or video a synthesim session
-Multi-Core processing
-Incorporate numbers modified in synthesim to the model structure
-modify arrows using Bezier tool (and overall increase on the flexibility of the sketch tools)
-non-negative stocks and unidirectional flows
-Time tracking (i.e. being able to time how much time takes for something to spread across the system)
-instead of having to use a function to declare what kind of extrapolation to use in Lookup functions, being able to tick mark it directly from the 'As Graph' window
-when using multiple Views, it is cumbersome to jump around the views while in synthesim to move the slider of a particular constant. It would be easier to have a list with all the model's constants and from there being able to control them (without having to put shadow variables all over the place, as the ay I do it now)
-pop-up windows (editor, subscripts, control panel, outputs, other views, etc) outside the main VENSIM window so multiple displays can be used



Improve
-Export capabilities (both in command and interface). for example: exporting every x timesteps, exporting payoff on every run on the same export file
-Stability on the Mac
-Overall graphics interface (i.e. HD icons and graphics, 32-bit colours, TrueType fonts, soft graphics, etc.)
-Help file: there are several topics that are blank, the commands are scattered all over the help file instead of having a whole chapter of just that, specially Kalman filtering and other advanced settings are quite confusing to follow.
- Use of conveyors. As of now, using conveyors still need a lot of work around. STELLA has a way cleaner way of treating conveyors, something like that could be implemented.
-Creation of VENAPPS. right now is very confusing, cumbersome and limited to build VENAPPS.
-Instructions for the overall compilation process.
-The output of the uses, causes, and loops Tools
-Graphs for sensitivity analyses (density clouds, heat maps, etc)
-Error reporting. right now it opens only one error at a time. an interactive error window could be implemented so you could easily open each of the elements with an error and correct them (both for model errors and units)
-Text editor.
-Equation Editor. It is too cluttered (i.e. I've never used they keypad, that and other stuff could be ptional to make it appear). Also, the equations box could use color coding for different types of code( parentheses, numbers, lookups, constants, variables, etc).


Include
-RANDOM LOGNORMAL function
rodrigo?solis
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by rodrigo?solis »

A little textbox on the status bar or somewhere else, showing the errors, payoff, etc, without popping out a whole window (it is quite annoying having to almost-automatically close the payoff pop-out window everytime I run a simulation)
aliakhavan89
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by aliakhavan89 »

Hi,

Do we have a spell check within the software? Otherwise, can we have it in the future releases?

Regards,
Alireza
pav80
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by pav80 »

Greetings,

Our IT staff are wondering if for the long term vision of Vensim, if you have any plans to offer an MSI-based installer?
Based on some exchanges understand this is not planned at the moment.

Regards
pav80
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by pav80 »

Greetings,

Our IT staff are wondering if in the long term Vensim could be designed for multithreading, because based on tests we did, seems Vensim is more designed for single-thread processing?

Regards
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by Administrator »

pav80 wrote: Wed Nov 06, 2019 3:31 pmOur IT staff are wondering if in the long term Vensim could be designed for multithreading, because based on tests we did, seems Vensim is more designed for single-thread processing?
Not for a single simulation. It's easy to understand why. For example, to calculate a stock B with an inflow A, you must first calculate A. You can have 100 cores and it would still make no difference, B cannot be calculated until A has. For a Vensim model, we could try and use multiple cores to do the calculations, but the overhead of monitoring each thread to see if it has finished calculating would slow things down.

For sensitivity and optimization, we can make use of multiple cores. We are currently developing the ability to run sensitivity on multiple cores which does improve performance.
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pav80
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by pav80 »

Our IT staff would appreciate the "silent install" option for Vensim in the future.

More details here. Ideally, we would like to push the Vensim install out using System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM). This allows to track our licence usage, and also orchestrate version updates in a manageable way. This also allows the users to install the software without having any admin rights, as SCCM installs run as the SYSTEM context. Normally using SCCM would mean creating a silent install, so the user isn’t presented with any of the install interface, but we can expose the installer GUI if necessary.

With Vensim it seems that, while the installer supports a silent install option, the requirement to enter the user’s details (name, company, unlock code) prevent the silent option from actually working. Is there a way of supplying the user’s details via the install command line?

Based on exchanges with administrator we understand that there is no silent install option at present.
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Re: What improvements would you like to see in Vensim?

Post by Administrator »

pav80 wrote: Mon Nov 18, 2019 9:08 amBased on exchanges with administrator we understand that there is no silent install option at present.
This is correct, there is no silent install option. A silent install makes it far too easy to break the licence agreement. It's always IT staff (not the users) that complain about this as it makes their job slightly easier. Vensim only takes a couple of minutes to install, and I know that SCCM can track licence usage for Vensim as well. The IT staff probably wasted more time trying a silent install than just installing it normally.
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