Welcome To Josh's Blog O' Thoughts: Downloads

Earlier this month, I released version 2.0 of my NCAA basketball tournament bracket spreadsheet. The v2.0 update contained the functionality to grant bonus points for correctly choosing an upset win.

Unfortunately, it has been called to my attention that there is a bug related to the bonus point calculations in the Excel version of the file. I created the sheet in OpenOffice and then exported to Excel format. Apparently one of the formulas I was using worked a little differently in OpenOffice than in Excel. I have since corrected the file and updated it to v2.1. Please go to the original post to download the update. Please DO NOT use the v2.0 file which was available from Mar 12, 2010 - Mar 20, 2010.

How To Fix The Problem If You Are Already Using the v2.0 File For Your 2010 Pool

If you downloaded the v2.0 EXCEL file (OpenOffice file is fine) between Mar 12 and Mar 20, 2010, are currently using that file to run your pool, and are using the bonus points feature, you will probably want to run the following fix to correct the problem.

Instructions for fix:
1. Download this file: Fix_Excel_Bonus_Points.xls
2. Open the Fix_Excel_Bonus_Points.xls file
3. Go to Tools->Macros->Security and set macro security to Low.
4. Open your master bracket file.
5. Go to Tools->Macros->Macros
6. In the Macros In box near the bottom of the screen, make sure All Open Workbooks is selected.
7. Select the macro Fix_Excel_Bonus_Points.xls!Fix_Excel_Bonus_Calc
8. Click Run
9. Wait for message box saying Done
10. Save master bracket file
11. Close both files.
12. Your master bracket file should now be updated with corrected formulas for bonus point calculation.


Next year, download and use the fixed v2.1 file.


I apologize for the error. Hope you still can find the file useful.

I have updated my original bracket spreadsheet post to include sheets pre-filled with the 2010 field of teams. To download the 2010 bracket or the blank template spreadsheet, go to http://josh.breittechnologies.com/blog/2009_03_13_NCAA_Basketball_Tournament_Bracket_Spreadsheet_File

Last year my NCAA basketball tournament spreadsheet was quite a hit. To make it even more popular, I have added the ability to score bonus points for upsets. Bonus points can be awarded based on the difference in seeds between the winning and losing team. If an "underdog" team wins, you can give whatever amount of bonus points you want depending on how much of an underdog they were (a 16 beating a 1 deserves more bonus points than a 9 beating an 8).

See the instructions in the original post and in the spreadsheet file for more details.

http://josh.breittechnologies.com/blog/2009_03_13_NCAA_Basketball_Tournament_Bracket_Spreadsheet_File

I know I'm a few days late in posting this, but attached is the TV schedule for the 2010 Winter Olympics. This schedule only includes the main NBC network (not any of their cable networks). Times are in Central Standard Time.

Also, please note that due to the weather, some events have been moved around. This schedule is based on the original events schedule so there may be some differences in the skiing events.

Hope you find this useful.

2010_NBC_Olympics_Coverage.ods - 17KB OpenOffice.org Spreadsheet
2010_NBC_Olympics_Coverage.xls - 26KB MS Excel Spreadsheet

I have posted updates to my NCAA bracket spreadsheet files with the 2009 field of teams already filled in. See the post regarding my bracket files here:

http://josh.breittechnologies.com/blog/2009_03_13_NCAA_Basketball_Tournament_Bracket_Spreadsheet_File

It's almost time for the 2009 NCAA Basketball Championship, aka March Madness! If you're one of the many people who like to take your luck at filling out a tournament bracket or maybe even organize a pool, I have just the spreadsheet for you.

My family has been doing a tournament pool for years (mostly just for bragging rights). In the past we would all fill out a paper bracket and someone would manually check them and highlight them as the games ended. With my family living farther apart now, we decided we needed an electronic format for our brackets. Yes, there are various websites out there devoted to this, but they often require account registration, have ads, etc. My goal was to make it simple so I created a spread sheet which allows you to fill out your bracket using simple drop-down boxes. Then I collect everyone's spreadsheets, combine them in to one (a little complex), and the spreadsheet automatically keeps score as I fill in who wins the games.

At the end of this post are links for downloading the spreadsheet in Excel or OpenOffice.org format.

Instructions On Using The File

1. Download the File

Obviously, the first step is for the person running the pool (that's you) to download the file and open it up. There is are also instructions in the file for your reference.

A Note On File Protections:

This file and the sheets within it, are protected to prevent users from accidentally messing up the file.

To add/rename/copy/move a sheet, you will first need to unprotect the document. In OpenOffice.org, Tools->Protect Document and uncheck Document. In MS Excel, Tools->Protection->Unprotect Workbook.

To edit the protected regions of many of these sheets, unprotect the sheet. In OpenOffice.org, Tools->Protect Document and uncheck Sheet. In MS Excel, Tools->Protection->Unprotect Sheet.

It is recommended that you re-enable protections before giving this file to the people in your pool to prevent problems. You can even add passwords to the protection to keep it more secure.

2. Setup Scoring

To begin, you need to define your scoring methodology. Switch to the Scoring tab and unprotect the sheet.

Enter the number of points for a correct answer in each round of the tournament. For example, if you choose 1 point for Second round, you will get 1 point for each team that you successfully predict making it to the second round. If you choose 8 for Champions, you will receive 8 points if you predict the correct winner of the tournament.

You may also setup bonus points to be awarded based on team seeds. If a lower seeded team beats a higher seeded team the bonus points assigned to the seed difference will be awarded. No bonus points are awarded if a higher seeded team wins.

In the bonus points table, assign a point value to each seed difference. For example, if you assign 5 bonus points to seed difference 7, you will score 5 bonus points (in addition to the regular points) if you correctly pick a winner that was an underdog by 7 seeds (i.e a 12 seed beats a 5 seed).

Re-protect the sheet.

3. Fill In The Master Bracket

The Master Bracket tab holds the field and all the winners as the tournament progresses. Switch to the Master Bracket tab and unprotect the sheet.
Fill in the field of teams in the tournament by typing the name of each team on the corresponding line of the bracket.

When done, re-protect the sheet.

4. Distribute The File

If you are doing this for a group of people, make sure all the sheets and the document are protected. Then e-mail the file to them with instructions on entering their picks.

Tell the other people to each use their own file, and to fill out the YourBracket sheet just like the instructions below. Have them save it and email it back to you.

5. Enter Your Picks

Go to the Your Bracket sheet (no need to unprotect). For each line of the bracket, click the cell and use the drop down box to select the winner.

Enter your Name in the Name field at the top of the sheet and your Tie Breaker value (whatever your pool is using for a tie break).

6. Consolidate The Sheets (slightly tricky)

Your file will be the master file. You will now consolidate all the brackets into your master file. For each file (including yours), open it, unprotect the document, switch to the YourBracket sheet, unprotect the sheet, then rename the sheet to the person's name. Copy the sheet to the master document.

If you are using MS Excel, you will have to change the links to point to the master document. Go to each person's sheet in the master document. Unprotect the sheet if it is not already. Go to Edit->Links. Select the link and click the Change Source button. Then browse to and select the master document file. This will make sure all the sheets in the master document file are linked to the master bracket. The link on that window will disappear since there are now no externally linked files. Reprotect everything if you wish.

7. Create A Score Sheet

If you want, you can create a sheet with each person's name and the score from their bracket sheet. That way you can easily see the standings.

8. Watch The Games!

9. Fill In The Winners

When a game is over, mark the winner on the MasterBracket page. Every person's individual bracket should update. A wrong answer gets crossed out and a correct answer gets highlighted.


I hope you find these files useful. I will also upload a file with the field of teams already filled in each year, so bookmark this page and come back!



**** UPDATES ****

Mar 21, 2010 - v2.1

!!BUG FIX!!

It appears there was a bug in the MS Excel version of the file in the bonus point calculation. The bug is now fixed and the file has been updated to v2.1. Go here for more details about this bug and the fix.

Mar 12, 2010 - v2.0

I have updated the template so that you now have the option of scoring bonus points for picking upsets. See the instructions for more details.

*****************



I hereby donate these files to public domain so feel free to use it in any way you wish.

Template Files:

NCAA Bracket Template v2.1.ods - OpenOffice.org Calc Spreadsheet (38KB)
NCAA Bracket Template v2.1.xls - MS Excel Spreadsheet (138KB)




Files With 2010 Field Already Filled In:

NCAA Bracket Template 2010.ods - OpenOffice.org Calc Spreadsheet (38KB)
NCAA Bracket Template 2010.xls - MS Excel Spreadsheet (138KB)

Files With 2009 Field Already Filled In:

NCAA Bracket 2009.ods - OpenOffice.org Calc Spreadsheet (36KB)
NCAA Bracket 2009.xls - MS Excel Spreadsheet (101KB)

Last year around this time, I posted an article about Tax Reporting For Employee Stock Purchase Plans (ESPP).

Last year, I learned the that there are specifically different rules for handling these types of capital gains/(losses) when compared with your standard stock transactions. My mistakes caused me to refile my tax returns (federal AND state) for the previous 3 years). I ended up getting about $1000 back so I didn't complain too much.

So this is just a reminder. If you sold any stock from an ESPP this past year, please follow the link above and read my detailed article on how to report this on your taxes. Also, you might want to take a look at using my spreadsheets which will help you calculate your gain/(loss) for these types of transactions. You can get the spreadsheets from the original post, or download them right from here:

I dedicate these two ESPP Tax Calculations files to the public domain so feel free to use them any way you wish.
ESPP Tax Calculations.ods - Open Document Spreadsheet format for OpenOffice.org
ESPP Tax Calculations.xls - MS Excel spreadsheet

Happy Tax Filing!

If you're at all like me, then you like the convenience of having a cell phone, but you don’t use it enough to make a standard cell phone plan a cost-worthy option. Most cell phone plans are going to run you at least $30 per month ($360 per year), and when you use your phone only a few times per month, it's just not worth it.

Luckily, because of people like us, there is a whole market for pre-paid cell phones. These generally give you the convenience of not having a monthly plan while still keeping your costs relatively low. Unfortunately, when you start to look for a pre-paid cell phone, you will find that there are a multitude of options available, and if you're not careful it's easy to get overwhelmed.

Some of the big players in the pre-paid industry are Tracfone, Net10, Go Phone, and Boost Mobile, but nearly all of the major monthly plan companies (Alltel, Verizon, T-Mobile, etc) have added pre-paid plans to their product list. The difficulty is in choosing the plan.

For me, it all boils down to recurring costs. The purchase of the phone itself is a one time cost for me because I won't be constantly upgrading it to something "cooler". I just need my phone to be a phone. I don't want it to take pictures, play music, play games, access the web, etc. I already have gadgets that fit all those categories. Now, if you want the other features, knock yourself out. This will be something to look at when choosing a plan because some providers (like Tracfone) come with very simple phones, whereas others offer a wider variety of “cool” phones.

Assuming the cost of the phone is a one time expense, we can then compare the different plans that are out there based on service costs. As I see it, there are basically two different times of pre-paid plans out there:

1. You buy a certain number of minutes that have a certain expiration date on them.
2. You put a certain amount of money into an account which is used to pay for your minutes and service as you use them. This money usually has an expiration date as well.

Tracfone's plans are type one. You buy a card that comes with a certain number of minutes that lasts a certain number of days. At the end of the minutes or days (whichever is first), you must purchase and activate a new card to keep using the phone.

Type two plans, like Verizon's InPulse plan, will allow you to add money to an account which will expire in a set number of days. To my knowledge, if the money expires, it's just gone. The money in the account is automatically debited as you make calls. Most of these plans charge a set rate per minute. Sometimes different rates will apply for roaming, nights, and weekends. Some plans also charge a daily fee, while some plans charge a use fee just on the days the phone is used.

To help me decide which plan to go with, I created a spreadsheet that I could use to help find the lowest cost plan to fit my needs. The spreadsheet files are attached at the end of this post for your convenience. Simply fill in the yellow boxes on the Enter Data Here tab. This data is about your expected use for this phone. Based on that data, the spreadsheet will show you the lowest cost option from the plans I have added to the file. Switch to the Plan Comparisons sheet to see the analysis.

The lowest cost option for me ended up being Tracfone. As you will see in the spreadsheet, Tracfone has an option called the Double Minutes For Life (DMFL) card. If you get one of these and activate it, every minute card you activate after that will give you double minutes. It’s hard to beat the per-minute cost of a Tracfone with DMFL as you’ll see in the file.

You can normally purchase the DMFL card separately for about $50, but most of the time you can find a deal on the Tracfone site to get it free with the purchase of a phone. I ended up getting a phone, a 1 year / 400 min card, and a DMFL card for only $99 (the regular price for just the 1 year card).

One nice thing about Tracfone is that if you run out of service, but still have minutes, the minutes will carry over as long as you keep the service active by adding cards. And when you add a service card, the additional service is added to any remaining service you still have. So you could theoretically add three 1 Year cards at once and have service for 3 years. Also, check to see if the phone you are buying is part of their Single Rate plan. If so, there is no roaming at all. If you can't get a Single Rate phone because of your service area, then roaming calls are charged double minutes.

I'm now using my cell phone for occasional calls home when out running errands, but we've also decided to start using the cell phone for our long distance needs since it is now cheaper than pre-paid long distance cards (a topic for another post). Hope you’ve found this helpful.

These files are donated to the public domain so feel free to do with them whatever you wish.

PrePaidCellPhoneCostComparison.ods - OpenDocument Spreadsheet for OpenOffice.org. (14KB)
PrePaidCellPhoneCostComparison.xls - Excel Spreadsheet for MS Office. (76KB)


If you have anything to add, or other plans that you'd like to put in the comparison list, leave me a comment.