Amazingly, I haven't changed the normalized price calculation since this post explaining it:
https://www.disboards.com/threads/r...uctions-formatting-tool.3914894/post-64837394
It's not perfect, but I tried to consider all of the relevant information without going overboard on assumptions.
@CastAStone will be happy to know it's firmly rooted in financial mathematics.
Just a few notes about the normalization that might not be immediately obvious, but can cause confusion. With the current methodology, larger contracts will rise to the top of the best deals list. I'm coming at it from a financial perspective and assuming the contract will be held to expiration, so there's no adjustment for the market premium on smaller contracts. Also, the top 10 list is generally going to be made up of loaded contracts as points listed for the prior year in the data string are assumed to be immediately available upon closing (
@CastAStone already explained the impact of discounting so I won't repeat it here). That is one arguable shortcoming since nobody is using their points the day they're loaded. There are so many assumptions to be made that could tilt the scales, but most importantly (IMO) the basis for the normalization is the idea that all contracts have a financial value based on discounted "cash flows".
I know I need to do a better job explaining all the calculations on the site and it's on the list. I'll keep updating it and making improvements as best I can. Meanwhile, if you have any questions or ideas the mods would probably prefer it if you post them here:
https://www.disboards.com/threads/dvcrofr-com.3924179/
Thanks for all your support!