Time Absolute Distributions

A time absolute distribute lets you specify when you want something to happen (rather than a more usual approach of specifying how long it will be from now until the next thing happens).

This is particularly useful in situations where something happens at the same time (or about the same time) each day. For example, a mail drop may happen at around 8am and 2pm each day.

To use time absolute distributions just select NEW in any timing/distribution panel and then TIME ABSOLUTE DISTRIBUTION, then click the NEXT button.

The Time Absolute Distribution dialog lets you add a number of times the thing should happen each day.

For each time you also give another distribution name - this lets you say how much variability occurs around the time of day. For example if the morning mail drop is at 8am but the mail guy is up to 15 mins late specify 8am and a distribution that gives values from 0 to 15 (perhaps uniform). If the afternoon mail drop is normally at 2pm but can be early or late then you might want to specify 2pm plus a distribution that is “normal” with a mean of 0 and a standard deviation of 5 mins.

To add a new time of day click the ADD button and then type the time of day and select the required distribution.