TRUE

TEMPORAL REASONING UNIVERSAL ELABORATION

MANUAL beta Version 20100617

PARTIE 00

Tutorial 01

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Contents
I - INTRODUCTION...................................................................................................................................3
A) Overview of the tutorial.......................................................................................................................3
B) Studied model......................................................................................................................................4
II – MODEL.................................................................................................................................................5
A) Create a new empty model...................................................................................................................5
B) Save model as......................................................................................................................................5
C) Setting the date.....................................................................................................................................6
III – FRAME................................................................................................................................................7
A) Create new frame.................................................................................................................................7
B) Setting the new frame..........................................................................................................................8
IV – STOCKS..............................................................................................................................................9
A) Create new stocks................................................................................................................................9
B) Setting the new stocks........................................................................................................................10
V – FLOWS...............................................................................................................................................11
A) Create one new link between two stocks............................................................................................11
B) Create three new virtual links.............................................................................................................11
C) Rename the new links........................................................................................................................12
D) Setting the links.................................................................................................................................13
1. Setting the chronology.....................................................................................................................14
2. Editing the procedure......................................................................................................................15
3. Setting the virtual links....................................................................................................................17
VI – COMPUTE THE MODEL.................................................................................................................18
A) Compute the model for one cycle......................................................................................................19
VII – CHARTS...........................................................................................................................................20
A) Creating one chart for three links.......................................................................................................20
B) Creating chart for one stock...............................................................................................................21
VIII – DISPLAY THE MODEL.................................................................................................................22
A) Display the values of the model after computing...............................................................................22

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I - INTRODUCTION

A) Overview of the tutorial

The tutorial has been designed to progressively teach you how to use TRUE. By following this course:

 you will discover the main concepts explained here informally; these are the concepts you need to
lean and understand.

As you progress through the tutorial, if you want to take a closer look at a concept or if you wand to get
more details, see the other User-Manuals, but it is recommended to read them first.

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B) Studied model

The studied model is “New product adoption” :

- article by John Sterman (2001) Systems dynamics modeling:
- tools for learning in a complex world, California management review, Vol 43 no 1, Summer 2001

As an illustration of the use of system dynamics, imagine an organisation that plans to introduce an
innovative new durable consumer product. The organisation needs to understand the possible market
dynamics in order to design marketing and production plans.

Http://www.true-world.com/htm/en/adoption.htm

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II – MODEL

A) Create a new empty model

 Run TRUE software

 Create a new empty model : press key : Ctrl+N

B) Save model as

 Save model as “Tutorial Adoption” : press key : Ctrl+S

 Tape “Tutorial Adoption”
 Click on button “Save”
 Click on button “No” after the question : Save files containing values from compute ?
 Drag the right tool bar on the left border of the main window, as below :

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C) Setting the date

Setting the date doesn't affect the model, this is only for information.

Let say that the unit of time of the model Adoption is the month :

 Menu View → Date setup

 After Cycle, select : Year, tape : 2010 (model starting from year 2010)
 After Time, select : Month, tape : 1 ( model starting from month 1, January)

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III – FRAME

A) Create new frame

Creating this frame doesn't affect the model, this is only for display.

 Click on the button “Frame” of the tool bar

 Click in the black background of the window
 Press the key Escape, or right-click the mouse

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B) Setting the new frame

Rename the new frame :

 Click on the title bar of the frame

 Press key F2
 Tape “Adoption” then press key Enter

Resize the frame “Adoption” :

 Click on the right-bottom handle of the frame

 Drag this handle to resize the frame

Enable option “move the element”:

 Right-click on the title of the frame

 Select the option “Enable : move the elements”
so, when you move the frame ( dragging its title bar ) , the elements inside will be moved too

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IV – STOCKS

Stocks are called objects in TRUE software.

A) Create new stocks

 Click on the button “Object” of the tool bar

 Click in the frame “Adoption” 4 times as below :
 Press the key Escape, or right-click the mouse

By default, the names of the stocks are O, O[1], O[2], O[3] → Object, object 1, ...

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B) Setting the new stocks

Rename the stock “O” and initialise its dotation :

The dotation is the first and initial value of the stock, for time = 0

 Click on the stock “O”

 Press key F2 (or F3)
 Tape “Potential adopters”
 Tape in the field Dotation : 1000
 press key Enter or click on button OK

Rename and initialise the other stocks as following :

 stock O[1] → Adopters, dotation = 0

 stock O[2] → p, dotation = 0,03
 stock O[3] → q, dotation = 0,4

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V – FLOWS

Flow that links two stocks is called “link” in TRUE software.

Flow that doesn't link two stocks is called “virtual link” in TRUE software.

A) Create one new link between two stocks

 Click on the button “Link” of the tool bar

 Click on the stock “Potential adopters”:
 Click on the stock “Adopters”
 Press the key Escape, or right-click the mouse

B) Create three new virtual links

 Click on the button “Link” of the tool bar

 Click on the stock “Potential adopters”:
 Click on the stock “Adopters”:
 Press the key Escape, or right-click the mouse

By default, the names of the links are L, L[1]] → Link, Link 1, …

By default, the names of the virtual links are Lv, Lv[1], Lv[2] → Virtual link, Virtual link 1, ...

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C) Rename the new links

Rename the link “L” :

 Click on the link “L”

 Press key F2
 Tape “New adopters” and press key enter

Rename the other links :

 virtual link Lv → Probability

 virtual link Lv[1] → Imitators
 virtual link Lv[2] → Innovators

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D) Setting the links

Setting the link “New adopters” :

 Click on the link “New adopters”

 Press key F3

The window “Link” display the list of the actions of the link “New adopters” :

By default, one action is created , with the following temporal parameters :

- Chronology = 1
- Start = 1
- Interval = 1
- Repeat = 12

That means that the action will be executed starting from time one, every one time, 12 times.
According the “setting date” where “time is month”, this action will be executed every month of every
year.

Note that cycle is “year” in this case.

Note that the cell of the column “Ed” is red, that means that the action is in editing mode, in the window
“1 Actions : New adopters.... ”.

To learn more about this window see “Manual Part 05 - Actions”

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1. Setting the chronology

Chronology determines when one action will be executed, in each unit of time.
In this model, the action of this link should be the latest action to be executed.

We can set the chronology to 4, because there is 4 links.

Setting the chronology to 4 : column Chr = 4

 Click twice on the cell “Chr” of the line of action

 Tape 4
 Click on the black background and on the button “Save action”

Note that in Vensim software, there is no temporal parameters, and that the chronology is automatic,
according the causalities.

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2. Editing the procedure

This window contains the code of the procedure of the action of the link “New adopters”.

The return value of the procedure is the value of the variable y.

By default, y = 0, and the action returns 0.

To learn more about this window see “Manual Part 05 - Actions”

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Tape the code of the procedure

In this model, the value of the link is equal to (Innovator + Imitators)

 Tape the following code :

y= Lvalue("Innovators") + Lvalue("Imitators")
y = Round(y,2)

The function Lvalue() returns the current value of one link

The function Round() limits the number of decimal

You can too drag and drop the link “Innovators” in this window instead taping the code
Lvalue("Innovators")

 Click on the button Save or press key : Ctrl+S

 Click on the button Exit or press key : Escape

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3. Setting the virtual links

Parameters of the following virtual links :

Probability

 Chronology = 1
 Code =

pt,pta is currency

pt = Ovalue("Potential adopters")

pta = pt + Ovalue("Adopters")

IF pta <> 0
y = pt / pta
y = Round(y,2)
END

Imitators

 Chronology = 2
 Code =
y = Ovalue("q") * Ovalue("Adopters")* Lvalue("Probability")
y = Round(y,2)

Innovator

 Chronology = 3
 Code =
y = Ovalue("p") * Ovalue("Potential adopters")
y = Round(y,2)

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VI – COMPUTE THE MODEL

Note that the blue button “Compute”, under menu View, is enable after creating the first Stock.
If this button is enable, that means that the model is modified and you have to compute it, first or again.

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A) Compute the model for one cycle

 Click on the blue button “Compute”

While computing, the button is red :

After computing, the button is blue and disable :

If you want to compute the module for more than one cycle, enter the number of cycle in the field
“Asked/reach computed cycles” and click on the button “Compute“ :

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VII – CHARTS

Charts are called graphs in TRUE software.

To learn more about graphs see “Manual Part 07 – Graphs”

A) Creating one chart for three links

 Press the key : Ctrl

 Click on the links Innovators, New adopters and Imitators
 Release the key : Ctrl
 Click on the button “Graph” of the left tool-bar
 Click on the black background where to draw the graph
 Press key Escape or right-click on the background
 Click on the graph to select it, move or resize it
 Press key : F2 and rename the graph : “Flows”

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B) Creating chart for one stock

Create the chart for the stock “Potential adopters”

 Click on the button “Graph” of the left tool-bar

 Click on the stock “Potential adopters”
 Click on the black background where to draw the graph
 Press key Escape or right-lick on the background
 Click on the graph to select it, move and resize it
 Press key : F2 and rename the graph : “Stock Potential adopters”
 Press key : F3 (openning the window to modify the chart)
 Disable interrupt “Caption”
 Disable interrup “+Thick/exc. Ele. Curs.”

Create one chart “Stock Adopters” for the stock “Adopters”.

Create one chart for the link “Probability”.
Disable caption et thick for this graphs.

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VIII – DISPLAY THE MODEL

A) Display the values of the model after computing

After computing, values of the stocks and flows are displayed, according the selected unit of times

 Select the unit of time using blue cursors,

 or with buttons Date of the top tool-bar,
 or with the key left or right

To learn more see “Manual Part 02 – Model” chapter VIII

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