| Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 419686 | Discrete Applied Mathematics | 2013 | 10 Pages |
We answer this question using the competitive ratio as an indicator for the quality of information about the future. Analytical results show that the better the information the better the worst-case competitive ratios. However, experimental analysis gives a slightly different view. We calculate the empirical-case competitive ratios of different variants of a threat-based online algorithm. The results are based on historical data of the German Dax-30 index. We compare our experimental empirical-case results to the analytical worst-case results given in the literature. We show that better information does not always lead to a better performance in real life applications. The empirical-case competitive ratio is not always better with better information, and some a-priori information is more valuable than other for practical settings.
