[Databionic-ESOM-User] Weight errors while running ESOM!

[Preeti S. <ps...@ya...>]

Hello! everyone,
 
I am new to ESOM and have been using it to classify a huge database. First of all, I have noticed that many times when I train the dataset, I save the weights (*.wts) and the best matching (*.bm) along the way. After the training is complete, I get a weird visualization, where most of the map is blue and white dots (best matching units) in between here and there. When I go into the weight file, I can see that it has some weird characters instead of numbers. I dont know what I am doing wrong? I have tried several times and I keep getting the same visualization and weight files most of the time. One out of 10 trainings gives me the correct visualization. Can anyone help me in finding out where the mistake lies? second of all, how do you know what parameters are the optimal ones for running your dataset? For example, how many epochs I should run it for? Which training algorithm should I use? which weight initilization method is the best? start value for learning rate? etc. 
 
Looking forward to hearing from some of you!
 
Best Regards,
Preeti