1) What's the difference between absolute and corrected pressure? I think I know but would like to hear from you and what do I use?
This is tricky.
In JBM, if you check "Std. Atmosphere at altitude", then you don't have to tell it what the measured air pressure is (if you do it will ignore the input). Instead, it will use the air pressure that corresponds with the altitude input you use. This option is not recommended (by me) because it's more accurate to measure the air pressure directly.
If "Std. Atmosphere at altitude" is unchecked, and so is "corrected pressure", then the program will use the pressure you input directly to calculate air density. This is recommended.
If "Std. Atmosphere at altitude" is unchecked, and "corrected pressure" is checked, then the program will use the pressure that you input as the sea level pressure, and use the altitude input and the standard lapse rate to estimate the pressure at your altitude at that time. This practice was developed for pilots who need to calibrate altimeters to know where 'zero altitude' is, but unfortunately gets used by shooters to confuse themselves.
In my opinion, the best and simplest way to handle air pressure is to measure it directly, at the shooting location, and un-check the options in JBM that want to adjust it.
2) What does drag profile have to do with calculating the BC? I noticed that ii I changed the drag profile form G1 to G7 it drastically changed the BC even if I left everything else the same such as distance and velocities, near and far. This doesn't seem right to me so I must be missing something.
The drag profile, aka the drag function, is the standard that the BC is defined in relation to. G1 has historically been used exclusively, but there are other standards better suited for long range bullets.
Defining BC according to the G1 standard for long range (boat-tailed, sharp nosed) bullets results in a BC that changes a lot with velocity. However, if you define a BC in relation to the G7 standard, it's much more constant over velocity. This results in more accurate trajectory calculations.
As you observed, BC's related to other standards (G7 for example) are much lower than BC's related to the G1 standard. This isn't a problem as long as you tell the trajectory calculator what kind of BC you're giving it; otherwise you're mixing apples and oranges.
For example, let's say you measure the velocity drop over 100 yards to be 3000 fps to 2800 fps and the calculator says the G1 BC is .500 and the G7 BC is .250. If you now measure the velocity drop from 200 to 300 yards, the G1 BC will be something like .43 or .44, where-as the G7 BC will still be .250 or something very close to .250. Over the course of a long range trajectory, the G1 BC will change by as much as 10% to 15%+ where as the G7 BC will usually stay within a couple %.
Here are a couple links to articles that talk about G1 vs G7 BC's:
http://www.appliedballisticsllc.com/index_files/Berger155grainVLD.pdf
http://www.appliedballisticsllc.com/index_files/7mmNumberOne.pdf
BH mentioned BIB's new 6mm bullet. I noticed that Randy is advertising a G7 BC as well as a G1 BC for this new option:
BIB Bullet Co. (515) 438-4010 » New Products !
In the past I've been providing G7 BC's on request for Berger bullets. In the coming months, we're going to be making these G7 BC's more easily accessible, probably posting them on our website and printing them on our labels. We'll keep the G1 BC's for a while, but the eventual goal is to migrate to the more suitable standard.
Remember, if you use a G7 BC, you have to use it with a program that can accept it (JBM can accept G7 BC's). If you give your program a G7 BC, and don't tell it, then your computer will short circuit and fall into a black hole
Take care,
-Bryan