First of all, a clarification. As @PrincipalTinker pointed out, I am not against using FPPs early in the day, if that is where you get the best benefit from them. However, I do not think that the best overall strategy is to use them early.
You make a very good point here, and one that I have been thinking about for some time now. The Optimizer does not truely figure out where the best FPP opportunities are for you. For example, after optimizing it may have 7DMT at 10:00 with a 40 minute wait and suggest that it would be good to get an FPP. However, the best plan taking everything into consideration may be riding 7DMT at 3:30 using an FPP - Just because 10:00 was the best time for riding 7DMT without an FPP does not mean that it is the best time to use an FPP for it. However, I think that it would take a lot of programming effort (and a lot of processing time for each plan) in order to find the “perfect” plan, and I do not believe that there would be a huge wait time time savings in doing this.
This is one of the reasons I came up with my iterative method for making FPP selections using the Optimizer. As you go through it attractions keep moving around and you keep adjusting your FPP times, and I think that you get to a result that, although probably not perfect, is pretty close to it. Given all the things that can go wrong with a plan on the day (temporary ride closures, weather, crowd fluctuations), I would think that we are probably well within the margin for error anyway.
One of the best things about the TP software is that it allows us to test out different theories on planning and FPP selection and see what the results are. Make a plan and use the Optimizer to help you select FPPs. Make a copy of it and then use the “early FPP” theory to make your selections and then Evaluate it to see how it works. Combine ideas from the two methods and Evaluate. Etc., etc., etc. The Optimizer is great for what it is designed to do, but the Evaluate function is where the real value is for the experienced Liner. 