CA Updates

Although I haven't been blogging, work on the cellular automaton program has continued.  It now has an on screen display of some interesting parameters. I also have been learning how to use FLTK 1.1 (Fast Light Tool Kit, pronounced "full tick", although I keep wanting to say "foot lick".) Somehow I have figured out how to write a GUI control program to control the whole ca shebang. I was going to call it lcp, "Life Control Program", but the name seems to imply mind control cult membership and it also seems to be already used in Ubuntu Linux.

mikey@hatshepsut:~/workspace/ca$ lcp
The program 'lcp' is currently not installed.  You can install it and be assimilated by typing:
sudo apt-get install lsh-client
lcp: command not found
mikey@hatshepsut:~/workspace/ca$

So I decided on cacp, "Cellular Automata Control Program".  Now available on Launchpad. Thanks to Greg Ercolano's FLTK cheat sheet and videos, which were very helpful.


I want to create a war game similar to the old Avalon Hill war games of my youth, something like Afrika Korps or possibly like SSI's Allied General. I'm not sure how to do this, so I'm going to have to put my thinking cap on for a while. While I'm figuring that out, I'll be working on the cellular automatons. I have a few more ideas for improvements.

Last night's International Mystery was Tatorte ("Crime Scene"), which is one of my faves. The bier drinking, currywurst eating detectives Max Ballauf and Freddy Schenk were on the job again, chasing yet another killer. I like these guys -- they once even arrested an elderly SS murderer for crimes committed back in the 1930's. They sure are natural born po-lice, as they used to say on The Wire. Alas, L'ispettore  Coliandro will return next week. He's definitely la natural born doofus who somehow manages to make time with a hot chick, solve a little crime and order mass quantities of yoghurt. C'est la vie.