hexBOTs

*** hexBOTs ***

You will love it - with a double click a new experiment starts!
hexBOTs: Pushing the Limits of Cellular Automata Art.

Controls:
[hold finger down / hold mouse down] or [B]-key
enable/disable robots

Press the [I]-key. Then some information will be shown

• THE HOTKEYS.

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Naturally, you've just launched the program, and what you're seeing might strike you as "pretty funny." If you're looking for more than just "funny," delve into the notes on 'hexBOTs.'
At its core lies a grid, a parquet of equilateral triangles (seamlessly). This grid can also be transformed into a rectangular grid. This allows the slightly distorted representation of the triangle parquet to seamlessly integrate with the display grid.
Now, considering a grid point of the triangle parquet, you find yourself amidst a center of six other grid points, positioning themselves in regular hexagons. In their center sits a robot surrounded by 6 points - hence the name 'Hexbot.'
These robots move on this grid. They must always algorithmically choose one of the surrounding points as a new base point.

The Track Module:
Before a robot moves to the next grid point, it marks the point where it currently resides. Thus, a 'trail' is formed. These trails, along with others, paint the picture. However, the actual trail of the robot is not on the canvas but in its memory. After some time, the robot forgets its trail - it dissolves. The forgetfulness behavior of the trail is robot-specific and determined by the random generator. There are both weak and strong memory capacities. Everything will be forgotten!

The Move Module:
A robot now analyzes its 6 peripheral points, here, two of which are designated as trail-points. It reads 'false, false, true, true, false, false' or '001100' - binary = 12-decimal. The value 12 represents the index in the movement list of the robot - at this index in a fixed list stands, for example, 'Move to top left.' In total, there are always 64 list positions (0 - 63 / counting zero!), because with a 6-digit binary value, precisely the decimal numbers 0-63 can be defined. There are exactly six movement instructions: left, right, top-left, top-right, bottom-left, bottom-right. These movement instructions are arranged in various variations in the 64-line movement list. Their positions are determined by the random generator. All possibilities result in a large number!

The Stuck Module:
The fact that a robot 'gets stuck' is a regular occurrence. Getting stuck can also manifest as a series of movements repeating periodically. If the Stuck Module recognizes motionlessness or a repetitive dance without progress, it triggers the 'Free Ride Mechanism.'

10 to the power of 64 Robot Types:
It was my decision NOT to host a TALENT SHOW to isolate 100 super-good robots. This results in the drawn pictures not always being so great, or often 'Dumb Robots' are on the playing field. Isolating only a few robot types would, however, have LOST A HUGE DIVERSITY! So: It doesn't always have to be a super show, but there are always new surprises! I want 10 to the power of 64 robots to have the chance to make their appearance!

About the Program:

A maximum of 53 robots are allowed. There have been instances where 24 different types were on the playing field. Various robots are deployed. The first robot is Type=0. When another robot is added, it becomes Type=1. If the same robot is added again, it also becomes Type=1. A brand-new robot is added - voilà Type=2 etc... etc... The programming of the types is different in each experiment. This means that identical types are completely different in different experiments.

The concept of the entire event is perhaps a kind of 'jumble' of 'Game of Life' & 'Ants' + 'other grid-based designs.' In short: It's all stolen!
Everything runs synchronously / one after the other - no parallel executions.

My best regards
M. Schoenenberger