By the way, I'm not sure what is more standard in coordinate systems, I was thinking of the screen as having the origin on the bottom left (like the Cartesian plane), but the principle is the same if you place it on top left. And yes I meant using negative numbers as a short hand.
I've found that the game considers the upper left hand as (0,0), so we can use that as a standard to avoid confusion.
By the way, I'm not sure what is more standard in coordinate systems, I was thinking of the screen as having the origin on the bottom left (like the Cartesian plane), but the principle is the same if you place it on top left. And yes I meant using negative numbers as a short hand.
Mathematicians place (0,0) on the bottom left, computer programmers place it on the top left. On every system I can think of, the top left pixel on a screen is also (0,0).
I'm surprised that a game like this uses floating point numbers in the first place; I don't see how they would be necessary anywhere.
Mathematicians place (0,0) on the bottom left, computer programmers place it on the top left.
Mathematicians also put (0,0) on the top left when working with matrices, and I'm pretty sure this is where the computer programming convention came from.
And on the note of floating-point variables... once floating-point variables became really standard, a lot of game programmers starting using them when fixed-point would have been faster as well as more accurate. Just sloppy coding.
Setting the CPUDiv to anything above 50 doesn't seem to work for me...I can get into the game and everything, but when I press "S" to start at the main menu it doesn't respond. In a strange twist, Sound Blaster will only be detected if the CPUDiv is set above 50. I don't think I have much of a choice but to go with Adlib for sound, hopefully there is not a huge quality difference.
Joined: 3/9/2004
Posts: 4588
Location: In his lab studying psychology to find new ways to torture TASers and forumers
Radiant wrote:
Svimmer wrote:
By the way, I'm not sure what is more standard in coordinate systems, I was thinking of the screen as having the origin on the bottom left (like the Cartesian plane), but the principle is the same if you place it on top left. And yes I meant using negative numbers as a short hand.
Mathematicians place (0,0) on the bottom left, computer programmers place it on the top left. On every system I can think of, the top left pixel on a screen is also (0,0).
Actually, Microsoft was known for making 0,0 the bottom left. See BMP or uncompressed AVI. Also known as, Help, my picture/movie is upside down!
But all sane technology has 0,0 the top left.
Warning: Opinions expressed by Nach or others in this post do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, or position of Nach himself on the matter(s) being discussed therein.
Setting the CPUDiv to anything above 50 doesn't seem to work for me...I can get into the game and everything, but when I press "S" to start at the main menu it doesn't respond.
http://tasvideos.org/userfiles/info/6878890210379818
Settings & co:
- CPUDiv is 125 (8MIPS)
- Memory size is 384 (1.5MB)
- FPU is disabled.
- SB is detected.
Enters level 0 (spams up to make warpin animation faster, don't ask why).
Important addresses (valid for this startup):
- 00025CA3 (word): X position (32 subpixels per pixel?)
- 00025CA1 (word): Y position (32 subpixels per pixel?)
- 00027040 (word): Fuel (10000 is full, 0 is empty, seems to deplete at 10 units per frame)
- 00025872 (dword): Random number generator state.
The RNG formula is: x' = 0x15a4e35 * x + 1 (mod 2^32)
Edit: Corrected some addresses and added RNG.
Setting the CPUDiv to anything above 50 doesn't seem to work for me...I can get into the game and everything, but when I press "S" to start at the main menu it doesn't respond.
http://tasvideos.org/userfiles/info/6878890210379818
Settings & co:
- CPUDiv is 125 (8MIPS)
- Memory size is 384 (1.5MB)
- FPU is disabled.
- SB is detected.
Enters level 0 (spams up to make warpin animation faster, don't ask why).
Important addresses (valid for this startup):
- 00027022 X position
- 00027019? Y position
- 00027040 Fuel
Level 1, now with sound:
Link to video
I thought the teleporters would be useful here, but I just couldn't see a good route involving them. I'm pretty happy with what I came up with, especially getting the last gem. Fuel was tight but didn't hinder the route.
Level 1, now with sound:
...
I thought the teleporters would be useful here, but I just couldn't see a good route involving them. I'm pretty happy with what I came up with, especially getting the last gem. Fuel was tight but didn't hinder the route.
The sound seems off... only a few things seem to be making noise, when a lot more things should be. Compare to this video:
Link to video
It's detecting Sound Blaster upon starting, yes. The SoundCard module is also loaded. I never realized there were so many sound effects missing...I've got no idea why.
Are the missing sound effects OPL generated? If so, is the emulated game picking up the sound card correctly?
The initial startup messages say it is picking up SB (which contains OPL chip)...
Also, just tested, the level 0 has at least gem pickup sounds (which are OPL)...
Due to how OPL emulation is hacked in[1], starting dumping from any point after OPL chip has been used does not work correctly...
[1] Specifically, the emulator records all writes to OPL chip and OPL is emulated later. If starting dumping from latter point, the emulated OPL registers will contain wrong values, leading to glitched / missing sounds.
Interesting, all the sounds effects are indeed there if I start dumping from the beginning. I'll keep this in mind for future videos, although for individual level videos I'll probably skip the sound.
The sound seems off... only a few things seem to be making noise, when a lot more things should be. Compare to this video:
As I recall, the way this game worked is that when (X) sound effects are already playing, the (X+1)th is skipped since there is no "slot" free. Or perhaps that was only on certain types of sound cards :)
http://www.sendspace.com/file/x0oco9
I created a picture showing the route. No idea why it's not showing.Can anyone name a safe simple file upload site?
The speed of the Internet o_O
Do you think your route is optimal? Would it be useful to create a new picture per route so it's easier for others to comment? Although I think, by the end, you're probably going to find methods to create very good if not optimal solutions that others won't have an easy time commenting on.
That's not valid image to hotlink.
Futhermore, that site seemingly offers the download as an .exe file (obviously unsafe).
Edit: After edit the hotlink still seems to be bad, but at least it doesn't offer an .exe.
Joined: 3/9/2004
Posts: 4588
Location: In his lab studying psychology to find new ways to torture TASers and forumers
creaothceann wrote:
I'm not sure this root is optimal.
Also some consideration has to be given to block busting, as some not so obvious short cuts are available if one phases out a block, and uses that phased out short cut twice.
Warning: Opinions expressed by Nach or others in this post do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, or position of Nach himself on the matter(s) being discussed therein.
Joined: 3/9/2004
Posts: 4588
Location: In his lab studying psychology to find new ways to torture TASers and forumers
Another thing, for levels where you start by the door, you also have to consider routes that are the exact opposite.
Warning: Opinions expressed by Nach or others in this post do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, or position of Nach himself on the matter(s) being discussed therein.
Here was my reasoning on routing: I try to keep as much momentum as possible, and as you can see I can get the top 6 gems while only turning around twice. There are also little factors that make me favor a certain route, for example I can ladder-boost to the top right gem which will give me altitude quicker, and also getting the two gems at (13,2) in this order sets me up beautifully to snag the gem I get while falling down. I do multiple tests to see what's faster in the smaller rooms, like what I came up with in the bottom right.
If you do question whether a route is optimal or not, feel free to offer suggestions. I understand that not everyone will have an intimate knowledge with the physics, but it can still give me some ideas.
I kind of like that route Nach, I'll give it a try and see how it compares. That is less distance travelled for sure but with more momentum shifts, should be a good test.
Joined: 3/9/2004
Posts: 4588
Location: In his lab studying psychology to find new ways to torture TASers and forumers
slamo wrote:
more momentum shifts
Speaking of momentum, be aware you can move faster when you are out of fuel.
Warning: Opinions expressed by Nach or others in this post do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, or position of Nach himself on the matter(s) being discussed therein.
Actually, Microsoft was known for making 0,0 the bottom left. See BMP or uncompressed AVI. Also known as, Help, my picture/movie is upside down!
But all sane technology has 0,0 the top left.
I think that particular quirk is to blame on the OS/2 team.
Joined: 3/9/2004
Posts: 4588
Location: In his lab studying psychology to find new ways to torture TASers and forumers
henke37 wrote:
Nach wrote:
Actually, Microsoft was known for making 0,0 the bottom left. See BMP or uncompressed AVI. Also known as, Help, my picture/movie is upside down!
But all sane technology has 0,0 the top left.
I think that particular quirk is to blame on the OS/2 team.
Well, BMP was also designed by OS/2, so could be.
Warning: Opinions expressed by Nach or others in this post do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, or position of Nach himself on the matter(s) being discussed therein.
Grid is 12x12 pixels, i.e. 26x16 blocks.
Also some consideration has to be given to block busting, as some not so obvious short cuts are available if one phases out a block, and uses that phased out short cut twice.
