SpinachEater

[JDTAY]

For those that don't use AIM, I've been programming a bot, or program that imitates a real AIM user by responding to messages according to set of instructions in it's program, called SpinachEater to moderate starship games on AIM. I have found two bugs in SpinachEater which have been preventing him from doing this. The first has to do with using wrong types of 'if then' statements, and the second has to do with how Spinach says variables in his messages. I expect Spinach to be ready for testing tomorrow.

[JDTAY]

http://chuckgaydos.homestead.com/files/starship.html

There's a link to the rules for starship.

[JDTAY]

I fixed all the variables in dialogue. I had it like this: "word word", $variable, "word word." When varibles are supposed to go straight into dialogue like this: "word word $variable word word."

Now comes the hard part. Fixing the 'if then's may cause me to have to restructure the program.

[ChienFou]

Many years ago, probably round about the birth of the universe I learnt that the *ONLY* way to program an IF .. THEN is in the following structure (and actually laid out this way)

code:

---

IF <cond> THEN


  block


END ELSE


  block         where block can be a NULL statement


END

---

This way you guarantee a termination of the IF and the problems with hanging ELSE's evaporate.

cheers ChienFou


[This message has been edited by ChienFou (edited 10-06-2001).]

[JDTAY]

I've figured out how to restructure the 'if then' statements. Testing should sart between 1:30 and 2:00 and end at an unknown time.

[JDTAY]

Okay, no testing until I can get a hold of Hy.

[Chuck]

In PERL I think it's something like:

IF condition {do this stuff} ELSE {do this instead}

Statement blocks are in braces. Or maybe that's in C, or JAVA, or something.

[HyToFry]

Chuck is close...

code:

---

if (condition) {


    statement1;


    statement2;


    statement3;


} else {


    statement4;


}





The else is strictly optional, there is also an elsif statement.





if (something) {


    this;


} elsif (somethingelse) {


    that;


} else {


    null;


}

---

You can have as many or as few elsif statements as you want, and the spacing is unimportant.

if (this == happens) {do this;} else {do that;}

you can even have an if statement after the fact.

code:

---

$message = "Hello $nickname";


$message = "Goodbye $nickname" if $status eq "exit";





and





if ($status eq "exit") {


   $message = "Goodbye $nickname";


} else {


   $message = "Hello $nickname";


}


Are basically the same statement.

---

[JDTAY]

Okay, although they may have been an error in the 'if then' statements, I think I may have saw more error than was there and overfixed it. SE may be ready for testing in an hour, he may be ready for testing never. It all depends on whether really really smart programmer dudes who create their own languages think a lot like me.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
We're doomed.

[JDTAY]

YYYYYYYYYYYEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSS! w00t!

SE works! I tested him. I just need to add extra dialogue, a game end situation I forgot about, and something to keep people from playing themselves, or maybe I should leave that in.

[JDTAY]

Testing now open. Download AIM from http://www.aol.com if you haven't already and click the iChat button at the top right of this page to help test.

[JDTAY]

nm, I have to add two more end game situations. You think I could leave those out, and let it come down to having one fire at the other, but I'm too lazy to program something to keep people from firing if they have no missiles, shielding if they have no shields, etc.

[JDTAY]

Testing reopened. I just beat Ryoushi at the first starship game modded by SE. Beat him on first move too. Both to nothing.

[JDTAY]

SE mods ninja now too! I beat Chuck in the first ninja game modded by SE 0 to -2.