concepts, and their names

[d/dx]

i'd like the somewhat wacky community to name these concepts:

1. trying to draw a pattern from memory but messing up and discovering something
2. doing random things in cgol out of boredom
3. "discovering" something known
4. acting like you understand how every cell of a pattern works even though you have no earthly idea
5. when a convoluted machine breaks apart due to one misplaced cell

[haaaaaands]

3 is commonly called "rediscovering". (almost every new forum user does this, probably even dvgrn or nathaniel did this at some point of their life when they first found cgol, so pretty much obvious that it has a name already. oddly enough, my first "discovery" wasn't cyclic nor beacon.)

5 is either misclick (to which i'm really prone) or murphy being a b*tch (murphy's law sucks, man).
might also overlap with fatfingering if on a mobile device (another thing i'm overly prone to).

as for 4, very clearly posing.

[confocaloid]

6. When you're testing a new version of software Golly, and you totally forget that you already had a keyboard shortcut Alt+R assigned to something rewind selection by one tick, and you assign the same keyboard shortcut to an entirely different thing "set rule" dialog, and you fail to notice this until the next time when you need to do the old thing and try to use the same shortcut out of habit and it doesn't work as expected, because it does the new thing instead

[b-engine]

7. When you make a new still life and want to add it into LifeWiki
8. When you call a small lake "misshapen honeyfarm" by tommyawesome

[Haycat2009]

7. When you make a new still life and want to add it into LifeWiki
8. When you call a small lake "misshapen honeyfarm" by tommyawesome

Ignoring Rule 4a (the second one)
Extreme ignorance
9. Rediscovering blinker and calling it new

[b-engine]

9. Rediscovering blinker and calling it new

Breaking rule 2 and rule 4a
10. Making a 2c/4 spaceship

[Haycat2009]

10. Making a 2c/4 spaceship

Depends on whether you are either Keith Amling or David Bell - celebrated if it is from either or breaking rule 4a if from neither.

[b-engine]

11. Discovering fore and back variant

[H. H. P. M. P. Cole]

11. Discovering fore and back variant

Not looking at knownrotors because you didn't know it existed/you think you are smarter than Dean Hickerson.

(please don't do anything like this again)

6. When you're testing a new version of software Golly, and you totally forget that you already had a keyboard shortcut Alt+R assigned to something rewind selection by one tick, and you assign the same keyboard shortcut to an entirely different thing "set rule" dialog, and you fail to notice this until the next time when you need to do the old thing and try to use the same shortcut out of habit and it doesn't work as expected, because it does the new thing instead

This is why you should keep your already-assigned keyboard shortcuts somewhere - I call this 'shortcut mixup', which is an overreliance on fallible human memory.

12. Something like this:

Code: Select all

x = 265, y = 244, rule = R6,C2,S2,14,63,98-99,105,B3,10,21,147-148,154,NW07000001000031000001000007000000000000000000000000000000070001003100010007000001000000000000000000000001000001000701310107000100000000000001000000010000000031003100310000003100310031000000000100000001000000000000010007013101070001000001000000000000000000000001000007000100310001000700000000000000000000000000000007000001000031000001000007
6bobo10bo3bo8bo5bo14bobo13bobo17bobo15bo3bo33bobo25bobo12bobo2$6bobo10b
o3bo8bo5bo12bo5bo9bo7bo9bo9bo9bo7bo27bobo29bo5bo10bobo7$253bo2$253bo2$
253bo4$19bo3bo8bo5bo14bobo33bobo15bo3bo14bo3bo2$253bo2$19bo3bo8bo5bo12b
o5bo27bo9bo9bo7bo10bo3bo14$32bo5bo14bobo13bobo17bobo15bo3bo14bo3bo14b
obo10bobo12bobo12bobo6$32bo5bo12bo5bo9bo7bo9bo9bo9bo7bo10bo3bo12bobo14b
o3bo10bo5bo10bobo11$4bo12bo14bo2$2bo3bo8bo14bo2$4bo16bo2$19bo18bo2$36b
o6$260bo$17bo14bo79bo21bo$51bo39bo7bo158bo$118bo$49bo7bo31bo166bo$13b
o7bo6bo79bo21bo2$38bo97bo2$17bo$51bo198bo$34bo75bo21bo$89bo9$192bo$155b
o$33bo138bo17bo$50bo39bo62bo$170bo29bo$48bo18bo20bo11bo$180bo17bo$58b
o6bo11bo$27bo11bo2$176bo$157bo2$52bo102bo$33bo$69bo20bo13$242bo$208bo
17bo$2bo110bo23bo18bo14bo15bo4bo18bo12bo13bo$o15bo15bo59bo4bo18bo37bo
14bo4bo10bo18bo$3bo47bo18bo4bo14bo18bo23bo91bo13bo$bo10bo4bo15bo15bo4b
o13bo67bo33bo15bo18bo17bo13bo$26bo126bo$13bo94bo23bo18bo$27bo20bo18bo
19bo4$264bo$241bo20bo$208bo16bo34bo$113bo22bo17bo16bo15bo35bo13bo$16b
o15bo59bo59bo16bo15bo18bo$51bo18bo19bo18bo22bo60bo18bo41bo$12bo36bo18b
o29bo18bo57bo$26bo49bo148bo13bo$18bo15bo20bo80bo34bo15bo18bo16bo13bo$
152bo$14bo94bo22bo17bo$28bo20bo18bo19bo4$241bo$208bo16bo$113bo22bo17b
o16bo15bo35bo13bo$92bo59bo16bo15bo18bo$51bo18bo19bo18bo22bo$32bo16bo18b
o$194bo18bo$99bo18bo57bo$26bo50bo148bo13bo$56bo80bo34bo15bo18bo16bo13b
o$153bo$35bo74bo22bo17bo$50bo18bo19bo2$29bo16$15bo14bo76bo16bo7bo10bo
$13bo33bo18bo7bo10bo7bo11bo16bo18bo7bo$19bo6bo18bo7bo10bo18bo63bo$17b
o18bo89bo$107bo$32bo14bo18bo38bo$83bo10$108bo$106bo$85bo$83bo11bo2$110b
o$108bo2$85bo9$3bo13bo14bo186bo$bo13bo14bo73bo17bo18bo46bo13bo$2bo45b
o56bo33bo16bo15bo2bo13bo10bo14bo$o45bo2bo14bo2bo16bo2bo12bo17bo35bo2b
o12bo13bo$15bo46bo19bo36bo79bo14bo$13bo122bo16bo15bo13bo13bo14bo$29bo
13bo53bo17bo18bo$27bo31bo$77bo4$203bo$142bo58bo$32bo107bo32bo$49bo35b
o37bo47bo$28bo18bo35bo91bo$87bo31bo79bo$49bo147bo$136bo32bo$29bo89bo14b
o$43bo$25bo51bo37bo3$219bo$143bo60bo$141bo60bo12bo$32bo73bo17bo33bo31b
o$50bo35bo69bo17bo$48bo17bo17bo17bo17bo51bo13bo$26bo37bo2$87bo17bo51b
o17bo13bo9bo12bo$29bo19bo17bo68bo60bo12bo$119bo14bo18bo$169bo13bo$23b
o19bo53bo17bo$59bo17bo!

The base rule(s) can be anything.

[b-engine]

12. Something like this:

Code: Select all

x = 265, y = 244, rule = R6,C2,S2,14,63,98-99,105,B3,10,21,147-148,154,NW07000001000031000001000007000000000000000000000000000000070001003100010007000001000000000000000000000001000001000701310107000100000000000001000000010000000031003100310000003100310031000000000100000001000000000000010007013101070001000001000000000000000000000001000007000100310001000700000000000000000000000000000007000001000031000001000007

The base rule(s) can be anything.

Mashing rules into 1 HROTNW rule.
13. When you screenshot playgameoflife pattern

[dvgrn]

Fair warning: this thread is starting to get reported, on the grounds that some posts can be read as unfriendly attacks on newcomers. Might get locked pretty quick if this keeps up.

It's probably fine to describe some silly thing that you did yourself, with the idea that there ought to be a name for that silly thing. But please think very hard before posting any more descriptions of silly things that somebody else did.

Also maybe think about editing your previous posts here, to get rid of any unnecessary examples of ... that concept, whatever its name is -- "vaguely accidentally mean-spirited attempted labeling of newbies".

[hotcrystal0]

Fair warning: this thread is starting to get reported, on the grounds that some posts can be read as unfriendly attacks on newcomers. Might get locked pretty quick if this keeps up.

It's probably fine to describe some silly thing that you did yourself, with the idea that there ought to be a name for that silly thing. But please think very hard before posting any more descriptions of silly things that somebody else did.

Also maybe think about editing your previous posts here, to get rid of any unnecessary examples of ... that concept, whatever its name is -- "vaguely accidentally mean-spirited attempted labeling of newbies".

Can this thread just be locked?
Edit: It's the exact same problem as 1000 signs. The first few (first 3, to be exact) posts had nothing that could specifically be attributed to newcomers, but things have started to go downhill after that.

[b-engine]

14. When a category of patterns are rare and only below 5 patterns had explicitly made (metacells, especially for INT ones are exactly like this)

[Haycat2009]

15. When a search program returns with no results

[haaaaaands]

16: that feeling when you finally get a search program to run on your os just to find out that it isn't compatible with the program you use to play cgol

[confocaloid]

#15 above is "negative result". If you were careful enough to keep track of the exact parameters / input files to the program (i.e. what should be done to run the same search again?), then it is useful to know that that search was completed, regardless of whether or not there were solutions.

If you share negative results (or any other results, for that matter) with enough details to make them repeatable, then other people will be able to either confirm them (by doing an equivalent search and checking whether the results agree), or decide to run searches that don't overlap with what was already done.

i'd like the somewhat wacky community to name these concepts:

17: when the average wackiness reaches a level when it feels like April 1 has to be an unusually serious and sober day, because otherwise it won't be different from pretty much every other day.

[hotcrystal0]

18: When there are no posts with PASTET in them in the "Patterns" thread on April 1 of any year

[iddi01]

2. doing random things in cgol out of boredom

Playing around with CGoL
---------------------------------------------------------
19. Accidentally discovering something nice while trying to tame a rule
20. Completing a failed pattern by modifying the rule
21. Accidentally posting in an older thread for a search program instead of newest one
22. A thread getting hot without the thread creator posting
23. An rle like this:

Code: Select all

x = 3, y = 3, rule = B3/S23  3o$2bo$bob!

24. People who like to apgsearch completely unapgsearched rules while rarely apgsearching apgsearched rules (like myself)
25. Correctly guessing the name of a program before knowing it (i did so with hex2map.py)

[b-engine]

19. Accidentally discovering something nice while trying to tame a rule
20. Completing a failed pattern by modifying the rule
21. Accidentally posting in an older thread for a search program instead of newest one
22. A thread getting hot without the thread creator posting
23. An rle like this:

Code: Select all

x = 3, y = 3, rule = B3/S23  3o$2bo$bob!

24. People who like to apgsearch completely unapgsearched rules while rarely apgsearching apgsearched rules (like myself)
25. Correctly guessing the name of a program before knowing it (i did so with hex2map.py)

Accidental discovery (or whatever you call it)
Rulegolfing
Mispost (?)
Hmm…
Wrong RLE
Going to the unexplored route.
Don't do it.

-

26. When you post a pattern that's only interested by 1970 Life community
27. When you make the largest pattern ever (like a diehard puffer)
28. Discovering new speed
29. Making physics simulating CA
30. When you heavily investigate on a single object (commonly a spaceship, or an oscillator, newcomers may investigate their new still life)

[H. H. P. M. P. Cole]

17: when the average wackiness reaches a level when it feels like April 1 has to be an unusually serious and sober day, because otherwise it won't be different from pretty much every other day.

18: When there are no posts with PASTET in them in the "Patterns" thread on April 1 of any year

April Wisemen's.

22. A thread getting hot without the thread creator posting

If you mean threads like your tflock, then it is an early success. If you mean a thread like Grounded Life (i.e., getting loads of posts in late 2023 despite the thread being created more than ten years ago), then it is a late success.

26. When you post a pattern that's only interested by 1970 Life community
27. When you make the largest pattern ever (like a diehard puffer)
28. Discovering new speed
29. Making physics simulating CA
30. When you heavily investigate on a single object (commonly a spaceship, or an oscillator, newcomers may investigate their new still life)

When you don't read Lifeline and realize that that pattern is not new at all
There is no largest pattern. You can add a block to any pattern and the pattern is 4 cells larger. Proof by induction, done. If you mean a macropattern that actually does something, then...
If it's in Life, then you are just very lucky. If it's in OCA, then no one cares because you can find a ship with almost any speed in OCA.
When you get tired of theoretical CA so much so that you devise practical applications for CA.
Being systematic.

31. When you investigate in a rule in a different rulespace other than INT
32. A better term for SoManyShipsizing a rule (done by FWKnightship, from WormLoopIn3States to WormLoopsAndManyShips)
33. A more catchy term for neighbourhood-and-rulegolfing (for HROT)
34. A ruletable/rule that is so amazing, it looks like the discoverer time-travelled and plucked out the ruletable from the future and showcased it in the present day

[b-engine]

31. When you investigate in a rule in a different rulespace other than INT
[ I have no better terms ]
34. A ruletable/rule that is so amazing it looks like the discoverer time-travelled and plucked out the ruletable from the future and showcased it in the present day

Then you're a trailblazer.
If it's 3-state INT, then you're FWKnightship (or me if it's 3-state OT). If not, then that's an engineered rule.

35. When you make an 8-state rotate4 CA
36. Interesting trivial oscillator
37. Non-interesting non-trivial oscillator
38. Discovering new spaceship period
39. A triangular INT rule
40. Most complex CA

[Haycat2009]

41: The difficulty of finding a p41 or p19 in Cgol
42: Finding anything faster than c/2 in Cgol
43: Finding anything that moves but is not light in Determination.

[b-engine]

41: The difficulty of finding a p41 or p19 in Cgol
42: Finding anything faster than c/2 in Cgol
43: Finding anything that moves but is not light in Determination.

41. That's why they're the last periods found.
42 .Finding a fuse.
43. Discovering new speed

-

44. Trying to find a new use of a large still life
45. Largest trivial pattern
46. A spark with extremely large envelope

[confocaloid]

41: The difficulty of finding a p41 or p19 in Cgol

Might be just luck, for some definition of 'luck'.
The most famous(TM) cellular automaton just so happened to be B3/S23.
The last two oscillator periods to be found in B3/S23 just so happened to be p41 and p19.

What if it was instead B38/S23 all the way? Maybe some alien p19 or alien p41 would be found earlier than some other period.
Although they would not be called alien in that case. Switch engines and Corderships would be alien, in a world where the most famous CA is Pedestrian Life.

[Haycat2009]

44. Trying to find a new use of a large still life
45. Largest trivial pattern
46. A spark with extremely large envelope

44: Catalysis

45: Using LLS

46: Diehard