Help Getting Started with Game of Life

For general discussion about Conway's Game of Life.
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BaconWax
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Joined: December 1st, 2021, 12:52 pm

Help Getting Started with Game of Life

Post by BaconWax » December 1st, 2021, 1:37 pm

Hi there! I just discovered GoL a few days ago and absolutely fell in love with it. I found this website, took a dive into the wiki, downloaded and played around with Golly a little, and then managed to make a simple lwss constructor:

Code: Select all

x = 128, y = 110, rule = 23/3
24bo$22bobo$12b2o6b2o12b2o$11bo3bo4b2o12b2o$2o8bo5bo3b2o$2o8bo3bob2o4b
obo$10bo5bo7bo$11bo3bo$12b2o66$16b2o$16b2o5$17bo$15b2ob2o2$14bo5bo$
106b2o9b2o$14b2obob2o85bobo7bobo$100bo5bo8bo6b2o$99bobo13bo2bo2bo2bob
2o$20b2o76bob2o13bo6b2o2b2o$19bobo70b2o3b2ob2o14bobo$20bo71b2o4bob2o
15b2o$19b2o78bobo$19b3o78bo$20b2o$18bo4$19bo$18b3o$17b5o$16b2o3b2o$17b
5o$17bo3bo$18bobo$19bo3$18b2o$18b2o!
This was a good project to help me understand the basics, but I'm not sure where to go from here; I thought about using the lwss(s?) that this makes in order to try constructing something else (maybe a large spaceship?), since the wiki mentioned that lwss(s?) are sometimes used to construct things with gliders, but I can't find anything else about that. Does anyone have any ideas for a good beginner project to let me go further from here?

hotdogPi
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Re: Help Getting Started with Game of Life

Post by hotdogPi » December 1st, 2021, 1:48 pm

(deleted — turns out to be harder than I thought)
User:HotdogPi/My discoveries

Periods discovered: 5-16,⑱,⑳G,㉑G,㉒㉔㉕,㉗-㉛,㉜SG,㉞㉟㊱㊳㊵㊷㊹㊺㊽㊿,54G,55G,56,57G,60,62-66,68,70,73,74S,75,76S,80,84,88,90,96
100,02S,06,08,10,12,14G,16,17G,20,26G,28,38,47,48,54,56,72,74,80,92,96S
217,486,576

S: SKOP
G: gun

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dvgrn
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Re: Help Getting Started with Game of Life

Post by dvgrn » December 1st, 2021, 8:25 pm

hotdogPi wrote:
December 1st, 2021, 1:48 pm
(deleted — turns out to be harder than I thought)
Yeah, it's hard to know exactly what to suggest as a next step. There aren't many larger spaceships that need an LWSS as a component, and I'm pretty sure none of those allow for a synthesis to be repeated at period 30.

So... to build a gun for something like a xq4_9ghuzg808065w4ozvgg83w1223, which does need a stream of LWSSes coming from somewhere -- you'll need to take a few more steps:

1) replace your p30 guns with something higher period -- a period-690 glider gun should be safe, for example.

2) learn a little bit about edge shooters. You'll need them to create some of the salvos of gliders near each other coming from the same direction. An NW31 edge shooter should be good enough for most purposes, so you can save Fx119 inserters for emergencies.

The construction recipe on Catagolue is shown in three parts, but it's really pretty similar to a single-stage synthesis like this:

Code: Select all

x = 78, y = 67, rule = B3/S23
77bo$75b2o$76b2o9$64bo$63bo$63b3o4$38bobo$39b2o$39bo11$62b3o$62bo$b4o
58bo$o3bo$4bo$o2bo$39bobo$40b2o$40bo2$48b2o$47b2o$49bo2$51b3o$51bo$52b
o12$23bo$23b2o$22bobo49bo$73b2o$73bobo2$26b3o$28bo$27bo!
Here's a sample p690 edge shooter based on NW31, or you can build your own out of a gun of whatever period you choose, a Snark, a syringe, and an edge shooter (plus maybe some connecting Herschel conduits).

Code: Select all

x = 200, y = 55, rule = LifeHistory
15.2A5.2A$15.2A5.2A14.2A$38.A.A140.4B$40.A4.2A74.2A5.2A52.4B$36.4A.2A
2.A2.A70.2B2AB3.B2A2B12.2A37.4B$36.A2.A.A.A.A.2A70.4B5.4B12.A.A37.4B$
39.A.A.A.A73.6B.6B14.A4.2A32.4B$40.2A.A.A73.6B.6B10.4A.2A2.A2.A31.4B$
15.3A3.3A20.A76.4B.4B12.A2.A.A.A.A.2A32.4B$15.A2.A.A2.A96.5B.5B13.BAB
ABA.A36.4B$14.A3.A.A3.A5.2A88.5B.5B14.B2ABA.A36.4B$14.4A3.4A6.A7.2A
78.2B3AB.B3A2B14.2B.BA37.5B$15.A7.A7.A.A5.2A79.BA2BA.A2BAB14.3B39.9B$
32.2A85.BA3BA.A3BAB4.2A6.4B39.9B$69.2A48.B4AB.B4AB5.A6.B2A3B37.9B$70.
A48.2BA3B.3BA2B5.A.AB3.B2A3B36.10B$70.A.A46.6B.6B6.2AB.10B33.12B$60.A
10.2A46.6B.6B8.13B22.2A8.13B$58.3A58.6B.6B8.14B22.A9.11B$22.A34.A61.
6B.6B8.15B21.A.AB4.12B$21.3A18.2A13.2A60.6B.6B10.8B2.4B10.A10.2AB.15B
$20.A3.A17.A49.2A25.6B.6B10.6B5.4B7.3A12.17B$20.2A.2A18.3A46.2A26.5B.
2BA2B10.9B4.4B5.A15.17B$20.2A.2A21.A72.8B3A2B8.4B4.2A5.4B4.2A15.17B.B
$30.3A10.2A2.A72.6BA3BAB7.4B5.A7.9B14.19B2A$20.2A.2A7.A9.A2.2A73.6B2A
B2AB6.4B7.3A5.6B14.19B.B2A$20.2A.2A6.A10.2A16.2A59.4B.2AB2A6.4B11.A5.
6B3.B2.2B2.20B4.B$15.2A3.A3.A35.2A57.13B4.3A10.2A2.A4.36B$15.2A4.3A
95.6B.2AB2A4.3BA9.A2.2AB3.27B.9B$22.A96.4B2.B2AB2AB2.3BA10.2A2.14B2A
16B2.7B$119.2B2AB.BA3BAB.4B16.13B2A16B2.7B$69.A3.2A46.2A2.2B3A6B18.
29B4.6B$8.A59.A.A3.A52.BAB.4B19.17B.B.2B10.7B$6.4A57.A.A3.A53.7B21.
15B4.3B10.6B$5.A.A.2A52.2A.A.A3.A55.5B22.15B5.A2B.2A6.7B$4.A2.A.3A51.
2A.A2.4A.A39.A5B7.5B24.13B5.A.A2B.A6.6B$4.2A.A.2A56.A.A3.A.A6.2A28.4A
6B4.5B27.13B2.A.AB2.A7.5B$2.3A.4A10.3A40.2A.2A2.A2.A.A6.2A27.ABAB2A7B
.5B27.8B4.2A.A.A3.A7.6B$.A.A4.A55.A.A2.2A3.A35.A2BAB3A11B28.6B6.2ABA
2.4A.A5.4B$.A18.A.A29.2A10.A.A43.2ABAB2A13B27.5B8.B2.A.A3.A.A4.2B2AB$
2A17.5A28.2A11.A42.3A.4A10B3AB27.B.B9.2A.2A2.A2.A.A6.2A$18.2A3.2A82.A
.AB3.A5B4.7B27.3B9.A.A2.2A3.A$18.2A3.2A82.A16.2BABA2B26.B2AB9.A.A$
106.2A16.B5AB27.2A11.A$124.2A3B2A$21.A102.2A3B2A$22.2A100.7B$125.5B$
24.A100.2BA2B$126.2B2A$20.A2.A102.4B$20.2A105.3BA$126.4B$125.BA2BA$
126.2A!
Using this probably means learning about LifeHistory in Golly, too -- at least learning how to get rid of the blue cells (Alt+J in Golly 4.0) or switch a two-state pattern back to LifeHistory again (Alt+H).

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