Randomness
From Maze
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(Added some cleverness) | (Edited first paragraph) | ||
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=== The C64 and the RND Function === | === The C64 and the RND Function === | ||
| − | The way that 10 PRINT makes use of randomness on the C64 is of interest for a few reasons which will each be explored in turn. First, it is aesthetically necessary in order to achieve the desired effect. Second, the methods used in C64 BASIC are historically quite typical of computational approaches to pseudo-randomness since the 1950s. Third, out of several common approaches to randomness available on the C64, 10 PRINT uses a method well suited to experimentation, debugging, and the production of canonical results. Finally, in considering the approaches *not* employed, the C64 platform offered an unusually broad possibility space for exploring computational randomness, notably making available a second random "Noise" generator in the form of a unique sound chip. | + | The way that 10 PRINT invokes the randomness provided by the Commodore 64 is of interest for a few reasons which will each be explored in turn. First, using randomness is aesthetically necessary in this program; there is no other way to achieve a similar effect. Second, the methods used in Commodore 64 BASIC are historically quite typical of computational approaches to pseudo-randomness since the 1950s. Finally, out of several common approaches to randomness available on the C64, 10 PRINT uses a very standard method that is well-suited to experimentation, debugging, and the production of canonical results. |
==== RND Aesthetics ==== | ==== RND Aesthetics ==== | ||
