emergent/swarm/evolutionary systems etc

[Dang Griffith]

On Fri, 2 Apr 2004 16:58:32 +0000 (UTC), "Peter MacKenzie"
<peter9547 at btinternet.com> wrote:

>Spreadsheets do seem to be an attractive option, but the benefits are not
>without their detractors:
...
>-Require no/limited skill acquisition (being familiar and honest with my own
>psychological composition, I know that the only way I'm likely to develop a
>fair degree of programming competence is if there's a driving pressure to do
>so.  It's something I'd like to learn, and this gives me the excuse/leverage
>to do so.)

Sorry I can't help you with that one--it's for you to decide.

>Unknowns:  Time series graphical output would be necessary, even if it's
>very primitive.  Do you know if the spreadsheet could be set up in such a
>way that cells would change colour depending on their values, or if the
>graph making facilities would be able to create reasonable representations
>of said values so that a series of graphs would be capable of showing up
>phenomena with fluidic (wavelike, turbulent, etc) characteristics?

I don't know what spreadsheet you're using, but I know Microsoft Excel
support conditional coloring.

>I'm afraid the temptation to take the hard route my prove too great
>(psychological paradoxes: I always feel good about feeling so terrible about
>these things after I've passed the point of no return in the undertaking,
>and the enormity of the task at hand sinks in - it's a whole adrenalin
>thing), but I'd still like to make a comprehensive assessment of my options
>before I commit to anything.

It's a complex project.  I'm pretty sure a spreadsheet is capable of
performing the calculations, but it may not be the best to provide
the graphical result you're looking for.  On the other hand, maybe it
could generate the numbers for the graphics, and then you could have
a second program that reads the numbers to perform only the 
graphics operations.

I agree with Josiah--two months is tight.  I suggest if you're more 
comfortable with a spreadsheet, start with a minimal "program" in
the spreadsheet.  Realize that writing a python program will
require you to make many of the same design / algorithm decisions
as the spreadsheet.

    --dang