My Quest

My quest recently has been to create a wordsearch creator for my wife.  She and I homeschool our children, well it's more of her and less of me.  She has looked at services offered online for $20 a month for a similar service.

Hey, I'm handy with computers...

I figured that I'd give it a go.  Well, I've got an algorithm that works.  Using this algorithm, I threw something together that worked.  Then I wanted to put some polish on it and a web user interface.  This part didn't go so well.  I have been experiencing issues with getting all of the desired words added to the puzzle. 

The Randomness

I have been using a random algorithm to place words in the puzzle grid.  I choose a random direction for the word (horizontal, vertical or diagonal) and then choose a random potential starting point.  This is where my algorithms differed, little did I know.  In my first attempt, I declared a class level random number generator (the C# Random class).  This seemed to work well.  My second attempt had me using a localized and often re-created instance of the same class.  The result was that I had very few, often just 1 word added to the grid. 

My understanding of the Randomness

Somebody (like anybody reads this blog) shoudl correct me if I'm wrong.  It seems as if I forgot the principle of seeding.  It seems to me that the lack of a common seed for the Random class caused the generator to choose numbers too similar to the previous number to be of use.  I found out that seeding the generator once, then using this generator for all random needs works like a charm.  So far, with 12 words, words of my family, the wordsearch generator seems to work quickly and good enough.

Good Enough Performance

I expected this problem to be a performance hog.  I thought that I would need many repetitions of attempting to place a word to get all of the words placed.  It seems that for the time being, the solution works well enough.  Is it the best solution, I don't know.   I have some ideas of using a different algorithm to pack the words more tightly.  Maybe performing all possible word placements to see which has the most resolvable collisions (a word intersection with same letters).

Enough for now

I'll be back with more.  You can check the progress of the wordsearch builder at wordsearch.billnmel.com

It's Back 

I've been away from the blog for a while.  Since I've been gone, I've tiled, layed down laminate flooring and stuff like that.  Visit my wife's blog for more information and pictures.  Since she's started blogging for herself (and in her own space) I think that I'll turn this into stuff for me...just me. 

Facebook 

As an aside, I think that my wife is funny.  I love you Melissa, but you are quirky.  When I first signed up for a Facebook account, I told my wife that she should do the same.  She's a social creature, I figured that she'd like it.  Well, she didn't want to.  She thought that it'd be stupid and proceeded not to sign up.  Well, a couple of months later, when she found out that a friend was on F, she quickly signed up.  Then it was on.  She now has 100+ friends and counting.  I still have 20ish. 

This stinkin' Blog

Well, the same thing happened with this blog.  Yes, it is primarily for me and I realize this.  However, I set up the blog with the thought that she would participate as well.  But the only thing that she'd ask me to do was to show pictures for her.  Now, after 8 months, she has her own blog.  She realized that, hey, she might like to have control over the content, post pictures, videos and/or thoughts.  But like with most things, it had to be her idea.

 But hey, that's just me...

Wow

I don't know what's happening, but I haven't heard any bad news about how the Bengals played this weekend.  Now that's refreshing.  I must have missed the game, though.  

Titans

I did catch  the Titans game.  It was nice seeing a running team transform before our eyes into a passing attack.  Kerry collins and those TN recievers turned up the passing intensity for a win over Da' Bears.  

Colts

The Colts won on Sunday too.  They had a big win over inter-conference Pittsburgh.  I'm always in the mood for a Pittsburgh loss.

Giants

Superbowl champion New York had an exciting win over the Division rival Eagles.  With a great running game, run stopping defense and a little challenge luck the G-men prevailed in a tight one.

Bengals

Well, I'd still like to know how the Bengals did this week...no...wait, what...they didn't play?  Oh, it makes so much sense now.   No wonder they didn't lose again.  Oh well, maybe next week.

May you live in interesting times

It is said that this phrase is an ancient Chinese curse.  In that context, we live in interesting times.  We are in the middle of a financial crisis, a mortgage crisis amog other things.  Some say that this curse can be a blessing also.  I hope this is the case for our nation.  

President elect

Last night, in an overwhelming display of anger against the status quo and a cry for change and for charisma, Barak Obama was elected president.  I personally am pleased with the outcome although I didn't vote for him.  I believe that he can bring hope to some that have previously been without hope.  Somewhere out there, there is a person that can look at this moment in our history and see that almost anything is possible in the United States.  So I say take heart, even if you didn't vote for Senator Obama.  This is a good sign for the country.

My Hope

My hope from last night is for Jessie Jackson.  The picture on CNN and Fox News last night around midnight was of a weeping Jessie Jackson.  I sincerely hope and pray that these were genuine tears of joy and not a political ploy.  I hope that these tears were sincere and that his perspective will be changed.  Racial relations are not perfect and probably never will be.  We are all human and to err is human.  However, this election night and the next four years can be a time of great healing and a time for growing.  

A time for prayer

My thoughts and prayers go out this morning to the Obama family.  May his family be kept safe.  May his thoughts and actions be inspired.   May he lead our country to peace and prosperity.

Long Time

It's been a long time since my last entry.  Last one was about my most recent bicycle purchase, the Schwinn with the front freewheel system.  I still love the bike but now realize how heavy it is.  Tooling around the neighborhood with the kids, fine, but anything much further than that, I think I'll need a road bike.

Not the point

But biking isn't the direct point to this blog.  Entropy is the subject of today's post.  For those of you unfamiliar with the term, it means disorder or chaos.  In the realm of physics, it is said that the universe is constantly transitioning from a high state of order to a high state of disorder, or entropy.  Now lets just clarify I'm no expert on physics, but I do remember a thing or two from my high school physics class, thanks Mr Ozier.

My Entropy

I always seem to settle into a state of entropy myself.  Recently I was re-assigned to another worksite.  I won't complain about the work and working conditions, in fact, the work is interesting and the working conditions are as good as can be expected.  I will complain about change, though.  The change has allowed me to fall back into my old, bad habits.  I haven't been exercising like I should and it seems like I have been eating the same (or more) as when I was exercising.  

Woe is Me

Yeah, yeah, I know, you didn't wake up this morning thinking, hey, I wish I could read about some poor complaining schmo.  To that I'll say, too bad.  If you've gotten this far in the post then you failed in your schmo-avoiding venture.  Discipline.  That's what I need, discipline.  You'd think that, being a Marine and all, I'd have a little discipline.  Well, for physical matters, not so much.  

Rearranged

I will say that I have arranged my house so that it will be easier to exercise, or so I think.  I have moved the school room to it's own room.  Now David's old bedroom houses all of the schooling accouterments.  That means that I moved the highly unused treadmill from his old room to the bonus room upstairs.  That room is now set up for exercise, now I just need to find somebody that wants to exercise.  Or I could just work up the guts and do it myself.

Rambling Man

Enough of my ramblings about entropy and schmos.  Next entry will be better I promise, and it will come soon.