Math/programming question, but it's related to MARP! I promi
Posted: Mon Dec 18, 2000 12:30 pm
WARNINGS: BIIIIIIIIIIG POST! I'm sorry! I just had a lot to say!
<p>
OK. Today, I was trying to set a high score on "Eliminator" and I had an idea to write a program which would accept a chronological list of scores, and it would tell you a few things:
<p>
* How consistently you play (What percentage of your score is not random?)
* How many more games you have expect to play to achieve a certain score (an upper and lower bound, based on your consistency and how much you're improving)
<p>
Anyways. I've got the program pretty much working. It even works for tracking multiple games in a single input file. It's neat. But I hit two small snags.
<p>
First of all, I'm using Linear Regression to predict your future scores. This is bad, because in general people's scores either increase in a quadratic fashion (Galaga or Mr. Do for example) or in a logarithmic fashion (Ms. Pac Man, for example). So if anyone has any ideas for how to implement Quadratic Regression let me know. Also, if anyone has any ideas for how to mathematically detect for logarithmic regression, please let me know also!
<p>
Okay! Second snag! Basically, I plugged my data for Eliminator into the program and... Well, it turns out I have this problem where if I play a game 20 times in one sitting, my last scores will be worse than my earlier scores. I think it's a combination of stress and boredom, and I've noticed it happen when playing other non-arcade games, too. But in any case, I was curious if anybody had an idea for how to combat this? My only thought was to maybe allow the user to separate groups of recordings with a row of asterisks, or perhaps a date. That way, maybe you can still predict, "You will reach your goal in (n) days at this rate..." Only problem is how to make this prediction mathematically, without throwing out most of the data! Any suggestions?
<p>
OK! Well like I said, I have the prototype program done, though there may still be bugs. If anybody wants the source let me know. Also, if you trust me, or your virus-checking software enough to let me send a compiled .EXE over, that's fine too. Don't expect too much as far as documentation or "zazz", because it's still in pre-beta stages.
<p>
- Aaron Pieper
--
apieper@vt.edu
<p>
OK. Today, I was trying to set a high score on "Eliminator" and I had an idea to write a program which would accept a chronological list of scores, and it would tell you a few things:
<p>
* How consistently you play (What percentage of your score is not random?)
* How many more games you have expect to play to achieve a certain score (an upper and lower bound, based on your consistency and how much you're improving)
<p>
Anyways. I've got the program pretty much working. It even works for tracking multiple games in a single input file. It's neat. But I hit two small snags.
<p>
First of all, I'm using Linear Regression to predict your future scores. This is bad, because in general people's scores either increase in a quadratic fashion (Galaga or Mr. Do for example) or in a logarithmic fashion (Ms. Pac Man, for example). So if anyone has any ideas for how to implement Quadratic Regression let me know. Also, if anyone has any ideas for how to mathematically detect for logarithmic regression, please let me know also!
<p>
Okay! Second snag! Basically, I plugged my data for Eliminator into the program and... Well, it turns out I have this problem where if I play a game 20 times in one sitting, my last scores will be worse than my earlier scores. I think it's a combination of stress and boredom, and I've noticed it happen when playing other non-arcade games, too. But in any case, I was curious if anybody had an idea for how to combat this? My only thought was to maybe allow the user to separate groups of recordings with a row of asterisks, or perhaps a date. That way, maybe you can still predict, "You will reach your goal in (n) days at this rate..." Only problem is how to make this prediction mathematically, without throwing out most of the data! Any suggestions?
<p>
OK! Well like I said, I have the prototype program done, though there may still be bugs. If anybody wants the source let me know. Also, if you trust me, or your virus-checking software enough to let me send a compiled .EXE over, that's fine too. Don't expect too much as far as documentation or "zazz", because it's still in pre-beta stages.
<p>
- Aaron Pieper
--
apieper@vt.edu