ALFs: Autonomous Life Forms. Use of the time "t" parameter in "life equations"
1 - Uses of the "t" parameter:
Informing of the date and time of day with a precision down to the millisecond, the "t"
variable is used to simulate the Moon and the Sun’s revolution, the place of the stars
in the vault of heaven, the passing of seasons or the management of ALFs, among other
things. Thanks to "t" we provide :
1- a dynamical management of scenes according to the time of day: the following video shows
the changes in the environment with the passing of time from dawn to dusk, at accelerated
speed:
2- total control over time by the user himself : it is therefore possible to stop the time
(pause) and to move forward and backward in time (forward/ rewind), at the user’s chosen
speed.
3- perfect synchronisation of distant platforms: just by setting the "t" parameter, the
very same scene can be displayed at the same time on every computer in a network ; there
is no need to dispatch any other information. Thanks to this specific feature,
VWorldTerrain is particularly suited to network applications development.
2 - Special use of the "t" parameter applied to ALFs:
An ALF is an object whose "behaviour" depends on "t". Each ALF has its own function,
“t” being the parameter which rules the ALF’s evolution. It is therefore possible to
cause it to be born, live and die, according to the "t" variable and to various
parameters defining the environment created by VWorldTerrain, such as temperatures,
weather conditions, etc.
ALFs were used, for example, to people the virtual Earth of Eingana with millions of animals.
Other samples of ALFs:
In addition to that, VWorldTerrain offers its user to turn an ALF into
ILF (Interactive Life Form), with full command over it. For example, a vehicle can follow
a fixed path (ALF mode), but the user can decide to stop it and drive it any time. The
vehicle then becomes an ILF.
