Random()

[LilWhiteMouse]

Are there any tricks to generating a more random number? Chibi Rebellion's hub is randomly selected via an OPEN script in the first map, but it tends to select the same maps for the first session. Other random() uses have similar repetitious results. For example, the first time the Armorery map is loaded, the access code is almost always 2-2. Kinda takes the spontaneity out of the mod, which was a major point of making it.

[Xaser]

My gosh! That thing is random enough already. At the rate i'm going, It'll take me forever just to see all the levels!!!

P.S: Even in the face of the concussion blaster (ring shooter), i keep using the darn blaster pistol. I'm a nut at conserving ammo (Mainly because I suck with fists and Chainsaw ).

[FUTURE-EDIT] Pssshh, chainsaw kicks ass. I don't have a clue what past-me is talking about.

[randomlag]

Are there any tricks to generating a more random number?

Yes. I've not experimented with ACS nor looked at the actual implementation in ZDOOM (could be everything is fine - since random does repeat after all). Common trick are to set the "seed" variable and to vary the actual range (vs constants).

You might try a double random - the 1st one drives the 2nd ones range. You can also look for other variable events as the game is played to vary the "random constants" to get more unpredictable results.

I bet you can think of many others

[randi]

The random number generator gets seeded by the system clock when you start. The algorithm is essentially the same one Lee Killough used in BOOM. I have no idea how random it really is. You could do a test run of print (d:random())s to see what kind of numbers it's generating and devise an algorithm to produce results more to your liking.

[Hirogen2]

The least randomness an application should have is time(NULL) ^ getpid(). perlfunc(1) even propes "time ^ ($$ + ($$ << 15))".

[Sphagne]

What is selected for the initial Random Seed, Maybe main computer clock ticks would be a good choice.

[Cyb]

What is selected for the initial Random Seed, Maybe main computer clock ticks would be a good choice.

The random number generator gets seeded by the system clock when you start.

[randi]

Specifically, the seed is the result of the time() function, which is the number of seconds since midnight, January 1, 1970. Not as random as XORing with the process ID, but still much more random than Doom was. It had a table of 256 random numbers it looped through, and it always started at the first entry, so each run of the game always produced the same random numbers.

[Hirogen2]

It had a table of 256 random numbers it looped through, and it always started at the first entry, so each run of the game always produced the same random numbers.

Which was necessary so monsters in a demo LMP would run the same way they did when recording.

[Fredrik]

It had a table of 256 random numbers it looped through, and it always started at the first entry, so each run of the game always produced the same random numbers.

Which was necessary so monsters in a demo LMP would run the same way they did when recording.

It wasn't necessary, you could just store the initial seed in the header of the demo file.

[Hirogen2]

It wasn't necessary, you could just store the initial seed in the header of the demo file.

But there is no seed in the Doom demo lump!

[HotWax]

Are there any tricks to generating a more random number? Chibi Rebellion's hub is randomly selected via an OPEN script in the first map, but it tends to select the same maps for the first session. Other random() uses have similar repetitious results. For example, the first time the Armorery map is loaded, the access code is almost always 2-2. Kinda takes the spontaneity out of the mod, which was a major point of making it.

If possible, base the random numbers of things that the player does. People are alot more random than computers.

[wildweasel]

Going into more detail from HotWax's post:

Have certain actions (switches, enemies, pickups, etc) set flags. When something that needs to be random comes up, read those flags and add them together (like DMFLAGS, or such similar cvars). Then perform whatever calculations you need for your stuff (like next map, security code, whatever), and poof.

[David Ferstat]

Going into more detail from HotWax's post:

Have certain actions (switches, enemies, pickups, etc) set flags. When something that needs to be random comes up, read those flags and add them together (like DMFLAGS, or such similar cvars). Then perform whatever calculations you need for your stuff (like next map, security code, whatever), and poof.

Perhaps what you should do is base your random numbers on the TIME that the player does things. That's guaranteed to be random. There's just no way the player could perform even a small sequence of events with EXACTLY the same timing twice in a row. No matter how hard the player tries, human reaction time is sufficiently long and variable for a computer to register the differences.

[Hirogen2]

>>Have certain actions (switches, enemies, pickups, etc) set flags. When something that needs to be random comes up, read those flags and add them together (like DMFLAGS, or such similar cvars). Then perform whatever calculations you need for your stuff (like next map, security code, whatever), and poof.

No /dev/random for Windows

>Perhaps what you should do is base your random numbers on the TIME that the player ...
Extremely cool idea. Heh, hard to do the action in 1/35 seconds.