by 2nd trick op
For anyone among us who enjoys Railsoft's Train Dispatcher 3, I'm attempting to set up a companion program, a "dispatcher's algorithm", simulating the thinking of the dispatcher operating a CTC machine -- sort of an "automatic pilot" for TD3.
I attempted to write a similar, but not linked, program (in BASIC) some years ago, and had little trouble depicting the movement of trains between "control points" as long as those interlocking plants weren't too complex or the density of trains too great. When the program encountered a situation it hadn't previously dealt with, it simply locked up, and could be manually redirected from the keyboard. Then, the relevant code could be added.
But the new version will be written in C++, a much-more complex, but versatile language, which should also permit direct interaction between the two applications via TD3's text-file interfaace.
I'd appreciate input from anyone among the membership who'd be interested in this project -- thanks.
I attempted to write a similar, but not linked, program (in BASIC) some years ago, and had little trouble depicting the movement of trains between "control points" as long as those interlocking plants weren't too complex or the density of trains too great. When the program encountered a situation it hadn't previously dealt with, it simply locked up, and could be manually redirected from the keyboard. Then, the relevant code could be added.
But the new version will be written in C++, a much-more complex, but versatile language, which should also permit direct interaction between the two applications via TD3's text-file interfaace.
I'd appreciate input from anyone among the membership who'd be interested in this project -- thanks.
What a revoltin' development this is! (William Bendix)
