- Game version
- Compatible with both old and new game versions
Allow me to introduce one of my greatest logic endeavors, Calculatron 9999 - an attempt at making a StarMade logic calculator.
It's called "CalculaTRON" because I feel like the commonly used "tron" ending denotes machines with personalities, and the "9999" part is a reference with a twist to the famous HAL-9000.
(I later discovered a MineCraft calculator named "Calculatron 3000", total coincidence.)
INTRODUCTION:
It's called "CalculaTRON" because I feel like the commonly used "tron" ending denotes machines with personalities, and the "9999" part is a reference with a twist to the famous HAL-9000.
(I later discovered a MineCraft calculator named "Calculatron 3000", total coincidence.)
INTRODUCTION:
- This is a calculator of a rudimentary design that can only perform addition with max 5-digit numbers (it was still hard to make, and this design can be easily expanded for more digits).
- This system might malfunction in laggy conditions (please consider your environment before concluding that it doesn't work).
- Professionally or education-wise I have nothing to do with electronics or any other field relevant to this kind of engineering (so don't blame me too much if it falls short of standards)
- I built this rudimentary calculator with near-zero formal education or private study in the fields of IT, electronics, or the likes.
- Any example of sub-optimal efficiency, wasteful component economy or lack of functional elegance should be viewed in the light of the above fact.
- I had to identify and solve the many sub-problems of automatizing computation by myself, except for the seven-segment digits of the display, the number pad layout, and maybe a few other things.
- I gave it some thought and am aware that mechanized addition is a much simpler problem to solve than mechanized subtraction, division or multiplication (it's unlikely that I will ever try to build those into future versions of this machine).
- As any logic system with delayed signals, this calculator might malfunction in laggy conditions (please make sure to rule this out if it seems that the system has an error).
I never was exactly the typical nerd, never was especially inclined to the kind of thinking required in this kind of engineering... But one day, 4 years ago, I sat in an office -- I think I had some daydreaming imagery flashing in about possible ways in which the light sensors of digital cameras might work -- then I took a glimpse at a desktop calculator, and some connection between the two was recognized. I felt humbled after realizing that that cheap thingy, made of some plastic and copper, could do all that fancy arithmetics, and that there must have been a metric ton of clever thinking going on sometime in the past that made all this "tech magic" possible.
Naturally, I couldn't go any further than a few superficial, qualitative insights about what it might be doing in order to give quick, correct and comprehensible outputs as a reaction to intelligible inputs. Not knowing much about logic gates and stuff, I messed around on paper for a few days, settling only the most trivial basics on an abstract level. Some time later, I started thinking of concrete solutions, in terms of ancient electro-mechanical designs, with relay switches and such.
Only then did I read a bit into the history of mechanized computation, which was inspiring, but humbling again. Of course it wasn't for me to re-invent this wheel. But then I got familiar with StarMade and its logic system. From there it took around 2 years to give it a try, and see how far I can get with the tools provided by this game. At first I just wanted to experiment with a 6-digit array of seven-segment displays, to make a simple digital clock, but then I managed to figure out, in a week's time, how to make addition work.
With the final logic refinements and completion of the casing, it took a total of 2 weeks from spawning the core. And as one of the results, I have much more respect for the good folks in electronics and IT than before.
Naturally, I couldn't go any further than a few superficial, qualitative insights about what it might be doing in order to give quick, correct and comprehensible outputs as a reaction to intelligible inputs. Not knowing much about logic gates and stuff, I messed around on paper for a few days, settling only the most trivial basics on an abstract level. Some time later, I started thinking of concrete solutions, in terms of ancient electro-mechanical designs, with relay switches and such.
Only then did I read a bit into the history of mechanized computation, which was inspiring, but humbling again. Of course it wasn't for me to re-invent this wheel. But then I got familiar with StarMade and its logic system. From there it took around 2 years to give it a try, and see how far I can get with the tools provided by this game. At first I just wanted to experiment with a 6-digit array of seven-segment displays, to make a simple digital clock, but then I managed to figure out, in a week's time, how to make addition work.
With the final logic refinements and completion of the casing, it took a total of 2 weeks from spawning the core. And as one of the results, I have much more respect for the good folks in electronics and IT than before.
The blueprint catalog says that it has 2,346 logic blocks in total:
Button - 74
Activation module - 372
Flip-Flop - 152
AND-gate - 953
NOT-gate - 153
OR-gate - 45
Delay module - 221
Wireless transmitter - 376
Button - 74
Activation module - 372
Flip-Flop - 152
AND-gate - 953
NOT-gate - 153
OR-gate - 45
Delay module - 221
Wireless transmitter - 376
