Tutorials/rlifesrc

RLifeSrc is the only official cross-platform search program. But how do you use it?

Going to the website

The website is at https://alephalpha.github.io/rlifesrc/.

Setting up your search

You will want to go to settings and change "Rule" to your desired rule.

What you need to know about RLifeSrc is that it doesn't follow traditional soup-searching. Instead, it goes through every pattern ever in a certain box until it finds the right one.

Anyway, once you've done that, change the width and height to your desired width and height. Then, type in the period of the object. When you are searching for spaceships using this (which we will get into in a moment), if you are searching for 2c/4, don't type in 2 as the period because c/2 is the simplified form. Type in 4.

Dx and dy are just how far away you want the object to be at the end of its period.

Scroll all the way down until you get to choice for unknown cells. You can set that to any of the options, but dead is best for searching spaceships, alive for still lifes, and randomized for oscillators.

Hit "apply settings".

Now let's go search for something.

Searching for...

Block

Set the width and height to 2, and set the period to 1. Set the rule to B3/S23 and then press "apply settings".

Press start, and it should have found the block in an instant.

Glider

The highest value in dx or dy should be how much you increase the height and width by. Instead of searching 3x3, we should search 5x5 because RLifeSrc does a stupid thing when you use dx and dy. Set period to 4 and set d

Now press "apply settings" and press start.

It should have found the glider in an instant.

Mold

Set dx and dy back to 0, change it to 6x6, press "apply settings", and press start.

You should see mold, which looks like a loaf with stuff on it.

Something that doesn't exist

Set the period to 5 and set it to 3x3. Then press "apply settings" and then start.

It should say "No more result".

Something in a different rule

Lets pick B2-a/S12.

Set it to period 1, the rule to B2-a/S12, and press "apply settings".

When you hit start, you immediately see a blinker that isn't moving. It is a still life.

Try period 2.

No more result? You should try 10x10.

And you see what is that?

You should click it once to select and paste it into your favori[1] RLE-parsing program.

It's just an on-off that looks way too big.

Reducing

An obvious case like this would mean reducing and removing some of the lines.

Then, you found yourself a small p2 in Just Friends in RLifeSrc and you can go post it on the forums!

Ok, don't actually post this one on the forums. Post one that's either high period or a new spaceship.

Now do it on your own

See what you can find! Post it to the forums. Actually do it this time. Just don't [2] your way into a ban!