GENTUT03.TXT General Tutorial for Lisa GJ2 Fic3 -- the f3 language explained as a series of tiny essays THIS IS ESSAY 03. WHEN IT GETS MORE THAN 99, WE'LL BRING IN LETTERS AND SUCH, E.G. A1 Written by Aristo Tacoma with L.A.H. Date: 2011:2:22 Copyright author, further distribution license is www.yoga4d.org/cfdl.txt. Kids: there are other tutorials for you. But you should find pieces here and there which are easy to read. In B9, use the search function, CTR-F or F4 within each. ***MORE PHILOSOPHY: THE IMPORTANCE OF THOSE FUNNY MISTAKES Bear over with me from giving a quote from FIC3.TXT -- you know, a quote from the high priest gathering of top hot and foundational functions in the f3 language. (LET MATRIX>TEXT (( => & >N1 )) BE (( (( # N1 => %GET => & )) (( # => NOZ (MATCHED (( # => %LENGTH => >N9 )) (( N9 => ISPRO (MATCHED N9 => MAKEBL (COUNT N1 => # %GET ; N1 => TOCHN COUNTUP) => => )(OTHER }} MATCHED) )) )(OTHER }} MATCHED) )) (( && && )) )) OK) }* ..and further on in the document, we find: }* (LET MATR>TEXT (( => & >N1 )) BE (( (( N1 # => %GET => & )) (( # => NOZ (MATCHED (( # => %LENGTH => >N9 )) (( N9 => ISPRO (MATCHED (( N9 => MAKEBL )) (( N9 (COUNT N1 ; # => %GET => AFFIRM (MATCHED (( ; N1 => TOCHN )) )(OTHER (( ; N1 => DEC => SETLENGTH )) (( RMS RMS && && ; EXIT )) MATCHED) COUNTUP) => => )(OTHER }} MATCHED) )) )(OTHER }} MATCHED) )) (( && && )) )) OK) Please also bear over with me for quoting something which is having a bit funny notation, perhaps before the ripe form of the notations, lineshifts and so forth we usually use in Lisa GJ2 Fic3 had quite come into being. Now it so happens that EVERYTHING in the Lisa GJ2 Fic3 language compiler is written from scratch, and that any call that goes to graphics routines EXCLUSIVELY do highly simple things like setting pixels. What's the point of bundling a lot of messy second-hand e.g. 3d simulation code into a library which is part of the language, when indeed any such thing as 3d must be related to in a first-hand way, so that it doesn't cause a slugghinessness of mind? But the point I wish to make with the quote above is the following: the first algorithm, or function, quoted, the one named TEXT>MATRIX, doesn't work at all. The second one, TEXT>MATR, works perfectly. The first one is having some of those funny & silly mistakes that easily arise. The second one is the corrected version of same. The F3DOCS manual doesn't even acknowledge the existence of TEXT>MATRIX; it refers exclusively to TEXT>MATR in this regard. What a total enigma! What mystery! What deep intelligence is here at work? ;) Phrased in a slightly nasty manner, the FIC3.TXT has this shape so as to show a certain degree of "humaneness". It is as if to say, perhaps, something like this: When the high-priestly congregation called FIC3.TXT has some of those silly mistakes in it, then it is human-and-not-perfect and so, don't be ashamed to do your own silly playful mistakes. IT IS PART OF PROGRAMMING IN ITS PHILOSOPHICAL KEY ESSENCE.