Conway's Game of Life for Turing Smart Screen

A mesmerizing implementation of Conway's Game of Life optimized for Turing Smart Screens.

Features

• 🎮 Classic Conway's Game of Life rules
• 🎨 Customizable color schemes (both hex and named colors)
• 🔄 Automatic pattern regeneration when stabilization occurs
• ⚙️ Extensive configuration options via command line
• 🔌 Automatic serial port detection
• 💡 Adjustable brightness and cell sizing
• 🛠️ Fail-safe restart mechanism for hardware glitches

Hardware Requirements

• Turing Smart Screen (Revision A, B, C, or E)
• USB connection to host computer
• .NET 9.0 Runtime

Installation

1. Clone the repository:

git clone git@github.com:SleepyDeb/GameOfLife.SmartScreen.git
cd GameOfLife.SmartScreen

2. Build the application:

dotnet build

3. Run with default settings (auto-detects port):

dotnet run --project GameOfLife.SmartScreen.csproj

Usage

Basic Command

dotnet run --project GameOfLife.SmartScreen.csproj -- -p COM6 -t RevisionA

Full Configuration Example

dotnet run --project GameOfLife.SmartScreen.csproj -- \
    -p /dev/ttyUSB0 \
    -t RevisionB \
    --density 0.15 \
    --background "#2E0854" \
    --alive Gold \
    --dead MidnightBlue \
    --cell 8 \
    --border 1 \
    --luminosity 85 \
    --seed 42

Command Line Options

Short	Long	Description	Default
-p	--port	Serial port name	Auto-detected
-t	--type	Screen type (RevisionA-E)	RevisionA
-d	--density	Initial live cell probability	0.10
-s	--seed	Random seed number	1
-b	--background	Background color (name/hex)	MediumVioletRed
-a	--alive	Alive cell color (name/hex)	White
-d	--dead	Dead cell color (name/hex)	Black
-c	--cell	Cell size in pixels	8
-r	--border	Cell border size	1
-l	--luminosity	Screen brightness (0-100)	70
	--failsafe	Enable automatic restart	true
	`--autorestart	Auto-regenerate patterns	true

Color Examples

Named Colors

--background DarkSlateGray --alive Lime --dead Navy

Hex Colors

-b "#FF4500" -a "#00FF00" -d "#000080"

Transparent Background

-b "#330000FF"  # 20% opacity blue

Hardware Setup

1. Connect your Turing Smart Screen via USB
2. Note the serial port name:
   • Windows: COMx
   • Linux: /dev/ttyUSBx
3. Verify orientation and cable connection

Troubleshooting

No cells appearing?

• Try increasing density: --density 0.15
• Check color contrasts: --background Black --alive White

Screen not responding?

• Double check the startup message: Attempting connection on port: /dev/ttyUSB0
• Try different brightness levels: --luminosity 50

Patterns stabilizing too quickly?

• Use larger grids: --cell 6
• Enable auto-restart (default: on)

License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details

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Pro Tip: Try different seeds for unique pattern generations! 🌌
--seed $(date +%s) # Use Unix timestamp as seed

Disclamer: No Vibe Coded, the only part AI genereated is this readme file.