ftp.nice.ch/pub/next/tools/screen/backspace/Maze.README

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last modified 2/1/94

Maze
A Maze exploring screensaver, written by David Bau.
For use with BackSpace.  Should work both intel and motorola NS 3.1+.

Installation
1. Uncompress the file MazeView.tar.Z from the Workspace or a shell.
This will make a single directory MazeView/ with all the sources.
2. From a shell, cd MazeView, and type "make" to compile the module
3. To install the module in ~/Apps/Backspace.app, type "make install"
To install it elsewhere, for example in /LocalLibrary/BackSpaceViews,
type "make install INSTALLDIR=/LocalLibrary/BackSpaceViews".

About Maze
This screensaver draws a snaking path exploring a maze, mapping the
maze as it is explored.  The speed and color of the drawing can be
varied.

How Maze Works
Mazes are generated randomly, without drawing, on a grid of squares by
repeating the following process, beginning at a random square: if
there are any unvisited squares adjacent to the current square, one of
them is randomly chosen as the next square, and an opening is made
between the two squares; if all the adjacent squares have already been
visited, the algorithm backtracks to the previous square; when the
algorithm backtracks from the first square, every square on the grid
will have been visited, and the maze is complete.

Mazes are explored and drawn in a depth-first search order until every
part of the maze has been visited.  The search order is the same that
would be obtained if a blind explorer navigated the maze by following
the wall on his right hand side at every turn.

About Dave
Dave has always been a maze nut, and advises that any computer at any
price is a worthwhile investment if it can churn out mazes.  If you
like this module or fix it up or find something interesting about it,
it would delight Dave to no end if you sent him a postcard mentioning
"Maze for NextStep" to let him know.

David Bau; 777 South Avenue; Weston, MA 02193.  bau@cs.cornell.edu

These are the contents of the former NiCE NeXT User Group NeXTSTEP/OpenStep software archive, currently hosted by Netfuture.ch.