Just one other idea Mancala
The rules and a picture of the board are given here:
http://www.centralconnector.com/GAMES/mancala.html
If you are not familiar with the game, try it before you pooh-pooh it as too simple. The programming logic should be fairly straight forward, but still challenging and the player needs to play a clever strategy. It is more complex and unique than tic tac toe.
Advantages as a Science fair project – it can be designed and developed in stages, any of the stages would be acceptable as a project for the fair submission.
Possible steps:
1)board lay out can be in non graphic mode, using digits to represent the number of stones in each bowl. With dashes or * as separators.
2) programming can be done as a series of variables, or as an array to calculate the move results handled in either for, or while loops.
3) user input can be designated as a text entry designating the bowl whose stones should be distributed.
4) the gui representation can be added later if time permits.
Good luck to your sister in the project!
And I bet you could point her to a super place to get perl advice!
Update - here is some crude code - it uses arrays and simple control statements to create a text mancala board, allows a user to enter a bin number and then distributes the stones. Please note there are much more elegant ways to handle the situation, but I tried to keep the code concepts fairly basic so a new user could get a feel for it wihout being overwhelmed. I assume you will be helping/coaching your sister.
I would strongly suggest you and your sister play the game in the real world, to get a feel for where the code should go.
this code was developed in the following order:
1) create 2 arrays, display the board.
2) accept user input, and edit check it.
3) distribute stones code
#### don't panic this code is not complex, just repetitive
Nuff said, I hope this code may help as an idea generator.
#!/usr/bin/perl
# this program creates a text based maa board with text input
#########################################
########### DON'T PANIC
#########################################
# bins for each player (should be 7 - 6 bins + 1 mancala)
@p1 = (4,4,4,4,4,4,0);
@p2 = (4,4,4,4,4,4,0);
while ($in ne "Q"){
# send the routine to draw the board the number of stones in each bin
&draw_board($p1[0],$p1[1],$p1[2],$p1[3],$p1[4],$p1[5],$p1[6],
$p2[0],$p2[1],$p2[2],$p2[3],$p2[4],$p2[5],$p2[6]);
# ask for input
print "enter bin to distribute or Q to exit:";
# get keyboard input
$in = <>;
# remove the carriage return from the entry
chomp $in;
# edit check the input
# return to top of loop if Q is entered
next if ($in eq "Q");
# display error message if a non digit or bin number is out of range
# then erturn to the top of the loop
if ($in =~ /\D/ || $in < 1 || $in > 12){
print " bin can only be 1 through 12 or Q\n\n";
next;
}
# we have a valid entry, so distribute stones
&distribute_stones($in);
}
sub distribute_stones{
# set variable $bin to the user input bin t be distribuetd
$bin = $_[0];
# set the variable $stones_2_distribute equal to the number of stones
# in the array for player 1 or player 2 represented by the bin number
# the user entered. Then set that array entry to 0. (because all of
# the stones in that bin have been picked up to be distributed)
#
# remember - perl arrays are indexed from 0 - or simply stated, the
# first entry used in a per array is number 0.
# this code is for the player 1 array (@p1)
if ($bin == 1){
$stones_2_dist = $p1[0];
$p1[0] = 0;
}
if ($bin == 2){
$stones_2_dist = $p1[1];
$p1[1] = 0;
}
if ($bin == 3){
$stones_2_dist = $p1[2];
$p1[2] = 0;
}
if ($bin == 4){
$stones_2_dist = $p1[3];
$p1[3] = 0;
}
if ($bin == 5){
$stones_2_dist = $p1[4];
$p1[4] = 0;
}
if ($bin == 6){
$stones_2_dist = $p1[5];
$p1[5] = 0;
}
# this code is for player 2 array (@p2)
if ($bin == 7){
$stones_2_dist = $p2[0];
$p2[0] = 0;
}
if ($bin == 8){
$stones_2_dist = $p2[1];
$p2[1] = 0;
}
if ($bin == 9){
$stones_2_dist = $p2[2];
$p2[2] = 0;
}
if ($bin == 10){
$stones_2_dist = $p2[3];
$p2[3] = 0;
}
if ($bin == 11){
$stones_2_dist = $p2[4];
$p2[4] = 0;
}
if ($bin == 12){
$stones_2_dist = $p2[5];
$p2[5] = 0;
}
# variable $bin_switch will help us determine where
# to start distributing stones, then will be set to 0
# so the remaining stones can be distributed in order
#
$bin_switch = $bin;
while ($stones_2_dist > 0){
# please see coding notes below
# this piece of code will only be accessed when stone distribution
# comes around the corner - it will never be the first bin a
# stone is distributed to
if ($bin_switch < 1){
$p1[0]++;
$stones_2_dist--;
$bin_switch = 0;
}
next if ($stones_2_dist < 1);
if ($bin_switch < 2){
# add 1 to player 1 array first entry
# the folloing line is shorthand for $p1[0] = $p1[0] + 1
$p1[1]++;
$stones_2_dist--; # subtract one from our pile of stones to dis
+tribute
$bin_switch = 0; # set the bin switch to zero so remainder of st
+ones can be distribnuted
}
# this line will cause control to return to the top of the
# loop, if there are no more stones to distribute, where
# the while statement will terminate the loop
next if ($stones_2_dist < 1);
if ($bin_switch < 3){
$p1[2]++;
$stones_2_dist--;
$bin_switch = 0;
}
next if ($stones_2_dist < 1);
if ($bin_switch < 4){
$p1[3]++;
$stones_2_dist--;
$bin_switch = 0;
}
next if ($stones_2_dist < 1);
if ($bin_switch < 5){
$p1[4]++;
$stones_2_dist--;
$bin_switch = 0;
}
next if ($stones_2_dist < 1);
if ($bin_switch < 6){
$p1[5]++;
$stones_2_dist--;
$bin_switch = 0;
}
next if ($stones_2_dist < 1);
#determine if a stone should be dropped in player 1's
#mancala (bins 1-6 belong to player 1)
if ($bin > 0 && $bin <7){
$p1[6]++;
$stones_2_dist--;
$bin_switch = 0;
}
next if ($stones_2_dist < 1);
## begin player 2 array
# this piece of code will only be accessed when stone distribution
# comes around the corner - it will never be the first bin a
# stone is distributed to
if ($bin_switch < 7){
$p2[0]++;
$stones_2_dist--;
$bin_switch = 0;
}
next if ($stones_2_dist < 1);
if ($bin_switch < 8){
$p2[1]++;
$stones_2_dist--;
$bin_switch = 0;
}
next if ($stones_2_dist < 1);
if ($bin_switch < 9){
$p2[2]++;
$stones_2_dist--;
$bin_switch = 0;
}
next if ($stones_2_dist < 1);
if ($bin_switch < 10){
$p2[3]++;
$stones_2_dist--;
$bin_switch = 0;
}
next if ($stones_2_dist < 1);
if ($bin_switch < 11){
$p2[4]++;
$stones_2_dist--;
$bin_switch = 0;
}
next if ($stones_2_dist < 1);
if ($bin_switch < 12){
$p2[5]++;
$stones_2_dist--;
$bin_switch = 0;
}
next if ($stones_2_dist < 1);
#determine if a stone should be dropped in player 2's
#mancala (bins 7-12 belong to player 2)
if ($bin > 6 && $bin <13){
$p2[6]++;
$stones_2_dist--;
$bin_switch = 0;
}
# the following line is not technically required
# but will save trouble if you ever need to add
# some code between this line and the end of the loop
next if ($stones_2_dist < 1);
}
}
sub draw_board{
# display the board
print "\n\n\n";
printf " Bin=| %3d | %3d | %3d | %3d | %3d | %3d | \n\n" ,12,11,
+10,9,8,7;
printf "-------------------------------------------------\n";
printf " %3d | %3d | %3d | %3d | %3d | %3d | %3d | \n" ,$_[13],$
+_[12], $_[11],$_[10],$_[9],$_[8],$_[7];
printf " |-----+-----+-----+-----+-----+-----| \n";
printf " | %3d | %3d | %3d | %3d | %3d | %3d | %3d\n" ,$_[0],
+$_[1],$_[2],$_[3],$_[4],$_[5],$_[6];
printf "-------------------------------------------------\n";
printf "\n Bin=| %3d | %3d | %3d | %3d | %3d | %3d | \n\n" ,1,2,
+3,4,5,6;
}
