AJagucki.log

The title of this entry is a mouthfull. In short, a deterministic finite automaton is a state machine that solves The Recognition Problem--to write an algorithm to recognize input strings with a certain property--for regular languages. For a formal definition, see the wikipedia entry for DFAs.

As an extra credit assignment for one of my discrete mathematics classes, we were to implement a DFA interpreter that allows you to input any DFA over the alphabet {a, b} (and it is trivial to extend the following program to recognize regular languages over any alphabet; (of ASCII chars) for example, a string of binary numbers).

Here it is, written in C: dfa.tar.gz.

"If it keeps up, man will atrophy all his limbs but the pushbutton finger".
--Frank Lloyd Wright (1869-1959)

Scored a US version of the Nintendo DS Lite this morning; it was sold to me 10 days before the official release date of June 11. Here is the drill: Order ONLINE at sears.com and select in-store pickup. Aside from the Sears at the local mall in my city where I got mine, there were a couple of other Sears locations around the city selectable with DS Lites in stock. Print out your e-mail reciept and goto the merchandise pickup area there in Sears as per the e-mail's directions. Next step: hope that the warehouse grunt is not aware of the official release date.

Images: http://gallery.esoteriq.org/dslite

"Machines are worshipped because they are beautiful and valued because they confer power; they are hated because they are hideous and loathed because they impose slavery."
--Bertrand Russell (1872-1970)

Edit: Sears removed any reference to the DS Lite from their website as of 1pm today. Solid snake would be proud.