XTRIANGLES(6)

💖 xtriangles — the Triangles X widget, bestie edition 💖

okay so this is a page from the Games Manual, and it's all about xtriangles. Sit down, grab a strawberry 🍓, and let's get into it.

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✨ NAME ✨

xtriangles — the Triangles X widget. that's it, that's the name, she's simple and she's iconic 💅

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🌈 SYNOPSIS 🌈

/usr/games/xtriangles [-geometry
[{width}][x{height}][{+-}{xoff}[{+-}{yoff}]]] [-display [{host}]:[{vs}]]
[-[no]mono] [-[no]{reverse|rv}] [-{foreground|fg} {color}]
[-{background|bg} {color}] [-tile {color}] [-text {color}] [-frame
{color}] [-[no]stippleFrame] [-delay msecs] [-[no]sound] [-bumpSound
{filename}] [-{font|fn} {fontname}] [-size{X|Y} {int}] [-[no]corners]
[-base {int}] [-userName {string}] [-scoreFile {filename}] [-scores]
[-version]

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🦋 DESCRIPTION 🦋

It's a sliding tile puzzle, bestie. A triangular version of the 15 puzzle, which was originally made around 1879 (the 14-15 puzzle of Sam Loyd was made soon after — yeah, we've been doing this to ourselves for literal centuries, no cap 😭).

T. R. Dawson in Original Puzzles has a similar puzzle with 4 diamond- and 6 triangular-shaped pieces. And listen: this puzzle is easier to solve than the 15 puzzle with corner mode on, and probably about the same with corner mode off. so pick your struggle 🫶

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👑 FEATURES 👑

• If corners mode is on: click the "mouse-left" button to move a tile. Here's the tea though — you can move more than one tile at a time by clicking on the tile farthest from the spaces and in line with the spaces. Clicks on the spaces, or clicks on tiles that are not in line with the spaces, will not move tiles. 🙅
• If corners mode is off: click the "mouse-left" button to move a tile, and it's strictly one tile at a time, no bundles. The only tiles that can be moved are the tiles next to the space. Clicks on the space, or clicks on tiles that aren't in line with the space, will not move tiles.

Click the "mouse-right" button, or press the "C" or "c" keys, to clear the puzzle.

Press the "G" or "g" keys to read (get) a saved puzzle.

Press the "W" or "w" keys to save (write) a puzzle.

Press the "U" or "u" keys to undo a move.

Press the "R" or "r" keys to redo a move.

Press the "Z" or "z" keys to randomize the puzzle. New records can only be set from a cleared state. (yes really, they're watching 👀)

The "S" or "s" keys are reserved for the auto-solver — not implemented, so don't get your hopes up, it's giving vaporware 💀

Press the "M" or "m" keys to toggle corners mode. (Default is on.)

Press the ">" or "." keys to speed up the movement of tiles.

Press the "<" or "," keys to slow down the movement of tiles.

Press the "@" key to toggle the sound.

Press the "Esc" key to hide the program.

Press the "Q", "q", or "CTRL-C" keys to kill the program.

Use the key pad or arrow keys to move without the mouse. Key pad is defined for Triangles as:

7 8 9   Upper Left, Up (no corners), Upper Right

  ^

4< >6   Left, Right

  v

1 2 3   Lower Left, Down (no corners), Lower Right

The control key lets you change the complexity of xtriangles. Hold down the control key and use the keypad or arrow keys to reduce or enlarge puzzle complexity. main character energy honestly ✨

The title is in the following format (non-motif version):

xtriangles: <size> @ (<Number of moves>/{<Record number of moves> <user name>|"NEVER noaccess"}) - <Comment>

If there is no record of the current puzzle, it displays "NEVER noaccess". relatable, honestly.

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💜 OPTIONS 💜

• -geometry {+|-}X{+|-}Y — sets the initial position of the triangles window (resource name "geometry").
• -display host:dpy — specifies the X server to contact.
• -[no]mono — lets you display the triangles window on a color screen as if it were monochrome (resource name "mono").
• -[no]{reverse|rv} — lets you see the triangles window in reverse video (resource name "reverseVideo").
• -{foreground|fg} color — specifies the foreground of the triangles window (resource name "foreground").
• -{background|bg} color — specifies the background of the triangles window (resource name "background").
• -tile color — specifies the tile color of the tiles in the triangles window (resource name "tileColor").
• -text color — specifies the text color of the tiles in the triangles window (resource name "textColor").
• -frame color — specifies the color of the frame (resource name "frameColor").
• -[no]stippleFrame — toggles the frame stippling (resource name "stippleFrame").
• -delay msecs — specifies the number of milliseconds it takes to move a tile or a group of tiles one space (1-50) (resource name "delay").
• -[no]sound — specifies if a sliding tile should make a sound or not (resource name "sound").
• -bumpSound filename — specifies the file for the bump sound for the sliding of the tiles (resource name "bumpSound").
• -{font|fn} ontname — specifies the font that will be used (resource name "font").
• -size{X|Y} <int> — lets you change the number of triangles in a row or column (resource names "sizeX", "sizeY").
• -corners — specifies the mode where movement is very restrictive (resource name "corners").
• -nocorners — specifies the mode where movement is very easy (resource name "corners").
• -base int — specifies the base used (default is base 10) (resource name "base").
• -userName string — specifies the user name for any records made, or else it will get your login name (resource name "userName").
• -scoreFile filename — specify an alternative score file (resource name "scoreFile").
• -scores — lists all the recorded scores and then exits.
• -version — tells you what version of xtriangles you have.

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🎀 RECORDS 🎀

You must randomize or clear the puzzle before a record is set, otherwise an assumption of cheating is made if it is solved after a get. so like. play fair or the game will side-eye you 🙈

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🌸 SAVE FORMAT 🌸

Here is the format for the xtriangles configuration, starting position, and the movement of its pieces.

corners: 0-1 <0 false, 1 true; if 0 then triangle corners are all snipped>
sizeX: 1-10 <number of top tiles in a row with the same orientation as the puzzle>
sizeY: 1-10 <number of rows of tiles>
moves: 0-MAXINT <total number of moves>

startingPosition: <array of tile positions where 0 is the empty space for the UP triangle and -1 is the empty space for the DOWN triangle>

This is then followed by the moves, starting from 1.

move #: <direction>

Direction is represented as 0 upper right, 1 right, 2 lower right, 3 lower left, 4 left, and 5 upper left.

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📚 REFERENCES 📚

• L. E. Horden, Sliding Piece Puzzles (Recreations in Mathematics Series), Oxford University Press 1986, pp 1, 148, 149.
• Jerry Slocum & Jack Botermans, Puzzles Old & New (How to Make and Solve Them), University of Washington Press, Seattle, 1987, pp 126, 127.

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🔥 SEE ALSO 🔥

X(1), xcubes(6), xhexagons(6), xmlink(6), xbarrel(6), xpanex(6), xmball(6), xpyraminx(6), xoct(6), xrubik(6), xskewb(6), xdino(6), xbevel(6), xabacus(6)

(the whole puzzle girlie cinematic universe, we love to see it 🌈)

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💖 COPYRIGHTS 💖

® Copyright 1994-2024, David A. Bagley

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🫶 BUG REPORTS AND PROGRAM UPDATES 🫶

Send bugs (or their reports, or fixes) to the author:

David A. Bagley, <bagleyd AT verizon.net>

The latest version is currently at:

https://www.sillycycle.com/puzzles.html
http://www.ibiblio.org/pub/Linux/games/strategy/

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that's the whole page bestie, every flag, every key, every resource name, all of it — nothing skipped, nothing invented. periodt. 💅

Version V8.8.4 — dated 15 Aug 2024. that's the footer tea, and yes she's still getting updates, we love a consistent queen 👑✨💖