16-year-old Makes Working Scientific Calculator in Minecraft
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16-year-old Makes Working Scientific Calculator in Minecraft
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Re: 16-year-old Makes Working Scientific Calculator in Minecraft
#2Having tried my hand at building computing systems in Minecraft myself, I must say this is very impressive work.
Re: 16-year-old Makes Working Scientific Calculator in Minecraft
#3I think this would be one of the few cases to list video games on a college/job application. I'll be honest that I didn't watch all 10 minutes, but it seems like he's using some complex methods, especially for a 16 year old. Props to him, one hell of a hacker!
Re: 16-year-old Makes Working Scientific Calculator in Minecraft
#4Could Minecraft be that little thing that teaches kids about logic? Maybe Jeb and co. should consider adding even simpler logic based building blocks, more akin to Lego's Mindstorm as an alternative to relays and switches.
I find it fascinating to think in 10-20 years many will be looking back fondly on how they learned to hack with an unassuming little game: Minecraft.
Re: 16-year-old Makes Working Scientific Calculator in Minecraft
#5I honestly love seeing stuff like this -- it's really cool.
But part of me always wonders, "I wonder what this kid could've built if he had a more meaningful project in mind?"
I understand that you need to have a certain amount of "fun" before you can do "serious" things, but I can't help but feel a little disappointed that he didn't "dream bigger."
It's not really a criticism. This kid is probably really smart, but I wish it was easy to create environments for such people to really flourish to their full potential.
Re: 16-year-old Makes Working Scientific Calculator in Minecraft
#6This is very very impressive, though I hope the kid's next project is some creative and useful applications rather than another Minecraft undertaking.
Re: 16-year-old Makes Working Scientific Calculator in Minecraft
#7This is very very impressive, though I hope the kid's next project is some creative and useful applications rather than another Minecraft undertaking.
Minecraft is awesome because it provides a convenient and ready simulator for this kind of work. It gets people interested and involved. It just seems much more accessible than downloading a "real" simulator somewhere online. I think MC provides a great mechanism for exploration in electronics/circuitry and something like this proves it. What do you want this person to do instead?
Re: 16-year-old Makes Working Scientific Calculator in Minecraft
#8Could Minecraft be that little thing that teaches kids about logic? Maybe Jeb and co. should consider adding even simpler logic based building blocks, more akin to Lego's Mindstorm as an alternative to relays and switches. I find it fascinating to think in 10-20 years many will be looking back fondly on how they learned to hack with an unassuming little game: Minecraft.
There is an unbelievable amount of potential in Minecraft that is completely untapped. It's really an amazing environment and I'm surprised it hasn't spawned "sandbox games" as a completely separate and significant genre, especially since a big reason Minecraft remains "untapped" is Notch's reticence to open the platform up and push the game forward.
Re: 16-year-old Makes Working Scientific Calculator in Minecraft
#9This is very very impressive, though I hope the kid's next project is some creative and useful applications rather than another Minecraft undertaking.
Minecraft is awesome because it provides a convenient and ready simulator for this kind of work. It gets people interested and involved. It just seems much more accessible than downloading a "real" simulator somewhere online. I think MC provides a great mechanism for exploration in electronics/circuitry and something like this proves it. What do you want this person to do instead?
> What do you want this person to do instead?
I get that Minecraft is fun, but wouldn't it have been more practical, in the long run, to have built something equally cool in a real CAD/HDL/etc. software?
It'd be really cool if someone could build a CAD/HDL/programming "IDE" that was as "fun" to "play" as Minecraft, but still as "useful" as something used in "the real world." But I suppose this is the same desire that drives all of those "programming language for kids" projects that never really seem to catch on.
Re: 16-year-old Makes Working Scientific Calculator in Minecraft
#10I honestly love seeing stuff like this -- it's really cool. But part of me always wonders, "I wonder what this kid could've built if he had a more meaningful project in mind?" I understand that you need to have a certain amount of "fun" before you can do "serious" things, but I can't help but feel a little disappointed that he didn't "dream bigger." It's not really a criticism. This kid is probably really smart, but…
As I said elsewhere, I think Minecraft provides a great environment for prototyping for someone who doesn't have a background in electronics. I don't see anything wrong with this at all. I reckon the builder probably does "dream bigger", and uses Minecraft as an exercise and/or sandbox. Is there a reason he shouldn't do that?
I am curious why so many people interpret this as a sign of an addiction and wasted time instead of a purely awesome accomplishment in self-education. Few people keep "build something cool in Minecraft" as their only aspiration in life.