Q-learning is a reinforcement learning algorithm that falls under the umbrella of machine learning, an area closely related to artificial intelligence.
Unlike a neural network which is a supervised learning algorithm, Q-learning learns independently by acting on observations of its state. For example: we might send a mars rover-esque robot to another planet which has an unknown surface. With reinforcement learning the robot could potentially learn about the surface through trial and error and use this new found knowledge in an effort to best reach its goals (for example: the most efficient way to move across the surface).
In my opinion this type of learning best resembles how we as humans learn.
How does Q-learning work? Read more
Everyone should be using a form of source control. It has many benefits including: the ability to easily see changes, roll back changes, provide an interface for contributing code to a project and provide accountability when working in a team. The next question is which type of source control should you be using? There is no real answer to that. I guess just go with what you feel comfortable with. A fairly new source control system is Git. To be honest I am not really sure of why you should use it over say SVN but it does seem to be in vogue so I will go along with it. So lets set it up. Read more
For the fun, I thought I would throw together a little parallax scrolling engine. While parallax scrolling has been around for a while I am always impressed by the results it gives for something so simple. It also gave me a good reason to hit up illustrator again.
If you were not aware, parallax scrolling is a rendering technique of moving background images at different speeds based on their depth. The further back a layer is, the slower it is to move. This creates a really nice immersive effect, especially in a 2D scrolling environment.
Steve Jobs wants Flash gone. He has made that very clear.
His anti-flash campaign kicked off with the release of the iPhone and continues to grow with the release of the iPad. His ‘thoughts’ are plastered all over the Apple website. In short, his open letter states that HTML5 should completely replace Flash and that Flash is not on the device for the following reasons:
- Flash is proprietary.
- Most video content is available on the iPhone and there is no need for Flash games as iPhone users can download apps.
- Poor reliability, security and performance.
- Poor battery life when playing video.
- Flash content needs to be rewritten for touch devices.
- Steve Jobs does not want any middle layer software involved in the app development cycle. His sixth point is directed at the iPhone compiler in Flash. Flash CS5 shipped with the ability to export Flash code to native ARM code on the iPhone.
Certainly if we are to just believe what Job’s preaches then Flash really is a poor product, but let’s have a look at his points. Read more
Hello, welcome to my blog and of course my first post. During the past few years I have been an avid reader of developer blogs, in particular those belonging to legends of the Flash industry. After learning from them and going on to experiment on my own, I felt it was finally time for me to contribute and enter into the foray of blogging.
My passion for creativity and developing cutting edge technology led my on the path to creating rich media and I found technologies such as Flash to be an excellent sandbox for experimenting in areas such as artificial intelligence, 3D graphics and physics.
As such, ActionScript 3.0 and HaXe are my current weapons of choice. Expect to find most code examples written in them. However from time to time I may play around with other languages.
It is my aim for this blog to provide inspiration and be a great facility for sharing knowledge from which we will both learn. So I will end this very first post by saying thanks for visiting and hope to see you next time. Please leave a comment if you have any questions. 
Cheers,
Allan Bishop
- posted on 02/04/2013 05:29:58
