I'm in the process of building an entity system for a canvas game. This started from a simple particle emitter/updater which I am altering to accommodate a multi-particle/entity generator. Whilst I am usually ok with JavaScript/jQuery I am running into the limits of my experience as it concerns arrays and would gratefully accept any help on the following:
When I need a new particle/entity my current system calls a function to push an object into an array which contains variables for the entity updates.
Then the update function runs a for loop over the array, checking on the type variable to update the particle (position/colour/etc...). Previously I would then [array.splice] the particle, based on some condition. When I needed further particles/entities I would then push new particles.
What I would like to achieve here is:
In the makeParticle function, check over the particle array for any "dead" particles and if any are available reuse them, or push a new particle if not I have created a particleAlive var as a flag for this purpose.
var particles = [];
var playing = false;
function mousePressed(event) {
playing = !playing;
}
if(playing) {
makeParticle(1, 200, 200, 10, "blueFlame");
makeParticle(1, 300, 200, 10, "redFlame");
}
function makeParticle(numParticles, xPos, yPos, pRadius, pType) {
var i;
for (i = 0; i < numParticles; i++) {
var p = {
type : pType,
x : xPos,
y : yPos,
xVel : random(-0.5, 0.5),
yVel : random(-1, -3),
particleAlive : true,
particleRender : true,
size : pRadius
}; // close var P
particles.push(p);
// instead of pushing fresh particles all the time I would like the function, here, to check for free objects in the array
} // close for loop
} // close function makeParticle
function runtime() {
for(var i=0; i<particles.length; i++) {
var p = particles[i];
var thisType = p.type;
switch (thisType) {
case "blueFlame":
c.fillStyle = rgb(100,100,255);
c.fillCircle(p.x,p.y,p.size);
p.x += p.xVel;
p.y += p.yVel;
p.size*=0.9;
if (particles.size < 0.5) {
particleAlive = false;
particleRender = false;
} // close if
break;
case "redFlame":
c.fillStyle = rgb(255,100,100);
c.fillCircle(p.x,p.y,p.size);
p.x -= p.xVel;
p.y -= p.yVel;
p.size*=0.95;
if (particles.size < 0.5) {
particleAlive = false;
particleRender = false;
} // close if
break;
} // close switch
} // close function runtime
I've found previous answers to relate questions, but I've been unable to get it working within the makeParticle function, like how to assign the attributes of p to particle[j]:
var particleUseOldOrNew = function() {
for (var j = 0, len = particles.length; j < len; j++) {
if (particles[j].particleAlive === false)
// particles[j] = p;
return particle[j];
}
return null; // No dead particles found, create new "particles.push(p);" perhaps?
}
My personal opinion on the matter is that if you are making a new particle, it should be a new object, not a "re-using" of an old one with properties changed. Each new object should have a unique identifier, so if you need to track them (for development purposes, debugging, or later re-use), it is easy to do. Or at least keep a counter of the number of times you've re-used a particle object to represent a "new" particle! Though I guess if you've found that "re-using" improves performance (have you?), that's the way to go.
Anyway, enough pontificating, here is how I would do what you're asking (I assume speed is your main concern, so I did this with only native JS):
var particles = [];
//Function to create brand spanking new particle
function makeNewParticle(xPos, yPos, pRadius, pType){
return {
type : pType,
x : xPos,
y : yPos,
xVel : random(-0.5, 0.5),
yVel : random(-1, -3),
particleAlive : true,
particleRender : true,
size : pRadius
};
};
//Function to change the properties of an old particle to make a psuedo-new particle (seriously, why do you want to do this?)
function changeExistingParticle(existing, xPos, yPos, pRadius, pType){
existing.x = xPos;
existing.y = yPos;
existing.size = pRadius;
existing.type = pType;
return existing;
};
//Figure out the keys of dead particles in the particles[] array
function getDeadParticleKeys() {
var keys = [];
for(var p = 0; P < particles.length; p++) {
if (!particles[p].particleAlive) {
keys.push(p);
}
}
};
function makeParticle(numParticles, xPos, yPos, pRadius, pType) {
var d, i, deadParticles;
//Grab the "dead" particle keys
deadParticleKeys = getDeadParticleKeys();
numParticles -= deadParticleKeys.length;
//Replace each dead particle with a "live" one at a specified key
for (d = 0; d < deadParticleKeys.length; d++) {
particles[ deadParticleKeys[d] ] = changeExistingParticle(particles[ deadParticleKeys[d] ], xPos, yPos, pRadius, pType)
}
//If we had more particles than there were dead spaces available, add to the array
for (i = 0; i < numParticles; i++) {
particles.push( makeNewParticle(xPos, yPos, pRadius, pType) );
}
};
Now, here's how I recommend doing it: abandon the idea or "re-using" particles, make a separate constructor for each particle (will help immensely if you add methods to your particles in the future), and just scrap dead particles every time one is added:
//Make a constructor for a particle
var Particle = function(props){
if (typeof props === 'function') {
props = props();
}
this.type = props.type;
this.x = props.x;
this.y = props.y;
this.size = props.size;
};
Paticle.prototype.particleAlive = true;
Paticle.prototype.particleRender = true;
//Global particles list
var particles = [];
//Remove all dead element from a ParticleList
particles.clean = function(){
var p, keys;
for (p = this.length; p >= 0; p--) {
if (!p.particleAlive) {
this.splice(p, 1);
}
}
};
//Method for adding x amount of new particles - if num parameter isn't provided, just assume it to be 1
particles.add = function(props, num){
//First, clean out all the garbage!
this.clean();
//Now, append new particles to the end
var n, limit = (num && typeof num === 'number') ? num : 1;
for (n = 0; n < limit; n++){
particles.push( new Particle(props) );
}
};
//A couple examples
particles.add({ //Add a single blueFlame
type: "blueFlame",
size: 10,
x: 200,
y: 200
});
particles.add({ //Add 4 redFlames
type: "redFlame",
size: 10,
x: 300,
y: 200
}, 4);
particles.add(function(){//Add 4 greenFlames, with randomized XY cooridinates
this.x = Math.round(Math.random() * 1000);
this.y = Math.round(Math.random() * 1000);
this.size = 20;
this.type = "greenFlame";
}, 4);
Way less code to manage. I'm not sure which way is faster, but I'd bet the speed difference is negligible. Of course, you could check for yourself by making a quick jsPerf.
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