Interactive Calculation of Fractal Images

escription of the fractal demo

This demo calculates fractal images in real time using all available EnFuzion nodes. Each fractal image is subdivided into multiple sub images with each sub image being represented by one EnFuzion datastream job. Datastream jobs are distributed to nodes for calculation and the results are combined into a final image on the user computer.

Images are calculated and displayed continuously by holding down a mouse button. With a sufficient number of machines, normally more than 10, the demo creates an effect of flying over a fractal landscape in real time.


Instructions:

install EnFuzion and prepare enfuzion.nodes configuration file for your network of computers as specified in the EnFuzion manual. Your network can contain an arbitrary mix of Linux/Unix and Windows computers.

Each image is divided into 256 subimages. If the number of EnFuzion nodes is small, less than 64, it is recommended that 6-8 EnFuzion nodes are running concurrently on each CPU for better performance.

If the files in this directory are on a CD-ROM, copy the entire directory and all its subdirectories to a hard disk. This step is necessary, since results and temporary files will be generated in the directory.

This demo requires that a Java Virtual Machine is installed on the user computer. Java Virtual Machine can be downloaded from here.

Open a shell window for the dispatcher, change the working directory to fractals-interactive, and run the dispatcher specifying an API port 12345 and a multirun mode:

cd fractals-interactive
enfdispatcher -p 12345 -m

On Windows, if EnFuzion was installed in the default installation directory, run the dispatcher with:

cd fractals-interactive
c:\enfuzion\bin\enfdispatcher -p 12345 -m

Dispatcher will wait on the specified port 12345. No messages will be printed to the screen. A different port number can be specified, as long as the same port number is used by the Java GUI.

Open a second shell window for the Java GUI, change the working directory to fractals-interactive, and run the Java GUI specifying the Dispatcher API port:

cd fractals-interactive/java
java fractal 12345

The Java GUI will open a window containing a menu, a reset button and the image area to show fractals.

Select the fractal type you would like to view - mandel, julia, magnet1 or magnet2, and press the Reset button. An initial fractal image will be calculated and displayed.

Hold down the mouse buttons to navigate through the fractal:

  • left button down, zoom in around the mouse position
  • middle button down
    • if above the center, move down
    • if below the center, move up
    • if right of the center, move left
    • if left of the center, move right
  • right button down, zoom out around the mouse position

The Reset button sets the initial parameters and displays the starting fractal image.

©2002 Axceleon, Inc.