All I see is a white box / I don't see the simulation

Browser does not spport WebGPU

Our project uses WebGPU, which is a very new graphics computing tool for web development. WebGPU is currently only suported in chromium browsers so if you're using Safari (or any browser on IPhone/IPad) or FireFox our simulations may not work just yet. See https://caniuse.com/webgpu for a list of supported browsers. Chrome for Windows, MS Edge and Chrome for Android are your best options.

JavaScript is turned off

Our website relies on JavaScript, so ensure you have JavaScript turned on!

I changed the settings and now I see nothing

Rule string/kernel is not interesting

Good rule strings/kernels that produce 'interesting' behaviours have a very fine balance of life/death, so the slightest alteration may cause the pattern to de-stablise. They also thrive on variation in grid values, and require pre-established variation in values to work. So keep trying different combinations and don't forget to press 'Randomise' to reset the grid with a variety of values.

The setting I changed was the activation function

You may also see nothing if you have changes the activation function if there is a bug in your code. The activation function uses WGSL syntax (WebGPU code) and must return a single float32 value. You may be able to check what the error is by running an inspect on the page.

My Screen is freezing up when I run Continuous CA

Speed setting is set too high for the device to handle

Different devices have different computing capabilities for graphics. If you are experiencing noticable lag, consider running our simulations at a lower speed more suited for your device.
For reference, some maximum update rates from past experience are:

• 400 fps for new-ish laptop with i7 IrisXe graphics
• 200 fps for Samsung Flip 4
• 40 fps for Motorola Edge 30 - may be a browser issue
• 0 fps for Apple phones - does not support WebGPU

Continuous CA is really flickery for some frame rates

Try selecting 'Skip Every Second Frame'

Patterns such as 'worms' and 'mitosis' undergo significant change every frame, however most of this change is switching between two main states. For a smoother experience, selecting 'Skip Every Second Frame' will allow you to view longer-term changes.

When you do this, you will observe that some groups of cells appear dark, and some light. This is because these groups are out of phase by one cycle, so would dark would appear light in the skipped fram and vice-versa.

But how come it runs smoothly for some frame rates?

We restrict the display update rate to 50fps to prevent screen freezes at higher frame rates. This means at 1-50, 101-150, etc. fps. you will see odd multiples of frames. At 51-100 and 151-200, etc. fps you will see even frames.

'Skip Every Second Frame' doubles the number of updates between frames, ensuring you only ever see even frames.