Astronaut's Chronometer Copyright (C) Moose O'Malley, ----------------------- June 2003. +===========================================================+ | T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S | +===========================================================+ | * Introduction | | * What happens at the Speed of Light ? | | * The Future : | | * Known Bugs : | | * Disclaimer of Warranty | | * Shareware Reviews / Awards / CDs | | * Shareware Information | | * Warranty | | * Amendment History | | * Contacting the Program's Author | +===========================================================+ Introduction : -------------- Astronaut's Chronometer for Windows 3.1, 3.11, 95, 98, NT, 2000. This program is just a bit of a laugh really. Basically, I wanted to write the very first computer program that people could possibly use in 1,000 years time. Astronaut's Chronometer is a clock program that people could take in their space ships when they travel between the stars. According to Einstein, the faster you go : - the slower time goes inside the space ship (according to a stationary observer outside the space ship), and, - the faster time seems go outside the space ship (according to those people inside it anyway). So, I thought that if people are travelling at near the speed of light, they might want to send a message home each (earth) day which might only be each 5 minutes in the fast travelling space ship (or less !!). This program allows you to : - say whether you are inside the space ship or still on earth, and, - explore the effects of speed on time for anywhere between 0% of the speed of light right up to 99.999999% of the speed of light. From this information, it displays the passing of time on Earth and in the space ship. I know this program will never get used - Windows, Delphi, etc will not be around when people are finally travelling between the stars - and they certainly won't be using software like we have today. So, it is just a bit of fun. And it has that "I developed something that won't be used for 1,000 years - if ever" appeal. ;) BTW, if anyone is interested, I have a great book on Einstein's Theory of Relativity called "Relativity for the Layman". It is a great, easy going book ! Unlike all my other shareware, this program is completely unrestricted and un-cut-down. When the Space Shuttle went bang and killed 7 astronauts, it was a very sad day, and since then NASA have been incredibly cautious. Well, I want mankind to reach for the other planets and stars, and if this program inspires somebody else to start travelling down this very long road, then that would be great !! Let's face it, this planet is doomed - when the sun burns its fuel (in ~5,000 million years), all life in this planet is finished so we have to get off. Because of polution, population increases, and the rate at which natural resources are being used up, we really need to start thinking of seriously getting off this planet pretty soonish - possibly within a few thousand years. I dream of humans travelling to the stars. I hope we or our ancestors achieve this dream one day. Developed using 16-bit Delphi. What happens at the Speed of Light ? ------------------------------------ Well, some pretty wierd shit according to good old Einstein !! The faster you go, the slower time goes outside the spaceship, the heavier you (and your various appendages !!) get, and the longer you (and your various appendages !!) get !! Think of the possibilities !!!!!!!!!!!! :)) At the speed of light, time passes outside at infinite speed, you are of infinite length, and of infinite mass !! And, you would need infinite energy to get a spaceship to travel that fast. Real food for thought !! So, it probably looks like any form of human travel at the speed of light is probably out. The Future : ------------ I plan to extend this program when my work on other projects allows and the mood takes me. Some things I could add to this program include : - Calculation of Earth escape velocities - Times and Distances involved in Interstellar Voyages at a constant acceleration - say 1 g. - etc I have dug a great book on Einstein's Theory of Relativity called "Relativity for the Layman" out of my storage crates, as well as a whole load of other space / physics books. So, expect this utility to be updated in the future. Known Bugs : ------------ - None - provided Einstein is right !! Disclaimer of Warranty : ------------------------ This program seeks to demonstrate Einstein's theory about the effects of speed on the passage of time. The algorithms used in the program are at best rough approximations and at worst wild guesses. No assumptions should be made about the accuracy of this program. So, if you are an astronaut travelling at somewhere near the speed of light, and you use this program to schedule when to send Birthday cards back home, and you miss their birthday by 3,000 years, don't come crying to me. ;) (Unless ofcourse it was my birthday you forgot !!) Shareware Reviews / Awards / CDs : ---------------------------------- Version 1.0 of this program received a 3 Star rating (out of 5) in the 1997 Ziff Davis shareware awards. Thanks Ted !! Version 1.0 and later of this program were distributed on Software USA Shareware CD's during 1997. To quote from Software USA's Email (May 17, 97) : Our Software Review Department has reviewed your title and we are very impressed. We feel that it suits our criteria for our many thousands of members. Version 1.1 of this program were distributed on the Japanese magazine "TECH Win" (an ASCII Corporation publication) CDs in June / July 97. Version 1.1 of Astronaut's Chronometer was included on the companion CD for the book "Windows '97", by Alan Simpson. Shareware Information : ----------------------- Up until April 2001, this program was shareware, but from April 2001 onwards, I have released this program as Freeware. This is FREE software - copy, distribute, and use it however you wish. To anyone who paid money for this program while it was shareware, if you would like to choose another of my programs of the same price, then please email me, and I'll send you a registration to this alternate program for free. This means that no-one needs to have paid money for this program. Warranty : ---------- This software and the accompanying files are provided "as is" and without warranties as to performance or merchantability or any other warranties whether expressed or implied. The user assumes the entire risk of using this software. If you do find any faults with this program, email me and let me know, and I will do my best to fix it ASAP. Amendment History : -------------------- Vers Date Description 1.0 27-Mar-1997 First Public Release. 1.1 09-Jun-1997 Add in Registration functionality. Save settings automatically on Windows 95 shutdown (Registered Users only). Start Minimised if set in Shortcut / settings (Registered Users only). Improve application startup - size and position form before user sees it. Add in Menu items for viewing my Shareware Catalog, the Readme file, and the Registration Form. 1.2 3-Nov-1998 Add in ability to explore all speeds between 0% and 99.999999% of the speed of light. Fix an error in the passing of time - I had the reverse of what really happens before. Add in Einsteins actual formulas into the program, which really only see a big effect on the passage when travelling 99% of the speed of light or more. Display the speed of the spaceship in Miles/Hour and Km/Hour. (3,223 lines of code.) 1.3 11-Jan-1999 Change "Miles/Hour" and "Km/Hour" labels to be the correct "Miles/Sec" and "Km/Sec". (Thanks for telling me Sebastian !) (3,223 lines of code / comments.) 1.4 20-Apr-2000 Add in Form and Component Scaling when the program's main window is resized - really Cool !! Fix NT Warning on Shutdown on some PCs. Store the INI settings file in the program's directory, rather that in the Windows' directory - there's enough crap there already ! ;) (5,409 lines of code / comments.) 1.5 17-Apr-2001 Add in support for "Big Fonts" and "Other Sized Fonts" - with these Windows resizes the windows automatically - but only sometimes and it doesn't always do it right, so now I make sure my main window is the right size before doing any scaling, etc. i.e. I make it fit the This component(s) that extend the furthest right and Program furthest down the form. See the Start Menu -> is now Settings -> Control Pannel -> Display -> Settings FREE !! Tab -> "Advanced" button -> "General" tab for your PC's settings in this area. Bring program up-to-date with my latest code libraries. Add in "Always on Top" and "Restore Factory Defaults" menu options. Release this program as Freeware. (7,669 lines of code / comments.) 1.5b 20-Nov-2002 Bring the program up to date with my latest code libraries. (30,945 lines of code / comments.) 1.6 30-Jun-2003 Bring the program up to date with my latest code libraries. Improve the user interface a little bit. Add in support for all of the various Windows Regional Settings for floating point numbers. i.e. Allow people to use something other than a full stop as the decimal point, and something other than a comma as a 1,000's separator. (42,608 lines of code / comments.) If this program was not downloaded from my Home Page, then it is most likely an old version. The latest version of this program is available from my Home page and its mirrors. Mike "Moose" O'Malley ____________________________________________________ Moose's Software Valley - Established July, 1996. WEB: http://move.to/moose ____________________________________________________