
TempleOS: FlightSim and FirstPersonShooter [video] - yunong
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sm-W4Tzg9-o
======
rectangletangle
Damn, that's really impressive. Especially considering that he wrote it at
every layer of abstraction. It's been interesting watching this undertaking
progress.

~~~
yoha
Although it looks clunky, the visualization and edition of the included
sprites and 3D models right in the code editor is impressive. It does not even
look like Vim as a plugin for this!

~~~
radicalbyte
I noticed that too. Very handy.

I get very nostalgic reading about your work Terry, I haven't done anything
low-level since I started playing with the C64.

Skip to 11:30, it's amazing; the editor includes binary data - in this case 3d
models - which are rendered within the editor in real time.

~~~
walkingolof
I think more and more hobbiest will go back to some form of low level
programming, just because its fun and different. I think there will be purpose
made computers for this, computers that provides a very low level of
abstraction to start with, something like a amiga or atari st.

------
mahouse
He looks like he's doing very well. I'm happy for him.

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serf
good work Terry (if you're reading).

I wish I could wrangle low-level stuff as well as you.

~~~
sudioStudio64
seriously, amazing coding. I have real respect for your skills, even if I
don't believe in god and can be kind of a dick in comments.

super dope C skills bro.

~~~
shultays
You mean HolyC.

------
frik
Is Terry/TempleOS in the current batch of YC? He tried to apply some months
ago. If not, maybe someone can give his work a chance, like they did with some
non-profit orgs?

~~~
radicalbyte
Although it's a nice idea - as engineers it's clear to us that Terry is highly
capable - he isn't a good match for YC.

Sure, they could do something, but it would only be to humor him. I don't
think that we should be encouraging that.

When his stuff is posted here he's getting real respect from his peers. His
illness it totally irrelevant. It would be sad and IMHO wrong to turn him into
some sort of VC "circus freak" attraction.

On the other hand doing something truly altruistic to help him would be of
course would be very nice.

~~~
frik
Makes sense. (That was his entry a while ago:
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9246855](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9246855)
)

------
bitwize
I've called TempleOS the "I Whipped Spider-Man's Ass" of operating systems in
the past. The comparisons to Wesley Willis are tempting: a schizophrenic man
plying a craft (code, music) as a release for the suffering his condition
inflicts upon him, and who enjoys a certain amount of good will because of his
unbridled creativity. Though he also merits comparison to Ulillillia, the
severely autistic kid with an overactive imagination and penchant for 2D
coding and number puzzles who appeared in the early 2000s.

------
jason_slack
I have followed Terry for a few years. I think he is really gifted. I always
wish the best for him. Terry if you are reading. I admire and respect your
work. Your skills keep me making sure I improve mine. Thank You.

------
joshmn
Terry, you are fascinating. You have a number of haters, but you also have a
huge number of supporters that don't label you by your illness.

Keep up the work. You're an inspiration to all of us.

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jacobparker
Damn, that was cool. Really liked the in-source 3d models and map.

------
joshontheweb
This guy is fascinating. Apparently he is building an operating system based
on directives he received from God. Also there is a program called After Egypt
which is a game he made based on the story of Moses. In this game you can go
speak with God and Terry regards this program as an oracle of sorts. He speaks
freely about God's thoughts and reactions to his efforts in his videos.

Edit: grammar

~~~
sudioStudio64
EDIT: I started to write something snarky about this guy...I can't. He
obviously has a mental illness. He is without a doubt one of the most hardcore
C programmers I have ever seen.

I will say that the oracle part of his OS is a random text generator that he
interprets as coded messages from god. At least that is what I read in an
interview.

~~~
thechao
It's not C. It's a C-like language that he designed (and implemented) by
himself. The embedded (rendered) resource references are my favorite part.

~~~
fit2rule
Can you explain what an embedded (rendered) resource reference is, or maybe
point to some code in TempleOS that demonstrates it?

~~~
serf
I think he is referring to the game demonstrated @ 11 minutes in the linked
video that uses 3d models which appear to be embedded within the source code.

~~~
reagency
Sort of like how Scala allows XML as an object literal format, but less wacky.

~~~
akhilcacharya
Huh! I did not know that - could this be used for JSX rendering on the server
side?

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derefr
Seeing Terry's work always makes me wonder whether delusional mania was the
drive behind the creation of other "big works" in religious history that are
hard to comprehend in sheer scope/detail, like the Sistene Chapel.

It also reminds me of the story of Bolero's dementia, a bit:
[http://www.radiolab.org/story/217340-unraveling-
bolero/](http://www.radiolab.org/story/217340-unraveling-bolero/)

~~~
bshimmin
This is a really interesting (and not a little disquieting) thought. In the
case of the Sistene Chapel ceiling - the scale and artistry of which really is
difficult to comprehend if you haven't seen it firsthand (truly, pictures do
not in any way do it justice) - it was, at least, a commissioned piece of
work, which I believe Michelangelo was initially reluctant to accept.

~~~
orionblastar
He rejected it because he was a sculptor and not a painter. Eventually he gave
in and had to teach himself how to paint.

A lot of artists were mentally ill, and took up painting as a form of therapy.

In the USA they used to put the stupid with the smart in special schools and
asylums for people with a mental illness. Once they changed that there are
more disabled people now in society with a mental illness.

[http://petroleusesletter.wordpress.com/2015/05/18/why-are-
th...](http://petroleusesletter.wordpress.com/2015/05/18/why-are-there-so-
many-more-disabled-people-now/)

------
Exuma
He's also wildly racist:
[http://www.reddit.com/r/programming/comments/38u4zc/flight_s...](http://www.reddit.com/r/programming/comments/38u4zc/flight_simulator_and_first_person_shooter_in/cry64v6)

~~~
FlannelPancake
It's a weird conundrum. He's obviously extremely mentally ill.

On the one hand that doesn't give someone carte blanche to do whatever they
want. If he started stabbing people we'd (hopefully) put him in a place where
he couldn't do that anymore, e.g. some sort of inpatient program.

On the other hand, it's a little hard to take anything he writes/says with any
sort of gravity given the obvious schizophrenia. It's a little like if a very
small (like, just learned to speak) child dropped an N bomb. I don't think
most of us would attribute any malice to it, more just see it as a reflection
of mental immaturity. Unfortunately, whereas you can correct a child, you
can't really correct a schizophrenic.

So I guess the solution is just to draw attention to it but take it with a
grain of salt? I dunno.

~~~
DanBC
> you can't really correct a schizophrenic.

I know many people with a diagnosis of schizophrenia or schizophrenia style
illnesses.

They're all kind of embarressed about the shenanigans they get up to when
they're ill. I don't know anyone who wants to get a free pass on bad behaviour
just because they have a severe and enduring mental illness.

Empathy and understanding and a bit of tolerance, yes.

~~~
trentmb
> I don't know anyone who wants to get a free pass on bad behaviour just
> because they have a severe and enduring mental illness.

How many of them want to be shamed, bullied, and ostracized for it?

~~~
DanBC
By suggesting that people with schizophrenia have no control GP post is
contributing to the culture of fear and ostrasizing that blights many people's
lives.

"He's schizophrenic so he can't control his outbursts" flows into "he's
schizophrenic so we sadly can't employ him" \- and we know from research that
this discrimination happens.

Also: it is intensly frustrating that people leap to absurd extremes. Nothing
in my post can be read as "it's okay to ostracize him".

~~~
FlannelPancake
That wasn't really my intention, and I apologize if it came across that way.

What I meant to say is that confronting a schizophrenic about their delusions
or disorganized thinking is almost assuredly a futile exercise, save maybe if
you're a very well-trained professional. He clearly suffers from some paranoid
delusions[0][1], and I don't think talking to him about the perils of racism
is going to prove fruitful anytime soon.

> "he's schizophrenic so we sadly can't employ him"

In some cases, that's probably true - Terry Davis very likely being one of
those cases. Conversely, my uncle is quite schizophrenic (pretty severe
delusions and paranoia) but responds well to medication and is now gainfully
employed, mostly because he hasn't said anything like "Spoiler alert, CIA.
Guess how this ends? I have God. I win. You unconditionally surrender and suck
my fucken dick. That's how this ends." [2] in quite some time.

Some people will require a large amount of care and probably aren't well-
suited for the workforce. Why is that a bad thing? Your employment status
doesn't reflect your worth as a person. We can, and _should_ (not that we
always _do_ ) take care of people unable to work. We have more than enough
productive surplus to support their needs.

0:
[http://www.reddit.com/r/programming/comments/38u4zc/flight_s...](http://www.reddit.com/r/programming/comments/38u4zc/flight_simulator_and_first_person_shooter_in/crybeaq)

1:
[http://www.reddit.com/r/programming/comments/38u4zc/flight_s...](http://www.reddit.com/r/programming/comments/38u4zc/flight_simulator_and_first_person_shooter_in/cry96ix)

2:
[http://www.reddit.com/r/programming/comments/38u4zc/flight_s...](http://www.reddit.com/r/programming/comments/38u4zc/flight_simulator_and_first_person_shooter_in/cry9dgz)

~~~
vinceguidry
> In some cases, that's probably true - Terry Davis very likely being one of
> those cases.

It's less because Terry _couldn 't_ make a useful contribution and more that
he not really interested. He's had jobs in the past where he was no more or
less ill. From what I've read of his life history, he walked away rather than
got fired.

~~~
FlannelPancake
Maybe. I think it would cause a very serious disruption to bring a guy like
Terry into a normal team dynamic. The CIA delusions alone would make most
people understandably uncomfortable, to say nothing of the racism.

With a very patient and understanding manager, a very isolated workspace or
maybe a couple very patient and understanding coworkers, and probably someone
filtering all of his communication, it would be workable. I can see why Terry
would not want to be an environment like that, of course.

That's not to say that someone wouldn't take a chance on him given his strong
technical ability, but I'm not sure most people would look on that decision in
retrospect as a good one.

