Welcome to scripts

Freeform Calculator is a number processor using Javascript and Regular Expressions to deduce a calculation from a text string. The user enters numeric and alphabetic text and Freeform Calculator does its best to interpret this into results. This is more easily explained by demonstration. Try it here.

There are three panels in Freeform Calculator: the first contains a demo string, giving an example that can be pasted into the second panel, the second panel is your string and the third is the result. The great thing about Freeform Calculator is that you can see and edit your string to check, alter or add to your entry. Another great thing about Freeform Calculator is that you can paste in columns of numbers copied from other sources such as Word tables.

You can copy the source from the demo and it can be modified to be included in .asp or .php pages.

Winning Dice is a PHP script to demonstrate the perils of gambling. It is based on the chance of rolling a 6 on a six sided dice. In nature the chance of rolling a 6 is once in every six rolls. Statistically this will (or should if the dice is not weighted) be the case over a long enough sequence. Try it here.

Betting at 4 to 1, that is that you expect 6 to occur every time after only 4 other numbers have appeared, you are sure to lose. The odds are against you.

Betting at 5 to 1, that is to say that there should be 5 occurrences of other numbers to 1 occurrence of 6, you would be betting on the natural chance and be sure to break even in the long run.

Betting at 6 to 1, that is that you expect 6 to occur after 6 other numbers have been rolled, you are sure to win. However, the certainty of winning may require funds beyond your means. There is no guarantee that a prolonged losing streak would not break your bank.

Winning Dice lets you decide how much you expect to make as a professional then goes on to show you how rich or poor you could be if you bet at different odds. It makes you think! You can download it as a zip file.

This illustration shows how drivers in a stream of motorway traffic can alter their behaviour to make their journey safer. It shows the danger of overcrowded roads or poor judgement in leaving a safe gap behind the vehicle in front.