Hunt-Helper

A website to help organize a scavenger hunt team.

Features:

• User Login
• Group Creation
• Plotting of multiple loctions on Google Maps
• Creation of routes for members of subgroups inside group
• Semi-optimal ordering of markers in a route based on a progressive nearest-neighbor algorithm.

To install run on a *AMP stack with a file called "secret.php" in the root php folder with mysql login information.

To test nearest-neighbor and progressive-nearest-neighbor algorithms:

1. Vist HuskyHuntHelper

2. Create an account

3. When prompted join a group enter either

   • "US Capitals" (48 contigious state US state capitals)
   • "World Capitals" (193 UN member countries capitals)
   • Note: there is no password for either

4. Log in using your newly created account.

5. Navigate to "Map" and Click the "Calculate Route" button and then click a starting point on the map.

   • The distance of the route will be printed to console.log in miles.
   • The routes will be displayed on screen flashing between the nearest-neighbor (Red) and progressive nearest-neighbor algorithms results.

6. To get average distance and best distance for each algorithm run statsForRoute(route, cycles, useGoogle, numToGet, mileCutoff) in the console where:

   • route: A string that is the name of the markers route. (use null for markers not in a route)
   • cycles: The integer number of cycles for the progressive nearest-neighbor algorithm to complete.
   • useGoogle: boolean value that decides if Google walking distances should be used to calculate distances between points
   • numToGet: Integer number of points nearest to each point to find the Google walking distance for.
   • mileCutoff: Integer distance in miles of the maximum distance that a point can be from a point and will still find a google distance for.
   • (To explain: if useGoogle the nearest numToGet points to each point that are less than mileCutoff will have Google walking distance for their distance instead of Haversine distance.)
   • The best routes for each algorithm will be displayed on screen flashing between the nearest-neighbor (Red) and progressive nearest-neighbor algorithms results.
   • Note: Optimal TSP routes for sample groups are:
     • US Capitals: 87885.2 Miles
     • World Capitals: 10617.4 Miles
     • Distances found using Mathematica using quieries found in Algorithm Analyis directory.
       • Also in the directory are images of the optimal routes from Mathematica and the best routes found using the nearst-neighbor and progressive nearest-neighbor algorithms.