This is a text-only version of the following page on https://raymii.org:
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Title       :   CookieNumberPrinter, incremental / idle game style numbers in C++
Author      :   Remy van Elst
Date        :   12-09-2020
URL         :   https://raymii.org/s/software/CookieNumberPrinter_incremental_game_style_numbers.html
Format      :   Markdown/HTML
---



To level up my software development skills, I'm programming a command line game
in my spare  time.  It is a clone of the famous cookieclicker game [by
ortiel][1]. A clone of a game is simple enough to get up and running  fairly
quickly, but also extensible enough when needed. How do you store huge score
numbers  when they don't fit in a `long long`? How do you write a game loop, how
to use threads to handle  user input? Saving a game (how to design a proper save
format)? Also a great way to learn about  project organization, software
architecture and to try out design patterns.


As the game is a clone of CookieCliker, which itself is an [incremental
game][2], I had to figure out how to work with large numbers. Since this is not
a university math project, I allowed myself the luxury of using [Boosts
Multiprecision][3].  The library handles the large numbers, including
caluclation and operations with such a number. I did want to print the numbers
in Idle Style, where large numbers are displayed with a suffix, like `1 million`
instead of `1000000` and so on.

This `C++` class can be used to print Boost's `cpp_dec_float` numbers in
incremental style. It's just one header. You can [get the code here][6].


[If you like this class, consider sponsoring me by trying out a Digital Ocean
VPS. With this link you'll get $100 credit for 60 days). (referral link)][99]



Please do keep in mind that this is a hobby project, the code might not be up to
your professional standards. As of now the class in my game has diverged a bit
to also support a few other boost numbers and can directly be used as an output
stream (`std::cout << cookienumber` instead of `std::cout << cookienumber.print()`).

### Idle Style numbers?

If you're wondering what Idle / Incremental game style is, let me show you. A
lot of mobile games show numbers in idle style, here is a picture of one:

![idle miner][5]

Here is a screenshot of my game, where you can see I have `5p` cookies as well
as prices for certain items with suffixes:

![c_ookieclicker][4]

Even though one is a flashy Android game and one is a humble command line
application, you see the idle style printing.

In the future I might show more of the game, or even make the git repository
public. For now it's just me and a few friends.

### Download and building and an example

I assume you have a working C++ compiler setup and have compiled before.

Install boost:

   apt install libboost-all-dev

Clone the git repository

   git clone https://github.com/RaymiiOrg/cookienumberprinter

Go in the folder and cmake / make

   cd cookienumberprinter
   mkdir build
   cd build
   cmake ..
   make

Run the example:

   ./cookienumberprinter

Output should be:

   CookieNumberPrinter by https://raymii.org, examples.
   Should print:
   0
   1
   1.1
   100.3
   1234
   123 thousand
   1 million
   8 million
   12 billion
   3 quintillion
   897a
   11yyy
   Here we go!

   0
   1
   1.1
   100.3
   1234
   123 thousand
   1 million
   8 million
   12 billion
   3 quintillion
   897a
   11yyy

   Process finished with exit code 0




[1]: https://orteil.dashnet.org/cookieclicker/
[2]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Incremental_game
[3]: https://www.boost.org/doc/libs/1_74_0/libs/multiprecision/doc/html/boost_multiprecision/intro.html
[4]: /s/inc/img/105_main.png
[5]: /s/inc/img/idleminer.png
[6]: https://github.com/RaymiiOrg/cookienumberprinter

---

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