LogiCraft

Inspiration

We noticed how difficult it was to find effective learning materials for young kids (or even adults) on how basic Boolean logic gates in programming works. This is essential to circuit logic and computer engineering. While it might seem simple to those within the industry or with an affinity for the subject, it is not a universally known skill. Even though many other disciplines have dedicated learning materials, we noticed that logic gates and core programming concepts were being neglected. So, we created LogiCraft.

What it does

The main learning happens within Minecraft, with an integrated tutorial on how to build these core logic gates (AND, OR, XOR etc...) using redstone circuitry. The instructions within Minecraft walks the user through the process in a straight forward manner.

It has a greater effect than just learning how to build them from online guides, YouTube videos, or in boring textbooks, as it is IMMERSIVE. We made sure to provide detailed info on the gates themselves, and the colorful blueprints provided make it easier for users to identify each component, making it easy for teachers to use at school and students to use at home. The inbuilt schematics and text based tutorial is an innovative experience. Students who like hands on experiences and working through things visually will love this educational experience.

There is a companion app planned that allows the user to keep track of their progress within the course. The companion app asks the user for a "secret code" that is generated after each puzzle is complete and once that "secret code" is entered, the app confirms that the puzzle is solved and logs it within the user's account. It will also keep track of the user's learning streak.

How we built it

We used Spigot and related documentation to create a server hosting a plugin, which hosts the Minecrafrt client. Intially, we planned to create a command to spawn logic gates and walk through the tutorial, through the use of even handlers provided by spigot. Finally, we used LightMagic to display a variety schemas of various bitwise operators.

We used the documentation and tutorials provided by spigot, a mod creation service for Minecraft. It natively uses Java as its medium, and along with that we used a mod called litematic for schematics.

Challenges we ran into

We had trouble figuring out how to effectively create an action plan for this problem. It took a while but were glad we found an effective way to teach these concepts and solidify them.

We were also not too familiar with Figma, so there was a bit of friction when we tried implementing a concept of the companion app.

It was difficult to find a connection between Spigot and the client. Forge was our initial method of trying to establish a connection, but there was a significant amount of intricacy which did not lie within the scope of our project.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We are proud to get what initially felt like an impossible project with never ending errors mostly complete, with most of the core functionality presentable.

What we learned

How to use Spigot. How to consider the feasibility of various technologies within a given time frame. How to delegate tasks. And finally to not give up!

What's next for LogiCraft

Minecraft Part: adding more levels, adding more content. Different types of combination circuits, logical operators, etc.

Companion App: implementing the app in its entirety, adding a direct connection between the app and the Minecraft. Adding backend support for the integrated app, adding streaks, adding a login for accounts and ensuring that teachers can track their students by adding them within the app.

Built With

• figma
• java
• minecraft
• spigot