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How can I update variables for many different images in a Javascript canvas?

I am new to Javascript in a canvas, and javascript in general.
Basically, what I am trying to do is:
have many different randomly spawning fire balls (images), that all start at a fixed y value and a random x value.
They should then fall at a speed of a variable.
I got the random x position, and the fixed y value, but I don't know how I can have a separate falling variable for each new image that tracks it's speed, such as applying this to each individual fire ball:
fireBallSpeed = 10;
fireBallTop = 0;
if (randomSpawn == 1){
fireBallTop += fireBallSpeed;
fireBall.style.top = fireBallTop + 'px';
ctx.drawImage(fireBall, randomX, fireBallTop, 50, 50);
}

You should save each fireball into an array and loop over the array updating each one's position.
let fireballs = []
const canvas = document.querySelector('canvas')
const ctx = canvas.getContext('2d')
function gameLoop() {
// Clear the canvas
ctx.clearRect(0, 0, 800, 300)
// Loop over each fireball and update their positon
fireballs.forEach(fireball => {
ctx.fillRect(fireball.x, fireball.y, 10, 10)
// Set the new position for the next frame using the speed
fireball.y += fireball.speed
})
// Request another frame
requestAnimationFrame(gameLoop)
}
function gameInit() {
// Create 5 fireballs
for (let i = 0; i < 5; i++) {
fireballs.push({ x: Math.random() * 280, y: 5, speed: Math.random() * 2 })
}
}
// Init the game
gameInit()
// Start the game loop
// This function should only be used for the drawing portion
// and setInterval should be used for the logic
// For simplicity I am going to use this for both
requestAnimationFrame(gameLoop)
<canvas width="800" height="300"></canvas>

How to move image on canvas using arrow keys in javascript

I've tried a few different ways that I have seen on here, but I can't quite get my image to move. Whenever I try adapting code for arrow key presses, it just seems to make my canvas shrink and my player model (spaceperson) disappear.
here is the "drawing board" I keep returning to, and what I have so far.
// Get the canvas and context
var canvas = document.getElementById("space");
var ctx = canvas.getContext("2d");
canvas.width = 1920;
canvas.height = 700;
// Create the image object
var spaceperson = new Image();
// Add onload event handler
spaceperson.onload = function () {
// Done loading, now we can use the image
ctx.drawImage(spaceperson, 280, 300);
};
// artwork by Harrison Marley (using make8bitart.com)
spaceperson.src = "http://i.imgur.com/Eh9Dpq2.png";`
I am quite new to javascript, and I am just trying to work out how I can move the specperson image using arrow keys. I was trying to make a class for space person to access their x,y values, but I can't seem to draw the image without using .onload

here a more complete example:
//just a utility
function image(url, callback){
var img = new Image();
if(typeof callback === "function"){
img.onload = function(){
//just to ensure that the callback is executed async
setTimeout(function(){ callback(img, url) }, 0)
}
}
img.src = url;
return img;
}
//a utility to keep a value constrained between a min and a max
function clamp(v, min, max){
return v > min? v < max? v: max: min;
}
//returns a function that can be called with a keyCode or one of the known aliases
//and returns true||false wether the button is down
var isKeyDown = (function(aliases){
for(var i=256, keyDown=Array(i); i--; )keyDown[i]=false;
var handler = function(e){
keyDown[e.keyCode] = e.type === "keydown";
e.preventDefault(); //scrolling; if you have to suppress it
};
addEventListener("keydown", handler, false);
addEventListener("keyup", handler, false);
return function(key){
return(true === keyDown[ key in aliases? aliases[ key ]: key ])
}
})({
//some aliases, to be extended
up: 38,
down: 40,
left: 37,
right: 39
});
// Get the canvas and context
var canvas = document.getElementById("space");
canvas.width = 1920;
canvas.height = 700;
var ctx = canvas.getContext("2d");
//the acutal image is just a little-part of what defines your figue
var spaceperson = {
image: image("//i.imgur.com/Eh9Dpq2.png", function(img){
spaceperson.width = img.naturalWidth;
spaceperson.height = img.naturalHeight;
//start the rendering by calling update
update();
}),
//position
x: 60, y: 310,
width: 0, height: 0,
speed: 200 // 200px/s
};
var lastCall = 0; //to calculate the (real) time between two update-calls
//the render-fucntion
function update(){
//taking account for (sometimes changing) framerates
var now = Date.now(), time = lastCall|0 && (now-lastCall)/1000;
lastCall = now;
requestAnimationFrame(update);
var sp = spaceperson,
speed = sp.speed;
//checking the pressed buttons and calculates the direction
//two opposite buttons cancel out each other, like left and right
var dx = (isKeyDown('right') - isKeyDown('left')) * time,
dy = (isKeyDown('down') - isKeyDown('up')) * time;
//fix the speed for diagonals
if(dx && dy) speed *= 0.7071067811865475; // * 1 / Math.sqrt(2)
if(dx) { //there is some movement on the x-axes
sp.x = clamp(
//calculate the new x-Position
//currentPos + direction * speed
sp.x + dx * sp.speed,
//restraining the result to the bounds of the map
0, canvas.width - sp.width
);
}
//same for y
if(dy) sp.y = clamp(sp.y + dy * sp.speed, 0, canvas.height - sp.height);
ctx.clearRect(0, 0, canvas.width, canvas.height);
ctx.drawImage(sp.image, sp.x, sp.y);
}
Edit:
A quick question (I hope); if I was to later add other objects, would I check for collisions in update()?
This is still just a very basic example. The main purpose of the update()-function should be to work as the main event-loop.
To trigger all Events that have to happen each frame in the order they have to happen.
var lastCall = 0;
function update(){
//I always want a next frame
requestAnimationFrame(update);
//handle timing
var now = Date.now(),
//time since the last call in seconds
//cause usually it's easier for us to think in
//tems like 50px/s than 0.05px/ms or 0.8333px/frame
time = lastCall|0 && (now-lastCall) / 1000;
lastCall = now;
movePlayer(time);
moveEnemies(time);
moveBullets(time);
collisionDetection();
render();
}
function render(){
ctx.clear(0, 0, canvas.width, canvas.height);
drawBackground(ctx);
for(var i=0; i<enemies.length; ++i)
enemies[i].render(ctx);
player.render(ctx);
}
Not saying that you have to implement all these functions now, but to give you an idea of a possible structure.
Don't be scared to break big tasks (functions) up into subtasks.
And it might make sense to give each enemy a move()-function so you can implement different movement-patterns per enemy,
or you say that the pattern is (and will be) all the same for each enemy, parameterized at the best, then you can handle that in a loop.
Same thing for rendering, as I'm showing in the last part of code.

Here's some slightly modified code from a game I was noodling around with a while back. If you want to see more code, check out the complete JS on GitHub. The game is incomplete but you should gather some helpful clues as to how to move an image around the canvas.
var spaceperson = {
speed: 256,
other_stuff: ''
},
keysDown = [],
update,
main;
addEventListener("keydown", function (e) {
keysDown[e.keyCode] = true;
}, false);
update = function (modifier) {
if (38 in keysDown && spaceperson.y > 0) { // UP
spaceperson.y -= spaceperson.speed * modifier;
}
if (40 in keysDown && spaceperson.y < CANVAS_HEIGHT - SPACEPERSON_HEIGHT) { // DOWN
spaceperson.y += spaceperson.speed * modifier;
}
if (37 in keysDown && spaceperson.x > 0) { // LEFT
spaceperson.x -= spaceperson.speed * modifier;
}
if (39 in keysDown && spaceperson.x < CANVAS_WIDTH - SPACEPERSON_WIDTH) { // RIGHT
spaceperson.x += spaceperson.speed * modifier;
}
}

I'm not sure but i think this can help.
// Get the canvas and context
var canvas = document.getElementById("space");
var ctx = canvas.getContext("2d");
canvas.width = 1920;
canvas.height = 700;
var x = 280;
var y = 300;
// Create the image object
var spaceperson = new Image();
spaceperson.addEventListener("keypress", press);
// Add onload event handler
spaceperson.onload = function () {
// Done loading, now we can use the image
ctx.drawImage(spaceperson, x, y);
};
function press(event) {
if(event.keyCode == 37) {//LEFT
x = x - 1;
} else if(event.keyCode == 38) {//UP
y = y - 1;
} else if(event.keyCode ==39) {//RIGHT
x = x + 1;
} else if(event.keyCode == 40) {//DOWN
y = y + 1;
}
draw();
}
function draw(){
ctx.drawImage(spaceperson,x,y);
}
// artwork by Harrison Marley (using make8bitart.com)
spaceperson.src = "http://i.imgur.com/Eh9Dpq2.png";

I found a solution!
// Get the canvas and context
var canvas = document.getElementById("space");
var ctx = canvas.getContext("2d");
canvas.width = 1920;
canvas.height = 700;
var xPos = 60;
var yPos = 310;
// Create the image object
var spaceperson = new Image();
// Add onload event handler
spaceperson.onload = function () {
// Done loading, now we can use the image
ctx.drawImage(spaceperson, xPos, yPos);
};
function move(e){
if(e.keyCode==39){
xPos+=10;
}
if(e.keyCode==37){
xPos-=10;
}
if(e.keyCode==38){
yPos-=10;
}
if(e.keyCode==40){
yPos+=10;
}
canvas.width=canvas.width;
ctx.drawImage(spaceperson, xPos, yPos);
}
document.onkeydown = move;
// artwork by Harrison Marley
spaceperson.src = "http://i.imgur.com/Eh9Dpq2.png";

console.log() keeps running infinitely even after the program finishes execution

I have an ECG program which plots ECG after taking values from arrays. Upon opening the console (By pressing the f12 button) in Firefox, it shows that the log keeps on writing infinitely even after all the 12 graphs are constructed. It is not supposed to happen! There are 12 arrays each with 1250 elements. I'm giving one array because of the word limit here. Clicking "Click Me" button plots the graph using canvas. Please take the values given at bottom of the question for reference. Please help me find why this overflow is happening. I'm a beginner.
Code:
<!doctype html>
<html>
<head>
<script>
function byId(id,parent){return (parent == undefined ? document : parent).getElementById(id);}
window.addEventListener('load', onLoadd, false);
var YRatio=0.75;
var nPointsPerFrame = 10;//This value determines the speed. Higher value means more speed.
var Lead_1 = [];
function onLoadd(evt)
{
drawBkg(byId('canvas'), 3.78, "0.35", "black");
}
function onDocLoaded(evt)
{
//Markings();
drawcurFrame_Lead_1.apply(this, Lead_1);
}
function drawBkg(canvasElem, squareSize, minorLineWidthStr, lineColStr)
{
var nLinesDone = 0;
var i, curX, curY;
var ctx = canvasElem.getContext('2d');
ctx.clearRect(0,0,canvasElem.width,canvasElem.height);
// draw the vertical lines
curX=0;
ctx.strokeStyle = lineColStr;
while (curX < canvasElem.width)
{
ctx.lineWidth = minorLineWidthStr;
ctx.beginPath();
ctx.moveTo(curX, 0);
ctx.lineTo(curX, canvasElem.height);
ctx.stroke();
curX += squareSize;
nLinesDone++;
}
// draw the horizontal lines
curY=0;
nLinesDone = 0;
while (curY < canvasElem.height)
{
ctx.lineWidth = minorLineWidthStr;
ctx.beginPath();
ctx.moveTo(0, curY);
ctx.lineTo(canvasElem.width, curY);
ctx.stroke();
curY += squareSize;
nLinesDone++;
}
}
//FIRST GRAPH Lead_1
// position that will be treated as 0,0 when drawing our points.
var originX_Lead_1=46;
var originY_Lead_1=16;
function Draw_Lead_1(nSamplesToDraw, firstSample, lineWidthStr, lineColourStr)
{
var can = byId('canvas');
var ctx = can.getContext('2d');
ctx.strokeStyle = lineColourStr;
ctx.lineWidth = lineWidthStr;
console.log(firstSample);
ctx.beginPath();
ctx.moveTo( originX_Lead_1+(firstSample*0.377), originY_Lead_1+(Lead_1[firstSample-1]*YRatio) );
for (i=0; i<nSamplesToDraw; i++)
{
var curSample = Lead_1[i + firstSample];// calculate y coordinate
ctx.lineTo( originX_Lead_1+((firstSample+i)*0.377), originY_Lead_1+(curSample*YRatio) );
}
ctx.stroke();
}
var curFrame_Lead_1=0;//Starts with frame 0.
function drawcurFrame_Lead_1()
{
Draw_Lead_1(nPointsPerFrame, nPointsPerFrame*curFrame_Lead_1, "0.75", "blue");//Calling function to draw the graph
curFrame_Lead_1+=1;//Frame is incremented one by 1.
requestAnimationFrame( drawcurFrame_Lead_1 );
}
</script>
</head>
<body>
<div id='txt'></div>
<canvas id="canvas" width="1250" height="800"></canvas>
<button onclick="onDocLoaded()">Click Me</button>
</body>
</html>
Lead_1 = [69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,20,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,69,72,72,72,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,72,72,72,72,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,71,71,71,70,69,69,68,67,67,67,67,68,68,69,69,70,71,72,72,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,72,72,73,73,73,73,73,72,72,73,76,79,81,80,75,67,55,44,36,34,38,46,57,67,74,77,77,76,74,73,72,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,74,74,74,74,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,74,73,73,72,71,70,69,68,68,67,66,66,65,64,63,63,62,61,61,61,61,61,61,61,61,61,62,62,63,64,64,65,66,67,68,69,70,71,71,72,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,74,74,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,72,72,72,73,73,74,74,73,73,72,72,72,72,73,73,73,72,72,72,72,72,73,73,73,72,72,72,72,73,73,72,72,72,71,70,69,69,69,68,67,67,67,67,67,67,68,69,69,70,71,71,72,73,73,73,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,73,75,78,80,78,72,62,51,40,34,33,39,49,59,69,75,77,77,75,73,72,72,72,72,73,73,73,72,72,72,73,73,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,71,71,71,70,70,69,68,67,66,65,64,64,64,63,63,62,61,61,60,60,60,60,60,60,60,61,61,62,62,63,64,65,66,67,67,68,69,70,71,71,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,73,73,73,73,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,73,73,73,73,73,73,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,71,70,70,69,69,68,68,67,67,66,66,66,67,67,68,69,70,71,71,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,74,76,79,80,77,70,60,49,39,33,33,40,50,61,70,75,77,76,75,73,72,72,72,73,73,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,73,72,72,71,70,69,69,68,67,66,65,64,64,63,62,62,61,60,60,60,60,61,61,61,61,61,61,62,62,63,64,65,66,67,68,69,69,70,71,72,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,72,73,73,73,73,73,73,72,72,72,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,72,72,72,72,72,73,73,73,73,72,72,72,72,73,73,73,72,72,71,70,70,69,68,68,67,67,67,67,67,67,68,68,69,69,70,70,71,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,73,73,73,73,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,73,74,77,79,79,76,68,57,45,36,33,36,44,54,64,72,76,77,76,75,73,72,72,72,73,73,73,73,73,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,72,73,73,73,72,72,71,70,69,68,68,67,66,65,64,63,62,62,62,61,61,61,60,60,61,61,61,61,62,62,63,63,64,64,65,66,67,68,69,69,70,71,72,72,72,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,72,72,72,72,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,72,72,73,73,73,73,73,73,72,72,72,72,73,73,72,72,72,72,72,73,73,73,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,71,70,69,68,68,67,67,67,66,66,67,67,68,69,70,70,71,71,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,73,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,71,72,74,77,79,78,74,66,55,44,36,33,36,44,55,65,72,76,77,76,74,73,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,71,71,71,70,70,69,68,67,66,65,64,64,63,63,62,61,61,60,60,60,60,60,60,60,61,61,62,62,63,63,64,65,66,67,67,68,69,70,71,72,73,73,72,72,72,72,72,72,73,73,73,73,72,72,72,73,73,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,73,73,72,72,72,72,72,73,73,73,73,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,71,70,70,69,68,68,67,67,67,67,67,67,68,68,69,70,70,71,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,72,73,72,72,72,72,73,76,79,80,79,73,64,52,41,34,34,39,49,59,69,75,77,77,76,74,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,73,74,74,73,73,73,73,73,73,74,74,74,74,74,74,74,74,73,72,71,70,69,68,68,67,67,66,65,64,64,64,63,63,63,62,62,62,62,63,63,63,63,64,64,65,66,66,67,68,69,71,72,72,73,74,75,75,75,76,76,76,74,72,70,70,69,69];

It is because you are calling drawcurFrame_Lead_1 in requestAnimationFrame. You have to put condition to finish the execution of program in drawcurFrame_Lead_1
Update
var flag= 0;
function drawcurFrame_Lead_1()
{
if(flag ==0)
{
Draw_Lead_1(nPointsPerFrame, nPointsPerFrame*curFrame_Lead_1, "0.75", "blue");//Calling function to draw the graph
curFrame_Lead_1+=1;//Frame is incremented one by 1.
requestAnimationFrame( drawcurFrame_Lead_1 );
}
}
I have declared a variable flag = 0;
Now what you can do is set flag to 1 whenever your program is finished

Drawing in canvas becomes slower and slower when it draws more stuff during loop

I am trying to incrementally draw 3 lines which are 120 degrees from each other from a point using html5 canvas. The vertex of each lines will become another 3 new center point and spawns another 3 lines at each center and it repeats this..
My problem is, the incremental speed becomes slower and slower (or the drawing becomes slower) as more items are drawn. (maybe something happens in my code but I am not quite familiar how canvas exactly works...). You can copy the code and run it in your local browser to see what I means.
Please see my code (it is very easy to understand) and tell me what causes this.
<!DOCTYPE HTML>
<html>
<head>
<style>
body {
margin: 0px;
padding: 0px;
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<canvas id="canvas" ></canvas>
<script>
window.requestAnimFrame = (function(callback) {
return window.requestAnimationFrame || window.webkitRequestAnimationFrame || window.mozRequestAnimationFrame || window.oRequestAnimationFrame || window.msRequestAnimationFrame ||
function(callback) {
window.setTimeout(callback, 1000 / 60);
};
})();
var canvas=document.getElementById("canvas");
var ctx=canvas.getContext("2d");
canvas.width= window.innerWidth;
canvas.height= window.innerHeight;
// some staring test values
var centerPt={x:canvas.width/2,y:canvas.height/2};
var radius=100;
var angle=0;
// calculate the 3 endpoints at 120 degree separations
var endPt000=anglePoint(centerPt,90);
var endPt120=anglePoint(centerPt,210);
var endPt240=anglePoint(centerPt,330);
var length = 0;
var maxLength = 100;
var centreSet = new Array();
centreSet = getCentres();
var counter = 0;
var end = centreSet.length;
init();
function init() {
start(centreSet[0].x, centreSet[0].y);
}
function start(myX, myY) {
centerPt.x = myX;
centerPt.y = myY;
animate(centerPt, length);
}
function animate(centerPt,length) {
// update
// clear
ctx.clearRect(0, 0, canvas.width, canvas.height);
// draw stuff
draw(centerPt,length);
length = length + 1;
// request new frame
if(length < maxLength){
requestAnimFrame(function() {
animate(centerPt,length);
});
}
else{
if(counter < end){
counter = counter + 1;
centerPt.x = centreSet[counter].x;
centerPt.y = centreSet[counter].y;
endPt000=anglePoint(centerPt,90);
endPt120=anglePoint(centerPt,210);
endPt240=anglePoint(centerPt,330);
length = 0;
setTimeout(function(){animate(centerPt, length);},600);
}
}
}
// draw a red center dot
// draw 3 blue endpoint dots
// draw 3 lines from center going slider% of the way to the endpoints
function draw(centerPt,sliderValue){
var pct=sliderValue;
ctx.clearRect(0,0,canvas.width,canvas.height);
line(centerPt,pointAtPercent(centerPt,endPt000,pct),"green");
line(centerPt,pointAtPercent(centerPt,endPt120,pct),"green");
line(centerPt,pointAtPercent(centerPt,endPt240,pct),"green");
}
// calc XY at the specified angle off the centerpoint
function anglePoint(centerPt,degrees){
var x=centerPt.x-radius*Math.cos( degrees*Math.PI/180 );
var y=centerPt.y-radius*Math.sin( degrees*Math.PI/180 );
return({x:x,y:y});
}
// just draw a line from point1 to point2
function line(pt1,pt2,color){
// ctx.beginPath();
ctx.moveTo(pt1.x,pt1.y);
ctx.lineTo(pt2.x,pt2.y);
ctx.strokeStyle=color;
ctx.lineWidth=2;
ctx.stroke();
}
// calc XY which is a specified percent distance from pt1 to pt2
function pointAtPercent(pt1,pt2,sliderValue) {
// calculate XY at slider% towards pt2
var x = pt1.x + (pt2.x-pt1.x) * sliderValue/100;
var y = pt1.y + (pt2.y-pt1.y) * sliderValue/100;
return({x:x,y:y});
}
//the following are used to get all the center points...
function getCentres() {
var x = window.innerWidth/2;
var y = window.innerHeight/2;
centreSet[0] = centerPt;
var ref = 0;
var end = 0;
var b = true;
var tempCenter = centerPt;
for(var j = 0; j < 5; j++){
tempCenter = centreSet[ref];
end = end + 1;
centreSet[end] = anglePoint(tempCenter,90);
end = end + 1;
centreSet[end] = anglePoint(tempCenter,210);
end = end + 1;
centreSet[end] = anglePoint(tempCenter,330);
ref = ref+1;
}
return centreSet;
}
</script>
</body>
</html>

The problem is you are appending and appending the path. This means that each time you call stroke() the new line together with all the old lines are stroked. You won't see this clearly as the old lines are drawn on top in the same location. And as more and more lines are added the more time it takes to stroke them..
To prevent this you need to break the path. Do this with beginPath().
If you activate your out-commented line it should work fine:
function line(pt1,pt2,color){
ctx.beginPath(); //<-- activate this
ctx.moveTo(pt1.x,pt1.y);
ctx.lineTo(pt2.x,pt2.y);
ctx.strokeStyle=color;
ctx.lineWidth=2;
ctx.stroke();
}

HTML5 canvas continuously stroking lines

I want to draw some continuously growing lines in HTML5 and Javascript. Here is what I want to do:
A point located at the center of my screen will have 3 lines growing (120 degree to each other) to a certain length, say 50 pix, then each of this 3 vertex will become a new center and have another 3 lines.
(I couldnt post images due to low reputation I have, hopefully you know what I mean abt the image here...)
I already written the function to have a array of all the points I need as the centers, starting from the center of my screen. I am thinking to write a loop over this array to draw the lines. I DO NOT want to directly use the stroke so that the line just appears on the screen. I want to have something like the the lines are drawn bit by bit (bad english here, please excuse my english) until it reaches the pre-defined length. However my code dont work quite well here, it only displays all the center points and only the last center point has the movement to have the 3 lines to grow...
I need to know the correct way to do this... many thanks in advance!
(please ignore the variable time or startTime in my code... )
<script>
window.requestAnimFrame = (function(callback) {
return window.requestAnimationFrame || window.webkitRequestAnimationFrame || window.mozRequestAnimationFrame || window.oRequestAnimationFrame || window.msRequestAnimationFrame ||
function(callback) {
window.setTimeout(callback, 1000 / 60);
};
})();
var canvas = document.getElementById('myCanvas');
canvas.width= window.innerWidth;
canvas.height= window.innerHeight;
var context = canvas.getContext('2d');
var totalLength = 50;
var centreSet = new Array();
var counter = 0;
var centre = {
x: canvas.width / 2,
y: canvas.height / 2,
};
var myLine = {
length : 0,
color : 'grey',
lineWidth : 0.5,
};
function drawLine(centre, context, mylength) {
context.beginPath();
context.moveTo(centre.x, centre.y);
context.lineTo(centre.x, centre.y - mylength);
context.moveTo(centre.x, centre.y);
context.lineTo(centre.x - 0.866 * mylength, centre.y + mylength/2);
context.moveTo(centre.x, centre.y);
context.lineTo(centre.x + 0.866 * mylength, centre.y + mylength/2);
context.lineWidth = myLine.lineWidth;
context.strokeStyle = myLine.color;
context.closePath();
context.stroke();
}
function startAnimate(centre, canvas, context, startTime, mylength) {
// update
var time = (new Date()).getTime() - startTime;
var linearSpeed = 5;
// pixels / second
var newX = linearSpeed / 10;
if(mylength < totalLength) {
mylength = mylength + newX;
// clear
//context.clearRect(0, 0, canvas.width, canvas.height);
drawLine(centre, context, mylength);
// request new frame
requestAnimFrame(function() {
startAnimate(centre, canvas, context, startTime, mylength);
});
}
}
function animate(centre, canvas, context, startTime){
//create array to have all the center points
centreSet = getCentres();
for (var i = 0; i < centreSet.length; i++){
//pass the x and y values in a object for each center we have in the array
centre.x = str2x(centreSet[i]);
centre.y = str2y(centreSet[i]);
startAnimate(centre, canvas, context, startTime, 0);
}
}
setTimeout(function() {
var startTime = (new Date()).getTime();
animate(centre, canvas, context, startTime);
}, 1000);
I just edited your code, I added the following part:
var length = 0;
for(var i = 0; i < 380; i++){
window.setTimeout(function() {drawFrame(length);},16.67);
length = length + 0.25;
}
I expect the screen appears to draw the incremental lines bit by bit until it reaches the length I want. However, it seems like the whole incremental process is not shown and it only shows the finished drawing.
Can anyone tell me why?

Regarding your followup question about why your animation loop fails
By putting your setTimeout in a for-loop, each new setTimeout is cancelling the previous setTimeout.
So you’re just left with the very last setTimeout running to completion.
In an animation loop, you typically do 3 things during each "frame":
Change some data to reflect how the new frame is different from the previous frame.
Draw the frame.
Test if the animation is complete. If not, do another frame (go to #1).
The setTimeout function is used to do the last part of #3 (do another frame)
So setTimeout is really acting as your animation loop. --- Your for-loop is not needed.
This is how you would restructure your code to follow this pattern:
var length=0;
var maxLength=50;
function draw(){
// make the line .25 longer
length=length+.25;
// draw
drawFrame(length);
// test if the line is fully extended
// if not, call setTimeout again
// setTimeout(draw,100) will call this same draw() function in 100ms
if(length<maxLength){
setTimeout(draw,100);
}
}

[Edited: to include spawning of child objects after lines reach terminal distance]
In your code you were not spawning new center points when the lines reached their maximum extension.
I would suggest that each of your centre objects have at least this much information in order to spawn a new set of centre objects when their lines reach terminal length:
var newCentrePoint={
x:x,
y:y,
maxLength:newMaxLength,
growLength:growLength,
currentLength:0,
isActive:true
}
The x,y are the centerpoint’s coordinates.
maxLength is the maximum extension of the 3 lines before they are terminated.
growLength is the amount by which each line will grow in each new frame.
currentLength is the current length of the line.
isActive is a flag indicating if this point is growing lines (true) or if it’s terminated (false)
Then when each line reaches terminal length you can spawn a new set of lines like this:
// spawns 3 new centre points – default values are for testing
function spawn(point,newMaxLength,newColor,growLength,newLineWidth){
var max=newMaxLength||point.maxLength/2;
var color=newColor|| (colors[++colorIndex%(colors.length)]);
var grow=growLength||point.growLength/2;
var lw=newLineWidth||point.lineWidth-1;
// new center points are spawned at the termination points of the 3 current lines
newPoint((point.x),(point.y-point.maxLength),max,color,grow,lw);
newPoint((point.x-0.866*point.maxLength),(point.y+point.maxLength/2),max,color,grow,lw);
newPoint((point.x+0.866*point.maxLength),(point.y+point.maxLength/2),max,color,grow,lw);
}
// creates a new point object and puts in the centreSet array for processing
function newPoint(x,y,newMaxLength,newColor,growLength,newLineWidth){
var newPt={
x:x,
y:y,
maxLength:newMaxLength,
color:newColor,
lineWidth:newLineWidth,
growLength:growLength,
currentLength:0,
isActive:true
}
centreSet.push(newPt);
}
Here is code and a Fiddle: http://jsfiddle.net/m1erickson/Vc8Gf/
<!doctype html>
<html>
<head>
<link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" media="all" href="css/reset.css" /> <!-- reset css -->
<script type="text/javascript" src="http://code.jquery.com/jquery.min.js"></script>
<style>
body{ background-color: ivory; }
canvas{border:1px solid red;}
</style>
<script>
$(function(){
var canvas=document.getElementById("canvas");
var context = canvas.getContext('2d');
// colors
var colors=["red","blue","gold","purple","green"];
var colorIndex=0;
//
var centreSet=[]
var generations=1;
// seed point
newPoint(canvas.width/2,canvas.height/2,100,"red",15);
// start
draw();
//
function draw(){
//
context.clearRect(0,0,canvas.width,canvas.height);
//
for(var i=0;i<centreSet.length;i++){
//
var centre=centreSet[i];
//
if(centre.isActive){
//
centre.currentLength+=centre.growLength;
//
if(centre.currentLength>=centre.maxLength){
centre.isActive=false;
centre.currentLength=centre.maxLength;
spawn(centre);
}
}
//
drawLines(centre);
}
//
if(generations<120){
setTimeout(draw,500);
}else{
context.font="18pt Verdana";
context.fillText("Finished 120 generations",40,350);
}
}
function spawn(point,newMaxLength,newColor,growLength,newLineWidth){
var max=newMaxLength||point.maxLength/2;
var color=newColor|| (colors[++colorIndex%(colors.length)]);
var grow=growLength||point.growLength/2;
var lw=newLineWidth||point.lineWidth-1;
newPoint((point.x),(point.y-point.maxLength),max,color,grow,lw);
newPoint((point.x-0.866*point.maxLength),(point.y+point.maxLength/2),max,color,grow,lw);
newPoint((point.x+0.866*point.maxLength),(point.y+point.maxLength/2),max,color,grow,lw);
generations++;
}
function newPoint(x,y,newMaxLength,newColor,growLength,newLineWidth){
var newPt={
x:x,
y:y,
maxLength:newMaxLength,
color:newColor,
lineWidth:newLineWidth,
growLength:growLength,
currentLength:0,
isActive:true
}
centreSet.push(newPt);
}
function drawLines(centre) {
var length=centre.currentLength;
//
context.beginPath();
context.moveTo(centre.x, centre.y);
context.lineTo(centre.x, centre.y - length);
//
context.moveTo(centre.x, centre.y);
context.lineTo(centre.x - 0.866 * length, centre.y + length/2);
//
context.moveTo(centre.x, centre.y);
context.lineTo(centre.x + 0.866 * length, centre.y + length/2);
//
context.strokeStyle=centre.color;
context.lineWidth = centre.lineWidth;
context.stroke();
}
}); // end $(function(){});
</script>
</head>
<body>
<canvas id="canvas" width=400 height=400></canvas>
</body>
</html>