Introduction: Products of the Desktop Fractal Design System

This chapter discusses the products of the desktop fractal design system. The key educational purpose of the desktop fractal design system is to teach the relationship between IFS Codes and the fractals that they produce. The system processes and outputs IFS Codes. An IFS Code is a small table of numbers. The user interacts with IFS codes by direct modification of the corresponding fractal image. The aim is to teach the user how the image on the screen relates to the IFS Code that produces it and how the IFS code is controlled by affine transformations. The student learns how an IFS Code defines an image of endless detail. It is found that when the fractal is altered, the IFS Code changes and when the IFS Code is changed, the fractal alters. These ideas are fundamental. The Chaos Game Algorithm is used as the basic means for the translation of an IFS Code into an image. Direct interactive control of affine transformations is the basic means of conversion from a fractal image into an IFS Code.