Re:Intro to Genetic Algorithms in Javascript Part 2
by Swizec on Saturday September 15, 2012 @05:38PM
(#4527384)
Fair point.
I once used genetic algorithms for path planning where A* would do. While it was fun to implement, the scoring was based on "goodness of path found in time X" ... I didn't get a very high score on that homework.
On the other hand, I got a surprisingly high score for what was essentially "random guessing until you run out of time".
The knapsack problem does have an excellent dynamic programming solution. And of course, where there's a simpler algorithm, you should use it.
This article isn't about the knapsack problem; it's about learning GAs. The knapsack problem is just an easy-to-visualize and easy-to-implement problem to solve in order to demonstrate features of genetic algorithms.