8-Puzzle Solver

This project is an implementation of an 8-puzzle solver in C. It offers two different approaches to solve random 8-puzzle configurations:

1. Brute Force Approach: A simple, exhaustive method that explores all possible moves until the solution is found.
2. Heuristic Approach: An optimized method that utilizes heuristics to solve the puzzle more efficiently.

Table of Contents

• Introduction
• Getting Started
• Brute Force Approach
• Heuristic Approach
• Usage
• Contributing
• License

Introduction

The 8-puzzle is a classic problem in computer science and artificial intelligence, where the goal is to move tiles on a 3x3 grid to achieve a desired end configuration. This repository contains an 8-puzzle solver that offers two approaches for solving the puzzle: a brute force search and a heuristic-based search.

Getting Started

Prerequisites

To compile and run this project, you need:

• A C compiler (e.g., gcc)

Installation

Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/rom618/8-puzzle.git
cd 8-puzzle

Build the project:

gcc -o 8_puzzle *.c

Or use the appropriate script for Windows or Linux.

Brute Force Approach

The brute force method explores all possible moves from a given configuration to find a solution. This approach is straightforward but may not be efficient for puzzles that are far from the solution.

• Exhaustive search of all possible configurations
• Guaranteed to find a solution (if one exists)

Heuristic Approach

The heuristic approach uses intelligent algorithms, such as A* (A-star) search, combined with heuristics like the Manhattan Distance or Misplaced Tiles to solve the puzzle more efficiently.

• Optimized search using heuristics
• Faster solution finding for complex puzzles
• Supports multiple heuristics

Usage

To solve a random 8-puzzle using brute force:

./8-puzzle --mode brute-force

To solve a random 8-puzzle using heuristics:

./8-puzzle --mode heuristic --heuristic manhattan

Available heuristics:

• manhattan: Uses the Manhattan Distance heuristic.
• misplaced: Uses the Misplaced Tiles heuristic.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome! Please fork the repository and submit a pull request for any improvements or new features.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License. See the LICENSE file for details.