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  • Framework to implement an in game gui editor

    - by momboco
    I need to do an in game gui editor. The game engine has his own widgets elements and I don't want a gui library that substitute it. The most difficult task is the implementation of the functionality that makes usable to artists and designers. Positioning Resize Alignment between some elements Multiselection Relationship between children and parents Add guides Magnet to place elements quickly Use of layers Undo / Redo ... I'm searching a framework or something like, with these functionalities implemented. And a form of append my own engine to make use of it. It would be ideally a mixing between a tool like Photoshop and libRocket ( engine rendering independent ).

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  • android game: how to approach mutliplayer

    - by willmer
    I'm making a single player game that is near completion, and I am already starting to think about giving the game multiplayer. The multiplayer would basically be finding someone to play against, likely in a waiting room or just have a match-making function, and then having a pokemon style battle between the people in real time. I think it would be relatively simple as I'm just sending information about each attack(move chosen and damage) and what it did back and forth, but I'm not sure what resources to consult for this. I am very new to Android/Java development and really just learning as I go. I have heard a bit about Skiller, but I'm still unfamiliar with using other SDK's and how easy it may be. Does anyone have any suggestions as to what SDK's or methods for accomplishing this. I currently have no money to spend on software development, but I'd like to get started on learning how to do this.

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  • Protecting the integrity of a game state while minimizing amount of data sent

    - by espais
    I'm developing a game in PHP/jQuery, and naturally have to be wary of any sort of data coming from the client. At present, I have tables of data representing the map (2D roguelike), monsters, items, and player(s). Initially, my thought was to simply package it all in a JSON object and send it every game tick, however when actually looking at the data I realized that's quite a large packet to be sending. So, my question is what is a good approach for minimizing data sent to the client? Obviously I would need to figure out some way of validating whatever it sends back. Initially we'd hoped to do some minimal verification on the client-side, but each time we thought of one thing we could do it is immediately invalidated with tools like Firebug. Kind of an open question I realize, but we want to get this right before we move on with our implementation so we don't have to shoehorn in bugfixes later on.

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  • Code for Controlling the Bike in a bike game

    - by user1489257
    I'm new(ish) to Actionscript 3 and I was wondering what the code what would be like for controlling the bike in a game. I have a two main questions: Is Box2D the best physics engine to go with for this type of game? How would the animation of the bike work. Would I have to create a bike animation of the wheels moving and make it start and stop when the key to go forward is pressed. How would I go about it slowly stopping when the key to go forward is released? Thanks.

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  • How to begin serious game development (in C++) [closed]

    - by Rondogiannis Aristophanes
    I would like to start developing games. I have tried before Game Maker 8, which was a very easy way to start creating games, if you were new in game development. Then, I tried Unity 3D, which was a much more serious and complete tool to create computer-games, and required some experience. And now, I would like to start creating games, and don't use any special environment or developer, but just code (in C++ preferably). So, here is my question: from where should I begin, if I would like to start programming games? Thanks in advance. Note: I work in ubuntu 10.04, I can also use windows 7, but I prefer ubuntu.

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  • How to draw a map for the game?

    - by user36689
    I wanted to make a small game, it will be about space. But I had a couple of questions, how to draw a map for the game? I would like to have lots of planets, possible consolidation of the system (as the solar system) But how to draw these planets? Is it really necessary to draw them by hand? I plan to give the names of the planets, but maybe I will not do what is best to do? Prompt Council Help me, please) I'm sorry if that is not the case)) Thanks in advance!

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  • Android / IPhone / Desktop C++ Game Template

    - by OriginalDaemon
    I was wondering if anyone has come across any articles detailing how to set up a basic game in C++ for use in Android / IPhone / Desktop applications. My thoughts just now are that I would like to make my game as a library and have a different project for each device which just interfaces with this library. You know the kind of thing, bootstrap the program, call some library initialize, load and run routines and occasionally pass some information to the library like input. I was hoping someone would have made a template for this kind of thing but I just had no luck finding one. It seems to me that it's the kind of thing you really only have to do once, so I was hoping someone would have done it for me already.

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  • Separate parts of a game engine [on hold]

    - by user272716
    I'm pretty new in developing videogames. By now I only used SDL with C/C++ to create games. I'm currently learning OpenGL and I realized that to be fluid and easy to maintain the code must be logically separated. Since I want to use OpenGLES on iOS and Android I was wondering how the engine must be imagined in a technical way, some questions came up: Do I have to separate input/update functions from draw functions in different threads? Is there only one proper way to think a game engine/loop? What kind of assets should I use to create a 3D game using openGl ES to get better performance?

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  • Runge-Kutta (RK4) integration for game physics

    - by Kai
    Gaffer on Games has a great article about using RK4 integration for better game physics. The implementation is straightforward but the math behind it confuses me. I understand derivatives and integrals on a conceptual level but I haven't manipulated equations in a long time. Here's the brunt of Gaffer's implementation: void integrate(State &state, float t, float dt) { Derivative a = evaluate(state, t, 0.0f, Derivative()); Derivative b = evaluate(state, t+dt*0.5f, dt*0.5f, a); Derivative c = evaluate(state, t+dt*0.5f, dt*0.5f, b); Derivative d = evaluate(state, t+dt, dt, c); const float dxdt = 1.0f/6.0f * (a.dx + 2.0f*(b.dx + c.dx) + d.dx); const float dvdt = 1.0f/6.0f * (a.dv + 2.0f*(b.dv + c.dv) + d.dv) state.x = state.x + dxdt * dt; state.v = state.v + dvdt * dt; } Can anybody explain in simple terms how RK4 works? Specifically, why are we averaging the derivatives at 0.0f, 0.5f, 0.5f, and 1.0f? How is averaging derivatives up to the 4th order different from doing a simple euler integration with a smaller timestep? After reading the accepted answer below, and several other articles, I have a grasp on how RK4 works. To answer my own questions: Can anybody explain in simple terms how RK4 works? RK4 takes advantage of the fact that we can get a much better approximation of a function if we use its higher-order derivatives rather than just the first or second derivative. That's why the Taylor series converges much faster than Euler approximations. (take a look at the animation on the right side of that page) Specifically, why are we averaging the derivatives at 0.0f, 0.5f, 0.5f, and 1.0f? The Runge-Kutta method is an approximation of a function that samples derivatives of several points within a timestep, unlike the Taylor series which only samples derivatives of a single point. After sampling these derivatives we need to know how to weigh each sample to get the closest approximation possible. An easy way to do this is to pick constants that coincide with the Taylor series, which is how the constants of a Runge-Kutta equation are determined. This article made it clearer for me: http://web.mit.edu/10.001/Web/Course%5FNotes/Differential%5FEquations%5FNotes/node5.html. Notice how (15) is the Taylor series expansion while (17) is the Runge-Kutta derivation. How is averaging derivatives up to the 4th order different from doing a simple euler integration with a smaller timestep? Mathematically it converges much faster than doing many Euler approximations. Of course, with enough Euler approximations we can gain equal accuracy to RK4, but the computational power needed doesn't justify using Euler.

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  • How repair/uninstall Visual Web Developer 2010 Beta 2?

    - by Sprinter
    I cannot uninstall Visual Web Developer 2010 Beta 2. When I was trying to uninstall the first time, the power went off to my machine and screwed up the Beta 2 installation. I cannot find a Visual Web Developer 2010 Beta 2 download on the Microsoft website any longer to repair the Beta 2 installation. How can I get VWD 2010 Beta 2 off of my system so I can install the new release?

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  • linux nooB: Installing ffmpeg + dependencies on aws linux ami (repo issues)

    - by HdN8
    Im installing ffmpeg to run on an amazon linux ami, and have added the rpmforge repo and the dag repo. Here are some guidelines I'm using for reference: TWoZaO and Razuna The rpmforge repo has ffmpeg, but if you try to install it then it will complain that is missing dependencies (for me libSDL-1.2.so.0()(64bit)). Regardless I will install ffmpeg from svn so I can be sure to enable the options I want (namely libx264). It seems strange to me though that SDL is not in rpmforge or dag, and in according to both of my references above, it should be there. I tried to grab it manually from here, but it needs these dependencies, so no-go: error: Failed dependencies: SDL = 1.2.10-8.el5 is needed by SDL-devel-1.2.10-8.el5.x86_64 alsa-lib-devel is needed by SDL-devel-1.2.10-8.el5.x86_64 libGL-devel is needed by SDL-devel-1.2.10-8.el5.x86_64 libGLU-devel is needed by SDL-devel-1.2.10-8.el5.x86_64 libSDL-1.2.so.0()(64bit) is needed by SDL-devel-1.2.10-8.el5.x86_64 libX11-devel is needed by SDL-devel-1.2.10-8.el5.x86_64 libXext-devel is needed by SDL-devel-1.2.10-8.el5.x86_64 libXrandr-devel is needed by SDL-devel-1.2.10-8.el5.x86_64 libXrender-devel is needed by SDL-devel-1.2.10-8.el5.x86_64 libXt-devel is needed by SDL-devel-1.2.10-8.el5.x86_64 Any advice for a linux nooB lost in a mess of repos and dependency errors?

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  • physics game programming box2d - orientating a turret-like object using torques

    - by egarcia
    This is a problem I hit when trying to implement a game using the LÖVE engine, which covers box2d with Lua scripting. The objective is simple: A turret-like object (seen from the top, on a 2D environment) needs to orientate itself so it points to a target. The turret is on the x,y coordinates, and the target is on tx, ty. We can consider that x,y are fixed, but tx, ty tend to vary from one instant to the other (i.e. they would be the mouse cursor). The turret has a rotor that can apply a rotational force (torque) on any given moment, clockwise or counter-clockwise. The magnitude of that force has an upper limit called maxTorque. The turret also has certain rotational inertia, which acts for angular movement the same way mass acts for linear movement. There's no friction of any kind, so the turret will keep spinning if it has an angular velocity. The turret has a small AI function that re-evaluates its orientation to verify that it points to the right direction, and activates the rotator. This happens every dt (~60 times per second). It looks like this right now: function Turret:update(dt) local x,y = self:getPositon() local tx,ty = self:getTarget() local maxTorque = self:getMaxTorque() -- max force of the turret rotor local inertia = self:getInertia() -- the rotational inertia local w = self:getAngularVelocity() -- current angular velocity of the turret local angle = self:getAngle() -- the angle the turret is facing currently -- the angle of the like that links the turret center with the target local targetAngle = math.atan2(oy-y,ox-x) local differenceAngle = _normalizeAngle(targetAngle - angle) if(differenceAngle <= math.pi) then -- counter-clockwise is the shortest path self:applyTorque(maxTorque) else -- clockwise is the shortest path self:applyTorque(-maxTorque) end end ... it fails. Let me explain with two illustrative situations: The turret "oscillates" around the targetAngle. If the target is "right behind the turret, just a little clock-wise", the turret will start applying clockwise torques, and keep applying them until the instant in which it surpasses the target angle. At that moment it will start applying torques on the opposite direction. But it will have gained a significant angular velocity, so it will keep going clockwise for some time... until the target will be "just behind, but a bit counter-clockwise". And it will start again. So the turret will oscillate or even go in round circles. I think that my turret should start applying torques in the "opposite direction of the shortest path" before it reaches the target angle (like a car braking before stopping). Intuitively, I think the turret should "start applying torques on the opposite direction of the shortest path when it is about half-way to the target objective". My intuition tells me that it has something to do with the angular velocity. And then there's the fact that the target is mobile - I don't know if I should take that into account somehow or just ignore it. How do I calculate when the turret must "start braking"?

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  • Moving a unit precisely along a path in x,y coordinates

    - by Adam Eberbach
    I am playing around with a strategy game where squads move around a map. Each turn a certain amount of movement is allocated to a squad and if the squad has a destination the points are applied each turn until the destination is reached. Actual distance is used so if a squad moves one position in the x or y direction it uses one point, but moving diagonally takes ~1.4 points. The squad maintains actual position as float which is then rounded to allow drawing the position on the map. The path is described by touching the squad and dragging to the end position then lifting the pen or finger. (I'm doing this on an iPhone now but Android/Qt/Windows Mobile would work the same) As the pointer moves x, y points are recorded so that the squad gains a list of intermediate destinations on the way to the final destination. I'm finding that the destinations are not evenly spaced but can be further apart depending on the speed of the pointer movement. Following the path is important because obstacles or terrain matter in this game. I'm not trying to remake Flight Control but that's a similar mechanic. Here's what I've been doing, but it just seems too complicated (pseudocode): getDestination() { - self.nextDestination = remove_from_array(destinations) - self.gradient = delta y to destination / delta x to destination - self.angle = atan(self.gradient) - self.cosAngle = cos(self.angle) - self.sinAngle = sin(self.angle) } move() { - get movement allocation for this turn - if self.nextDestination not valid - - getNextDestination() - while(nextDestination valid) && (movement allocation remains) { - - find xStep and yStep using movement allocation and sinAngle/cosAngle calculated for current self.nextDestination - - if current position + xStep crosses the destination - - - find x movement remaining after self.nextDestination reached - - - calculate remaining direct path movement allocation (xStep remaining / cosAngle) - - - make self.position equal to self.nextDestination - - else - - - apply xStep and yStep to current position - } - round squad's float coordinates to integer screen coordinates - draw squad image on map } That's simplified of course, stuff like sign needs to be tweaked to ensure movement is in the right direction. If trig is the best way to do it then lookup tables can be used or maybe it doesn't matter on modern devices like it used to. Suggestions for a better way to do it? an update - iPhone has zero issues with trig and tracking tens of positions and tracks implemented as described above and it draws in floats anyway. The Bresenham method is more efficient, trig is more precise. If I was to use integer Bresenham I would want to multiply by ten or so to maintain a little more positional accuracy to benefit collisions/terrain detection.

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  • Performance issues in android game

    - by user1446632
    I am making an android game, but however, the game is functioning like it should, but i am experiencing some performance issues. I think it has something to do with the sound. Cause each time i touch the screen, it makes a sound. I am using the standard MediaPlayer. The method is onTouchEvent() and onPlaySound1(). Could you please help me with an alternate solution for playing the sound? Thank you so much in advance! It would be nice if you also came up with some suggestions on how i can improve my code. Take a look at my code here: package com.mycompany.mygame; import java.util.ArrayList; import android.content.Context; import android.content.Intent; import android.graphics.Bitmap; import android.graphics.BitmapFactory; import android.graphics.Canvas; import android.graphics.Color; import android.graphics.Paint; import android.media.MediaPlayer; import android.os.Handler; import android.os.Message; import android.util.Log; import android.view.Menu; import android.view.MenuInflater; import android.view.MenuItem; import android.view.MotionEvent; import android.view.SurfaceHolder; import android.view.SurfaceView; import android.view.View; import android.webkit.WebView; import android.widget.TextView; import android.widget.Toast; public class ExampleView extends SurfaceView implements SurfaceHolder.Callback { class ExampleThread extends Thread { private ArrayList<Parachuter> parachuters; private Bitmap parachuter; private Bitmap background; private Paint black; private boolean running; private SurfaceHolder mSurfaceHolder; private Context mContext; private Context mContext1; private Handler mHandler; private Handler mHandler1; private GameScreenActivity mActivity; private long frameRate; private boolean loading; public float x; public float y; public float x1; public float y1; public MediaPlayer mp1; public MediaPlayer mp2; public int parachuterIndexToResetAndDelete; public int canvasGetWidth; public int canvasGetWidth1; public int canvasGetHeight; public int livesLeftValue; public int levelValue = 1; public int levelValue1; public int parachutersDown; public int difficultySet; public boolean isSpecialAttackAvailible; public ExampleThread(SurfaceHolder sHolder, Context context, Handler handler) { mSurfaceHolder = sHolder; mHandler = handler; mHandler1 = handler; mContext = context; mActivity = (GameScreenActivity) context; parachuters = new ArrayList<Parachuter>(); parachuter = BitmapFactory.decodeResource(getResources(), R.drawable.parachuteman); black = new Paint(); black.setStyle(Paint.Style.FILL); black.setColor(Color.GRAY); background = BitmapFactory.decodeResource(getResources(), R.drawable.gamescreenbackground); running = true; // This equates to 26 frames per second. frameRate = (long) (1000 / 26); loading = true; mp1 = MediaPlayer.create(getContext(), R.raw.bombsound); } @Override public void run() { while (running) { Canvas c = null; try { c = mSurfaceHolder.lockCanvas(); synchronized (mSurfaceHolder) { long start = System.currentTimeMillis(); doDraw(c); long diff = System.currentTimeMillis() - start; if (diff < frameRate) Thread.sleep(frameRate - diff); } } catch (InterruptedException e) { } finally { if (c != null) { mSurfaceHolder.unlockCanvasAndPost(c); } } } } protected void doDraw(Canvas canvas) { canvas.drawRect(0, 0, canvas.getWidth(), canvas.getHeight(), black); //Draw for (int i = 0; i < parachuters.size(); i++) { canvas.drawBitmap(parachuter, parachuters.get(i).getX(), parachuters.get(i).getY(), null); parachuters.get(i).tick(); } //Remove for (int i = 0; i < parachuters.size(); i++) { if (parachuters.get(i).getY() > canvas.getHeight()) { parachuters.remove(i); onPlaySound(); checkLivesLeftValue(); checkAmountOfParachuters(); } else if(parachuters.get(i).isTouched()) { parachuters.remove(i); } else{ //Do nothing } } } public void loadBackground(Canvas canvas) { //Load background canvas.drawBitmap(background, 0, 0, black); } public void checkAmountOfParachuters() { mHandler.post(new Runnable() { @Override public void run() { if(parachuters.isEmpty()) { levelValue = levelValue + 1; Toast.makeText(getContext(), "New level! " + levelValue, 15).show(); if (levelValue == 3) { drawParachutersGroup1(); drawParachutersGroup2(); drawParachutersGroup3(); drawParachutersGroup4(); } else if (levelValue == 5) { drawParachutersGroup1(); drawParachutersGroup2(); drawParachutersGroup3(); drawParachutersGroup4(); drawParachutersGroup5(); } else if (levelValue == 7) { drawParachutersGroup1(); drawParachutersGroup2(); drawParachutersGroup3(); drawParachutersGroup4(); drawParachutersGroup5(); drawParachutersGroup6(); } else if (levelValue == 9) { //Draw 7 groups of parachuters drawParachutersGroup1(); drawParachutersGroup2(); drawParachutersGroup3(); drawParachutersGroup4(); drawParachutersGroup5(); drawParachutersGroup6(); drawParachutersGroup1(); } else if (levelValue > 9) { //Draw 7 groups of parachuters drawParachutersGroup1(); drawParachutersGroup2(); drawParachutersGroup3(); drawParachutersGroup4(); drawParachutersGroup5(); drawParachutersGroup6(); drawParachutersGroup1(); } else { //Draw normal 3 groups of parachuters drawParachutersGroup1(); drawParachutersGroup2(); drawParachutersGroup3(); } } else { //Do nothing } } }); } private void checkLivesLeftValue() { mHandler.post(new Runnable() { @Override public void run() { Log.d("checkLivesLeftValue", "lives = " + livesLeftValue); // TODO Auto-generated method stub if (livesLeftValue == 3) { //Message to display: "You lost! Log.d("checkLivesLeftValue", "calling onMethod now"); parachuters.removeAll(parachuters); onMethod(); } else if (livesLeftValue == 2) { Toast.makeText(getContext(), "Lives left=1", 15).show(); livesLeftValue = livesLeftValue + 1; Log.d("checkLivesLeftValue", "increased lives to " + livesLeftValue); } else if (livesLeftValue == 1) { Toast.makeText(getContext(), "Lives left=2", 15).show(); livesLeftValue = livesLeftValue + 1; Log.d("checkLivesLeftValue", "increased lives to " + livesLeftValue); } else { //Set livesLeftValueText 3 Toast.makeText(getContext(), "Lives left=3", 15).show(); livesLeftValue = livesLeftValue + 1; Log.d("checkLivesLeftValue", "increased lives to " + livesLeftValue); } } }); } public void onMethod() { mHandler.post(new Runnable() { @Override public void run() { try { Toast.makeText(getContext(), "You lost!", 15).show(); livesLeftValue = 0; //Tell the user that he lost: android.content.Context ctx = mContext; Intent i = new Intent(ctx, playerLostMessageActivity.class); i.addFlags(Intent.FLAG_ACTIVITY_NEW_TASK); i.putExtra("KEY","You got to level " + levelValue + " And you shot down " + parachutersDown + " parachuters"); i.putExtra("levelValue", levelValue); ctx.startActivity(i); System.exit(0); } catch (Exception e) { // TODO Auto-generated catch block e.printStackTrace(); //Exit activity and start playerLostMessageActivity Toast.makeText(getContext(), "You lost!", 15).show(); livesLeftValue = 0; //Tell the user that he lost: android.content.Context ctx = mContext; Intent i = new Intent(ctx, playerLostMessageActivity.class); i.addFlags(Intent.FLAG_ACTIVITY_NEW_TASK); i.putExtra("KEY","You got to level " + levelValue + " And you shot down " + parachutersDown + " parachuters"); i.putExtra("levelValue", levelValue); System.exit(0); ctx.startActivity(i); System.exit(0); } } }); } public void onPlaySound() { try { mp1.start(); } catch (Exception e) { e.printStackTrace(); mp1.release(); } } public void onDestroy() { try { parachuters.removeAll(parachuters); mp1.stop(); mp1.release(); } catch (Exception e) { e.printStackTrace(); } } public void onPlaySound1() { try { mp2 = MediaPlayer.create(getContext(), R.raw.airriflesoundeffect); mp2.start(); } catch (Exception e) { e.printStackTrace(); mp2.release(); } } public boolean onTouchEvent(MotionEvent event) { if (event.getAction() != MotionEvent.ACTION_DOWN) releaseMediaPlayer(); x1 = event.getX(); y1 = event.getY(); checkAmountOfParachuters(); removeParachuter(); return false; } public void releaseMediaPlayer() { try { mp1.release(); } catch (Exception e) { e.printStackTrace(); } } public void removeParachuter() { try { for (Parachuter p: parachuters) { if (x1 > p.getX() && x1 < p.getX() + parachuter.getWidth() && y1 > p.getY() && y1 < p.getY() + parachuter.getHeight()) { p.setTouched(true); onPlaySound1(); parachutersDown = parachutersDown + 1; p.setTouched(false); } } } catch (Exception e) { e.printStackTrace(); } } public void initiateDrawParachuters() { drawParachutersGroup1(); } public void drawParachutersGroup1() { // TODO Auto-generated method stub //Parachuter group nr. 1 //Parachuter nr. 2 x = 75; y = 77; Parachuter p1 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p1); //Parachuter nr.1 x = 14; y = 28; Parachuter p = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p); //Parachuter nr. 3 x = 250; y = 94; Parachuter p3 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p3); //Parachuter nr. 3 x = 275; y = 80; Parachuter p2 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p2); //Parachuter nr. 5 x = 280; y = 163; Parachuter p5 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p5); x = 125; y = 118; Parachuter p4 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p4); //Parachuter nr. 7 x = 126; y = 247; Parachuter p7 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p7); //Parachuter nr. 6 x = 123; y = 77; Parachuter p6 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p6); } public void drawParachutersGroup2() { // TODO Auto-generated method stub //Parachuter group nr. 2 //Parachuter nr. 5 x = 153; y = 166; Parachuter p5 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p5); x = 133; y = 123; Parachuter p4 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p4); //Parachuter nr. 7 x = 170; y = 213; Parachuter p7 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p7); //Parachuter nr. 6 x = 190; y = 121; Parachuter p6 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p6); } public void drawParachutersGroup3() { // TODO Auto-generated method stub //Parachuter group nr. 3 //Parachuter nr. 2 x = 267; y = 115; Parachuter p1 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p1); //Parachuter nr.1 x = 255; y = 183; Parachuter p = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p); //Parachuter nr. 3 x = 170; y = 280; Parachuter p3 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p3); //Parachuter nr. 3 x = 116; y = 80; Parachuter p2 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p2); //Parachuter nr. 5 x = 67; y = 112; Parachuter p5 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p5); x = 260; y = 89; Parachuter p4 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p4); //Parachuter nr. 7 x = 260; y = 113; Parachuter p7 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p7); //Parachuter nr. 6 x = 178; y = 25; Parachuter p6 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p6); } public void drawParachutersGroup4() { // TODO Auto-generated method stub //Parachuter group nr. 1 //Parachuter nr. 2 x = 75; y = 166; Parachuter p1 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p1); //Parachuter nr.1 x = 118; y = 94; Parachuter p = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p); //Parachuter nr. 3 x = 38; y = 55; Parachuter p3 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p3); //Parachuter nr. 3 x = 57; y = 18; Parachuter p2 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p2); //Parachuter nr. 5 x = 67; y = 119; Parachuter p5 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p5); x = 217; y = 113; Parachuter p4 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p4); //Parachuter nr. 7 x = 245; y = 234; Parachuter p7 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p7); //Parachuter nr. 6 x = 239; y = 44; Parachuter p6 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p6); } public void drawParachutersGroup5() { // TODO Auto-generated method stub //Parachuter group nr. 1 //Parachuter nr. 2 x = 59; y = 120; Parachuter p1 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p1); //Parachuter nr.1 x = 210; y = 169; Parachuter p = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p); //Parachuter nr. 3 x = 199; y = 138; Parachuter p3 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p3); //Parachuter nr. 3 x = 22; y = 307; Parachuter p2 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p2); //Parachuter nr. 5 x = 195; y = 22; Parachuter p5 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p5); x = 157; y = 132; Parachuter p4 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p4); //Parachuter nr. 7 x = 150; y = 183; Parachuter p7 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p7); //Parachuter nr. 6 x = 130; y = 20; Parachuter p6 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p6); } public void drawParachutersGroup6() { // TODO Auto-generated method stub //Parachuter group nr. 1 //Parachuter nr. 2 x = 10; y = 10; Parachuter p1 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p1); //Parachuter nr.1 x = 20; y = 20; Parachuter p = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p); //Parachuter nr. 3 x = 30; y = 30; Parachuter p3 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p3); //Parachuter nr. 3 x = 60; y = 60; Parachuter p2 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p2); //Parachuter nr. 5 x = 90; y = 90; Parachuter p5 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p5); x = 120; y = 120; Parachuter p4 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p4); //Parachuter nr. 7 x = 150; y = 150; Parachuter p7 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p7); //Parachuter nr. 6 x = 180; y = 180; Parachuter p6 = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p6); } public void drawParachuters() { Parachuter p = new Parachuter(x, y); parachuters.add(p); Toast.makeText(getContext(), "x=" + x + " y=" + y, 15).show(); } public void setRunning(boolean bRun) { running = bRun; } public boolean getRunning() { return running; } } /** Handle to the application context, used to e.g. fetch Drawables. */ private Context mContext; /** Pointer to the text view to display "Paused.." etc. */ private TextView mStatusText; /** The thread that actually draws the animation */ private ExampleThread eThread; public ExampleView(Context context) { super(context); // register our interest in hearing about changes to our surface SurfaceHolder holder = getHolder(); holder.addCallback(this); // create thread only; it's started in surfaceCreated() eThread = new ExampleThread(holder, context, new Handler() { @Override public void handleMessage(Message m) { // mStatusText.setVisibility(m.getData().getInt("viz")); // mStatusText.setText(m.getData().getString("text")); } }); setFocusable(true); } @Override public boolean onTouchEvent(MotionEvent event) { return eThread.onTouchEvent(event); } public ExampleThread getThread() { return eThread; } @Override public void surfaceChanged(SurfaceHolder arg0, int arg1, int arg2, int arg3) { // TODO Auto-generated method stub } public void surfaceCreated(SurfaceHolder holder) { if (eThread.getState() == Thread.State.TERMINATED) { eThread = new ExampleThread(getHolder(), getContext(), getHandler()); eThread.start(); } else { eThread.start(); } } @Override public void surfaceDestroyed(SurfaceHolder holder) { boolean retry = true; eThread.setRunning(false); while (retry) { try { eThread.join(); retry = false; } catch (InterruptedException e) { } } } }

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  • One letter game problem?

    - by Alex K
    Recently at a job interview I was given the following problem: Write a script capable of running on the command line as python It should take in two words on the command line (or optionally if you'd prefer it can query the user to supply the two words via the console). Given those two words: a. Ensure they are of equal length b. Ensure they are both words present in the dictionary of valid words in the English language that you downloaded. If so compute whether you can reach the second word from the first by a series of steps as follows a. You can change one letter at a time b. Each time you change a letter the resulting word must also exist in the dictionary c. You cannot add or remove letters If the two words are reachable, the script should print out the path which leads as a single, shortest path from one word to the other. You can /usr/share/dict/words for your dictionary of words. My solution consisted of using breadth first search to find a shortest path between two words. But apparently that wasn't good enough to get the job :( Would you guys know what I could have done wrong? Thank you so much. import collections import functools import re def time_func(func): import time def wrapper(*args, **kwargs): start = time.time() res = func(*args, **kwargs) timed = time.time() - start setattr(wrapper, 'time_taken', timed) return res functools.update_wrapper(wrapper, func) return wrapper class OneLetterGame: def __init__(self, dict_path): self.dict_path = dict_path self.words = set() def run(self, start_word, end_word): '''Runs the one letter game with the given start and end words. ''' assert len(start_word) == len(end_word), \ 'Start word and end word must of the same length.' self.read_dict(len(start_word)) path = self.shortest_path(start_word, end_word) if not path: print 'There is no path between %s and %s (took %.2f sec.)' % ( start_word, end_word, find_shortest_path.time_taken) else: print 'The shortest path (found in %.2f sec.) is:\n=> %s' % ( self.shortest_path.time_taken, ' -- '.join(path)) def _bfs(self, start): '''Implementation of breadth first search as a generator. The portion of the graph to explore is given on demand using get_neighboors. Care was taken so that a vertex / node is explored only once. ''' queue = collections.deque([(None, start)]) inqueue = set([start]) while queue: parent, node = queue.popleft() yield parent, node new = set(self.get_neighbours(node)) - inqueue inqueue = inqueue | new queue.extend([(node, child) for child in new]) @time_func def shortest_path(self, start, end): '''Returns the shortest path from start to end using bfs. ''' assert start in self.words, 'Start word not in dictionnary.' assert end in self.words, 'End word not in dictionnary.' paths = {None: []} for parent, child in self._bfs(start): paths[child] = paths[parent] + [child] if child == end: return paths[child] return None def get_neighbours(self, word): '''Gets every word one letter away from the a given word. We do not keep these words in memory because bfs accesses a given vertex only once. ''' neighbours = [] p_word = ['^' + word[0:i] + '\w' + word[i+1:] + '$' for i, w in enumerate(word)] p_word = '|'.join(p_word) for w in self.words: if w != word and re.match(p_word, w, re.I|re.U): neighbours += [w] return neighbours def read_dict(self, size): '''Loads every word of a specific size from the dictionnary into memory. ''' for l in open(self.dict_path): l = l.decode('latin-1').strip().lower() if len(l) == size: self.words.add(l) if __name__ == '__main__': import sys if len(sys.argv) not in [3, 4]: print 'Usage: python one_letter_game.py start_word end_word' else: g = OneLetterGame(dict_path = '/usr/share/dict/words') try: g.run(*sys.argv[1:]) except AssertionError, e: print e

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  • Professional Scrum Developer (.NET) Training in London

    - by Martin Hinshelwood
    On the 26th - 30th July in Microsoft’s offices in London Adam Cogan from SSW will be presenting the first Professional Scrum Developer course in the UK. I will be teaching this course along side Adam and it is a fantastic experience. You are split into teams and go head-to-head to deliver units of potentially shippable work in four two hour sprints. The Professional Scrum Developer course is the only course endorsed by both Microsoft and Ken Schwaber and they have worked together very effectively in brining this course to fruition. This course is the brain child of Richard Hundhausen, a Microsoft Regional Director, and both Adam and I attending the Trainer Prep in Sydney when he was there earlier this year. He is a fantastic trainer and no matter where you do this course you can be safe in the knowledge that he has trained and vetted all of the teachers. A tools version of Ken if you will Find a course and register Download this syllabus Download the Scrum Guide What is the Professional Scrum Developer course all about? Professional Scrum Developer course is a unique and intensive five-day experience for software developers. The course guides teams on how to turn product requirements into potentially shippable increments of software using the Scrum framework, Visual Studio 2010, and modern software engineering practices. Attendees will work in self-organizing, self-managing teams using a common instance of Team Foundation Server 2010. Who should attend this course? This course is suitable for any member of a software development team – architect, programmer, database developer, tester, etc. Entire teams are encouraged to attend and experience the course together, but individuals are welcome too. Attendees will self-organize to form cross-functional Scrum teams. These teams require an aggregate of skills specific to the selected case study. Please see the last page of this document for specific details. Product Owners, ScrumMasters, and other stakeholders are welcome too, but keep in mind that everyone who attends will be expected to commit to work and pull their weight on a Scrum team. What should you know by the end of the course? Scrum will be experienced through a combination of lecture, demonstration, discussion, and hands-on exercises. Attendees will learn how to do Scrum correctly while being coached and critiqued by the instructor, in the following topic areas: Form effective teams Explore and understand legacy “Brownfield” architecture Define quality attributes, acceptance criteria, and “done” Create automated builds How to handle software hotfixes Verify that bugs are identified and eliminated Plan releases and sprints Estimate product backlog items Create and manage a sprint backlog Hold an effective sprint review Improve your process by using retrospectives Use emergent architecture to avoid technical debt Use Test Driven Development as a design tool Setup and leverage continuous integration Use Test Impact Analysis to decrease testing times Manage SQL Server development in an Agile way Use .NET and T-SQL refactoring effectively Build, deploy, and test SQL Server databases Create and manage test plans and cases Create, run, record, and play back manual tests Setup a branching strategy and branch code Write more maintainable code Identify and eliminate people and process dysfunctions Inspect and improve your team’s software development process What does the week look like? This course is a mix of lecture, demonstration, group discussion, simulation, and hands-on software development. The bulk of the course will be spent working as a team on a case study application delivering increments of new functionality in mini-sprints. Here is the week at a glance: Monday morning and most of the day Friday will be spent with the computers powered off, so you can focus on sharpening your game of Scrum and avoiding the common pitfalls when implementing it. The Sprints Timeboxing is a critical concept in Scrum as well as in this course. We expect each team and student to understand and obey all of the timeboxes. The timebox duration will always be clearly displayed during each activity. Expect the instructor to enforce it. Each of the ½ day sprints will roughly follow this schedule: Component Description Minutes Instruction Presentation and demonstration of new and relevant tools & practices 60 Sprint planning meeting Product owner presents backlog; each team commits to delivering functionality 10 Sprint planning meeting Each team determines how to build the functionality 10 The Sprint The team self-organizes and self-manages to complete their tasks 120 Sprint Review meeting Each team will present their increment of functionality to the other teams = 30 Sprint Retrospective A group retrospective meeting will be held to inspect and adapt 10 Each team is expected to self-organize and manage their own work during the sprint. Pairing is highly encouraged. The instructor/product owner will be available if there are questions or impediments, but will be hands-off by default. You should be prepared to communicate and work with your team members in order to achieve your sprint goal. If you have development-related questions or get stuck, your partner or team should be your first level of support. Module 1: INTRODUCTION This module provides a chance for the attendees to get to know the instructors as well as each other. The Professional Scrum Developer program, as well as the day by day agenda, will be explained. Finally, the Scrum team will be selected and assembled so that the forming, storming, norming, and performing can begin. Trainer and student introductions Professional Scrum Developer program Agenda Logistics Team formation Retrospective Module 2: SCRUMDAMENTALS This module provides a level-setting understanding of the Scrum framework including the roles, timeboxes, and artifacts. The team will then experience Scrum firsthand by simulating a multi-day sprint of product development, including planning, review, and retrospective meetings. Scrum overview Scrum roles Scrum timeboxes (ceremonies) Scrum artifacts Simulation Retrospective It’s required that you read Ken Schwaber’s Scrum Guide in preparation for this module and course. MODULE 3: IMPLEMENTING SCRUM IN VISUAL STUDIO 2010 This module demonstrates how to implement Scrum in Visual Studio 2010 using a Scrum process template*. The team will learn the mapping between the Scrum concepts and how they are implemented in the tool. After connecting to the shared Team Foundation Server, the team members will then return to the simulation – this time using Visual Studio to manage their product development. Mapping Scrum to Visual Studio 2010 User Story work items Task work items Bug work items Demonstration Simulation Retrospective Module 4: THE CASE STUDY In this module the team is introduced to their problem domain for the week. A kickoff meeting by the Product Owner (the instructor) will set the stage for the why and what that will take during the upcoming sprints. The team will then define the quality attributes of the project and their definition of “done.” The legacy application code will be downloaded, built, and explored, so that any bugs can be discovered and reported. Introduction to the case study Download the source code, build, and explore the application Define the quality attributes for the project Define “done” How to file effective bugs in Visual Studio 2010 Retrospective Module 5: HOTFIX This module drops the team directly into a Brownfield (legacy) experience by forcing them to analyze the existing application’s architecture and code in order to locate and fix the Product Owner’s high-priority bug(s). The team will learn best practices around finding, testing, fixing, validating, and closing a bug. How to use Architecture Explorer to visualize and explore Create a unit test to validate the existence of a bug Find and fix the bug Validate and close the bug Retrospective Module 6: PLANNING This short module introduces the team to release and sprint planning within Visual Studio 2010. The team will define and capture their goals as well as other important planning information. Release vs. Sprint planning Release planning and the Product Backlog Product Backlog prioritization Acceptance criteria and tests Sprint planning and the Sprint Backlog Creating and linking Sprint tasks Retrospective At this point the team will have the knowledge of Scrum, Visual Studio 2010, and the case study application to begin developing increments of potentially shippable functionality that meet their definition of done. Module 7: EMERGENT ARCHITECTURE This module introduces the architectural practices and tools a team can use to develop a valid design on which to develop new functionality. The teams will learn how Scrum supports good architecture and design practices. After the discussion, the teams will be presented with the product owner’s prioritized backlog so that they may select and commit to the functionality they can deliver in this sprint. Architecture and Scrum Emergent architecture Principles, patterns, and practices Visual Studio 2010 modeling tools UML and layer diagrams SPRINT 1 Retrospective Module 8: TEST DRIVEN DEVELOPMENT This module introduces Test Driven Development as a design tool and how to implement it using Visual Studio 2010. To maximize productivity and quality, a Scrum team should setup Continuous Integration to regularly build every team member’s code changes and run regression tests. Refactoring will also be defined and demonstrated in combination with Visual Studio’s Test Impact Analysis to efficiently re-run just those tests which were impacted by refactoring. Continuous integration Team Foundation Build Test Driven Development (TDD) Refactoring Test Impact Analysis SPRINT 2 Retrospective Module 9: AGILE DATABASE DEVELOPMENT This module lets the SQL Server database developers in on a little secret – they can be agile too. By using the database projects in Visual Studio 2010, the database developers can join the rest of the team. The students will see how to apply Agile database techniques within Visual Studio to support the SQL Server 2005/2008/2008R2 development lifecycle. Agile database development Visual Studio database projects Importing schema and scripts Building and deploying Generating data Unit testing SPRINT 3 Retrospective Module 10: SHIP IT Teams need to know that just because they like the functionality doesn’t mean the Product Owner will. This module revisits acceptance criteria as it pertains to acceptance testing. By refining acceptance criteria into manual test steps, team members can execute the tests, recording the results and reporting bugs in a number of ways. Manual tests will be defined and executed using the Microsoft Test Manager tool. As the Sprint completes and an increment of functionality is delivered, the team will also learn why and when they should create a branch of the codeline. Acceptance criteria Testing in Visual Studio 2010 Microsoft Test Manager Writing and running manual tests Branching SPRINT 4 Retrospective Module 11: OVERCOMING DYSFUNCTION This module introduces the many types of people, process, and tool dysfunctions that teams face in the real world. Many dysfunctions and scenarios will be identified, along with ideas and discussion for how a team might mitigate them. This module will enable you and your team to move toward independence and improve your game of Scrum when you depart class. Scrum-butts and flaccid Scrum Best practices working as a team Team challenges ScrumMaster challenges Product Owner challenges Stakeholder challenges Course Retrospective What will be expected of you and you team? This is a unique course in that it’s technically-focused, team-based, and employs timeboxes. It demands that the members of the teams self-organize and self-manage their own work to collaboratively develop increments of software. All attendees must commit to: Pay attention to all lectures and demonstrations Participate in team and group discussions Work collaboratively with other team members Obey the timebox for each activity Commit to work and do your best to deliver All teams should have these skills: Understanding of Scrum Familiarity with Visual Studio 201 C#, .NET 4.0 & ASP.NET 4.0 experience*  SQL Server 2008 development experience Software testing experience * Check with the instructor ahead of time for the exact technologies Self-organising teams Another unique attribute of this course is that it’s a technical training class being delivered to teams of developers, not pairs, and not individuals. Ideally, your actual software development team will attend the training to ensure that all necessary skills are covered. However, if you wish to attend an open enrolment course alone or with just a couple of colleagues, realize that you may be placed on a team with other attendees. The instructor will do his or her best to ensure that each team is cross-functional to tackle the case study, but there are no guarantees. You may be required to try a new role, learn a new skill, or pair with somebody unfamiliar to you. This is just good Scrum! Who should NOT take this course? Because of the nature of this course, as explained above, certain types of people should probably not attend this course: Students requiring command and control style instruction – there are no prescriptive/step-by-step (think traditional Microsoft Learning) labs in this course Students who are unwilling to work within a timebox Students who are unwilling to work collaboratively on a team Students who don’t have any skill in any of the software development disciplines Students who are unable to commit fully to their team – not only will this diminish the student’s learning experience, but it will also impact their team’s learning experience Find a course and register Download this syllabus Download the Scrum Guide Technorati Tags: Scrum,SSW,Pro Scrum Dev

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  • Windows Azure Evolution &ndash; Preview Developer Portal

    - by Shaun
    With the MEET Windows Azure event on 7th June, there are many new features and updates in windows azure platform. In the coming several posts I will try to cover some of them. And in the first post here I would like to just have a quick walkthrough of the new preview developer portal.   History of the Developer Portal If you have been working with windows azure since 2009 or 2010, you should remember the first version of the developer portal. It was built in HTML with very limited features. I have the impression when I was using is old one. The layout is not that attractive and you have very limited features. On November, 2010 alone with the SDK 1.3 release, the developer portal was getting a big jump. In order to give more usability and features this it turned to be built on Silverlight. Hence it runs like a desktop application with many windows, lists, commands and context menus. From 2010 till now many features were involved into this portal, such as the remote desktop, co-admin, virtual connect, VM role, etc.. And the portal itself became more and more complicated. But it brought some problems by using the Silverlight. The first one is the browser capability. As you know in most mobile and tablet device the browser doesn’t allow the rich content plugin, such as Flash and Silverlight. This means people cannot open and configure their azure services from their iPad, iPhone and Windows Phone, etc., even though what they need may just be restart a hosted service, or view the status of their databases. Another problem is the performance. Silverlight provides rich experience to the users, but also needs more bandwidth. So in this upgrade the preview developer portal will be back to use HTML, with JavaScript, as a mobile friendly, cross browser, interactively web site.   Preview Portal vs. Silverlight Portal Before I started to talk about the new preview portal I’d better highlight that, this preview portal is a PREVIEW version, which means even though you can do almost all features that already in the old one, as long as some cool new features I will mention in the coming several posts, there are something still under developed and migrated. So sometimes you need to switch back to the old one. For example, in preview portal there is no co-admin manage function, no remote desktop function and the SQL database manage function will take you back to the old SQL Azure Manage Portal. But as Microsoft said these missing features will be moved in the preview portal in the couple of next few months. Since the public URL of the developer portal, https://windows.azure.com/, had been changed to point to this preview one, you need to click to preview button on top of the page and click the “Take me to the previous portal” link.   Overview There are four parts in the preview portal. On the top is the header which shows the account you are currently logging in. If you click on the header it will show the top menu of windows azure, where you can navigate to the windows azure home page, the price information page, community and account, etc.. The navigation bar is on the left hand side, with the categories listed below. ALL ITEMS All items in your windows azure account, includes the web sites, services, databases, etc.. WEB SITES The web sites in your windows azure account. It will only show the web sites you have. The linked resources will be shown if you drill down into a web site. VIRTUAL MACHINES The virtual machines that you had been deployed to azure. CLOUD SERVICES All windows azure hosted services in your account. SQL DATABASES All SQL databases (SQL Azure) in your account. STORAGE All windows azure storage services in your account. NETWORKS The virtual network (Windows Azure Connect) you had been created. The available items will be listed in the main part of the page based on which category your currently selected. If there’s no item it will show the link to you to quick create. At the bottom of the page there will be the command and information bar. Based on what is selected and what is performed by the user, it will show the related information and commands. For example, in the image below when I was creating a new web site, the information bar told me that my web site is being provisioned; and there are two commands in the command bar. And once it ready the command bar will show some commands that I can do to my new web site. The “Web Sites” is a new feature introduced alone with this upgrade. It gives us an easier and quicker way to establish a website from the scratch or from some existing library. I will introduce it more details in the coming next post. Also in the command bar you can create a service by clicking the NEW button. It will slide the creation panel up to you.   Where’s My Hosted Services The Windows Azure Hosted Services had been renamed to the Cloud Services. Create a new service would be very easy. Just click the NEW button at the bottom of the page, and select the CLOUD SERVICE and QIUICK CREATE. This will create a blank hosted service without deployment and certificate. It just needs you to specify the service URL and the affinity/region. Then the service will be shown in the list. If you clicked the item all information will be shown in the main part. Since there’s no package deployed to this service so currently we cannot see any information about it. But we can upload the package by using the command at the bottom. And as you can see, we could manage the configuration, instances, certificates and we can scale up and down (change the VM size), in and out (increase and decrease the instance count) to our service. Assuming I had created an ASP.NET MVC 3 web role project in Visual Studio and completed the package. Then I can click the UPLOAD button in this page to deploy my package. In the popping up window I just specify my deployment name, package file and configure file. Also I can check the box below so that it will NOT warn me if only one instance of this deployment. Once we clicked the OK button our package will be uploaded and provisioned by the platform. After a while we can see the service was ready from the information bar. We can have the basic information about this service and deployment if we to the dashboard page. For example the usage overview diagram, status, URL, public IP address, etc.. In the configure page we can view and change the CSCFG content such as the monitor setting, connection strings, OS family. In scale page we can increase and decrease the count of the instances. And in the instances page we can view all instances status. And, if your services is using some SQL databases and storages they will be shown as the linked resources under the linked resources page. And you can manage the certificates of this service as well under the certificates page.   How About My Storage Services The storage service can be managed by clicking into the STORAGES link in the navigation bar. And we can create a new storage service from the NEW button. After specify the storage name and region it will be previsioned by the platform. If you want to copy or manage the storage key you can just click the Manage Keys button at the bottom, which is very easy. What I want to highlight here is that, you can monitor your storage service by enabling the monitor configuration. Click the storage item in the list and navigate to the configure page. As you can see in the page you can enable the monitoring for blob, table and queue. And you can also enable the logging when any requests come to the storage. But as the tooltip shown in the page, enabling the monitoring and logging will increase the usage of the storage, which means increase the bill of them. So make sure you enable them properly.   And My SQL Databases (SQL Azure) The last thing I want to quick introduce is the SQL databases, which was formally named SQL Azure. You can create a new SQL Database Server and a new database by clicking the ADD button under the SQL Database navigation item. In the popping up windows just specify the database name, the edition, size, collation and the server. You can select an existing SQL Database Server if you have, or cerate a new one. If you selected to create a new server, there will be another step you need to do, which is specify the server login, password and the region. Once it ready you can mange your databases as well as the servers in the portal. In a particular server you can update the firewall settings in its Configure page. So, What Else There are some other area on the preview portal I didn’t cover, such as the virtual machines, virtual network and web sites. Regarding the virtual machines and web sites I will talk about them in the future separated post. Regarding the virtual network, it the Windows Azure Connect we are familiar with. But as I mention in the beginning of this post, the preview portal is still under developed. Some features are not available here. For example, you cannot manage the co-admin of your subscriptions, you cannot open the remote desktop on your hosted services, and you cannot navigate to the Windows Azure Service Bus, Access Control and Caching, which formally named Windows Azure AppFabric directly. In these cases you need to navigate back to the old portal. So in the coming several months we might need to use both these two sites.   Summary In this post I quick introduced the new windows azure developer portal. Since it had been rearranged and renamed I demonstrated some features that existing in the old portal, such as how to create and deploy a hosted service, how to provision a storage service and SQL database. All features in the old portal had been, is being and will be migrated into this new portal, but some of them were in a different category and page we need to figure out.   Hope this helps, Shaun All documents and related graphics, codes are provided "AS IS" without warranty of any kind. Copyright © Shaun Ziyan Xu. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons License.

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  • Top 5 Developer Enabling Nuggets in MySQL 5.6

    - by Rob Young
    MySQL 5.6 is truly a better MySQL and reflects Oracle's commitment to the evolution of the most popular and widelyused open source database on the planet.  The feature-complete 5.6 release candidate was announced at MySQL Connect in late September and the production-ready, generally available ("GA") product should be available in early 2013.  While the message around 5.6 has been focused mainly on mass appeal, advanced topics like performance/scale, high availability, and self-healing replication clusters, MySQL 5.6 also provides many developer-friendly nuggets that are designed to enable those who are building the next generation of web-based and embedded applications and services. Boiling down the 5.6 feature set into a smaller set, of simple, easy to use goodies designed with developer agility in mind, these things deserve a quick look:Subquery Optimizations Using semi-JOINs and late materialization, the MySQL 5.6 Optimizer delivers greatly improved subquery performance. Specifically, the optimizer is now more efficient in handling subqueries in the FROM clause; materialization of subqueries in the FROM clause is now postponed until their contents are needed during execution. Additionally, the optimizer may add an index to derived tables during execution to speed up row retrieval. Internal tests run using the DBT-3 benchmark Query #13, shown below, demonstrate an order of magnitude improvement in execution times (from days to seconds) over previous versions. select c_name, c_custkey, o_orderkey, o_orderdate, o_totalprice, sum(l_quantity)from customer, orders, lineitemwhere o_orderkey in (                select l_orderkey                from lineitem                group by l_orderkey                having sum(l_quantity) > 313  )  and c_custkey = o_custkey  and o_orderkey = l_orderkeygroup by c_name, c_custkey, o_orderkey, o_orderdate, o_totalpriceorder by o_totalprice desc, o_orderdateLIMIT 100;What does this mean for developers?  For starters, simplified subqueries can now be coded instead of complex joins for cross table lookups: SELECT title FROM film WHERE film_id IN (SELECT film_id FROM film_actor GROUP BY film_id HAVING count(*) > 12); And even more importantly subqueries embedded in packaged applications no longer need to be re-written into joins.  This is good news for both ISVs and their customers who have access to the underlying queries and who have spent development cycles writing, testing and maintaining their own versions of re-written queries across updated versions of a packaged app.The details are in the MySQL 5.6 docs. Online DDL OperationsToday's web-based applications are designed to rapidly evolve and adapt to meet business and revenue-generationrequirements. As a result, development SLAs are now most often measured in minutes vs days or weeks. For example, when an application must quickly support new product lines or new products within existing product lines, the backend database schema must adapt in kind, and most commonly while the application remains available for normal business operations.  MySQL 5.6 supports this level of online schema flexibility and agility by providing the following new ALTER TABLE online DDL syntax additions:  CREATE INDEX DROP INDEX Change AUTO_INCREMENT value for a column ADD/DROP FOREIGN KEY Rename COLUMN Change ROW FORMAT, KEY_BLOCK_SIZE for a table Change COLUMN NULL, NOT_NULL Add, drop, reorder COLUMN Again, the details are in the MySQL 5.6 docs. Key-value access to InnoDB via Memcached APIMany of the next generation of web, cloud, social and mobile applications require fast operations against simple Key/Value pairs. At the same time, they must retain the ability to run complex queries against the same data, as well as ensure the data is protected with ACID guarantees. With the new NoSQL API for InnoDB, developers have allthe benefits of a transactional RDBMS, coupled with the performance capabilities of Key/Value store.MySQL 5.6 provides simple, key-value interaction with InnoDB data via the familiar Memcached API.  Implemented via a new Memcached daemon plug-in to mysqld, the new Memcached protocol is mapped directly to the native InnoDB API and enables developers to use existing Memcached clients to bypass the expense of query parsing and go directly to InnoDB data for lookups and transactional compliant updates.  The API makes it possible to re-use standard Memcached libraries and clients, while extending Memcached functionality by integrating a persistent, crash-safe, transactional database back-end.  The implementation is shown here:So does this option provide a performance benefit over SQL?  Internal performance benchmarks using a customized Java application and test harness show some very promising results with a 9X improvement in overall throughput for SET/INSERT operations:You can follow the InnoDB team blog for the methodology, implementation and internal test cases that generated these results here. How to get started with Memcached API to InnoDB is here. New Instrumentation in Performance SchemaThe MySQL Performance Schema was introduced in MySQL 5.5 and is designed to provide point in time metrics for key performance indicators.  MySQL 5.6 improves the Performance Schema in answer to the most common DBA and Developer problems.  New instrumentations include: Statements/Stages What are my most resource intensive queries? Where do they spend time? Table/Index I/O, Table Locks Which application tables/indexes cause the most load or contention? Users/Hosts/Accounts Which application users, hosts, accounts are consuming the most resources? Network I/O What is the network load like? How long do sessions idle? Summaries Aggregated statistics grouped by statement, thread, user, host, account or object. The MySQL 5.6 Performance Schema is now enabled by default in the my.cnf file with optimized and auto-tune settings that minimize overhead (< 5%, but mileage will vary), so using the Performance Schema ona production server to monitor the most common application use cases is less of an issue.  In addition, new atomic levels of instrumentation enable the capture of granular levels of resource consumption by users, hosts, accounts, applications, etc. for billing and chargeback purposes in cloud computing environments.The MySQL docs are an excellent resource for all that is available and that can be done with the 5.6 Performance Schema. Better Condition Handling - GET DIAGNOSTICSMySQL 5.6 enables developers to easily check for error conditions and code for exceptions by introducing the new MySQL Diagnostics Area and corresponding GET DIAGNOSTICS interface command. The Diagnostic Area can be populated via multiple options and provides 2 kinds of information:Statement - which provides affected row count and number of conditions that occurredCondition - which provides error codes and messages for all conditions that were returned by a previous operation The addressable items for each are: The new GET DIAGNOSTICS command provides a standard interface into the Diagnostics Area and can be used via the CLI or from within application code to easily retrieve and handle the results of the most recent statement execution.  An example of how it is used might be:mysql> DROP TABLE test.no_such_table; ERROR 1051 (42S02): Unknown table 'test.no_such_table' mysql> GET DIAGNOSTICS CONDITION 1 -> @p1 = RETURNED_SQLSTATE, @p2 = MESSAGE_TEXT; mysql> SELECT @p1, @p2; +-------+------------------------------------+| @p1   | @p2                                | +-------+------------------------------------+| 42S02 | Unknown table 'test.no_such_table' | +-------+------------------------------------+ Options for leveraging the MySQL Diagnotics Area and GET DIAGNOSTICS are detailed in the MySQL Docs.While the above is a summary of some of the key developer enabling 5.6 features, it is by no means exhaustive. You can dig deeper into what MySQL 5.6 has to offer by reading this developer zone article or checking out "What's New in MySQL 5.6" in the MySQL docs.BONUS ALERT!  If you are developing on Windows or are considering MySQL as an alternative to SQL Server for your next project, application or shipping product, you should check out the MySQL Installer for Windows.  The installer includes the MySQL 5.6 RC database, all drivers, Visual Studio and Excel plugins, tray monitor and development tools all a single download and GUI installer.   So what are your next steps? Register for Dec. 13 "MySQL 5.6: Building the Next Generation of Web-Based Applications and Services" live web event.  Hurry!  Seats are limited. Download the MySQL 5.6 Release Candidate (look under the Development Releases tab) Provide Feedback <link to http://bugs.mysql.com/> Join the Developer discussion on the MySQL Forums Explore all MySQL Products and Developer Tools As always, thanks for your continued support of MySQL!

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  • Database Developers Can Now Save 20%

    - by stephen.garth
    Database developers can now increase productivity and save money at the same time. For a limited time, Oracle Store is offering a 20% discount on Oracle SQL Developer Data Modeler. Just enter the code SQLDDM at checkout to get the discount. Oracle SQL Developer Data Modeler is an independent, standalone product with a full spectrum of data and database modeling tools and utilities, including modeling for Entity Relationship Diagrams (ERD), Relational (database design), Data Type and Multi-dimensional modeling, full forward and reverse engineering and DDL code generation. SQL Developer Data Modeler can connect to any supported Oracle Database and is platform independent. Save 20% on Oracle SQL Developer Data Modeler at Oracle Store - Discount Code SQLDDM Find out more about Oracle SQL Developer and Oracle SQL Developer Data Modeler var gaJsHost = (("https:" == document.location.protocol) ? "https://ssl." : "http://www."); document.write(unescape("%3Cscript src='" + gaJsHost + "google-analytics.com/ga.js' type='text/javascript'%3E%3C/script%3E")); try { var pageTracker = _gat._getTracker("UA-13185312-1"); pageTracker._trackPageview(); } catch(err) {}

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  • Multiple setInterval in a HTML5 Canvas game

    - by kushsolitary
    I'm trying to achieve multiple animations in a game that I am creating using Canvas (it is a simple ping-pong game). This is my first game and I am new to canvas but have created a few experiments before so I have a good knowledge about how canvas work. First, take a look at the game here. The problem is, when the ball hits the paddle, I want a burst of n particles at the point of contact but that doesn't came right. Even if I set the particles number to 1, they just keep coming from the point of contact and then hides automatically after some time. Also, I want to have the burst on every collision but it occurs on first collision only. I am pasting the code here: //Initialize canvas var canvas = document.getElementById("canvas"), ctx = canvas.getContext("2d"), W = window.innerWidth, H = window.innerHeight, particles = [], ball = {}, paddles = [2], mouse = {}, points = 0, fps = 60, particlesCount = 50, flag = 0, particlePos = {}; canvas.addEventListener("mousemove", trackPosition, true); //Set it's height and width to full screen canvas.width = W; canvas.height = H; //Function to paint canvas function paintCanvas() { ctx.globalCompositeOperation = "source-over"; ctx.fillStyle = "black"; ctx.fillRect(0, 0, W, H); } //Create two paddles function createPaddle(pos) { //Height and width this.h = 10; this.w = 100; this.x = W/2 - this.w/2; this.y = (pos == "top") ? 0 : H - this.h; } //Push two paddles into the paddles array paddles.push(new createPaddle("bottom")); paddles.push(new createPaddle("top")); //Setting up the parameters of ball ball = { x: 2, y: 2, r: 5, c: "white", vx: 4, vy: 8, draw: function() { ctx.beginPath(); ctx.fillStyle = this.c; ctx.arc(this.x, this.y, this.r, 0, Math.PI*2, false); ctx.fill(); } }; //Function for creating particles function createParticles(x, y) { this.x = x || 0; this.y = y || 0; this.radius = 0.8; this.vx = -1.5 + Math.random()*3; this.vy = -1.5 + Math.random()*3; } //Draw everything on canvas function draw() { paintCanvas(); for(var i = 0; i < paddles.length; i++) { p = paddles[i]; ctx.fillStyle = "white"; ctx.fillRect(p.x, p.y, p.w, p.h); } ball.draw(); update(); } //Mouse Position track function trackPosition(e) { mouse.x = e.pageX; mouse.y = e.pageY; } //function to increase speed after every 5 points function increaseSpd() { if(points % 4 == 0) { ball.vx += (ball.vx < 0) ? -1 : 1; ball.vy += (ball.vy < 0) ? -2 : 2; } } //function to update positions function update() { //Move the paddles on mouse move if(mouse.x && mouse.y) { for(var i = 1; i < paddles.length; i++) { p = paddles[i]; p.x = mouse.x - p.w/2; } } //Move the ball ball.x += ball.vx; ball.y += ball.vy; //Collision with paddles p1 = paddles[1]; p2 = paddles[2]; if(ball.y >= p1.y - p1.h) { if(ball.x >= p1.x && ball.x <= (p1.x - 2) + (p1.w + 2)){ ball.vy = -ball.vy; points++; increaseSpd(); particlePos.x = ball.x, particlePos.y = ball.y; flag = 1; } } else if(ball.y <= p2.y + 2*p2.h) { if(ball.x >= p2.x && ball.x <= (p2.x - 2) + (p2.w + 2)){ ball.vy = -ball.vy; points++; increaseSpd(); particlePos.x = ball.x, particlePos.y = ball.y; flag = 1; } } //Collide with walls if(ball.x >= W || ball.x <= 0) ball.vx = -ball.vx; if(ball.y > H || ball.y < 0) { clearInterval(int); } if(flag == 1) { setInterval(emitParticles(particlePos.x, particlePos.y), 1000/fps); } } function emitParticles(x, y) { for(var k = 0; k < particlesCount; k++) { particles.push(new createParticles(x, y)); } counter = particles.length; for(var j = 0; j < particles.length; j++) { par = particles[j]; ctx.beginPath(); ctx.fillStyle = "white"; ctx.arc(par.x, par.y, par.radius, 0, Math.PI*2, false); ctx.fill(); par.x += par.vx; par.y += par.vy; par.radius -= 0.02; if(par.radius < 0) { counter--; if(counter < 0) particles = []; } } } var int = setInterval(draw, 1000/fps); Now, my function for emitting particles is on line 156, and I have called this function on line 151. The problem here can be because of I am not resetting the flag variable but I tried doing that and got more weird results. You can check that out here. By resetting the flag variable, the problem of infinite particles gets resolved but now they only animate and appear when the ball collides with the paddles. So, I am now out of any solution.

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  • Flash Actionscript 3.0 Game Projectile Creation

    - by Christian Basar
    I have been creating a side-scrolling Actionscript 3.0 game. In this game I want the Player to be able to shoot blow darts as weapons. I had some trouble getting the darts to be created in the right place (in front of the player), but eventually got it working with some help from this page (please look at it for background information on this problem): http://stackoverflow.com/questions/8031553/flash-actionscript-3-0-game-projectile-creation I got the darts to be created in the right place (near the player) and a 'movePlayerDarts()' function moves them. But I actually have a new problem. When the player moves after firing a dart, the dart tries to follow him! If the player jumps, the dart rises up. If the player moves to the left, the dart moves slightly to the left. Obviously, there is some code somewhere which is telling the darts to follow the player. I do not see how, unless the 'playerDartContainer' has something to do with that. But the container is always at position (0,0) and it does not move. Also, as a test I traced a dart's 'y' coordinate within the constantly-running 'movePlayerDarts()' function. As you can see, that function constantly moves the dart down the y axis by increasing its y-coordinate value. But when I jump, the 'y' coordinate being traced is never reduced, even though the dart clearly looks like it's rising! If anybody has any suggestions, I'd appreciate them! Here is the code I use to create the darts: // This function creates a dart public function createDart():void { if (playerDartContainer.numChildren <= 4) { // Play dart shooting sound sndDartShootIns.play(); // Create a new 'PlayerDart' object playerDart = new PlayerDart(); // Set the new dart's initial position and direction depending on the player's direction // Player's facing right if (player.scaleX == 1) { // Create dart in front of player's dart gun playerDart.x = player.x + 12; playerDart.y = player.y - 85; // Dart faces right, too playerDart.scaleX = 1; } // Player's facing left else if (player.scaleX == -1) { // Create dart in front of player's dart gun playerDart.x = player.x - 12; playerDart.y = player.y - 85; // Dart faces left, too playerDart.scaleX = -1; } playerDartContainer.addChild(playerDart); } } // End of 'createDart()' function This code is the EnterFrameHandler for the player darts: // In every frame, call 'movePlayerDarts()' to move the darts within the 'playerDartContainer' public function playerDartEnterFrameHandler(event:Event):void { // Only move the Player's darts if their container has at least one dart within if (playerDartContainer.numChildren > 0) { movePlayerDarts(); } } And finally, this is the code that actually moves all of the player's darts: // Move all of the Player's darts public function movePlayerDarts():void { for (var pdIns:int = 0; pdIns < playerDartContainer.numChildren; pdIns++) { // Set the Player Dart 'instance' variable to equal the current PlayerDart playerDartIns = PlayerDart(playerDartContainer.getChildAt(pdIns)); // Move the current dart in the direction it was shot. The dart's 'x-scale' // factor is multiplied by its speed (5) to move the dart in its correct // direction. If the 'x-scale' factor is -1, the dart is pointing left (as // seen in the 'createDart()' function. (-1 * 5 = -5), so the dart will go // to left at a rate of 5. The opposite is true for the right-ward facing // darts playerDartIns.x += playerDartIns.scaleX * 1; // Make gravity work on the dart playerDartIns.y += 0.7; //playerDartIns.y += 1; // What if the dart hits the ground? if (HitTest.intersects(playerDartIns, floor, this)) { playerDartContainer.removeChild(playerDartIns); } //trace("Dart x: " + playerDartIns.x); trace("Dart y: " + playerDartIns.y); } }

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  • Styles of games that work at low-resolution

    - by Brendan Long
    I'm taking a class on compilers, and the goal is to write a compiler for Meggy Jr devices (Arduino). The goal is just to make a simple compilers with loops and variables and stuff. Obviously, that's lame, so the "real goal" is to make an impressive game on the device. The problem is that it only has 64 pixels to work with (technically 72, but the top 8 are single-color and not part of the main display, so they're really only useful for displaying things like money). My problem is thinking of something to do on a device that small. It doesn't really matter if it's original, but it can't be something that's already available. My first idea was "snake", but that comes with the SDK. Same with a side-scrolling shooter. Remaining ideas include a tower defense game (hard to write, hard to control), an RPG (same), tetris (lame).. The problem is that all of the games I like require a high-resolution screen because they have a lot of text. Even a really simple game like nethack would be hard because each creature would be a single color. tl;dr What styles of games require a. No text; and b. Few enough objects that representing them each with a single color is acceptable? EDIT: To clarify, the display is 8x8 for a total of 64 pixels, not 64x64.

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  • Styles of games that work at low-resolution

    - by Brendan Long
    I'm taking a class on compilers, and the goal is to write a compiler for Meggy Jr devices (Arduino). The goal is just to make a simple compilers with loops and variables and stuff. Obviously, that's lame, so the "real goal" is to make an impressive game on the device. The problem is that it only has 64 pixels to work with (technically 72, but the top 8 are single-color and not part of the main display, so they're really only useful for displaying things like money). My problem is thinking of something to do on a device that small. It doesn't really matter if it's original, but it can't be something that's already available. My first idea was "snake", but that comes with the SDK. Same with a side-scrolling shooter. Remaining ideas include a tower defense game (hard to write, hard to control), an RPG (same), tetris (lame).. The problem is that all of the games I like require a high-resolution screen because they have a lot of text. Even a really simple game like nethack would be hard because each creature would be a single color. tl;dr What styles of games require a. No text; and b. Few enough objects that representing them each with a single color is acceptable?

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  • Should I use procedural animation?

    - by user712092
    I have started to make a fantasy 3d fps swordplay game and I want to add animations. I don't want to animate everything by hand because it would take a lot of time, so I decided to use procedural animation. I would certainly use IK (starting with simple reaching an object with hand ...). I also assume procedural generation of animations will make less animations to do by hand (I can blend animations ...). I want also to have a planner for animation which would simplify complex animations; those which can be split to a sequence - run and then jump, jump and then roll - or which are separable - legs running and torso swinging with sword -. I want for example a character to chop a head of a big troll. If troll crouches character would just chop his head off, if it is standing he would climb on a troll. I know that I would have to describe the state ("troll is low", "troll is high", "chop troll head" ..) which would imply what regions animation will be in (if there is a gap between them character would jump), which would imply what places character can have some of legs and hands or would choose an predefined animation. My main goal is simplicity of coding, but I want my game to be looking cool also. Is it worthy to use procedural animation or does it make more troubles that it solves? (there can be lot of twiddling ...) I am using Blender Game Engine (therefore Python for scripting, and Bullet Physics).

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  • Android threads trouble wrapping my head around design

    - by semajhan
    I am having trouble wrapping my head around game design. On the android platform, I have an activity and set its content view with a custom surface view. The custom surface view acts as my panel and I create instances of all classes and do all the drawing and calculation in there. Question: Should I instead create the instances of other classes in my activity? Now I create a custom thread class that handles the game loop. Question: How do I use this one class in all my activities? Or do I have to create a separate instance of the extended thread class each time? In my previous game, I had multiple levels that had to create an instance of the thread class and in the thread class I had to set constructor methods for each separate level and in the loop use a switch statement to check which level it needs to render and update. Sorry if that sounds confusing. I just want to know if the method I am using is inefficient (which it probably is) and how to go about designing it the correct way. I have read many tutorials out there and I am still having lots of trouble with this particular topic. Maybe a link to a some tutorials that explain this? Thanks.

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