Blog Post 12/11

This week I worked pretty heavily on my jump map in HL2 Source SDK. There's not a lot of programming involved, but learning the software is a challenge and there are a lot of things (more like a TON of things) I have yet to discover about the program. I plan on learning more about the source code itself so I can change variables manually using C#. The map is coming along nicely, and is actually pretty fun. D has been giving me pointers. A is looking into the code for Source SDK and G is doing his thing and designing models that look really awesome. This week I plan to keep working hard on my Source SDK game.

Also,

AHHHHHHH FINALS OH MY GOD HELP ABSDONAPCAW:CACABCAPC@GOAHBCNCW

*ahem*
Excuse me, something was caught in my throat.

-F

Blog Post 12/4

This week I will start in Hammer SDK. I have been watching many youtube videos and I am really excited to begin work on maps and levels. I think I will have trouble with interaction with things in the environment so I'm going to start working with that as soon as I make a simple map. G is working with the modelling, A and D are working in the same SDK. I am currently waiting for it to install on this computer so I can get to work. -F

Blog Post 11/20

This week I will install Half-Life 2 on my computer, and start working in Hammer SDK with A and D. G wants to do the designs for the weapons and other terrain and characters. My sister's birthday is coming up and I was thinking of using the opportunity to make a game for her birthday (free -- and I learn Hammer SDK better!).This week I will install HL2 and start working immediately.

Blog Post 11/13

This week D continued working in Hammer SDK. I will try and get "Half Life 2" which is what that tool is from. G continues to work on his XNA and A is looking very interested in working on it as well. I think I will either be making 3D models or will install this SDK as well. It looks really fun - D has made a fountain level with water effects that are second to none. This week I have been working with design software attempting to come up with a logo or icon for DGAF Game Engineering Design Production Studios Inc., but I have had no luck yet.

Blog Post 11/06

This week I worked a lot on 3D modeling, and recently saw Feroz. He said he could get us the textures of his head so we could model it for D's game. I'm really excited as I see that come together. The game's music is going to be hard work, and I'm thinking about using "Glitch Mob" for slower parts of the game. This music is a little slower, but it won't let the action slow down to a point where it gets boring. Another really exciting thing that happened is that Adobe CS5 was installed on the computer science lab's computers. Illustrator is one of my favorite pieces of software ever. I have a version that I got from my friend at my house, but it hasn't been working lately. I work professionally making fliers and logos for businesses (at least, I used to). I really would love to get back into that and I think that this will be a really great opportunity to work on personal design projects and those for my group's game. If we make a fun game and I can design the cover right, we can make MILLIONS OF DOLLARS MWAHAHAHAHAHA *ahem* anyways. It would be fun and a good skill to be able to work on. Til next week, Frank (DGAF Production Studios)

Blog Post 10/31

Happy Halloween! I've decided to just use pre-existing songs for my music in D's game. I found that putting music-making software such as Fruity Loops Studio 9 or Reason would be too hard to load on the school computers. Instead I will use music by the artist "Feed Me" for the aggressive, intense parts of the game. Sound design is really interesting, and since I love music it is really fun for me to do. Putting the right music on top of an event in a game can make it a LOT more effective. This week G and A are hard at work in Visual Studio with C#. D is working slowly but surely on his game, and I'm helping him with the music. The sound design opportunity is really awesome for me, as I love music (electronic music especially). Finding slower music for slower parts of the game is going to be fun too. Coding in these songs will give me a chance to work in the language itself and work on my programming skills. Why did Dracula take cough medicine? To stop his coffin. That's all for now. -F

Blog Post 10/23

This week I did a lot of back-blogging. I'm continuing to work on my Blender work for Douglas's game. I'm working really hard on level content as well, and Douglas is taking my suggestions and putting them into action pretty consistently. Human models provide quite a challenge, so I intend to look into some tutorials online. I also want to get some programming done soon, so I was thinking of asking if Freed needed help on his visualizer. I was also interested in learning javascript some time in this year. Everyone is hard at work, but not really on the same thing. I hope that soon our group will reunite to work on Ferozhead soon. I've also gotten to make the music for Doug's game, which I'm really excited to get to do. It's been a while since I've worked with music making software.

Blog Post 10/16

This week I continued to build my skill in Blender. I worked on coloring and using grabbing tools instead of the brush. Gavriel prefers the brush tool, because it is more precise. For now, I'm just trying to learn as much as possible about the software. I made a crude giraffe and colored it in. Animation and getting things to bounce is the new item on my to-do list. Both Alex and Gavriel have experience in the software so I can consult them if I ever need additional aid. Douglas has added slo-mo (also my concept) and I'm helping him sharpen it up a bit. He will probably need some designwork for his project soon and I'll volunteer to help him out as soon as that applies. Alex made his visualizer way cool, and the Inception music really polishes it off. Gavriel showed me his RPG he's been working on at home, and I was really impressed by how much work he did on it. Gavriel is indubitably the strongest member of our group in terms of sheer programming experience.

Blog Post 10/09

This week I decided to learn how to use Blender. I'm pretty bad, but I've taken several tutorials on Youtube and played around with the software a bit. Douglas is working in the CSS engine and will probably need enemies designed. So far I've made a tadpole and a fedora. I doubt either of those will be suitable opponents. 3D modelling is a lot of fun, as I'm not very good at drawing and Blender allows me to create characters pretty easily.

Douglas is using my Cuban Rescue Mission plotline, and it looks like it's coming along pretty well. He has an explosion and a drop which look pretty cool. Gavriel is working on his own side project, and Alex is still laboring on a visualizer. Right now we're split, but we are all working on projects pertaining to FerozHead.

Blog Post 10/3

This week I worked mostly on the platformer. I played around with spritestrips and found that an Animation class also got the job done. I'm also very interested in doing some 3d Modeling. It's been a while since I've worked on my modeling career . Gavriel continues to show me awesome stuff he's done and is working on in Blender, and I will probably install it on my computer.

Doug has started working on Alpha Falcon (name and pl credit to me) and Alex is still working in Visual studio.

Blog Post 9/26/11

This week, I worked pretty hard on the boss code. The boss is just a regular enemy with a huge gun sticking out of its mouth. It stays at the top of the screen and goes from left to right to dodge the player's bullets. Gavriel wrote some code to make the boss shoot a huge laser that does a large percentage of the player's health if it touches them.

I did a pretty good job of accomplishing my goals this week. I think I will be pretty ready to present come presentation day.

This week I want to help Douglas on his music visualizer. I also want to learn more about Freed's particle effects. I think it'd be cool to work on the health code too. We should be polishing up the game soon, and have it ready to go by the end of next week at the latest.

Blog Post 9.18.11

This week in computer science I accomplished my goals of working on the power-up code. It took me a lot of work, and in the end my biggest mistake was not actually referencing the method I had made in the Update() method. That is to say, the code never actually ran. After Gavriel helped me out and agreed that the code was solid, I was still convinced I had done something wrong. I finally figured it out, and the process was completed.

The code ended up being replaced by a bigger random power up that changed the level completely. I still am pushing for a more slight, common power-up that boosts your speed at least. For now the collision is still based on spinning rectangles, which I would help to fix if I could.

This week I want to help Gavriel and Douglas with the new 3-D stuff and also learn more about the particle effects that Freed is working on. I think he has that mostly covered, so maybe I could look for more of a design aspect to work on.

Blog Post: 9/8/11

This week I was working a lot on the Reimer's XNA tutorials -- that is, until it got blocked by AISD. I spent enough time with the tutorial that I was proficient with the language. I worked with some other tutorials as well.

This week, for our FerozHead project, I worked on the method that deleted the bullet and the opponent it collided with. I started working on a Power-Up class and implementing it to our code, but because I was sick, I only was able to go to class for one day of the week.

Next week, I want to finish up the Power-Up code and start working on different kinds of Power-Ups, or maybe a way to change levels that is more smooth than what we have now. Also, I want to help Doug reformat our code to be neater. Right now most of it is in one big class.

Til Next Week,
Frank

Blog Post 9.1.11

This year, I am going to use my class time to develop my C# skills by making a game with my cohorts Alex Freed, Douglas Cheong, and Gavriel. While Doug and Gavriel definitely have superior coding prowess as compared to mine, I will endeavor to make my skills as polished as theirs.
My area of expertise is design. I intend to use this class as an opportunity not only to work on my XNA skills but also as experience designing for a game. Our planned levels include an 8-bit level, a zombie level, and others that will give me unique coding and design experience. When I go to college, I probably won't major in Computer Science. I think it's interesting, but I find I pick up design and understand it much more easily. I do of course intend to accomplish goals such as increasing my syntax knowledge and learning a lot about how graphics engines work for games and write a lot of my own code, but also my goal is to work on my skills as an artist and gain skill that will be useful to me in my future.

Final Reflection: Until Next Year

An Analysis of Computer Science AP course
Frank F.

My year in Computer Science AP has been a really good learning experience for me in many different ways. I learned about coding in Java of course, but I also learned other things like how computers work and how to manage my time and not fall behind. I have my regrets about things I should or shouldn’t have done in Computer Science, but that’s all behind me.
90% of CompSci AP was learning Java and getting ready for the AP. Java was something I’d always been interested in but never actually took the time to learn it. As a kid, I would go to the library, get one of those huge books on a programming language, go home, and open the book – only to discover I had no idea what it was talking about and immediately give up. This class gave me an opportunity to actually take my time and learn a language.
I didn’t take full advantage of this opportunity. I spent a majority of the beginning of the year goofing off and not doing work (choosing instead to play QWOP or some other flash based web game). I regret this decision sincerely. I fell behind immediately and struggled with tests and quizzes. Labs were seldom completed, and worksheets would get done at the last second if I was luck. I fell more and more behind trying to learn the last concept before the next.
This finally got solved when I sat down and studied for a week or two for the AP exam. I knew I had to learn everything, so I used the study guide book to learn the concepts one by one up to the day of the exam. I feel like I did well on the exam, I definitely passed. I was relieved to know many of the answers on the test, but some still confused me.
I learned a valuable lesson from this class: that falling behind can be a morbid mistake to make. With that, I know that I can proceed with my studies at LASA with much more success. I was luckily given a chance at a new start when the class learning to program in C#. I am making sure to take extra steps and stay on top of, if not ahead of, my work.
With that being said, I do think there are some improvements that could be made to the class. The beginning was kind of slow, and I felt like we had to rush at the end to finish all of the topics before the AP exam. At the beginning of the year, no grades were taken for labs, they all went in as 100’s. This was one of the factors that helped me fall behind, as I didn’t feel it was necessary to do the labs because it was not actually a grade. The lenient late work policies helped me get back on track tremendously and I appreciated that policy more than I could possibly explain.
Computer Science II is the class I am looking forward to the most next year. I really enjoy working in XNA and using Intellisense is a blast. I took a lot away from CompSci AP, and I’m certain that the programming and the time management skills will help me in whatever career path I decide to pursue.

One Last Share

This will be the last share entry of the year. The next reflection blog will be the very last reflection.

Microsoft recently bought Skype, one of the largest video chatting service companies on the market today. A majority of Skype's features are free, but there is a paid option, allowing the user access to Computer-to-Phone and group video chat. Microsoft means a couple things for the future of Skype: a lot of media attention and maybe more paid features. This may drive away users who love it because it's so simple and free. I have used Skype on occasion and was surprised on how flexible it was depending on the user's internet connection. the video quality changes based on how much lag is being caused by the current resolution. More about this event can be found here.

Blog 05152011 - Reflect

This week we worked on a program that had the user using the keyboard to raise the red, green, and blue in the background. I went another step and made a key to lower the value too. We also worked on a program that sensed when a value was over 255 (the max value for colors) and then said "YOU LOSE". I made a pop-out error message that said this, which was not required. I went even farther so that once you get the "YOU LOSE" screen, there's a button that you can click to see your score, and then it tells you what value each of the colors were at.

Blog 05082011 - Share

Pendulum- one of my favorite bands - is coming out with a new album. Pendulum is a hard rock/ Drum n Bass band which makes some music that is straight up awesome. Their song "Slam" is popular on YouTube because of the video of a heavy man dancing shirtless to it in public. That song was more when they played DnB, but recently they have moved to playing hard rock with a Drum n Bass beat, or slower techno.

Blog 05082011 - Reflect

This week we worked on having the screen color change using int values for the red, green, and blue parameters. The colors scale all the way up to 250 and then go back down, making a cool looking moodlight. I would have liked to have changed it so that every time it would start with a random RGB and go from there, but I just had them start at certain values and then change from there. XNA is a blast, and I'm going to do my best to stay on top of my work and not fall behind with C# like I did with Java. Douglas and I are also working on a side project which is a shooter. This game will be controlled by an Xbox controller, and already looks cool and has music.

Blog 04242011 - Share

WikiWars is a game where two people go to Wikipedia and hit "random article". They then decide on a page to find only by clicking links inside the articles they navigate to. I bring this up because I just went 2/0 with Douglas Cheong at this game, with the help of my main man Stephen. the first time we were searching for Monarch Butterflies and the second time we were looking for Instant Noodles. This game is really entertaining and you can play this with your friends too.

Here's a link to a website that makes it easy:

http://www.wikihow.com/Play-Wiki-Wars

Blog 04242011 - Reflect

Recently we've changed from Java coding to XNA. XNA is used for Microsoft applications, and in this class we will be using it specifically for Windows Games. At first we just learned how to change the color of the background. This is done by

GraphicsDevice.Clear(Color);

The default color for Windows Game is 'Cornflower Blue'. Intellisense is really cool, It's a feature inside Windows Visual Studio 2010 that completes the code for you, saving a lot of time and helping you in case you forget what you needed to type next.

Reflection: Sort/Search

Sort Search seems more like an exercise in arrays and forLoops. The code is somewhat simple, just knowing how to apply the logic to it is the difficult thing. It seems more and more obvious that programming is not just knowing syntax, but using logic to figure out where to use what to get the computer to achieve your goals.I feel like a lot of the time I will get stumped by the program. I will usually just sit there and stare at the screen until an idea pops into my head and I go "boy, that DOES make sense!". My code is all just my conclusions on which method is best used to solve a problem.

Share: Miike Snow

Miike Snow is my new favorite group. Their song "Animal" is one of my favorites, and their song "Silvia" is also really good. They are an indie-alt band. A lot of their songs have electronic influences and really good lyrics. I recommend anyone who likes electronic or alternative music to look into this band.

Share: 03/06/11

My Spring Break:

I spent a lot of time this spring break doing nothing. Watching TV and eating food for probably 3 days, and then I realized I needed to get on top of my school work. I spent some time learning python, an easier programming language than java. I really enjoy working in python, and I may be better at python than Java.

I also went camping with my family. We spent two days camping 2 hours west of Dallas. I saw a snake and also went hiking a lot, it was a blast. My best friend (who lives in Dallas) also joined me for fishing and relaxing listening to the radio. It was a little hot, but in the end I enjoyed it a lot.

Reflection 022711

This week we worked on the Critter labs. I had somewhat of a problem at first understanding the act() method for these. I looked for the file which actually stores the act() method. Then I saw in the power point what I was looking for and I understood. I am having a bit of trouble understanding what to do. As a designer, I understand that looking at a blank page is one of the worst things to do for your creativity. Without inspiration or example, your results will come out jumbled an unorganized. For the most recent labs, sometimes I am confused and don't know what to do. I have been studying my AP review book and that has been helping.

Music Making :

Music Making Software: An inside look
There are many choices available for the creation of electronic music. Personally, I use Fruity Loops Studio 9 and Reason by Propellerhead. Others use Ableton Live or Cubase. Here's what I use:

Fruity Loops 9:
Fruity Loops is easy, but if you know what you're doing (which I do after quite a bit of experimenting) you can make professional sounding songs pretty easily. With the right sound packs and plug-ins. Fruity loops uses loops (no way, right?) to organize songs.

Reason:

Reason 6 is the latest version of the Softsynth software by Propellerhead. A softsynth takes MIDI data and turns it into whatever sound you'd like. Easy to use and easier to wire through Fruity Loops, this software is one of the key elements that I use for creating my music.

Replacement Blog 02062011 :: Share

This blog is a replacement of Blog 02062011 Share.

This week I have been using a software called Illustrator a lot. I know you've noticed (sorry!) and I 've been making a lot of cool stuff. I learned of this software in E-Zine. Since I heard about it, I obtained a copy at home and have been constantly working on improving my skill. Here's an example of one thing you can do with this software (made in 5 minutes as an example).



As you can see, it's really cool stuff. I'm thinking about being a designer in college. I've been working on logos for FFS, the project I blogged about earlier.

So long, and for now:

Process Completed.

Blog replacement 02062011 :: Class Reflectiom

This is a replacement blog for 02062011 Reflection.

This week we worked on Critters. Critters are an extension of Bug which is an extension of the Actor class. Critters still Act, but these entities affect other beings in the grid. These Critters sometimes change the color of other Actors, or make things rotate, or just remove them from the Grid World altogether. These Critters also move in a wacky way, in whatever direction they choose. This makes it annoying to try and test them out, as they move in random directions. Getting them next to the rock I'm testing out is sometimes tedious and i end up just hitting run and putting it to the max.

Blog Replacement 01302011 :: Share

This is a replacement blog for 01302011 Share.

Recently, I've been spending my free time (that is, the time I don't spend on homework or at lacrosse)on mixing and making music. A friend and I have started a project, we've named it FFS. We don't have much gear yet, but he's got huge speakers and I've got some software. I have my midi fighter, which I blogged about earlier. We are also buying this: http://www.amazon.com/Hercules-DJ-Control-MP3-e2/dp/B002HH9TO2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=musical-instruments&qid=1297884989&sr=8-1 . This is actually really cheap for a product of its kind. For a while we plan to just play other people's music, but eventually we will start working in our original compositions. The idea started when I was at a party with said friend, and we both noted that we could do much better than the DJ playing. One thing lead to the next and now the project is up and running.

Blog Replacement 01302011 :: Class Reflection

This is a replacement blog for 01302011 Class Reflection.

This week, we worked on Sort/Search. This takes an array and organizes it from least to greatest. If you want it to be the other way around, then you can just arrayName.reverse(). This is really useful because it makes the arrays really have a purpose. You could not take 4 different integers that aren't in an array and organize them by greatest to least. Arrays are really useful for this reason.

Search is also helpful, as you can find the location of a data point after you sort the array in any way you choose. Sort/search really makes arrays useful.

Replacement Blog 01162011 :: Share

This is a replacement blog for the empty space of Share 01162011.

You may know Borders from book shopping, looking for gifts, or gift cards you've received on holidays. Have you been shopping there recently? Probably not. Borders filed for bankruptcy, and although they are not closing all stores, they are closing 30% of them. That means that the friendly neighborhood gift store may not be there the next time you need some candles or a book for a friend.

The reason Borders is failing is because of what the book industry is rapidly becoming : digitized. The Amazon Kindle, among other readers, are becoming increasingly popular and common. Physical books are becoming unpopular, and Borders stayed on the physical book and gift industry even after it was too late. Borders did not come out with any kind of e-Reader or e-Book sales. This is the reason the much loved bookstore is now only 70% of what it used to be.

original article:
http://www.engadget.com/2011/02/16/borders-files-for-bankruptcy-plans-to-keep-operating-but-close/

Replacement Blog 01162011 :: Class Reflection

This is a blog to fill in the empty space of blog 01162011.

In class this week I believe we worked on Arrays? Yeah. Arrays are just ways to store integers and strings, and any other kind of data. The way Arrays store information is that they assign a certain kind of data to a point in them. Then if you need to reference that data you can just ask the array to give it to you.

This could be useful for long lists of data. Instead of having to code for multiple names of data points, you can just reference a point on an array.

Reflect: Gridworld

This week we worked on more gridworld. Gridworld has never been a huge issue for me. I was a little confused on how to use ArrayLists to get the job done, and the random thing has always baffled me. I used the regular gridworld commands instead of using an ArrayList I just used the command. I was rewarded with a program that did the exact same thing, used less code, and had none of the intended content. Programming is supposed to be about the easiest way to execute a goal. I think these labs are a confusing example, because this I don't see how ArrayLists would make my job easier as a program, and if they don't make it easier to program, why would I use them?

Share: 2/8

The Superbowl was on Sunday, one day that most Americans look forward to almost as much as thanksgiving. There's just as much food to be had (although instead of turkey there's wings and nachos) and considerably more drinking. The advertisements are always interesting as well - my favorites were the popular Darth-Vader Volkswagen ad (http://superbowlads.fanhouse.com/?sem=1&ncid=AOLSPR00170000000009&s_kwcid=TC|10781|watch%20super%20bowl%20ad||S|b|6519997760) and the bud lite kitchen renovation ad (http://superbowlads.fanhouse.com/2011/bud-light-hack-job/). My favorite Superbowl ads ever were the overstock.com ads, where shock value was the humor, with statements like "We wanted you to remember our name, so we tattooed it on the foreheads of kids at this elementary school".

Reflection 01232011

This week we are working with Array Lists. An arraylist is just an array with the capacity to add or remove array spaces. Unlike plain old arrays, you do not have to initiate the array while defining a size. With an array, you have a set grid of numbers which are then called by whatever you are doing. In ArrayLists, you can make the code add more numbers and spaces in the ArrayList, as well as take them away. These Array Lists are useful because say you had a growing database of information, and didn't want to create a directory too small to contain all of the information you would have in the future. Creating a method using an Array List will enable the program to make new information storing places, as well as remove old information that you have no need for any more.

share: 1/16

This is the Midifighter. It is an awesome controller available on the web at midifighter.com . I'm asking for one for my birthday. There are many videos on youtube of awesome individuals using the Midifighter to control several songs at the same time. One of my favorite mixes is a mix of "Renegade Master" by Fat Boy Slim and Boy 8-Bit. It is an awesome mix, and I suggest looking it up if you have some free time. Until next time, my birthday is next week!

Frank

Reflection 1/16

This week we worked on Arrays. I did very poorly on the array quiz. I understand the basic concept of arrays, that they store information at locations. This kind of reminded me of my biology class, where we learn about the locus of genes of chromosome. In a joking way:

int[] chromosome = {1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,0};

Say the gene for blue eyes is the number 2. This number is stored at location 1 on the chromosome (array).

out.print(chromosome[1]); //expresses the gene

So then it would print:

2(expressing blue eyes)

That's all for this week.

-Frank

Reflection winter break :: SHARE

Over winter break, I went to Israel with my dad's side of the family. It was a blast, and an experience I will never forget. We first went to Tel Aviv, the most modern part of the country. It felt like I was in the middle of New York. Next we bussed our way up to Haifa, to the beautiful gardens there. A whole mountain was made into an amazing landscape by the Bajai, one of the many religions with a holy place in Israel. Then we went to The northern tip of the country. We stood at a point where Lebanon was visible, and it looked beautiful. There are many border issues between those countries, so we made sure to keep our distance from the fence. After that, we went to Jerusalem. The old city was so well kept, it was amazing. The huge castles and fortresses we saw (built by Herod, a famous and crazy King) were astounding, and it was awesome to look out at the newer parts of town from there.

Blog Entry January 9: Reflection on Class

This week, we worked on GridWorld. GridWorld is really not hard for me. I managed to get the "Z-bug" after many tried attempts containing many, many lines of unnecessary code. The first thing I tried was just having one integer that would determine how the bug would move next. It worked, but was about 70 lines longer than it needed to be. It ended up needing an integer to tell it what side it was on. I finally got it to work, and my success made me very happy. One of the reasons i like programming are that when I achieve success after a lot of work, it makes me really proud. Although GridWorld doesn't make me think quite as hard as some of the labs have in the past, it's still interesting to challenge myself to get a desired outcome from a code.