Block Drop

Okay, I know, it has been a grip since my last post, but I am back. I have spent enough time hiding behind the excuse of organizing my life when I was really playing City of Heroes. Great game!!!

Anways, I am at work right now, but tonight I will provide some updates. I have updated the Block Drop treatment and am reorganizing the design document to describe the new features. I am even more excited about the game with the addition of the new design directions.

Ultimately, once I get the majority of the design done, I will start recruiting teammates to help me complete it.

Well, stay tuned for my post later.

OOH OOH EEH EEH

Champion of Truth and Justice

I know, monkeyboy has not been in the tree for sometime now! Well, I don't think any of you would either if you had your own copy if City of Heroes. I mean, the citizens of Paragon City are quite demanding, but it is a pleasure serving them. Below are some screenshots of my latest Halloween Adventures. Big ups to the City of Heroes dev team, fantastic job on the new updates.

Enjoy!

	Trick or Treat Ambush Pic #1
	Trick or Treat Ambush Pic #2
	Costume Upgrade
	Archvillian Dr Vahziloks getting mind zapped

OOH OOH EEH EEH

Back to the grind

Well boys and girls, I am back to the grind. This fall quarter is now under way! Boooooooo....

There has been a lot that has happended these last two weeks. I will post much more later today on some of those happenings. Right now, class is about to begin.

So long!!

OOH OOH EEH EEH

And it all comes to an end

Ahhh! I am so ready to enjoy the end of this quarter. I can now concentrate a bit harder on "Block Drop", work on my bowling swing, and just max out with my wife and daughter. Man, this is a much needed time to just RELAX.

Just as a heads up, you may not hear from me for about 2 weeks. Monkeyboy is gonna climb up the nearest tree and snooze.

So I will see you all upon my return! Peace out!

OOH OOH EEH EEH!

New Applications

Well, well well! I am posting this blog from a new blog application, new to me, running on my linux partition. I am getting better and better at this the more I play with it.

The Blocks are still falling!

Alright, it is time for another update on "Block Drop". I know it has been a long minute since I last updated everyone on its progress. So continue reading to get the scoop.



The image above demonstrates a new and improved font rendering system I developed specifically for Block Drop to manage the different font faces required. It uses the SDL_ttf library for low-level font rendering capabilities. I added functionality to print all built in data types as strings and am able to position text anywhere on the display. It also allows you to change the color and font size of individual fonts. This will make presenting game and debug text on the screen a cinch.

Later this week I hope to show the font system in the game instead of a test. This will have to do for now.

Well, that is all for tonight. Sorry if some of this doesn't make sense, but it is currently 1:30AM, and I need some frickin sleep. The job of a developer is never done!! Night all!

OOH OOH EEH EEH

Who am I? Where am I? What is going on??

Oh my goodness! Things have kicked into high gear these last few weeks!

First off, I am sad to see the midget go on the "Amazing Race". Man, she was a fiesty one! "Go on then!! What are you waiting for!!" LOL, good times good times!

School has been taking a lot of my time! A report due here, a lab due there, a test here and a quiz there! Whew, I am taking these few minutes to catch my breath.

Block Drop is still alive and well. Designed another approach at implementing the block interaction. I think it will be easier to implement. Pace has slowed a bit, but hopefully with time permitting when this school quarter ends, I will be able to catch up on its progress.

My development skills have also been tasked out to an online team. The project I will not get into, but when it gets closer to completion, I will blab everything I know, so stay tuned!

Work has been progressing as well. A coworker dropped my name and things have been taking off. More responsibility less availability. That's cool though, I was needing a bit of a change!

Oh, and for my friend who has been hounding me for links to cool development toys to play with, here are the two I use most.

http://www.libsdl.org
http://www.google.com

LOL, I hope those help. =P

Well, my time is up. Hit me with some comments letting me know how yall are doing.

Monkeyboy out!
OOH OOH EEH EEH

What does a person have to do for a key???

My word, maybe it is something I am paying for in my childhood. Maybe I slapped someone I shouldn't have and now I am paying for it. I mean really, is it so hard to give out a stinking key?? I have the experience! Damn you BLIZZARD!!!

It all started with an old buddy boasting about how his friend didn't want to continue his beta participation for World of Warcraft. I mean talk about being a pest, this fool wouldn't let me sleep at night without hearing about how he had just trained his Paladin in some art of whatever from whereever!! That bastard, maybe it wouldn't have been so bad if I was in, but dear lord! He was so gracious to let me play test it! WOO HOOO!! Man, talk about foaming at the mouth!

Now as I sit in class, a neighboring classmate informs me he is in too. My Goodness! What is this?!?! Please let me know my penance Lord so I can learn the errors of my ways, because all I wanted for Christmas was a World of Warcraft CLOSED beta key! Was that too much to frickin' ask??

Thanks to the cool neighboring classmate and boasting friend of mine for the opportunity to live the experience of World of Warcraft through their private playtime! Thanks from the bottom of my heart, blah!! jk =)


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Oh Monkeyboy...where are you???

Okay, first I need to apologize for no SCREENSHOTS! It is all Fedora's fault! Ever since I was on this revolution kick for freedom, I have wanted nothing more these past weeks to become Linux Master Supreme. Well, all I have to show for it is my shaky intern status. The adjustment to Linux is great, but not without its hiccups. I am getting better and better each day. On my way to grand master, Hai!

Now for Block Drop. I have been working on a SoundServer interface that allows me to manage a pool of songs and samples to cut the overhead of reloading a highly used sound resource multiple times (be nice to your CPUs). That is done, and I have a couple of demos showing its capabilities. I plan to integrate it into the game soon. It supports file formats: WAVE, AIFF, RIFF, MP3, and OGG (ahem, my man SDL_mixer =P).

And for all of you out there that can't wait for the next monkeyboy update well, kiss my fanny and wait! It's coming! Mark my words...

Also, I have a big secret that I don't want to reveal until you see me on the cover of "Game Developer Magazine". Man, once everything is right, I will be on my way!! Man I am SO EXCITED!!

And for those that know, one word and I will pound your face in!! >=/ Oh, and have a nice day!!

Got a banana for me???
OOH OOH EEH EEH

Another missed opportunity

Man, alright alright! I know, I know. It has now been about 2.5 weeks since a screenie has been posted for Block Drop. I promise to get my schedule together to make this happen by Friday. I will not bore you with excuses as to why this hasn't been done, but stay tuned for the new screenies at the end of the week.

Also, ahem, the Tourney was great! My partner and I were so terrifying that we ran my sister out of town before the tourney could begin. It was a shame at how heavily she was drinking to help keep her from busting her kneecaps because she was quivering violently. Alas sis, I hope you are feeling okay and are ready to leave the house again. Call me! =P

We ran through all of the teams with ease, ahem! I do have to give big ups to my Mom and Pops (team: OldSkool). They gave us a run for our money. But, reminiscent of good ole Pokemon, "Team Greatness is back in ACTION!" (shut it!)....

Again, thanks for everyone that coming out. I hope you all had as much fun as we did. And for Moms for hooking me up with that ribs recipe! UM, UM, I know better than getting between a nig*** and his pork! You might get your fingers bit!! (Dave Chappelle).

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I NEED MORE TIME CAPTAIN!!

Alright, I want to apologize first for not having the update I said I would have last Friday. I am still designing, as my first design proved to be a failure (lucky while still in the design phase). I plan to have that complete on Monday, because I am hosting the 1st Annual Badmitton Tournament on 31st. More on that progress will come.

Speaking of the tournament, it takes off on July 31st! My wife and I are favored to take home the gold. So far it is shaping up to be an interesting and fun event. We'll see who shows and how the weather will be. There will be food, fun, and prizes too. Even if it rains, food and fun will show up!!

Oh, and finally, school. I am back into the groove. It is now my 4th week into the quarter and I am doing good. Had enough information to learn about GROUP BY and why Ben Franklin was such a smooth talker. Heh, maybe this time around I will actually retain this stuff.

Just wanted to let everyone know I am still alive and all of my projects are still alive and kicking. Prepare for more screenshots. Also, my boy is finishing up my site, so the Block Drop Progress Reports will be continued there. I will have a link when that becomes available.

Damn, time for my test. Lata

Until then, you know the drill!
OOH OOH EEH EEH

AND TODAY EVERYTHING WILL BE FREEEE!!!

This is a continuation to my past post about finding free software. I am seriously done paying form subpar software. It is frickin rediculous!

So I am happy to announce that I am now on the path to freedom. I have successfully installed Fedora Core onto my system using the GNOME desktop. For those that do not have a clue as to what Fedora is, it is a Linux distribution, like Red Hat Linux. Read about it here. Yes, it is great. I am still in the midst of tinkering, so I still have my Windows partition active. But mark my words, the day draws near that I will wipe my system clean of that cancer called Windows!!!

Oh yeah, another thing too, you can take screenshots of individual windows!!! How cool is that??? No more taking a screenie of the entire desktop then editing the image! And the "Gimp" has a timer to schedule screenshots, kind of like the timer on a camera so you can get your lard ass in the picture in time!!! SEE WHAT BEING FREE DOES??? YOU CAN USE YOUR GOD GIVEN ABILITIES TO MAKE QUALITY SHIT THAT MAKES SENSE!!!

Viva la Revolution!!!!
OOH OOH EEH EEH

Block Drop Progress Report #5a

This is a continuation to the "Block Drop Progress Report #5". I wanted to add a screenshot. This one shows the main menu of Block Drop with functioning gui buttons. I created a simple gui button that performs hit testing. Later I will update it to apply rollover capabilities and maybe a pressed state.

Also, I have been in the lab designing how I am gonna develop the tricky block puzzle. It will take a bit more design to complete.

Here is the screenie. Pardon my tireness, I am sleepy!

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Block Drop Progress Report #5

What was updated?

Okay, first I want to say, instead of working on the blocks and how they interact with the game board, I decided to implement the state management system.

This is an important system and will directly effect how and where I implement the block system. This system isolates each game state to function on it's own. Each game state is managed by a state manager. It is the responsibility of the state manager to track and process the active state.

Each game state has 2 main responsibilities, to process each frame of animation and to handle state specific user input.

This system allows me to handle a single key differently with each game state. This will provide a lot of flexibility. Also, if I need to add or remove states, this will be done by adding/removing a state class.

What's being worked on this week?

Now I will get into the building of the blocks and how they interact. This will probably take about a month to implement. I will still update my blog weekly to keep everyone posted on progress. This will involve collision detection/response, organization of the block components, and the line monitoring system.

Also, if this doesn't seem to make sense, I am a bit tired, so post clarification questions in the comments area. I have enable anonymous posts too so that you don't have to have a blog account to comment. Well, let me get back to the lab.

OOH OOH EEH EEH

Spreading the blog seed

Man, I need to get on the blog payroll. I mentioned it to my lil sis and she is all into it now. Everybody, go check her's blog too. This stuff is truly contagious.

Pretty soon, this will become a FREE blog nation!!! muhahahhahahah!!

Well, you know the drill. (if not, read below)
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OMG EVERYTHING GREAT IS FREEE!!!!!!!!!!!!

OMG, a totally new world has opened up before my eyes. I mean, I have always known about free software, but I never believed it would be as good as their commercial counterparts. I mean, how could they when the commericial versions are backed by $1 million budgets. Now, I see things differently after taking the "red pill" and tumbling down through the hole leading to the land of "Google". I now see the truth, great products come FREE OF CHARGE!!!! (Stadium Cheer)

What brought me to find these great products was me researching tools to use to build my game "Block Drop". I have always known about SDL, but as I was searching for libraries that supported the SDL to use for my game. At that point, I realized I needed an image editing program to build the graphics for the game. The first 2 products that popped into my head were Adobe Photoshop and Jasc Paintshop Pro. I mean, from all the buzz, if you wanted a quality product you had to spend cash for it. Well, since I am on this kick to stay legit and not steal software, I began my quest to find a half-way decent product that would perform basic image editing procedures. And that is when it all started to happen, I saw the "GIMP"!

At first I was skeptical, but after seeing some screenshots, reading about its features, and it's support by the independent community I was hooked. I then installed it and my juices began to flow even further. And then it hit me, like my Momma had slapped me when I wasted her money in my high school marching band by playing Super Mario Brothers and Battlezone at the local Shoppette on Post (that's another story)...

Anyways, you have to go check it out if you ever need a free image editing product just as good as its $5000 counterpart. I mean geez, IT'S FREE!!!

Another free bit of software I found was MinGW Developer Studio. It is similar to MS Visual Stuido, but FREE!!!. It uses the mingw version of the gcc and g++ compilers. So far it works like a champ! Check it out.

Looking for a text editor that is extensible beyond your every dream? A truly platform independent text editor with a nice interface? Well, look no further, it is here, and it goes by the name of "jEdit". jEdit is a text editor written in Java 2 that has a fantastic plugin system to extend its capabilities. It can also be setup as a compiler for a plethora (i love that word) of languages including JAVA, C/C++, perl, and many more. I know, I know, but Java is slow, not this time around. This app is lightning fast for a java app anyways. I totally recommend this one! Go see this one tooo!

I feel like that salesman screaming at you from inside the TV to come to the new EXPO where everything is FREEE!!!!! =P.

Man, this makes me want to dump Microsoft and got strictly linux. I mean now my conscious can rest assured that no one can come knocking down my door because I wanted to tryout (*wink) their new version of their software to decide whether it works for me or not! Stick that up your tailpipe and spin on that you money grubbing bastards!

Anyways, post any other free development software you come across, so we can share the wealth of FREEDOM!!! Viva la Revolution!!!

OOH OOH EEH EEH

Block Drop Progress Report #4

Alright, update time! The thumb above is showing off the basic font system being used by Block Drop. This demo is incrementing the player's score 1 point per frame rendered.

Tools used
I did some research and I found that the BFont library best fit my needs. I just needed a simple font system to display font created dynamically and of any data type because I will need to print numbers as a string text. An added bonus is that this library also provides the ability of justifying the text left, center, and right (can't beat that).

Comments
First off, the SDL is AWESOME! I recommend it to anyone that wants to just focus on developing their game and not all of the redundant subsystem code. It is widely supported and has good enough documentation to get you started. Plus, it is platform independent, that is a great reason to play with it. Oh and yes mudface, I will be making a Crapple version, so be ready because I will need you to test.

Okay, be aware that the font being used right now is not the final product. It is just a test font to make sure the font rendering system works correctly. Once the base functionality of the game is in place I will recruit a texture artist to generate some bitmap fonts to use that fit the theme of the game. So relax because I don't want 80 comments about how disgusting my font selection is, because I am fully aware of that already =P.

What's Next
The next thing on my plate is to design/implement how the blocks will interact with each other. I am shooting for having some screens this Friday, but if not, it will be the following Friday, July 16th because this will be one of the biggest tasks. Most likely, I will have something for you guys this coming Friday so stay tuned!

OOH OOH EEH EEH

Block Drop Progress Report #3

Okay, I don't want to hear any lip! I'm a day late, yeah, SO WHAT! Below is a picture of the foundation of the game. Right now the foundation interfaces, such as basic rendering, input, logging, and debug functionality is in place. So this screenshot isn't meant to wow you, but rather show progress.



The next milestone is to create a fully functional Bitmap Font Rendering System that uses a Bitmap Font Template organizing each ASCII character for dynamic text building. This would be a good system to use for both the scoring system, any visible timers, and the High Score Screen. There will be more info regarding this system as time progresses. I will keep you posted on any third party tools that I may use for this as well. I believe there are some bitmap font template builders out there.

Well, enjoy.
OOH OOH EEH EEH

Block Drop Progress Report #2

Okay, development is about to be underway. I will begin laying down the first statements of code on Monday. I have decided to use the Simple DirectMedia Layer (SDL) to develop it. It is a robust 2D rendering system that provides all of the tools I will need to get Block Drop up and running fast. Again, no screenshots at this point, so don't ask!! Oh, and I will try to post screenshots at the end of each week to show the progress.

The first goal is to make the base window for the game displaying the title of the game and basic input for exiting the application. A screenshot will be available on June 25 showing the results.

OOH OOH EEH EEH

What in the hell was her parents thinking??

Mudface brought something to my attention this morning that made me wonder what the hell are some parents thinking when they name their kids. But the thing is, I doubt there is a full name that gets any worse than this, see for yourself. Poor lady, at least she went in to the appropriate field, go figure. LOL, sorry.

Post some other outrageous names if you find them. I am interested in seeing other names given to them by their supposedly loving parents.

OOH OOH EEH EEH

Another member of the community

Yeah, I would like to welcome a friend of mine into the community. He goes by the name, yeah, I don't know, but for the most part he is in the lab cooking up a new concoction of Flash interfaces to take the world by storm. Go check him out at his site. You can also see his daily rambling at his blog site in the links section ( DTSquared ).

I think it stands for Do Tight Ducks Today, yeah, don't know, but check him out regardless. WELCOME DAWG!!!

Oh, and as far as what's been going on with me. I have redesigned the hardware analyzer part of my game engine to enumerate all attached display adapters and their device combinations. To those that don't understand, I am just gathering all of the video cards on a user's PC and documenting what they can do so that the game can make an educated guess on what features the user's PC can handle. That should be implemented by tonight.

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Funny Business

Here is a list of things that I thought were funny from the past 24 hours:

Conan O'brien and the Crocodile Hunter's demonstration on placing a tracking device onto a crocodile.

Clips of Walker Texas Ranger clips on Conan O'brien. How are you gonna punch a man out that has just stepped into a bear trap. Who wrote that?? LOL

Jimmy Kimbel getting flack from Detroit for his statement of "I hope Detroit doesn't win because I don't want the city to be burned down".

Remembering how great the movie "Lost Boys" really was!!

Trying to figure out what ever happened to Ted's career from "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure"

Man, these topics have kept me overly giddy today. LOL, feel free to post what you think is funny. Damn, I can't stop laughin...

OOH OOH EEH EEH

Expectations

It is funny how some people expect so much of us and for things to happen in a timely manner. For instance, I have this friend, mudface, who got me hooked up on this blogging craze. Now, he is watching me like a hawk. If I miss so much as one day, he is all over me. Where are you man?? Why haven't you posted man?? I know he means well, so I just blow it out like smoke from my butt.

Well, thing is, he just got married. Congrats to that as well. Well, since were weren't invited (yeah, I am still questioning my friendship with him), I wanted him to take pictures and post them online. He enthusiastically agreed. Well now that he is back, there are no pictures. I mean, what the hell??

I mean, normally, this wouldn't be a problem, but with the pressure from him, how am I supposed to respond right? I mean, why aren't his pictures up. Aren't we supposed to help each other keep a high level of standard by practicing what we PREACH?? Hmm, I don't know how much more of this I can take from him. Oh dear, I have some things to think about tonight.

Well, monkeyboy is sad now, so tuning out. Oh, and mud, you know I was kidding. Congratulations man, and good luck to the both of you.

OOH OOH EEH EEH

Block Drop Progress Report #1

Alright, here is my first progress report for my game "Block Drop".

Right now the base interface for the game is complete. I don't have any screenshots up till this point. Next report will have screenshot (nothing spectacular mind you).

The random block generator has been completed. I may refine it to statistically generate blocks so that one block doesn't happen to appear more than another. But that is a feature that can be cut out if need be.

I have some interesting ideas for "Power Blocks". This idea I think will make my game stand out more than the other clones. I will present these in another progress report. They may even have their own, we'll see when I get there.

Also, in the middle of design the webpage for the game as well. That will be another in depth resource to follow the progress of the game. I will post the link once it is ready.

I am still having a problem trying to figure out why my input system isn't working across different systems consistently. I am still on the hunt for a solution to that problem.

Well, that is just a little update to the game. Not much mentioned here. The next one will have a bit more detail and screenshots of its progress. Hell, I may even come up with a consistent format for these progress report. We'll see though, I have never been known to be the formal type. Well, you know the drill...

OOH OOH EEH EEH

A wooden swing set costs WHAT???

Ahh, children... You only want to teach them the ways of life and please them. One way my wife and I were trying to vie for my daughters approval was to get her a swing set. Okay, maybe I wasn't looking for her approval, more like give her something to do out back to giving me more time for me, he he. I know, I know, you're a bad father monkeyboy. Oh yeah, well stuff it ( EEEEEEEEEEEHH - monkey scream in your face ).

Anyways, we drive around town and find a little shop that specializes in wooden swing sets. We all go to check it out. We fell in love with this place as soon as we stepped in. I mean these sets were georgous. Hell, after spending 5 minutes there, I wanted to buy one for myself.

After teasing my daughter for about 8 hours, we query the salesman for a price list. ( And so it begins ) He pulls out this "configuration catalog". I should have known by first glance that this was out of a poor man's range because the catalog had not prices for the different configurations. I mean, out of all the catalogs I have looked through, they always had the little letter along side the item that referenced a price for the item in the price list. But not these extremely overpriced catalogs that only some A-list movie star could purchase.

Anyways, I notice there aren't any prices listed for each configurations. Of course, my ignorant butt asks about it. Awkwardly the guy chuckles, as if to say, "I don't even know why you came here". So I chuckle back like, "shut your trap and show me the damn price list". Finally this joker pulls out the price list. To my amazement, there isn't a single configuration under $4000.00. My mouth hit the floor and a couple of teeth fell out. I couldn't believe it. I mean the most expensive set at Wal-Mart was $400.00, so I am thinking these fools have gotten a bit zero crazy, wtf!

To make it worse, he starts telling me that there was a guy that had come in the week before we did and flat out purchased a configuration for $10,000.00. Which I am sure he told me this to never step foot back into his store. In which case I chuckle again, trying to refrain from flipping him off and jamming my finger through his left nostril to scratch and cut his frontal lobe, that bastard!!!

Yeah, I don't know where I was going with this story, but I felt I needed to tell ya. Hell, maybe indirectly I was trying to warn you to shop around before thinking about getting a "wooden" swing set. Ahhhh, enough of my monkey ramblings. See, how can a monkey code with this type of stuff festering in his head??

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Problems and more problems

Yes, monkeyboy is still fricking alive!!

I have been in the lab 24-7 these days, working on my demo game titled "Block Drop" ( can you guess what game I am developing??? ).

The problem I am having the most difficulty with is my input system. It relies on DirectInput Action Mapping. The funny thing is, I tested it on 3 different PCs, the input interface works on 2 of the 3. So I have been scouring forums searching for a possible resolution, to which I have found nothing to help me resolve my problem.

Bleh, I guess it is back to the grind. Oh, and if anyone has any ideas, PLEASE let me know, heh. Anyways, you know the deal...

OOH OOH EEH EEH

Getting comfortable

Yeah, not much happened today, so I won't ramble much.

I just wanted to give big ups to my boy "hippybro" for making my cool self portrait that describes my simian roots to a "T".

Also, tonight will be a night for a lot of design work on my game that is currently in development. It is of course a tetris clone, but with some cool unique features that I hope will help it stand out from all the other clones out there.

It is funny where the ideas for additional features for the game came from. I was in the shower cleanin and scrubbin, scrubbin and a cleanin when I was hit by a storm of inspirational ideas for features to add to the game. I don't want to devulge them yet, but it will be soon. I will post a webpage soon to check out screenshots of the progress.

So STAY TUNED!!

I am really liking this blogging stuff.

OOH OOH EEH EEH

What is all this hype about??

It seems everywhere I go on the internet I am seeing folks reference this blog stuff. What the hell is it?!?!

Then to top it off, my friend IMs telling me I need to set one up to track my development process. Oh yeah, I am working on my skillz to become a game programmer.

The final straw was a fellow student at the Game Institute who posted his blog website in the forum. So I run and check it out like any skeptical critic to find to my surprise how he used it to organize his thoughts. For this entire time I had been using pencil and paper. Well no more friends!!!

I am now confident that this could potentially be the answer to my problems of organinzing these thought ramblings. Maybe even get some feedback from others that may have thought of or even solved the pitfalls I am faced with each day.

So stay tuned and experience my fumblings as I walk on the path to game development (HA, that sounded kinda biblical). Oh and I am not an english major so go easy on me. I just write the first thing that pops into my head. So spread the cheese around!

OOH OOH EEH EEH ( good bye in monkeynese )