Gregs Madness

New Blog

2009-08-10T17:37:00.002+02:00

I'm starting a new blog, mainly because E-Mail of this profile dose no longer exist. So go to madmanmaking.blogspot.com

see you there,

Greg

ARRRG!!!!

2009-07-30T15:57:00.002+02:00

Well ...

I was working on my editor, to be precise on the background Project-World-Level strukture when all the sudden Visual C# 2008 started to make problems.

It turned out that this dose have some stuff to do with the edits I made in the designe file of the main form.

"Ok", I thought, "just don't make any edits anymore and your fine." Thought, done.

But a few minutes later the designer file deleted the main split container of my form ...

"Ok", I thought, "delet that stupid form and with that all the problems you have." Thought, done.

But a few hours later, after I recreated the form, it happened again. The Editor Control was gone. I may only have the just replace it in the designer view, but it still sucks.

"Ok", I thought, " how about if I dump the entire project, reinstall VC# 2008, or even reset the entire PC. That should solve the problem." Thought, ... no not done.

I just closed the project and I'm waiting for motivation to rewrite the whole thing ... till then I may play some games of make another little project ... who knows.

Greg

I did it (well parts of "it")

2009-07-20T23:48:00.003+02:00

A few days ago I planed to make a tile map editor till monday 2400 and right now its 10 minutes before tuesday.

This is the proof that its working, I made a spiral in the grid. And that not trough test writing and telling the editor what is where before the whole thing is build.

NO! I've loaded the tiles in runtime (not through the contentimporter as the beautifull magenta spots show), have selected the desired tile and painted it on the grid.

It far from being done, or bug free, nor can I save any level yet, or load it, but that will be done another day.

Yes, the 6th of august is comming closer, but a good tool it the essence of every good game.

Till then,

Greg

Trying it the hard way

2009-07-17T17:25:00.002+02:00

On the 6th of august Microsoft will close the entry window for this years DreamBuildPlay contest.

When that happens, I want to enter a game.

20 Days till then. What I got is a beginning of a Leveleditor. I have a good game idea. And I have 20 days I can use (- some hours, because I'm lazy ;-) ).

What I have to do, is only create the world map, additional sublevels, write the complet game code, debug it, port it on the 360, debug it send it.

Sounds quite easy too me. I know that I might woun't make it, ... but who cares? I still would have finally a complet game in my postfolio, woudn't I?

Currently, my next Milestone is to get the editor done till monday 2400. Around 3 days should be enougth to tune the storage system, make a tile manager, create a good grid-level setup, and make it possible to place special tiles (stuff you later can interact with).

Sounds like a plan to me. :D

Greg the Mad

First wave out

2009-07-15T20:49:00.002+02:00

4 applications there are that are still unanswered, and that from a total of 6 send.

To give you more figures: Those 6 where out of a list of 16 internships that would fit for me, and those 16 where out of a list of 65 internship advertisements.

well ...

... I only need one, you know ...

And I don't know if I really will be able to pull up that game that I came up with two days ago.

Yes, just like that I hade a new game in my head. No, its not that I can't focuse on one game, but that this is a more or less easy 2D game that still holds a lot of fun. Its a SciFi Survival Adventure, thats all I want to say.

But I would have to make some progress in my programm, and that did not happen till now.

The Content Project makes problems, the Xna.Path dose not work as said.

... but I could hardcore write this game ...

I don't know yet.

... its too hot in austria to do thinking ... :(

Greg

Looking for a job

2009-07-09T14:28:00.002+02:00

OK, yesterday I called the austrian military when I would have to make my obligatory military duty. Well ... 4th January 2010.

Thats quite a while till then, so I decieded to look for a job in this time, instead to work on my game engine. Its just too much time to spend infront of my computer only doing what I want ...

Anyway. I already have send away two applications, the two which would interest me the most.

One for a german console games magazine and the other for a more local game developer.

If I would get the first I would have to get a flat in munich/germany and had to move there (for 5 month ...), but I'm flexible. ;-)

Ther other one would be closer, and I wouln't have to move anywere, but on the other hand it wouldn't only be a job about games, it would be a job ... evem more about games.

I can't be that sure of any of them to be a success, after all I would be a big risk for any of them as I'm fresh from school and have no specific education, but ... you can dream, can't you?

But I will have a look for other jobs, but they will go into the same direction I think. The "Possible, But Unlikely" direction.

And at this point I have to point out the great HR woman from the first job that have send me a mail only to tell me that she has received my application. It probably was a automatic mail, send to every one who sends a application, but its still something so many other HR people are lacking of ...

Greg

Back home

2009-07-07T21:12:00.002+02:00

I just were reading in the good old Bioware forums, what I didn't have done that frequent in the last weeks, and guess what I stumble over. Yes, a topic about Blogs, and so I thought about making a new post.

I'm back from my week in turkey, it was so great and sunny that some parts of my skin wanted to stay there, so I let them. Some other parts decieded to come back and stay tan, and again some other thought it would be awesome to take some austrian vacation. The last are leaving my day by day ...

Damn you sun!

Do you know what really lets you know that you're done with school? You look into you timetable and see a quite big empty void looking back.

I may will fill that blank page of my life with some programming form my game engine, well not yet, later.

Now I have to make some other stuff first, like figuring out what I have to go to the obligatory military duty thise year, every normal boy in austria have to make.

Mean while I will have to think of a fitting university to atemt to, the right branch of study, etc.

... Is there a branch that combines astrophysics with game programming? Something like Advanced Space Sumulations? Spacecraft System programmer? Worldleadership for Beginners?

... hmmm ...

Greg

Day 5 / Entry 2

2009-07-02T19:22:00.002+02:00

Its been a while.

On my firt real day here I already burned my skin, the whole body ... So ... I spended the next two days in my room.

Today is the first day out of that room, and I'm happy :)

Right now I'm waisting time as my MP3 player is pulged on this laptop sucking energy out of it. After that the 'Beach Mania' will start.
I am normaly not that beach party fan, but they got some interresting bands, no Linkin Park, Metalica, or whatever, but I might have a look.

Oh, one last thing, I hate Pepsi ... that cheap, or rather not that cheap Coca Cola copy. Its the coke they got here regulary, to mix all the drinks, and as a Coca Cola fan I drink coke all the time.
And by the time ... you realy start to tast the differences, .. and pepsi looses that mache.
Yesterday I bought a Coca Cola ZERO in the resort shop and ... whaa ... you can't imagen what that feeled ...

Can't wait till I'm home ... not because it suchs here, but because there will be a good cola. :D

So Long,

Greg the Mad

Day 1 / Entry 1

2009-06-28T14:45:00.002+02:00

We arived after around 8 hours waiting, sitting in a plane and sitting in a bus. It was already getting light again ... well I have to say that we traveled in the night.

Right now I'm sitting in the communication area, with around 30 other people who apparently use the same tube as I do: http://www.speedtest.net/result/505567272.png

But if that is the only downside, it would be awesome.

Its not the only downside, but still great ;)
The other downside is that I totally lost the other schoolmates, so I'm wandering around all alone and get bored quite fast, still ther is much to do, so I have entertainment, but I wouln't have to sit here and write a blog entry about it.

So thats all for now, So Long

Greg the Mad

Great Cell Idea

2009-06-24T19:23:00.003+02:00

How about a cellphone that only works over the internet connection?

I mean, thats what cells are made for today, is it not? And you can make voice calls over Skype or even free stuff like Live Messanger (you could decide youself!).

And who cares that you would not be able to call for help with those devices? ... You still could really 'call' for help after all. Also could the emergency servises create thier own online portals for those calls.

All I know dose the broadband internet also use the same grid as the normal cell phone (well at least they could) and so you would not loose any connectifity.

... Such a device would be greate ... just think of all the cool stuff that would be standard! Waves (meaning Google Wave, if you don't know what that is ... anyway)! Voice calls! Video calls! Internet! And all of that wouln't be any big deal, you only had to pay for the loading. And imagine that with a flatrate! You only would have to pay (for example) 5€ a month to have EVERTHING!

Well that me, sitting here with my phone only cell, without internet ... well that whole divice costs 30€ without any discount ... can't some great cell producer create such a device and present it to me?

Greg the Mad

Sucksses

2009-06-20T20:17:00.002+02:00

You know that test always proofe that you fit a certain level of knowledge.

As it is supposed to be with the 'Matura', but it somehow lowers you 'I'm great' feeling if you hear a girl talk about how all hir friends passed the 'Matura'. Especialy if you know those friends and know how not smart they are ...

I'm pissed currently ... man? What is this education worth anymore?

... Anyway.

I acutally planed to relaxe the next week as I take of to turkey next weekend, but relaxing is hard.

I mean Sacred 2 : Fallen Angles is one of those good old Diablo games wher you just play, and don't have to think much, you just play.

But well ... I did not spend the whole last week relaxing ... I ... have ... ... I have layed out a the main concept of my engine and restarted the work on my programmin language, now called 'Blockgramm' ... hey ... Blocking dose have a sound to it too ...

Greg the Mad

1 week feasting

2009-06-17T19:02:00.002+02:00

I made it.

I have passed one one of the hardest school test in austria, and so probably one of the hardest test in the world.

I'm the king of the world!!!!

Anyway, thats all air through the engine already. Just came home from a big party we had at a colleagues place, around 24 hours of feasting.

And the best hasn't yet started. SummerSplash

SummerSplash is a exclusive holiday-feast-programm for people like me who have passed that one special test.

In plain text this means that I, and around 10.000 other young and pritty people will spend one week, all inclusive, on a beach somewhere in turkey.

Greg the Mad

Matura

2009-06-14T10:09:00.003+02:00

Right now its 10:10 ... 21 hours till my schoole leaving exam starts.

I currently fixing some minor and major issues in the pressentation that I have to make tomorrow.

After that I will spend a nother funny afternoon learning the blackboards that I have to know tomorrow, boring but neccersary.

Then a little run of around 3km to keep my heartrate down. Supper, checking equipment, and sleep till around 5am.

At 7am I have to be in school and take the oath that I'm ready for that test and not affected by any illness or drugs.

Then the waiting comes.

We will sit in the so called 'Matura-Saal', which is a own hall for that one test. Once in a while a teacher will come and call a name. The called student then have to stand up and get his question. Its a sheet with two questions on it that he can choose, or two he has to answer, depending on the subject the question is in.

There are two kind of subjects, the complimentary subject and the focus subject. The focus subject consists of two questions, one you have to answer as a presentation and one you have to answer as a blackboard drawing.

The complimentary subject is two questions that you can choose one of.

After you are done with your question you get back at your seat and wait for the next question.

... You woun't know what that question will be or what subject, ... that are tense hours.

Finaly at 12am, we hope, the worst part will be over and the first half of the class will be tested (including me). With that thrilling experience we will walk down to a lokal eatery and have some lunch (they other might also have some beer ;) ).

Later at around 20:00 the teachers will be finished testing the whole class and will be done with evaluating the results and the marks will be writen down.There is a little indication that everyone is looking at at those minutes, the flag. Its tradition to have a white flag outside the building if every one has passed the test. Its the highest goal of the whole class. Not because everyone what everyone else to have a positive test, but because that tells everyone that they did pass.

Greg the Mad

Its been a long time

2009-05-23T18:50:00.003+02:00

It really was, was it not?

Was has changed since the last time I have posted a entrie? Well, much!

First of all: I started running! Not jogging, I mean real running. Its quite exhausting, and I have to admidt that I don't to it every day (unfortunatly), but it has such a great effect on your life if you run 3km. You feel free and active. It may not change you from a introvert into a extervert, but ... your just untouchable. I'm a planet.

Second ... I started twittering.

Its just that easy ... 140 charecters. No matter what you're doing. www.twitter.com/gregthemad

My first impulse to do it was actually to recieve updates from other people/stuff like Major Nelson, or BioWare. But well, I sticked with it and updated a few time.

Third: The first part of my School Leaving Exam is over, prepearing for the last part. Thats the part that you could call 'Oral' part, even if 'oral' sound funny.

I try to focuse on that part the next 3 and a half weeks, but ... I do some other stuff meanwhile ...

And last but not least:

Since I have seen Star Trek I get more and more interested into physics and I started to read Steven Hawkins book: Universe in a Nut shell, just yesterday. ... I read through it and wonder ... is it wired to say that I don't believe in time? I mean that space and time are not two things that affect each other, but that they are just 4 dimensions (3D+1D) to desicribe one and the same thing? Well it may take a while till I can publish this theorie. ;)

PS: I now also use Google Chrome as my main internet browser, and I miss the autocorrection you get in the default text enter fields form Chrome here. :( My English sucks.

Till then, so long

Greg the Mad

I got a plan, ... or something like it

2009-03-22T17:34:00.002+01:00

1. Finish School:

I will spend some of my time in the next two month focusing on school. That includes that I will learn for test and make some research on the questions I will face. The rest of the time will be spend on relaxing, sleeping, eating and maybe some games playing or programming.

2. Free Time:

Once I finished school I estimate that I have 3 month off. Well I may get a job at that time and earn some money, but my main focus in that time will be my Engine.

I get more and more used to C# and get quicker writing lines (Thanks to Typing of the Death), but thats not all. I also gain more and more knowledge. I still may don't know how to do this and do that, but all that can be found in the web. For exaple am I writing my own scrolle control for my interface at this moment (the default is not hand enougth). Ok, the scroll controll has nothing with my engine to do as it is only a interface thing, but ... Hey! ... I write my onw control, now thats a good basement for an engine, just think about the even handling, that could be use full later ...

3. Make A Design

No, I already got many designs in my head, but I'm actually taking about realizing it. Take a game, create it, and release it.

Once I got the last point I'm probably somewhen I my military service thing, and got enougth time to think about my Future: Get a Beccalour/Master or move right into the biz.

To have a master is always a good thing, but ... well ... I'll see. Maybe noone will like my game and I'll have to work as a engineer ... not that bad eighter.

Greg the Mad

Sometimes the School is great

2009-03-06T08:01:00.001+01:00

Well, just look

[URL=http://www.speedtest.net][IMG]http://www.speedtest.net/result/423973087.png[/IMG][/URL]

:D

Greg the Mad

Peep?

2009-02-24T16:36:00.004+01:00

Yesterday I was snowboarding, my muscles tell me different.

School is getting hard work ... its hard to play DS while you got to make homework, but I'll do it later.

Maybe I should start twittering, it dose not need any clear structure when you write it.

I didn't write a line since a few weeks now, ... but I would like to work on my game that much :(

Why dose I got no money left in the middle of the month? Oh, that why ^.^

Is it me or is HAWX not that funny as the trailer promisses? Wait till the rhomb gets red and press 'A'?!?

No wonder that Flightsimulators are a rare product if you look at the fun quality of HAWX. Don't get me wrong, I believe that it will be a great game, but ... it too is lacking of the special something Freelancer had.

Greg the Mad

Ther is a lot of snow here now, and that at 6 degrees Celsius!

Trust me, if you go snowboarding, get yourself a backprotector, I used mine.

Greg the Mad

Damn

2009-02-07T15:38:00.002+01:00

Do you know how it feels if you've worked two month on a project and than, at the end, you finaly realice that all you've done was for nothing?

Well, I'm now more or less finished with the screensaver project, talking about the code, but yesterday, when I tried to test it, I figured out that it dose not work ...

Here's the problem, the MS operation system looks for .scr at the end of a file to see if its a screensaver, and only those files the listed up in the screensaver selection window for the screensavers. ... But my screensaver got a .exe at the end ... If I would run good, old, but slow XP I just could rewrite that on my own, but better, newer, and faster Vista dose not allow me to do that ... And now I got a problem.

I just could write my own programm to do that, or use one from the internet for the job, but whats about the people who would download my sameple and want to write their own screensaver? ... I can't just give them a link to a nother programm and say 'And now you use that programm ...' ... thats not professional, is it?

And because of that the project is down in the sleep mode again.

But unlike my earlyer project stops, now I will continue a nother projekt, ... I think I call it 'Make A Designe - Engine' or MAD - Engine (the acronym is not final, and so can change).

So, wher should I start with the Making Advanced Designes - Engine? Right, at the interface.

I want a simple one, only with basic stuff at the moment, not like Blade3D for example, which looks as good as complex.

And after the interface, I plane to start with the Content pipeline, which should be one of the special advantages of the More Aweseme Donuts - Engine.

So long.

Greg the Mad

Les Blogger

2009-02-04T14:53:00.002+01:00

Somehow I don't blog that much like I did in the beginning. I probably would blog more if I hade one of those fancy MS Mobile cellphones, with twitter and stuff like that
But that dosn't actually mean that I do alot of other stuff.

This week I got holidays, and till now I did, ... well, I did spend a day in vienna, and one day shopping, but after all I did enjoy it quite a lot.
I did not seach all my english documents yet, nor did I worked out one of my other matura questions, nor did I spend a lot of time on working on my screensaver sample, I'm just not enought relaxed, yet

Maybe tomorrow.

Greg the Mad

Finaly a succes

2009-01-27T21:50:00.003+01:00

Its done! I finaly got fireflys flying over my screen, exactly how I want them to fly!

I can't realy say that I feel 'happy' about it, ... but there is that great feeling of 'being released' of something that I can't discribe ...

Its quite ironic, I've worked the whole time with the imagion of having 10 flys flying over the screen, but now I only got 2 max, due to my low graphic power on my Laptop, but ... anyway, :D

Now I have to get the code clean, add documentation, and make a .html documentation and the sample is ready for shipment. The .html isn't required for the sample, but it adds a huge amount of transparency to the whole thing, also do I now use a Text programm to write them, instead of useing the good old MS Editor. So I now can easyly make links and stuff. Its gona be a whole manual, if it turns out like I plan.

But thats about planing for now, it 22:00 and I got school tommorow ... lets sleep.

Greg the Mad

School Rocks the Week II

2009-01-15T21:15:00.003+01:00

Well its, not that true, as I also do some other stuff, but I cought me today actually forcing me to continue programming my old screensaver project ... just a few month ago I thought it only would take me anothre month till its done ... well ... I was wrong.

It was not that much force that I needed to get in again, I just had to open the file, and seconds later I have solved a little, minor effect error, but the other, the major, problems will take more then that ... ;)

I'm now, more or less focused on school, and that from someone who spended two hours, yesterday, playing Solitär, just that I don't have to studi ... but I wrote a A anyway ...

And next week I got two test which should be a A other nothing else ...

And before that ther is the school prom, with many old friend I'll meet ... I just hope that I wound't be that tired, from the school week, as last week.

... and I'll be done with my screensaver next week ;)

Greg the Mad

School Rocks The Week

2009-01-07T21:16:00.002+01:00

More or less.

Well, yes. School is back in my mind, after 3 weeks of geting it out of that unbelieveble place ...

With all its dark sides, and ... no ... I didn't found a bright yet.

I will have to spend a lot of time infront of my Laptop this week, makeing homework (which I should have done month ago), write protokols (which, too, I should have made month ago), etc.

But on the other hand is working on my XNA Screensaver one of my favorits in school (because of that I probably have to work that much at home ...) and I so may figure out the last few lines to finish it. ... I just have to make the lightning thing for all flys ...

Well, so long ...

Greg the Mad

Shady New Year

2009-01-02T20:57:00.003+01:00

Well, thats the first time on my old desktop PC since quite a long while now, and its also the first post this year.

Fist of all, now my laptop is not brocken, I'ts just a mirracle that I got a internet connection with this old bucked.
But anyway, my last few days more or less sucked, of caurse I did get money for christmas, and a new pair of boxers, and so I was able to get me a new X-Box 360 (because of the money ;-) ) But on the other side I did spend too much time infront of it.

Fallout 3 this disease is called.

I did nothing, not for my screensaver project, nor for school.
Even if I made such great progress with the screensaver (I now use shaders, uhhh), I some kind of hurts, that waisted time ... not to mention the school stuff ...

I would like to contiue, but I have to get ready now, I have to be out at 21:45 *PARTY*

Anyway ...

Greg the Mad

Farwell ... Factor 5

2008-12-22T22:55:00.003+01:00

As I just heared, did Factor 5 reasently closed his doors, and so did one of my favorit developers. After all I own 4 games of them. :-(

Star Wars Rogue Squadron I
Star Wars Episode I Battle for Naboo
Star Wars Rogue Squadron II Rogue Leader
Star Wars Rogue Squadron III Rebel Strike

Man, that a 4 games, ... 4 time great adventures.

I loved to fly around in the Air Speeder in Rogue Squadron I and let some AT-ATs dance ...
I liked the Naboo Bomber, which is probably the onle bomber ever that shot his bombs forwars, so that you also could use them in sky combat MUWAHAHA ...
The Y-Bomber and its amazing targeting system, ... I hit every target ...
And last but not least ... well ... I just love the AT-PT

And now its over, ... once and for all. Farwell Factor5.

*cry*

Greg the Sad

Fireflys flying over my desktop

2008-12-20T20:34:00.002+01:00

I'm nearly done with my screensave.
I got a complet finished settings form, fireflys that fly over a screenshot of my desktop, a predefined picutre or just a color.
The only thing that is not complet yet, is that the fly eluminate this background with their light.

For now I only can let them create a black trail which will slowly cover the whole screen so that the original desktop is completly covered. The final shadow/light thing will get quite tricky.
The idea is simple: I make texture that is black and on parts where a fly is I make that texture transparent ... How to do that is a complet different story, and I it may will take me another complet day till its done.

But thats not the problem in the moment. What to know why?

CHRISTMASS HOLIDAYS!!!!!

WOOHOO!!!!

3 weeks nothing! ... T H R E E W E E K S !!!!

What will I do with all that time? Some stuff for school of course, but also some other, more exiting stuff. ;)

Well, at least not this weekend, as I cought a little cold last weekend, *cough*, smooky rooms and cold air aint no good.

Greg the Mad

Mystic Phone Calls

2008-12-10T20:18:00.002+01:00

I got something craling up by back, ... a thougth that I don't like that much ...

Well lets start at the basic:
Ther are two kinds of people on the world (dispite all the other type settings).
The Alpha people and the Beta people.
Alpha people are the leading people, those who stand in a crowd and still stand out, etc. Alpha people see something, want it, and try everything to get it.
And Beta people are the rest, those who follow, and build up crowds.

I'm a Alpha person (I would say), and my dream girl is, too, a alphs person. Well, and as every Alpha girl, my dream girl got some girls following her. ... And I got the bad the the cause why she was looking for me, why she always tryed to stand near me, was not her mind, but the mind of one of her Beta girls ...

A girl I know since 5th grade, ... well, yes she is a little chubby, but that what I don't like about her is the missing aura (the feeling her presence brings). ... And I would have to 'break' her heart, which I will do if I have to, but which I would not like to do.

I came up with that horrible thought as I took a phone call this afternoon, and ther was breathing and TV inthe background. First I thought that ther was someone who was intimidted by my 'Hello?', but then my mother told me that ther wher many phone calls like that, and that a girl once sayed 'Hello?'.

Not a Alpha person behaviour, isn't it?

So my first priority, next weekend will be to determine who realy likes me ...

And now about something complet different:
I make some progress with my screensaver, I'm nearly done with the settings form, once that is done I can apply the settings values to the actual screensaver and done! WhoHoo!

Greg the Mad

Mystic Method

2008-12-09T20:13:00.003+01:00

No thats not a new programming method, which applys flying monkeys to every game you create, but a DVD.

The DVD is about a workshop, made by a german man, about how to get every girl, and is called 'Die perfecte Masche', or in english 'The Mystic Method'.

Its quite easy so summe the whole thing up, just be brave and talk to her, but the stuff you also learn, what else you can do how, etc. is amazing.

... And well, I made a try out.
... It dose work!

On that night out, I accidently step on one girls feed. She screamed out, and shouted after me. I realy didn't meant to do it, so I just turned around an apologised for it.
As she saw me, and how I apologised for it, she suddenly stoped screaming and started smiling ...
... I'm not sure anymore, but I thing that she did even apologise at me for shouting ...

Well, I din't get any number or anything similar that night, but I have to say for my defence that my dream girl was there to, with out a boy next to her, but with friends.

Man, I can't get rid of that feeling that she wants something from me. One moments the walks pass me ignoring me, the next she starts looking for someone when I'm not in her field of view. Not to mention that she always stood near me, facing the other direction, but still near me. Even when I moved into that quite littel room to set down and relex ...

swich (HerMind)
{

case (Mind.IsConfusedLikeHim):

Greg.SetAction(Action.Hope);

break;

case (Mind.PlayesWithGreg):
Greg.SetAction(Action.GetRidOfHer);
break;
case (Mind.LikesGreg):
try
Greg.SetAction(Action.MakeConntactWithHer);
catch
Greg.SetAction(Action.GetRidOfHer);

break;

}

... Why can't everything be as eays as programming?

While we're talking about it. I don't yet have found a way to solve that Firefly problem, but I got time, I mean its the last project for a long time ...

... While I was training my mystic method skills, I met a old friend of mine. He has finished school last year. Well, we set done, and talked about school. ... He told me how few free hours I will have later this year, and that programming at this times will be more pain then finding time to sleep ...
So I think its the best for all would be that I slow down with programming the next month, untill I got the leaving exame.

I hate that dicision, but I do like to have that exam ...

Man, thinking about that makes me sad ... *tear droping down my right eye*

Greg the Mad

I was gone for a while ... ?

2008-12-05T15:45:00.002+01:00

Whoops, ther you don't post for one or two days on your blog suddenly ther are three weeks gone!

Well, what happened:

Last weekend I was with some friends in a school prom. Long story short, it was the school where my dream girl learned here bussines (she has already finished education), and *surprise* I saw her there, ... with a other one.
Its not that I don't hate her, or him, now, but it was quite a little breakdown, to know that she is happy, while I'm not that happy ...

Other Topic:
Two weeks ago I started a new, little, side project, originaly planed to be my entry for the ziggyware article contest, but that already over ...
But its about to be finished, the first project I've finished for a while.
Its a screensaver based on XNA, and it dose have some great features like pseudo transparency, a 2D pseudo shader, and other pseudo stuff.
It will take me only a few more days till I can put it online, ... I can't wait till I got those little fireflys flying around on my screen. :D

Greg the Mad

Moving On?

2008-11-18T22:14:00.003+01:00

They are right, you never know what you've got untill you've lost it. There are alot of moments were I think that playing 360 would be great now, especailly now that the NEX comes out tomorrow ...

But on the other hand it may have some positive effect on me ... and school ... I'll see.

About something different:
Two weeks ago my best friend called me an told me how much I suck, well lang story short, we're no friends any more.
So I was sitting ther last week and thought 'Hey I just lost my best friend! With whom will I now go out at the weekends?". Fist I thought of just going out, looking for new friends, ... but then I remembered that I can't even find a girlfriend, how am I supposed to find a normal friend?
And now it comes, a few hourse before I planed to go out, a guy called me who knew me from my ex-best friend, he asked me if I would go somewhere today and if I could take him and a friend of him with me, ... well 'yes'!
... Later it was me and the 3 people who probably were the best friends of my ex-best friend, driving around, while my ex-best friend was walking around, ... alone ... and he probably was at home at 0am, while I was at 5am at home.

... IN YOUR FACE PUSSY!!! ...

Next weekend we will go out again, and as I'm the driver (as always), I probably will earn some money for gas.Yiep Ey Yeah! :D

... If I know find some curage at a street and a nice girl ...
... But that is a different story ...

Greg the Mad

Funeral

2008-11-12T21:25:00.003+01:00

Today we say good by to a good friend of mine.
she was a great fellow, made the best jokes and tolled the sadest storys I have ever heard.
In times when I came home after a hard school day, I would go to her and she would cheer me up. In times when I came home after a though night she would be ther for me, only waiting to enlight me with green.

Today is the day may X-Box 360 died.

Its hard to know that she had a hard and strugling dead, as one of her GPUs stroked a few days ago, but she still keept up working. Maybe with a wired graphic error, but there was still a world on the screen I've never seen.
Today her second GPU sayed goodby to me and so did the screen.
There may still are the sounds and voices, I get from the Soundcard, but the incredible pictures and the entertaining worlds are gone ... forever.

I gave her my last respect in the struggle to take her apart and in the try to repair her GPU, but a patent holder for the cooling fins, which hide the GPUs, stoped me from any more attempt to heal her.

I took her HDD, her W-Lan addapter and placed her infront of the TV. ... as a monument for all the fun, the crashed skulls, the lead I pumped into the air and everything else that happend because of her.

Rest in Peace, May you find you place in the Microsoft heaven.

Greg the Sad

Back to the Background and Back again

2008-11-09T21:38:00.002+01:00

I was working on my blocks for the GUI programming language, when they released 3.0.
First I thought to stay on 2.0 to finish the language, but then I thought that this could me a mistake and I swiched.
But before I even could think of continue my mork on it I was forced that my old engine was not quite compatible, so I hade to change some stuff, ... and I added some ... and more ...

Now I'm back in programming my engine, and pushed the GUI language to a later date.

But then again is there this thing called school ... where I recive some quite ugly marks latly ... which I should change ...

Well ...

And a nother, quite ugly problem appeared, I need new friends ...
Last saturday (... yesterday) I was out again, but a friend was the driver ...

... at 1 he decided that it would be cool to leave now ... 'FUCK YOU' was the only thing I was able to thing at the moment of great disapointment ... and later at the top it all he claimed later that I still own him 10€ and that he wants them from me now ... 'FUCK YOU ASSHOLE!' ...

Well, I didn't literally sayed that, but that pussy, he is, is now saved as 'Pussy' in my cell ... and next weekend I might not call him, ... even if that means that I have to go out allone.

... this was the last time.

Devotchka - How It Ends

2008-10-31T20:10:00.003+01:00

Go to YouTube and listen to this great song.

It makes you feel quite sad, but then again it got such a great 'its not that bad at all' mood somewhere behind thos notes.

Anyway, I did lay down last saturday, but I didn't made anything for school (what a surprice). Now I'm more or less back in the XNA/Programming track again. I spend a few hours on working on my GUI programmin/skripting language last week, but I stil got some problems with the collision response, camera, etc. It will take a month (or less) till I can set down and work on the aktuall programmin behind the programming language ...

What programm did Billy and his fellows use to programm their first programms?
Well, just hope that it woun't be too much for me to take ... ;)

Ah, nearly forgotten, today is halloween! And I got a free day of schoo! Which means that I will take a few friends and go out looking for a good looking vampire girl.

Greg the Treat

Tired?

2008-10-25T20:50:00.002+02:00

Man I'm tired.

I sleeped full 2 and half hours the last 24 hours.

It all started that well with a banana cake in the morning and then 9 regular hours in school.
Later that day I shaved, sprayed Axe, and put on my best shirt, all to stand 2 and half hours infront of that new disco, waiting to get it.
Well, I would like to say that it at least would have been fun after that, but it wasn't.
After the waiting outside, I waited inside, 30 minutes, to get a little purple sheet of paper with the number of my jacked on it.
"Well,", I thought, "now its time for a coke.", I went into the great hall (its realy nothing else then a hall, just ... great!) and looked for that next bar to get this coke. And I waited a nother 30 minutes.
Man there were so many people. I didn't mind the people at first, but then a friend send me a message telling me that he saw HER at the entrance. 2 hours later I found her, she just entered the building -.-
This time she didn't saw me, or didn't wanted to see me, who knows. But that exactly showed what kind of luck I have, because she entered the disco right in the moment I went over the the cloakroom getting my jacked. -.-
I made a 180° turn, saw her, walked pass her, made a nother 180° turn saw, her again and walked out of the hall.
After that I hade a full out time thinking about the two glances, as I was looking for my jacked in the cloakroom, the stuff there has butit in the wrong place and so wasn't able to find it later, when I can to get it.
... I drove home, brushed my teeth, and layed down for 2.5 hours of sleep.

The alarm rang, I stood up, and eat a cold banana cake out of the fridge, which keept me from eating for the next four hours in school, but not from sleepe eyes, but the coffee did.
And now I'm here, after a few hours of work on my graphic programming language (I'm working on the basics at the moment, ... the bricks you can move around ...), and I wonder.

When I lay down now, will I make something for school tomorrow? Will I have fun when I head over to the club2? Will I even see her ther again? Or better: a complet othre girl?

Many questions, no answer yet ...

Greg the Mad

Well, I'm back

2008-10-18T17:08:00.002+02:00

I was gone?

Jep, I was gone for a little boat trip in croatia with my class. It was a great trip, and now I know why they say that you will know the people with you much better after such a trip. Also did I noticed that I'm a guy who stands up earlier ... wich made me quite infamours ... :P

I may will post some more infos about the trip later, as I'm now enjoying the first few free hours at home, ... with great musik ... and ... nothing else!

And well I guessed right, my friend just tolled me that SHE was in the club last saturday, the only day I was not there ... :(

Greg the Mad

Programming Down

2008-10-02T19:15:00.002+02:00

Well I didn't programm a line for tow weeks now I guess. ...
Mainly because of all the hard school work that I have to do most of the time, but even when I got some space programming is not the first thing that comes into my mind ...

But the worst thing is that I'm not even sure if it would be better if I did programm a line once in a while.
I mean, its the last year now, I'm class representive, and I will have enough time later once I'm done with that school (not more then 160 days till then ...).

... but it still bugs me, that the only thing I can do on a lat afternoon is to start my Wii and play old GameCube games ...

Anyway, I will see my dream gild this saturday again: There is one of those little drinking fest again, and I will try my luck. ... A friend of mine has told me that she is always there ...

...

Greg the Mad

Yesterday Sucked

2008-09-28T18:55:00.002+02:00

Yes, I did not see her, but thats not the point.

The youth center tunred out to be only a excuse for drinking.
And the event, that took place in the club I always go, sucked too. As did the DJ there. ... The damn ugly girls ... The permanent smell of throw - up in the air ... and the whole day ...

AND THE WORST THING: I waited the whole week for that one day ...

But on the other hand I discovered something ... How much this girl is messing with my head.

I mean, she looked to me! SHE talked to me! And SHE smiled to me! ... And I can't get her out of my system ...

Greg the Mad

Consol Done

2008-09-24T17:24:00.003+02:00

Yep, the few hours I spend on my consol class were enougth to finish it to a certain level. I can create requests now, toogle it on and off, etc.

Its not much yet, mainly because there is not much you can control in a simple prototype. Now I have to figure out what to do next.
I may already hade some thoughts about that, but now that I noticed the weakness of my LapTops graphic card (only 60 FPS max wenn I go on full screen ...), ... so it has to be something not that graphic intensive. I thought of creating a better engine background (thinking of the Screen Manager sample) and how to implent a level editor stuff into the code, or revers? ...

And now to something complet different.
Next saturday will be entertaining.
First I got a presentation at school (in the english class) about solar systems. The specail thing about that will be a programm I've found in the internet long time ago. Its a little application, based on the irrlicht engine, where you can view our solar system in 3D.
Later that day I plan to appear at the opening of a local youth-center. That what makes that specail is that is made by some people I was in school a decade ago. Lets see how much 'Loser' I'm today :P
And, well, later in the evening I will join the little party people we already are, and drive into the club.

...

...

Two chances where I could meet HER ... dammit

Greg the Mad

Consol Reanimation

2008-09-17T15:26:00.002+02:00

First, don't buy Spore.

You'll play it all day long, fight your way through the sea, battle creatures, form alliences, and you travel to the center of the galaxie (42).

Its fun, its challanging, its great, but now after a week, after I've talked with Steve, I some how don't feel that well any more.

Yes I could still spend some time in geting more and more planets, raise their terraform levels to 3 and make the protected from attack, not to metion the fun of destroind whole live forms because they woun't join your empire (and I'm talking about a good epmire).

But for what? Did I take a little guy and made him the big guy? Did I felt a great story? Did I raise a empire that every one is scared of?
NO! Especial the last part hurts. Even if you got the best weapons on your home world and some orbital weapons to protect it, you still have (or your called) to stop your galactice battle against the Grox's because one single pirate ship is stealing from your homeworld. WTF?

To be honst, I got the feeling that as more you try to protect your worlds, as more the pirates will attack them. My first colonie 'Bär' (I didn't even could give it a name ;( ) is attacked every half, as is the one colonie, at the edge of the galaxie arm, I own which got a T-Level of Zero and is as productive as the level. But the one home planet I took over from some aliens, which is one of the best planets I got, is never attacked by anything ... nor is ther are a problem with the animals ther, and that even if I don't have any stuff like orbital weapons, or bio-stabilicer there ...

Anyway, I also woun't play it that often the next time as it also showed me again how much fun programming is, ... no game can ever beat the fun of programming games. Yes, you can quote this one.

I'm now working on some little engien assets like a consol class, which takes care of the in-game developer interface, like frames per seconds and a field to enter commands. I already got the FPS and the field to enter commands, but ther are no commands I could enter yet :p
That will be done somewhen in the next days, then I will take care of the communication of the engine classes itself, for example if I want the whole game to stop while I'm entering a command, but only the game updating when I swich in to dev-view, etc.
So I think that I will create a class that will take care of that, but I don't know how I will realise it, thinking of the Gamestate Manager Sample stuff, with different screens, etc.

So long.

Greg the Mad

Man of Power

2008-09-11T17:19:00.003+02:00

It was a qite clear election.

It were 3 people who volomtered for that position of the class representative, each one of the class could choose one of those 3 as a first place representative and one as a vice representative ... I was elected 15 times as the main representative from 20 people ...

So, ok, ... what are the powers of a class presentative? ...

Greg the Mad

Man of the people

2008-09-06T18:30:00.002+02:00

Weekend again ... later about that.

In school it appears that I'm in the outsider position again, now that the only gyu I realy could have fun with, is gone (he had into the lower level school class ... its complicated).
I'm may not the worst outsider, the is still that fat guy who noone realy 'likes'. I try to be polite to him, try to treat him as a usual guy, cause I know how it is to be like him, but he got something on him ... he makes unfunny jokes, he got a wired voice, etc.

Ok, I'm may the outsider, I may didn't managed to get a project (yet), but my influence gets bigger.
You know my last post? Ther I've talked about a curtain for the class entrens door. Its hanging ther now and people realy like it, even if its not the sigtproofed as hoped ...
Anyway, I'm now the guy to whom people go if they need something, like the replaye the clock, make the hole in the cross bigger, etc. That may sound anouing but I like that job, I'm just a nice guy who likes to help. And that could be usefull on my way to world dommination.

We don't got a class representative ... and the old was not the most beloved ever ... I may, with a loot of luck, could become the representative. Students trust me, teacher trust me, I'm able to forfill a tast, I can tak over responsability, etc. What do you need more, except luck?

So the next time the head of the class enter the room and wants to elect the representative I will vollumtire, and if they think that the other guy who want to get that position I'll just tell them that the representative will have to held a speech at the end of the year ... they woun't have him holding the speech ...

... Anyway ... still weekend.
I can be 90% sure that she woun't be ther tonight, as ther is one of that stupid Fire Depatment fests in town ... Imagen 100 people in all ages (from 10 up) drinking to celebrating the life itself ... pointless drinking, something you can't tell me that this is good.
Well, and she, I guess, got the friends that will be there, and so she will join them.

But on the other hand that means that I can enjoy the night and may be able to talk to someone more mind consuming ...

... I just shivered as I've writen the last three words ... But if shes more mind consuming *shiver* and I got her number ... better then befor.

... 18:52 ... I'll head down now, take a shower and call up the guys. So long.

Greg the Mad

School again ...

2008-09-03T17:26:00.002+02:00

Its terrible.

I may woun't get a project, two other had stolen the teacher who had a subject for me ... now I have to look first for a different project and second find some one to make it with.

Its just not that great as I hoped it would be, but that also my appear so because to day was a hard day ... do you know how hard it is to get a pearl curtain? Or how expensive a mirro ball is? Now that mirro ball is probably the one thing that if I don't get it into the class room will hunt me down the rest of my life ... maybe I could make one myself ...

I'm down ... -.-

Greg the Mad

Physic Screen Shot

2008-08-30T15:40:00.003+02:00

Jep, its gone and now I can make up to 60 push ups now (15 - 4 times).

I've also made some serious programming lately, I finaly made some progress in the moment of inertia calculation.
First I planed to get the projeced shape of the mesh through ray tracing, but then a nice guy from the XNA community told me that the CPU is not quite build for such kind of calculation, the GPU is more made for it. So I just thought "Well, so why don't make it on the GPU?"
In the beginning I thought that there would be somethimg like that in the SpaceWar starter kid of XNA, but I was misstaking, but something like that dose no break me down. I just looked in the internet for a way to get a screen shot from a game, took that code changed it a bit (camera position, projection matrix, and general purpose), and done.

What I actually do is taking a screen shoot from the model I want the moment of inertia from. I just place the camera so that it face the model from a special direction (like from above) and use a orthogonal matrix. Furthermore I use a black background (GraphicDevice.Clear(Color.Black)) and I also set some rendering effect so that the model is white. What I get (or should get, I stilll got some problems with the quat that should diplay the new screen) is a white silouet of the model on a black background, now I got that I just have to make the moment of inertia calculation for each white point in this pic.

Its not finished yet, nor tested, but it appears to work fine for the moment and to be a loot easyer then I expected moment of inertia calculation to be.

I'm proud of my self. *giving myself a pat on the back*
Good boy.

And I hope that I see here this evening ...

Greg the Mad

Belly pain

2008-08-26T19:13:00.003+02:00

That may sound like I just got a punsh into my abdomen, but its more because I tried to pull myself up on a tree ... only using my arms.

I know that ther is a special english word for that, but my internet is to slow today to look for it.

Anyway, this little pain can lead to big trouble if I'm not care full. I could stop making my nice little training units I've made the last weeks (you can't make situps with that pain), but I now have to stop it, or I will never get rid of that pain ... you can't imagen how often you use those muscles ...

What happended else the last few days ... right!
I made some little adjustments on my few new classes so they should work better, but I still have some probems with the Force.Draw method, so I'm little stuck at the moment as I need to know how the forces look, befor I can manipulate them. (I stoped the LS, ... mainly because after a full night of thinking for what I could use it, I came up with nothing, ... its a sign)

Well I still got that girl in my mind, but no I didn't saw her again last weekend, but I had a beautifull dream ... such dreams a rare. It was one of those were you fill so warm and fuzzy all around ... *dream* ... But with my luck I will see her again ...

... in two years.

Today I'm a little numb, because of my belly and that I sleeped again till noon ... 12 houres of sleep are too much, so that was it for the update. -.-

Greg the Mad

Ther you go.

2008-08-22T20:41:00.002+02:00

There you want to write a Force Control System (FCS), but you end up with a Layer System (LS).

Well, what happened?

I got good experience with the DrawableGameComponents of XNA, so I use them everywher I can. As did I in the Programme where I wanted to create the FCS, but after a few hours of work, setting some new classes up (like a new grid class, or FPS class), a old problem crossed my path, that sometimes it can happen that models get drawn atop each other and not in a real 3D space.

So I finaly wrote a post about that on the XNA boards, and DING, a day later a know the source of the problem and know how to actually use that problem to create a LS.

It may will take a day till I realy got something I can show, but once it done ... it will be awsome!

And now about something complet different:
Well shes still hovering around in my mind, on a day like this, wher I got something to do, its not that hard, but who knows what will be tommorow? The day I might will see her again? ... ... *fingercrossing*

... Fingercrossing to realy see her and talk to her, or not to see her at all, everything in between would be ... dumb again ...

Greg the Mad

At least something

2008-08-19T21:02:00.003+02:00

Its will take time till I forgot her, but only if I don't she her again.
The last time it took me a few years, I only saw her a few hours this time so I would estimate a few mothe this time.

Anyway, I did make some progress to day, no not about her, but about my game.
My next step would be to use the player input and change them into force.

Yes Forces.

In the real world everything gets moved though forces, why not too in the game world?

So the first thing I will creat is a system to calculat the forced for normal movements, like following a path or rotation. Later I will set some and think about how to do that if my forces can only be applyed in a certain way. So I could use that system for ships which got thier thrusters turned down, so that they can hover.

I don't know how long it will take me to that point, as every second thought is about someone else, but with my new way of developmet (building it all up like Lego) I could make a line a week, but every line would be real progress.

Hopefully she will be ther next saturday ...

Greg the Mad

Well after all ...

2008-08-17T11:46:00.002+02:00

I'm still not over her.

Its quite interesting, if I would not have met her, last week, I probably would now be sitting, working on my hybrid ship, form my next game prototyp, maybe would have found a nother nice girl, and would be happy.

But I met her. So I'm sitting her writing a nother update for my blog, hoping that to write my thougths down would make it easyer.
In fact did I nothing else the whole last week then to stitte her and listen sad songs (most of the time).

I may have continued my work on my space ship (I'll post a pic once ints done), I may have get myslef finaly a belt, I may dicoverd that shaving every two days is more dangerouse then just once a week (I'll stay with the once a week timing). But the whole week I waited for yesterday.

... Sucks, as ther was nothing yesterday.

I drove to my favorite club, ... which was closed that night. Well.

Lets hope for next weekend. If I meet her again next saturday, I'll try it.
I'll try to talk to her, even if she revuse to talke to me, that would be much better, as I would know how she thinks about me. If I don't meet her, ... well then I got at least some other kind of answer too. She knows where I'm at the weekend.

Last thursday I was out too, and while I was walking through the crowed of people I saw once of her friends. Once she noticed me she suddenly steped asaid, letting me pass, I'm not sure, but ther was something in her look, something like 'He's here!' and I may could have imagen that but I think that she reached for her cell as I passed. But I didn't saw HER that night.

I'm writing with out any connection to the last paragraph, dose I?

Greg the Mad

Quite Personal Update

2008-08-12T20:35:00.004+02:00

Screwed me.

Any girl.

If any girl would have gretted me last saturday, I would be fine to day, I may even would be happy, thinking about what to some next time I enter the location. But even if ther would have been no girl last weekend, I still would do better then I do now.

Lieing in bed at night, reviewing what happened last weekend, wondering what will happen next, IF there is anything to happen. Sitting infront to a WoW Beta, guessing what I could do wrong if somethings happens. Wondering about those legs.

You don't know what I'm taking about? Well lets start at the begining.

As I was still young, fresh and in the 5th grad.
Well, I always was that outsider typ guy, standing in the corner, with some other guy I called friends, normaly far away from the ... 'cool' lot.
But a part of that lot was a girl. That that was special about that girl was not that she didn't hate me like the others did, but she also laught about my jokes, despite the fackt that the most of those jokes where about her and how short she is growing.
So the years passed, and I made a lot of jokes about her, in the 8th grad I started to believe that she hates me for those jokes (~4 years of jokes about her, she must have hated me at that time).

After the 8th grad we all walked different way. The 'cool' lot started to get them self some jobs, or little more school education. I was one of the few to actually make a heigher education, so did she, just a different school in a different city.
So you may can imagen how often we have seen. But never the les, those few sights were enougth that I started to realize that I like her. Realy liked her. Thought about her even if I didn't had seen her for month. Holding a picure of her in my mind.

Slowly time passed and I started to forget about her. I never saw her anymore, and started thinking about other girls I've mett over time. Getting other pictures.
To be pricise about it, I completly forgot her, don't even bothing about how she would be thies days.
I was lifing happiely, was thinking about a lot of other girl, but mainly thinking on how I could become a great Game Designer one day. Girls only were a asset to that dream. Happy feeling where striped to songs, and no picutes on my mind anymore.

Till last weekent.

It was my second time in that location. After a few shy tries I started to make some moves on the dance floor, and as I realized that no one cares about me making those wired movements, I realy freaked out and started dancing (I actually think that I'm a good dancer, but I'm not in the position to judge this now).

Two eys.
A short glance.

First I thought 'Hey, I know that face', and then 'Hey, thats that girl I once used to make jokes about', 'Whats her name?', 'She turned out to be a good looking girl', '... those legs ...'

... And I hade some other thoughts ...

'... Did she just looked to me?!?'
'Woops, I think she remembers me too.'
'Hm? Where did she went? ... And who trys to grap my shoulder at my left ...'

"Hi, long time not seen..." she said.

It was a short dialog, not longer then a minute and strongly muffeled by the background sounds that was the dance music. We talked about what we're making at the moment and what we have done to get ther.
In the middle of that she was forced by her following girls to go with them to the restroom. A minute is not much time to share information, but it can have a great impact on other things.

Later our eyes crossed each other once in a while, ... probably because I was danceing just two meter away from her, ... with my back to her, as I tried to focus on some other potential girl.
But steping on a foot that belongs to a friend of her, made me turn once, and the other time I set down to relax a few minutes (I probably was the only dancer in that club that didn't got some alcohole, nor other stuff in his blood, and so I needed a rest once in a while), she and her girls stand next to me, with their back to me giving a perfect view of her legs, as they watched other people dance. Again with some movements of people, causeing us to see each other.

She did smile. I'm sure about that. I didn't imagen that.

Anyway, she leaft a hour before I did, she didn't sayed goodby.

Any girl.

Any girl that I would have tracked with my eyes that night, ... I could have walked up to her and talk to her, or even dance with her.
But she ... we got a history. I know her and she knows me (at least she knows my past, and I'm not proud of my 'stupid' past). I can't just go to her and start talking ... not without a couse ... not without seeing her.

Well and that why I'm sitting here, infront of my PC, wondering if I actually will see her again, were that might be, or if she dose like me too.

Not to mention how hard it is to get those legs out of your mind.

Greg the Mad

Lazy me.

2008-08-08T14:15:00.002+02:00

Ok, what I have done the last few days ...

I played my WoW charakter to the level 68 in order to load it over to the test server.
I downloaded the Beta Client of the Lich King, took me 6 hours in which I was able to do nothing else then to what some more episodes of Battlestar Galactica (I'm currently at Season 2 Episode 5).
And I played a little around with the Deathnight.

... Nothing more ... Oh ... Yes, my guitar playing gets better and better, even if I only can play one and a half song at the moment :)

Anyway, I decided that this playing around with the tools I'm writing dose not get me anywere. So once I find enought time to write some code again, I will continue to work on the actuall game and stop my tool playing for the moment.

Hopefully I'll find some more time to write a nother update here before the week is over, So Long.

Greg the Mad

Two Front War!

2008-08-05T15:09:00.003+02:00

*Exitment*

Right in the moment where I write this, I'm sitting in my room and I'm right in a two front war.

Yes, in front of my I got my regular PC where I will start to install the WoW Addon The Wrath of the Lich King BETA (WooT! I' a chosen one!) and to my left I got my new outdoor Laptop (when I read 'outdoor' in the advertisement I knew that that would be mine!) wher I'm working to get it on the standard I knew from my normal PC.

And to make things worst I got my brothers Guitar at the right of me, and sometimes I can't resist to take the pick and play a few nots.

*Exitment*

Greg the Mad

1 Month of Misterys

2008-08-02T10:08:00.003+02:00

This month gone get interesting.

First I will have to perform the drive safty lessons for motorcycle and car this month. They will cost a lot and bring less, .. but I must do them -.-

Second will I try the 'FH Technikum Wien' acceptance test. If I fail I still can try it next year, and if I fail then I will got a new chance in two years.

Third did I get into contact with a guy who wants to open his own game studio somewhen next year, and I may got a chance to write some tools for him and his team. That will be interesting.

Fourth did I apply for a Beta test of the coming game Sacred 2. If they take me I got one more game one my Beta Test game list ... which contains Halo3 ... thats all :(

And fithly will I get today the guitar of my brother and start learning to play it. Finaly some more music in my life, MP3 are not enougth.

And last but not least will that be the last free month before I start into the last year at school, which will end with a major big test called 'Matura', for which I will learn full six month ...

BUT FIRST! *raise my left index finger* ... I'll take a shower :)

Greg the Mad

31 July

2008-07-29T18:14:00.002+02:00

I can't wait till that day ...

First this is the day that my actuall vacation will start, WHOOT!

Second will that be the day the Ziggyware contest judging periot will end, and every following day could contain the answer on who was better than me and who was not.

Anyway, thats still in the futur.
What have I done in the past ...
Yesterday I made a little but importent step towards my game engine. I redefined the Mad-Ed programm, put some thoughts into how it will work, I've drawn the classes, what they will contain and to what the will be connected, etc.
Its not finished yet, I mainly have focused on the backgraund structure and how you come from the saved .mad file to the 3D level (or now 'Screen' called) and back. Also did I spend some time into the question how to control in the 3D window, and I came up with the idea to use the 360 controler for this, so I got a complet free mouse to do the manipulation. OK, its not tested yet, and I don't know if it will stand the praxis tests, but I think that it is a nice idea at least, and will be there at least for fun. :D

Greg the Mad

Physic, Laptop and my room

2008-07-26T12:45:00.003+02:00

So what happened ...

My force article and sample finaly is up on ziggyware.com and also did the judging periode start. Till 31 july you can send ziggy a mail telling him how great my article is and that you've learned so much from it.
Also did he anouced that ther will be a nother contest soon. I don't know yet what kind of contest it will be, or what it will be about, but if it will be one like that current, then I already have a loot of ideas for new stuff.

You can find my article here http://www.ziggyware.com/readarticle.php?article_id=199

My calligraphy language, ... well. I didn't managed to get that 3D tool for a win app working again, but I have to admit that I didn't worked much on it yet.
Also am I not sure if I will have time for it today. My room need to be tidied up as soon as possible, the exercises gets harder every day ...

And now about my work ... well, now I'm already trusted to work on complet standards ... Only one week left, YES!!
I may miss it in the next month, as it is something constant in my life (I like to have something constant around me, like a swiss army knife I can count on, but if you forget about it, it will slice some shirts when you mom trys to wash you pants ... ).
Anyway, I'm happy abou it for the moment, and thats enougth.

That what woun't be enougth will be the money I'll get, to purchas in a lapetop. Thos I want (like the ASUS Eee PC, or the ACER ASPIRE ONE) got too less power, or (like the ACER Traver Mate C210) are too expensive. Ther will be laptops that I can effort, and those are able to do that what I want them to do, but ... they are all so big (look at the Eee PC/Aspire One I want that sice!) and ugly (again Eee PC and Aspire One). But they are better then non ...
... And in a year there may be laptops with the features of the Travel Mate C210, and the sice of the Eee PC out, till then I will be able to work with one that don't fits to me that great ...

So Long,

Greg the Madß

A nother week has passed

2008-07-23T17:50:00.002+02:00

Ok, it was less then a week, but it did pass.

I didn't get any great thing farther with my engine. I may have complet the main 'Independent' part of the camera engine, but suddenly, a few seconds later, I stoped it and changed over to a different project.

Calligraphy is it working name. What it is? A graphic skripting language.

Yes, I know that this is something that nomaly done by guys who actually have studied programming, but why not? Its not the skript I'm faling ... its the Windows forms tool that should be the background system of it on which I'm faling ...
I already have worked with the Windows forms sample from XNA, I even already got a application with it ... but I can't recall how I did it ...
It already was hard the last time, so I thought that I may will now make it to create something I can put into my libary before I start to figure out how to make the skripting, which should be the easy part. ... :D

About that wher I should get my dayly bread, work:
I get more and more work. Now that they know that I'm not only able to draw with CAD programms (and others), I'm able to speak english (stop laughing) and that my work normaly is delivered in high quality they give me more and more complex jobs. ... I hope they don't figure my other tallents out till next week, which will be my last week. ^-^

I take others with me!
Today I talked with the guy sitting next to me that work about game development, and that hes dream job would be to artist, but I never will be reach it.
... "Hey, its not that hard, just look that this job page of a well known game studio, its would not be that hard to reach thier requiraments, time consuming, but not hard."
A few minutes later he was sure that he can become a artist and already looked for the right place for his education in the internet.

Man I'm good.

Greg el Loco

I'm at work

2008-07-18T11:24:00.003+02:00

Right now at the moment I sit infront of my new working station (I had to change, to a other one last week, as the last dose not have AutoCAd installed), wondering how I can spend the last one and half hours not working ...

Yes, I said: "Not, working"

It would be bad if any of my future employers would read this, but I got my cause.

Yesterday, my new supervisor (I also changed the department, now I'm in ... in ... call itStandardization) gave me some taff work. I have to make the drawings of a 60 page norm bi-langual ... I got the whole next week time for it ...
... I only got 7 drawings at the moment ... and that makes 24 pages ^.^

I guess I will walk up to my boss on tuesday and pressent him my work, ... 3 days before it should be done :D

... So what could I do? ... I could write the next whole one and a half hour on this post, but ... no ...

I could surfe around in the net, ... not that funny anymore ...

OK, I'll find something, this was just to show you how interesting my work is. Its not bad, the first week, where I hade to do nothing, was worst, but the work I got now ... is some how 'hard' but not real 'hard' ... its hard to discribe ...

Anyway, I'm happy :)

Greg the Mad

Serpentines

2008-07-17T13:06:00.003+02:00

Wooops ...
Ther you write a update every second day for your blog, and *ding* ... you skip a week ... Its that easy.

OK, what happend ...

... I played a lot of WOW, but mainly skilled up some stuff and not made many levels.

On the weekend I work a little on my Camera Class, but somehow I don't remember how far I got ... damn you blizzard!
Anyway, I spend a few minutes at work (between some tasks) in reseaching curves. Yes I've decided to use the XNA Curve tool, but it dose not appear that great anymore, now I know some basics of spline interpolation. For example did I find yesterday a way to calculate the length of a curve ... XNA Curves don't got that ...

I don't know, I'll set down this weeked and have a closer look into that, because now with the Cubic Hermite Spline Interpolation and that way of getting the length ...
Now I only have to get the Hermit Interpolation and the length thing together, get that into a code format and ... I could publish a curve class that beats the XNA curve class ...

... Now that I just writen that I realized how great that single thing could be! ... Hmmm ... how to get the 1th derivation of the Cubic Hermite Spline Interpolation?

Demotivation ... :(

2008-07-13T17:16:00.002+02:00

Somehow I'm demotivated today ...

Maybe its because of the dark weather, maybe because I steped into something, while I took the trash out, maybe because my internet connection is so damn slow on the weekend, maybe because my larynx hurts since two days every time I swallow, or maybe because I done know why I'm so down ...

Anyway, I will now start WoW again, because my mind is running without a gear in and playing with a alt ist the perfect thing for such a situation.

:(

Greg the Mad

CAD

2008-07-11T23:21:00.002+02:00

I finaly got a real job at the company: Drawing CAD drawings.

I actually was a funny story: The guy I'm sharing the office with, needed a easy drawing of a tornister and some pipes. He gave me that paper wher he hade drewn it with his hands, and walked out to meet with someone. 5 minutes he returned and was supriced about that I was already done with the job, and that better then expected. 5 minutes later again, I got a phone call telling me that I have to got up to the 4th flore to get myself a new task: drawing.

As far as I can tell, they are actually impressed by my drawing skills, so I get one job after a nother. And I woun't mind if it would be some bigger jobs like those peenuts if drawn till now.

Its also some change in my daiely work as one of the twins works next to the office I get my jobs from, and so I got some chances to talk to her.

Anyway:
Today I start again with my programming weekend. The main thing I've done till now was to change the major build up of the camera class. Now you only have to call the Camera.Update() method and it runs, nothing else. Of course you still have to call the Camera.Initialize() method too before you get relevant results, but I don't know if ther actually is a easyer way of doing that.

PS: wow, my PC writing skills start to improve, I've writen the whole post without looking down to the keyboard, ... again something I've teached myself and that works out to be great :D

Greg the Mad

I shuld not have eaten that fish ...

2008-07-09T12:54:00.002+02:00

A few minutes ago, around 10 minute, I was over in the cantine and eat my lunch, together with the twins.
The twins are (surprice) two girls I sat myself to at lunch. I'm normaly not that guy who sats his self just to two girls (I'm shy), but in that case I got some support buy the girl that works with me in the same department. I followed her, she sat herself to the twins, and so did I, end of story.
Anyway, they are not that special about them, just to say that clear, they're just good looking, nice girls, and so I was proud of me today.
I sat my self to them, and? AND?! I talked to them! I started a conversation! You have to know that I'm in real life a quiert boy, who only starts talking if he knows someone, that makes that success even more valuable! Whoot!

But then my meal stricked me down.

I like fish, its always a good alternative to the normal flesh (And I think that fish is meat too *evillook*), and the other stuff on the menu didn't sound that good.
But as I was standing there ... seeing how the cantine guy gave me that fish ... the complet fish ...

I looked at the fish and it looked back ... *shiver*

First I thought "Hey, I eat that kind of fish before, I can do it again", but after I was finished with that place where his bellybutton should be ... I don't know ... I stoped feeling well ...

I eat everything, but not stuff where I can tell wher which organ was ... stuff that looks at me ... or even is still alive.
I just get mercy with that animals. Only having the flesh kills that feeling.

OK, don't get me wrong. I could hunt and slay a animal myself and eat its muscles, but only them and nothing else.

To get back to the twins again. They were ther around 10 minutes before I arrived and started eating, ... they stoped at the half of their meal, I stoped at the same moment at the bellybutton ...
Man I feel sick now ... its not that kind of feeling sick where you have to through up, ... its more like the head line sayed ...

Now I sit in the office and hope that the half liter of coce will kill that feeling and the boring time till my working day ends.

And now about something different:

Finaly I found a way to make spline interpolation without the xna curve tool!
I don't actually need it right now as using the curve tool is so much easyer, but I may need it next school semester for a project, and also dose it feel better to wrok with tools that you know how they (could) work.
It key is Hermit Spline Interpolation (wiki it).
Hermit probably was a guy who appearendly had the same problem as I did: Two points, two tangents and nothing inbetween.
He made a solution, I'll copy it. :D
I actually could make now my own curve class, but for what? All I do now is to keep that sheat of paper, wher I have write the !easy! formular (compared to the other solutions) down, near to a save place, where I woun't forget it. :)

Long post, So Long.

Greg the Mad

Mahjong

2008-07-08T14:10:00.002+02:00

Yesterday evening I got my first realy project ... Calculate the pressur los in a 70m long pipe ... it took me 4 hourse, 3 internetpages, 1 book, 5 pages of my mechnic stuff to calculate the pressur in two way.
Man was I proud of it. ... My supervisor took a look at it, sayed 'hmm ... ok" and walked away again ...

Anyway:
I the mean time I played my new favorit game: ....
Wait? What has told you that it is mahjong?

Shanghai Mahjong to be precise. That what makes is special to me is not that game itself, but more the ideas I get while I'm playing it.
How about a whole X-box live arcade game about it? With different modi, multiplayer, etc?
I already got some ideas for that stuff, ... but it will require something ... a 6D curve for the stone movements ...

I will have some more thought about it, maybe write some stuff down ... its just a easy game ... I could make it in a few weeks, if you ignore the fact that there wount be a great art behind it ... :)

So long.

Greg the Mad

Day 5.

2008-07-07T09:35:00.004+02:00

Again I sit alone in my office, that guy I share it with is sick today ...
The same, appears, has happened to my work, still I sit here surfing the net waiting for the work that never will come ...

Spline:

To the supreice of everyone I did not play WOW at the weekend. On frieday I thougth, if I play the whole week WOW, than I have at least to work on the week end on my game/engine. Yes I just sayed the e word. I thought about it, took a look at some other engines and editors, and thought that I should be able to create at least a little engine.
Start: Cameras and Cinematic.

As easy as Cameras may appear, it stopes being easy if you consinder all the times of cameras you may could need for a game, going from static cameras to cinematic animated camera and everything in between.
And that is why I used the headline 'Spline' for that part of the post.

I spend the whole weekend working on my 'Path' class. Its a class that (will) take given keyframes and form it into 3D curves (actually a 4D curve considering time, but ... forget that). This may gets some simple parts with the curve system that xna provides, but it shows up some hard parts if you try to get a tangent or a normal of a specific part of the curve, and that is what I did not manage to get bug free yesterday and so have to take care of next week end. That and a few other things I got in my mind of the curve, like one single curve for complet control of a plane (yaw, pitch and roll), which will make a 4D curve (yaw and pitch controled with the tangents) and probably a 6D curve ...
... How I will display that will be funny :D

Greg the Mad

Day 4.

2008-07-04T11:37:00.003+02:00

I could have stayed at home today I guess.

In the morning I went up to the guy I had to do a little job yesterday, and told him that I already finished it, after that I walked into my office and sat down.
Today that guy I normaly share the office with never appeared ... so I'm alone in the office ...

Fortunatly I know how to use the internet as radio reciever, it gives my company.
Also I bought some paper with me today. I planed to write some basics for my Camera Class down, ... it turned up to be a lot of basics I had in my mind.
If I realy make all that stuff I got on that one paper now, I could sell that Class for a few € á Licend. It got a lot of features which will be great for as one of the first real features of the Mad-Ed. Just to name one thing:
I changed the Camera kinds. Before I had only the one basic camera kind in mind for the basic movments, now I got 10+ different kinds, based on the use in the code and behaviour. For example the LookAt kind:
The Camera is fixed at a place and follows a object with its few.

Theres a lot more about that class, but I don't want to give to much way now ;)

And last, but not least:
Yesterday I bought the Burning Crusade for WoW ... just to mention it ...
I'll now spend some time there ... and probably not on my Camera Class.

Greg the Mad

Project: N.O.T.H.I.N.G.

2008-07-03T10:09:00.003+02:00

Today I came into offic like every day, motivated, smiling, greeting every person that corss my path and hoping that I will get a chilly work like yesterday again.
I went up into the office, set down and booted the Laptop. At 7 o'clock, when my actuall working day started, I went over to the office of my supervisor hunting for a job. Ther arrived I found a empty office with a empty secritary place, so I turned around to come later again.
15 minutes later, in which the guy I share the room with arrived, who instandly started hard working (which makes me feel bad :( ), I retuned to the office of my supervisor to see if he is already here.
His office still was empty, but fortunatly his secritary was already here, who tolled my that he took of two days. "Ok", I sayed, "... So will give me something to work now?", to what she answered: "I don't know, I'll take a lot at this.", and I answered on tht again: "Ok, till then I'll be in the office again."

... This was three hours ago, and I'm still waiting ...

I'm quite quick in getting boring, you know ...
I spend that whole time surffing the internet, visiting all the pages I hadn't visited for a long time now, send some time in forums and checked out the new Diablo3 ...

Whoops, while I was writing the last line, the secritary appeared in my office and tolled my that she got something for me ... later, and she asked me if I could take some school work with me tomorrow, so I do have something to work.

... Anyway ...
Still boring.

WOW vs. Camera Class:
Currently I got two things I could do at home for my entertainment: work on my Camera Class, or work on my Charakters in WOW.
The problem would be, like I told you yesterday, that I only have the trail verison of that Bunring Crusaders and that I only can play my alts at the moment (and level up). So I have to choose now: Dose I get myself the full vision and so terminate the chance that I will continue the work on my Camera Class, or will hope for the already little chance that I will work on that Class?
... I think, lazy as I unfortunatly am, I will play WOW anyway, so why should I now play the full game anyway?

I will have to figure that out soon, I'll probably make a spontan decision out of it when I drive home today: Drive direct home, or make a stop at the next Computer Store (and McDonalds and get the free Ice I've won)?

Quite a long post, isn't it?
So Long,

Greg the Mad

Work ... ing

2008-07-02T14:11:00.003+02:00

Today was (... is ...) my second day at the company OMV.
My Job ther?
... I don't know yet ...

Yesterday I spend 9 hours reading 2 files full of norms ... but I don't remember what it all was about anymore.
And today I finaly got a 'real' task: Get some system into that mass of E-Mails'

WhooHoo! (I'm realy happy about that, its better then reading norms the whole day)

How is working there?
You know, OMV is the biggest oil production here in austria, ... so there are lot of pipes, huge tornisters, etc.
The place I'm actually working at the other hand is a quiert little office, where I sit the most of the time alone spending time with the Laptop that stands on my desk. Some times I have to go to my supervisor and get my self a job. But I have to be care full, they always look that puzzled when I return too early saying "I'm done, whats next?" ... *austrians* ...
Yes, I could use that to impress them, but I don't want to get promoted here, dose I?

Only 24 working days left till 31.July ...

And now about something complet different:
Two days ago I dicovered that you can't level up to 61 (in WOW) if you only have the trail version, ... I probably have to get my self the full version of BC ... soon ... SOON!!!! MUWAHAHAHA!

... somewhen it this week ... ... till then I'll have to spend the time twinking ...

PS: I love wrting stuff on a Laptop, ... its feels ... so modern ... if just the well known problem of the battery woun't be ... it would be perfect ... *dream* ...

Thats all for now.
Till then, So Long

Greg the Mad

World of the comming Dark

2008-06-28T12:55:00.002+02:00

Yesterday I downloaded 13 hours every kind of patch for World of Warcraft that oyu can imagen. 2.5 GBs of and complet different world.

Yes I'm about to restart my WoW playing.

There are a few causes why I do that. First did I yesterday finish the 4th class of my school the second time, but this time I'm allowed to enter the 5th class. And so I thougth of a little reward for me: Two months of WoW.
Second will I start my summer job on the 1st july, and I don't think that I will be able to realy work on my camera class after a hard days work. WoW will be there a little relexation ;)

Thats all vor now.
Now I will reenter the World of Warcraft with my good old AlterEgo: Abstinenz

Greg the Mad

Steps

2008-06-24T19:37:00.002+02:00

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back.
One Stpe Aside, Jump Straight Ahead.

A little rhyme I cam up with a few minutes ago.

I got some problems with my camera class, as I was trying to rotate the camera back to the normal Vector3.Up rotation, while I was working with a quaternion. Every time I hit the button, the camera jumped to some kind of random rotation, which was a problem. Because of the local heat I was not willing to stay stuck in this matter and so took a look over to the Magma class again (the class in which I create the Flexible LOD planets) and continued my work there.
I tryed some new stuff and changed some old so that the resulting grid would always face the camera (which it dose now), but at the beginning it didn't worked that fine. There was a bug.
The bug was settled in the AngleBetweenTwoVectors method that I copied from xnawiki.com , but unfortunatly changed in a few lines. After I got rid of that bug I pressed F5 again to see what happened, and as I was looking at the new, working, grid I thought 'Hey, wait ...' pressed that rotate button and *ting* ... the camera was rotated to normal again.
I used the same method for that camera rotation as I did for the planet grid. :D

As sayed:

One Step Forward, Two Steps Back.
One Stpe Aside, Jump Straight Ahead.

Greg the Mad

Ships

2008-06-22T20:09:00.003+02:00

HOOOOOT ...

... HOOOOOT

Its so hot in my room at the moment ... why dose it have to be on the West side of the house ... East would be much cooler, in the truest sense of the word

I'm not able to do anything ... its 20:11 when I write this line, FatBoySlims Rockefaller Skank in the background ... and. I. sweat ... a little, but I doing noting to increase the sweat ... till now (I'll make some sit-ups later)

Yesterday I saw a vid on youtube which showed some screenes of SciFi movies, to be accurate, it where 3 movies (one of them was Battlestar Galactica). I couldn't resist, I just had to take a paper and start drawing some ideas down.
This made me think about the ships in my game, not actually on how the'll look, but more on how they'll be controled, you know, with my physic engine ... and I thought that I can't use real forces for that, I only can use translating forces for them, else it would be to complex.
And the second thought was about the application points of those forces. In my first prototypes I used 'empty' bones from blender for that and I turned out to be quite handy, as I can call them names with numbers and later, in the code, I can call their name and make a loop for the numbers (if I got more then one force), perfect! But the problem, I figured out, was the number of points and the directions the forces will have to be applied ...

... but its ... too ... hot to .. put more thought into that atm ... all I want now is a cool coce ... BUT WE DON'T HAVE ONE IN THE HOUSE!!!! :(

Now about something comlet different: Tomorrow I'll have a little school excurse ... in the hot vienna ... [obvious sarcasm]WHOOT![/obvious sarcasm] ... 2hours sun, probably only a handfull of other students (you should have seen the class last week ...) ...
... If I stumble over a job that sells those little hand vents ... I'll buy one! I swear!

till them ... So Hot

Greg the Mad

Point. Click. Forget?

2008-06-20T21:57:00.002+02:00

Today I've seen that 300 people have viewed my profile ... not a small number I have to admit.

Ok, 100 of them were me clicking on it myself to see how many are looking at my profil.

And that bothers me now ... 200 people have viewed my profile and found me so uninteresting that they didn't write a comment to any of my posts or whatever. ... Am I realy that uninteresting?
Yes, my blog is not something that anyone could realy read regulatry (I actually see it more as my personal diary), as it contains stuff of my boring life as stuff from my coding adventures, and all mixed into a single blog ... its like milk with soda (don't try it, ...), I guess.

... But as lazy I am I don't want to start another Blog, as I like that one ... :D ... its my blog after all.

You know, that blog thing is not the only thing where that happens, it also dose happen in real life ...
People come to me, talk to me, have fun with me, but once I leave that room, ... they don't start to hate me, its not like that (I didn't wanted to do it, but I once overheared some, they didn't sounded like they were unhappy that I just were there), but still ... they don't realy think of my anymore late ...
I'm like a ghost in their minds ...
and I still didn't figured out why, but I'm working on myself to make at least some good impressions ...

And now about something complet different:
Its seem that I get somewhere with 'The Mother of all Camera Classes', just a fwe more features (like turning the camera back into a neutral angle) and I can start to work on the TPS code, which I will make in my prototype of Orbit.

Till then, So Long

Greg the Mad

Fortun smiles upon me

2008-06-19T19:52:00.002+02:00

ITS NOT DEATH!!!

WOOT!

my suggestion with the old recharge kit was rigth, I play estimated 5 hours with the xbox now with out any kind of problem. ... It appears to work :D

But I didn't spend the whole day on the consol, I also finaly manged to do some coding again. I'm currently working on my new camera class.
While the old only featured the position, lookat, ... so basic values of the camera, the new one got a initialization and a update method, which I only have to apply in the game class to get results.

Its not finished yet, as a problem with the lookat rotation appeared and that I want to implant a enum to change the actuall control of the camera, as I plan to make a second update method featuring a TPS camera, and maybe a third for a FPS camera, but I'll have to solve the current problems before I can do that.

The whole camera class thing may don't sound that importent, but I finaly had enought of the camera to jump around when I look straight down or up (its a problem with how the camera is build up, and I don't want to use a Quaternian yet, maybe later when I need it ... or when I find no other sulution).

So Long.

Greg the Mad

Red ... Ring ... Death?!?

2008-06-18T16:43:00.002+02:00

To day I saw the red ring of death ...

3 red LEDs blinking at me ...

*Horror*!

I shut the consol down to eat my lunch, but the consol stayed on charging my wireless controler, after lunch I sat down and watched some TV, and then it happened. The red ring of death appeared ...

I already restarted my consol and tryed how and it it works. It workes fine, but I didn't made a realy test yet. ( which I will down now then ...)
I hope that the problem was my already old play and recharge kit, and not the consol itself ... *fingercrossing*

And now about something complet different:
Today. is. so. boring. !
Our teachers let us home after the first lesson because we were so few and the teachers were busy too ...
So I spend the whole day at home ... First I planed to continue my work on my Surface prototype, ... but some how I didn't ... I'm so unmotivated today ... :(

... UNMOTIVATION!!!!! ... ... ...

Anyway, I hope that I got more motivation tomorrow, and now I'll go and fight the red ring of death in a battle to death! WOOOHOOO!

Greg the Mad

Drop it!

2008-06-17T16:00:00.002+02:00

Just a second ago I decided what I will make in the next time. I will work on little prototypes, that I later can use for my Orbit game desinge.

The final impuls cam from my recent visit of the BioWare boards. There I found a topic talking about a Normandy replica (its the ship from MassEffect), I turned my head 90° right and spoted a white (because of the much sun it gets on its new spot from last month, it starts to get creamy) Lego Mako!
It reminded me of the times where I spended each and every day on the BW boards, talking about how this and that should be in the finaly game, etc.
And it reminded me of an idea I had for Mass Effect, I think its already 2 years ago. It was the Mako Drop Minigame. The Mako would not be droped like in the game, from under 30 meter (WTF? IMPOSSIBLE!), but from around 5 kilometers, and your job would be to control the jets and break thrusters to get it save pass those 5 kilometers. It would just fir that perfectly into the game desinge ... with Geth on the ground that are shooting at you, missiles, wind, maybe some enemys that fall down beside you and you have to turn your ship to face and kill them with the main cannon ...

And I just thought that this wouldn't be that hard ... shouldn't be that hard to make for me now. All I need it a ground that comes close (or a Mako that comes closer the the ground, how ever you take it), some physics, where I already do have some, and a Mako!
It would be interesting to take the Lego Mako model I made for the constuction Manual and apply some physics on it if it crashes ... WUWHAHAHA! ... every Crysis playing PC would crash if you force him to calculate 362 bricks 60 times in a second ... hehe
And so I'll start with a simple Mako thing model falling down, later I add control forces, maybe get some ground collition, ... etc.

So Long

Greg the Mad

What to target at?

2008-06-16T19:14:00.002+02:00

Its amazing how fast you can get rid of a cold, if you wrap yourself into a blanket and watch some of the best scrubs series ever (My first day, My musicle, and the last which name I've forgotten).
I still fell some pain in my throat when I swalow, but I feel much better today.

Today I also started thinking about what to do next. The sample I've writen for ziggyware.com has shown me how great it feels to have a target your working for, and so I wondered today what I should work next on.

The Mad-Ed project?
Today I spend some moments on it, and started changing some stuff. I could make it work in a day or two, and later add more and more features. The problem would be that I don't got yet may feature I could add ...

Or Orbit itself?
I still got some problems with the new screen state architecture, and that the half game is not rendered.

I figured out that the best solution would be to start thinking of what I actually need. Just mindmap my desinge down somehow, maybe there is a free mindmaping software out there, else I have to do it in exel ...
For example that I need for ship flight a control system, a fire system, ergo a weapon system, a upgrade system, etc.
Would it be better to write a editor for that or just write a prototyp for it?

I'll have to figure that out the next few days, else I would end up writing random prototypes, which would not be that bad either, but still ... I would miss the plan ...

Greg the Mad

Cold Day

2008-06-15T21:01:00.002+02:00

Today was worst.

It already started worst ... with me driving home from summer prom at 0am ... why?!?
5 steps after I passed the secruity at the entrence I already wondered why, ... I could have spended a nother tree hours chating with some of my class ... ok, ther only where two of them, 'HornyWhenDrunk' (Shes a nice girl, just with a wired behaviour when drunk, and what dose she always got with her cellphone?But I only keep calling her that way because it somehow got a sound to it, ... and because she never will read this :p) and Sido (He is one of thos guys who, when started, never stops talking, but noone cares, because he is funny ;) , and yes 'Sido too is a nice name, too keep them unknown)
Jep, just two ...but why did I drove away? Maybe because of the friend I brought with me, ... I already sad last year I woun't take him with me 'He woun't enjoy it' and what has he done last night? "Greg, when do you want to frive home?" Me: "DIE!" ... he didn't die :(

Anyway ... at the prom I was chased by a drunk friend of mine, telling that he will split all his beer over me ...
... and so ... running + cold air = cold ... -.- .. I realy had to force me to do the last lines of that documentation for my sample, but its done now. I send it to ziggyware an hours ago, I didn't recieved a answer yet, but I think that it is a good signe (He got nothing to complain about ;) )

... Its only 21:17 here at the moment, but I think that I will go to bed soon, ... trying to get rid of that cold ... again ...

So long.

Greg the Mad

Shoes, Summer, Sample

2008-06-14T18:16:00.003+02:00

Today I was going to mall with a friend of mine (not martin, I woun't see him that othen anymore, now that he's not in my class anymore ...) to get some new shoes.
I like timberlands, you know, they look good, a nice to wear, and somehow also got something of funktion in them, so I was walking straight to the place in the shoe shop labled "Timberland", I looked though the different variations of brown, found some nice mixtures out of brown and orange, and one shoe that realy looked good in my eyes, ok, not that special like I would say: "HEY! I take that pair!" but still good. But unfortunatly they only hade them in one size, ... not mine ...
And that bugs me now ... what if I would hade liked them? What if they realy would fit to my stile? And why are they not produced anymore? (between the last two questions I looked at timberland.com :( )

Also some thing that bugs me now, why are ther so many brown shoes, but none that I like ... Dose I have to wear my current for ever now?

And now about something complet different:
Tonight is school summer prom (which summer? *look at weather*), and I'll be there. I don't know yet if it will be that great (weather again), and if I realy will enjoy it (I have to take a friend with me, all freedome of driving is gone ...), well ... I'll see.

Last but not least:
The last two days I was working on a sample for a article that I posted to Ziggyware.com (its not finished yet). Its about my physics code 'How to apply a force'. I always knew that this code is a great pile of work, and that it was worth every moment that I spend on its development, but ... now that I can grab that sphere (in that sample) I realy realised how powerfull it actually is.
It is just a force that I apply on a object, but that allown already looks so great (and realistic), ... and that from a 19 year old programmer that teached all himself ...
If the whole thing continues like it is now, I could be one of the best programmer in a few years.
I already got the understanding and creativity, all I'm lacking of is the basic knowlede, ... and that will be give to me in my bacelor study. ... :D

Greg the Mad

D like Dirt

2008-06-11T20:21:00.003+02:00

Man is it alread 3 days ago that I have writen the last time? It appears that I'm not that kind of frequent writer :D

Anyway. Today I helped Martin (a friend of mine) to cut some flat-bar steel, ~130 pices, and you cant imagen how dirty you get when you make that. After 10 times washing my hands still can't be called clean. But on the other hand it felt good again to work something with your hands ... ok, I only hold the bar and Marting pushed the button (they were 9 meters long ;) ), and later we changed that role as we also changed the machine for a different dimension of bar.
... but still it felt good to wash my hands white again (from pitch black).

Also did I have that one last test today. I passed, BUT!

But a few seconds before I actually got the test, teacher told me that he and some other teachers have decided to give me a D in a differnt class (Lab), and that with out any warning.

... NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO ... :(

Now I have to hope that I got a C in that class last year, or that the most of the teachers decide that I'm good enougth to pass that year even with that D, ... or else I have to perform a test at the start of the next term ... damn them ...

ok, thats all for now, So Long

Greg the Mad

Gras?

2008-06-08T21:37:00.004+02:00

As you may now dose the Euro currently take place in austria. Yesterday the maches started, and today was the first mach for austria, and ... even if we lost 0:1 ... even if I'm not that great soccer fan ... We did play good ... we actually ruled tho whole second half time ... ... we may, with a great amount of luck of course, could get in the next round ... may

Anyway, aslo did I spend some minutes on my planet code, but it actuall only was playing around with the current build:

In this case did I randomiced on vertex of two faces at the same time, and made a vertex every 1°. Looks like gras, dose it not? :P

Er ... and yes the 11 frames are without instancing, but also with out lightning ;)

Greg the Mad

Sphere?

2008-06-06T22:31:00.002+02:00

Today I saw a topic on the xna. com board asking if it is possible to create a seamless planet - space transition.

Guess what my answer was: YES! I'm currently working on ...

But as I thought that the topic is not interresting for me anymore, a XNA guy came over and sayed something about "Fold ... unfold" "huge pile of work for one guy" ...

... I actually started feeling a little smaller at that moment. There was that guy knowing what he is talking, and he says that that what your working on at the moment is not that easy and it takes many many man hours to get it done. That makes you think about your project ...
Never the less, I'll continou working on my random planets.

Today I changed the two x any y coords into angles, like you know it from every map. Thats also the same way how I will check if I need to create a mesh on that part of the planet or not, the angle. Now a system to get a two angles out of the position of the player and I can stop to waist vertex on the backside of the planet.
Later I tryed to get some random evelation into the vertex, but it appears that the system, at the moment creates a vertex for every possible random evelation ... (means it dose not work ;) ).

But thats all for now, ans I don't know if I will be able to spend more time on the weekend, as I got the final test next wednesday, and if I pass this one positive ... than I got no Es anymore, and that means that I can contiue to the 5th class without any more probles! WOOT! One step closser to the school leavings exam and so closer to the 6 month military service and after that finaly my studie in Computer Science! WOOT^2!

Greg the Mad

Surprisingly Different ... ?

2008-06-03T20:47:00.003+02:00

Today Matin told me the reaction of his friends on me (from the party):

"Wow, I never thougth that anyone could be more quiet that you (matin)"

... yes ... :( ... its true ... I'm a quiet guy ... But I'm working on myself. I try to come more out of me, ... its just that ... that ... I'm not that great in impulse ... when I'm forced to say something cool with out time to think of it ... I'm not thaaaaat good ... not to mention thos moments when there are girl around ...

Why am I talking about that? Because!

... Because it helps that write it down, it makes it easyer to deal with it. Just try it ;)

And now about something complet different:
Today I spend some minutes on continouing my work on my planet algoruithm. Or better would be: I restarted it.
My first attempt was to use a XNA content processor to generate a planet sphere, but lately I discovered that it only takes one kind of content and changes it into something different, just like mouth.
And now I started working with a list of so called VertexPositionCollor thing ... I think its would be called 'Vertex buffer', but I could be mistakeing. And working with that buffer is more like working with your hands than with your mouth ;) . I came up with that my seld.
Anyway, it only took me a hour to get it done, that may sounds a long time for just a few lines in space, but it also was the first time I used a 'DrawableGameComponent' class templer
(I know that templers are something different, but I just recovered the C++ book that teached me the basics and I stoped reading after page 100, because I felt I don't need it anymore, but I now got it again and I may continou reading it)
Anyway, I now got a few red lines on my screen that more or less look like a sphere, ... for and hours work ... not bad.

Later I'll have to make it more look as a sphere, use faces and not lines and change the update code (I recalculate that thing each and every frame, that could become unhandy once it becomes a planet). And once that is done, I can start using textures for the evelations, collor, random plants, clouds, etc.
... And when I got that, so around in a year, I got that thing what I once called 'Nature of Random' ...

I'm not like everyone else, ok, I'm no wired guy that sits in his corner speaking rubbish, nor am I ugly, rud, ...
OK! IÄm like that most others, I'm just a little more MAD! ... and even if I may never get a girl just because I never find the courage to speak to her, I don't want to be different.

PS: Today I figured out that I probalby got the most courage in my class. I was the only one who was brave enougth to got to the teacher and asking if we could just forgett that last school leason today and we all walk home (it would have been substituted). ... It didn't worked that up as imaged, but we DID went out of school earlier than usual (right into a thunderstorm ...).

Greg the Mad

Scrubs

2008-06-01T20:12:00.003+02:00

Yesterday I was all day long busy, and that means something for a lazy guy like me.
I was invited to a birthday party of that guy in school that sits next to me, Martin.
It was a nice little party with BBQ, a pool filled with beer cans and some other funny drinks, like that clear one ... 60 to 70 % I was tolled ... only the half bottle survived, which was a great plus of that party.
Becuase all of them where friends of Martin, noone wanted to barf somewher into the grass, and so noone drunk too much. Ok I knew non of them, so I don't know how they drink, but as I know Martin, they woun't drink in such a way anyway.
Which leads to a little bumper ... I knew non of them, this and my little shieness made it hard for me to know any of them. Fortunatly they've got frisbees!

Ok and now about something different:
Today I put a part of that online that is supposed to become a physic engine one day.
Its up now on http://www.xnawiki.com/ and I hope that one of those greater programmer will have a eye on it and may changes some errors I did miss.

Nearly forgotton:
I finaly managed to finish scrubs off.
Yes I spend the last 2 month in whaching all episodes of the first 6 seasons!
Unfortunatly I discovered today that they're already working on 8 and that 7 will be out somewhere in the far futur (speacking about stuff like scrubs there is a huge time differents between austria and U.S.).
Now I can spend my time on something meaning full, ... for now ...

Thats all for now, so long

Greg the Mad

IN YOUR FACE!

2008-05-29T16:40:00.003+02:00

Today the a mechanic teacher returned the test we've got monday.

And? AND? What dose the teacher say after he called my name? guess! I've got a C!
I stood up and just run through the class with a grin on my face ... man ... that is the kind of grin I only get at special moments :D

My test was so good that some other people out of my class wanted me to copie it so they can learn for the second try of that test next monday (we got 15 E, which means that we have to repeat the test). Later I walked up to the desk of the teacher and asked him why I only got 20 points on that 40 point task, "Hmmm ... ok you'll get 5 points more on that" So I finaly got a C with 75 points, preatty good, isn't it?
Better as you guess. Nearly the end of the lesson I became curious and raised my hand asking wich number of points is equal which mark "... 75 - B ..."
WHAT?!? *run* I GOT 75 POINTS NOW!
"... Ok ... you'll get a B"
WOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOO!
In right that moment a guy out of the second row asked my how I did that awsome mark and cool and focused as I was in that situation I just say: "Because I can!"

That was one of the best moments of thies day, it may was dulled a little bit by the 'Horny when Drunked' girl next to that guy, which was a little to close to crieing in that moment, because of her rather bad mark ... ... I can't stand crieing girls ... :(

A nother ... 'great' moment of today was at the busstop, when I ... 'good' looking girl looked at me. When I saw that she saw me seeing her, a reflex of mine moved my eyes away from her. ... A few second later I tried it again ... she still was looking at me! Unfortunatly the big WTF! in my head blocked any good looking movement, gesture or smille, till she walked by and I never saw here again ... D'OH!

Greg the Mad

Tests Again

2008-05-26T21:24:00.002+02:00

Today I made a great test.

No, 'great' is the wrong word for it, it was probably the awsomest test it the school history ever!

I've learned complet 2 hours for it, but my great understanding of mechanic and the rest of my awsome brain made me write a test, which probably will cause the teacher to shit in his pants and jerk off at the same time, it just was awsome!

Jep, that was today. I should got a little test tomorrow, but I will skip it because I got a little cold (fortunatly with out hankys, but with tea). So I got full 24 hours to learn for the test on wednesday that sould be at least a D, and the test on the day after that day, where I should get a C, ... after that all I have to do is finaly to make the stupid presentation (I already hate Stirling ... bad karma), and write some other positive test next week ... and then I may manage to pass this school year without any sommer studing for the repeat test in september ... would be awsome ...

And now about something different:
I fealt worst the whole day ... so I spend some hours just watching Scrubs. And while I was wondering about JD, and how similar he is to me ... I got day dreams too ... more or less the same kind ...
Anyway, ... I thought about my game project and what I'm actually still lacking for my demo. And if you write it down on a list it. dose. not. appear. that. much. ...
I could make it till 09 ...
... all I have to do is to spend only one realy productive houre each week on the whole thing and bingo!

It would be that easy, but you grow with the ... er ... yes ... so long

Greg the Mad

Tests, Tests and more Tests

2008-05-24T15:35:00.002+02:00

OK, I only got two test next week, but that are such test I should at least get a C on, or I'll have to pervorme them next year again ... So I'm more or less detained for all the other stuff I want to do: Go drinking, meet girls, make sports ...

lol

Selfsarcasm is nothing good, is it?

Anyway, just yesterday I dicovered a interresting fack. I use my table pen more and more.
Its may because my Logitech mouse starts to get weak speacking about rechargable battery power, or because its awsome to control a PC with a pen ... I'm not sure yet.

Anyway ... ther ... is nothing else ... I can say about ... me ... yet ...

Greg the Mad

Stirling Planet

2008-05-22T10:58:00.002+02:00

Today sucks.

I got a presentation tomorrow about the Stirling engine, and I only got a few pages of my presentation yet, not to meantion the whole stuff I'll be forced to speack about the engine, not to mention the test I got 4 hours later and still haven't studied for ...

wAAAAAAAAAAAAArg ...

And the test on monday on which I have to get a C on ...

:(

... On the other hand I finaly made something again on my game. On of the big features will be that you can land on planets, so I need detailed planets and a system to change the Level of Details (LOD) on the fly, as you don't need millions of tree models when you orbit a planet, but you'll need water effects, and those have to differnt when you orbit the planet, than when you just hover a few meters above the surface.

So I started a little contetn project project yesterday. I'll start with a sphere and later use a height map for the elevation of each vertex.
Once I got this I'll write a system that only creates those faces of the planet which the player can see and also change the LOD at the same moment. Maybe I'll also use the same system to ganerate a billboard of the planet if your too fare away from it, and if your too far way from it all you can see it another start on the background ...

... I'd started the project yesterday, and I'll probalbe will continou it in a few weeks ... :(

Greg the Mad

Hang Over

2008-05-19T19:29:00.003+02:00

Some how, I realy don't know how it happened, I did nothing about my game the last few day.

Its may because I now got some test in school that I should get some good grates on, or that I go a presentatin next frieday (about Stirling engines), 0r may because I still got MP3 to finish, not to mention that I didn't played GTA IV for two weeks now (my 36o is in the lifing room of my parents) ...

Or it may be becaus that the work that is waiting for me is more or less game designe pure ... seaching for that one fucking line that makes it all crash ... rewriting stuff the x'th time ...

But it may be also a little healthy. I may didn't spend every second on the game the last 6 month, but for a non programmer I did a great pille of work, so shuting my programming mind down a few days should not work, as long as it stays just a few days. The last hard test is next wednesday, I hope that I can relaxe after that and restart fresh and succesfull.

And about something complet different:
As you may now, I don't drink alkohol *hide*
But I'm still human enougth to got away with some friends and enjoy our selfs. As mentioned it that last post, I was in a bar with my class last week, and in that night I dicovered a new skill of mine:

Around zero o clock the horny girle (I've told you about in the last post) come over to me and suddenly started touching me. First I wondered 'WTF?' ... 'I like here, She looks good, but I'm not drunk!' ... 'What dose she want from me?'
Fortunatly I was releaved when you she put a little camera in my hand saying: "Its the camera from Karl (the guy she later started kissing), and I don't think that he is able to get it home save, but I know that you are. So please take it and keep it save." She walked away. Drunken but still cleare minded (what ever that means).
There I was standing: Holding a camera, surrounded by drunk people, and a mission.

... Mine are the best photos of that party.

Dancing teachers, Dancing students (on tables, bars, etc), stipping students (I'm not pround about those, but that moments had to be captured), teachers dancing with students, drunken girl kissing drunken guy.
Just to name a few. I have to admit that I did miss some great shoots, like the teacher watching students strip, and I missed the police capturing those 3 guys and the girl just for few seconds, drunken guy painted in bed, drunken guy in bed (it may don't sound that impressive but you should have seen it), drunken guy somewhere between toilet and shower (naked ...), and some more.

But Some of them already mentioned that we may make that a second time this semester, ... if, we mke it ... I'll get my self a camera, some SD-cards, and accept that mission:

Don't Make Photos, Make Memories.

BAM! Long post! So long.

Greg the Mad

3 Tage Wach!

2008-05-16T18:34:00.003+02:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QAtnN9I8cxA ("3 days awake")

No thats not me, but I somehow feel like that now.

We first drove away withe plan to visit some great facilitys and stuff (BWM, VöstAlpine, Siemens, ÖBB Powerstation), but the nights we went off are the only thing I realy remember ...

Ther first night we only were 10 people in a little round drinking till 12 ...

Ther second night ... :D ... we were 30 people, 1 drunken guy to get carried home, the only girl of the trip together with 5 other (no, just dancing ... kissing), 4 cached by police (including the girl), a body painted guy (not with airbrush ...) and one angry teacher :D

AND I WAS THE ONLY ONE WHO DRUNK NO ALCOHOL!!!!

Thats probabyl why I'm the only one to tell about it. And in my funktion as home carrier I spend the whole night in getting the others save and alive (its not that easy), and unfucked (sorry) into bed. ... So ... I more or less only sleeped 8 hours the last tree days (sleeping in the bus not counted).

... And still feel great! (must be because of the lack of sleep)

PS: The most wired thing I was confronted with was the one girl that acted like that behavior would be common to her ... WTF? ... MAN! ... dancing (and I mean D-A-N-C-I-N-G) and kissing with 5 guys in one night? ...

... What happend to todays children?!?

Ok, thats all for now, I'll get my self a show now ... a round MP3 and then ... ... a bed?

Greg the Mad

Up, Up and Away!

2008-05-13T20:08:00.002+02:00

I'll go on a little trip with my class tomorrow. A little road trippin' through austria, visiting facilitys, manaufatoris, etc.
Because of that I drove to the next shoping center to puchase into a new DS game for entertaimend over those tree days (ZELDA PHG), and as I was lougthing over some PC game I found a nice little game called Metroid Prime 3 Corruption, which was perfect for me, as I frustrated shut my PC down just a few hours ago.

Yes ... I finaly found out that all my Orbit code from the prototype sucks and has to be rewrite, not only to fit with the new system but also because it just sucks ...
I have to think more about reusable stuff, than just about solutions for the moment ...
And it realy should work ... good ...

So that probaly will take more than a few days, even if you can use some of the old code, and realy just have to rewrite it, and not to rethink it ...

OK, I have to keep this short now, I still have to take a shower, shave and pack all my stuff ... and my mom just called me to take a pice form a cake ... cake! ... sliver ....

So Long

Greg the Mad

Flare

2008-05-12T10:12:00.002+02:00

I guess that I'm not that great programmer like all thos non programmer always tell me.

I started a few days ago to take the GameStateManager sample appard, but somehow I ended up just copind it and passing the whole thing into my new project file ...

OK, it works and I can change the stuff later, but I hoped that I can rewrite the stuff all by my self from scrach ...

But the whole thing is so connected and everything got a cause to be there and in that form ... pro-programmer sucks ... their code is too good :(

At the moment I more or less got the whole GameStateManager thing working just with my background (the start-skysphere I use for the game) and a bug that some how don't let me display my models in the gameplay screen ...
... writing a game in a project and later implant it into a different project aint that easy as it sounds ...

Greg the Mad

Orbit

2008-05-09T18:40:00.002+02:00

I somehow start to like the WIP name of my game 'Orbit'.
It more or less holds all that the game is about.

Its about the realistic traveling throug space, the landing on planets and everthing in between. Perfect!

Why I like it more then ever? Because now that my control system is done (at the moment), I start the next thing: Screen Management.

Ever usual game starts with the studio emblem and intro and the main menu. Till now mine starts with you hovering directly infront earth ... Not the best intro ...
So I took the sample form xna.com and started coping, changing, deleting etc to make it fit for my game.
At the moment I only got a cornflowerblue screen with a 'Orbit' string in the center, but I plane to get the whole menu/game thing working till next week (I got 4 days holiday!). Once that thing is done I'll work again on the control system (I'll need a menu system to toggle stuff on/off), and then ... I probable have to face the content processor for my planets ...

It should not be that hard to creat a planet based on a few values and a heigth map, but ... the scale ... the camera should stay at least 1.5 units away from the surface ... and what if you land on a planed and want to look up? ... Changing the scale on the fly? ...

Ther will be a lot of question I'll have to answer then ...

So Long

Greg the Mad

private bool Passion;

2008-05-05T19:36:00.002+02:00

You know, I never realy was sure about the game developer thing.

Yes, I like to programm, to have ideas, to make those ideas real, to work with other people, etc. But there is also something I wasn't that sure if I got it till now.

As a game developer you not only have to spend the whole day sitting on your ass, but also sometimes the whole night. As you might already guess, I'm talking about such kind of passion, that lets you know no differnt time border but the deadline.

And as I mostly only spend around 3 hours a day on programming, etc. I actually wasn't sure about if I was able to spend the 'day' (8-9 hours) working on a game, or what ever.

But all that thougth suddenly disappeared when my brother called me a few days ago that he needs me and my godlike CAD skills to draw a gearbox for him, which he needs till monday (today). So we meet yesterday, eat lunch and started.

He spend the most time rethinking all the calculations, which weren't finished as I started drawing the gears.
I already had all gears (4 to give a figure) and a bunch of other stuff when he was done with the calculation.

And then I just drew.

Finaly a 22:00 my brother called me to tell me that I got school next day and that I must not wait the whole night with it as its probably pointless anyway. ... So I actually spend around 10 hours on a project that don't affects my live in anyway, and the only reward is a free entry card for the Iron Man movie (~7€). ... Some people may diffine passion differnt, but it works for me :)

And now guess what I would be capable of when there is a deadline infront of me and a angry boss in my neck! I could plan, build, populate and burn rom in just one day!!!!!!

Passion = true;

Greg the Mad

Feature!

2008-05-01T21:05:00.002+02:00

Stop the production!

Stop the coding! The drawing! The desinging!

You can stop every game production on the world, we don't need any new games anymore!

No matter what they are working on, no matter how bit it will be!

They can't beat the best feature of GTA IV!

When you drive around with the Icecream vehicle you can hear a ich ginggle, (and now it comes) as faster you drive as fast the ginggle playes, and if you drive reverse you can hear the song reverse!!!!!!!!!!!!!

WOOOOOOOOOOT!!!!!!!!!

Ther'll never be a nother game that will be greater than that!!!!!!!!!!

Fuck Fable2! Fuck Spore! Fuck Force Unleashed!

GTA IV ROCKStars!

Greg the Mad

Green light when on.

2008-04-29T21:05:00.002+02:00

Hey, I got money!

Even so much money that I was able to by GTA IV today, AND a 360 controler for my PC, AND enougth for my first 'perfection drive' tomorrow (that got something to do with the austrian driving licent stuff ...).

And that is not enought! ... I'll probable another bunch of money on May the first (I'll meet all my other related).

About GTA IV:
I just had played 2 hours, because my mom wanted her HDTV back, but I have to say that I probalby one of the realistic games I've ever have player, I can't say if it is the best game ever, but at least a great game.
Endorphin ROCKS!!!!!!!

About 360 Controler:
I only spend around 30mins with it yet, but I alread applayed the first stuff like throttle and sensitive waepon controls (as harder you press the trigger, as faster you shoot), but as long I don't stumble over GTA IV, the internet, or something different, I'll spend more time with it tomorrow.

About my Pants:
Slowly ... S L O W L Y ... the sommer is comming, and I'm one of the first people who took their short pants and shirst out of the locked and stared wearing them. ... I like the fresh feeling, and fortunatyl I got the legs to wear such clothes, but they also remind me that I don't got the skin typ that gets that easy tan ... :(
... its the 'Geek' skin typ. Not as white as the 'Nerd' skin typ, but also no 'Normal' skin tone.

So Long, and I even wear them when its reaning :P

Greg the Mad

19!

2008-04-27T11:04:00.002+02:00

Today is my 19th birthday! Woot!

I never was that guy that celabreated such days with all my friends, alkohol, partys, etc
Probalby because I don't got enought friends to fill a room, and that is because I don't drink any alkohol (never), even if I got to a party/pub/disco which happens around 2 times is a year.

Woot 1 year closer to death!

But even if I'm one of those broing, not drinking, driver geeks, I still wanted to do at least something yesterday night. But the friend that wanted to go with me into a disco, and probably also wanted to force my to drink a beer, suddenly feared that I could be the only one he knew in that disco and so he stayed home ...
I feard too that I could be the only one I knew in that disco, so I too stayed at home.

... But I'm not supriced about that, he always stays at home when I want to go away ... capullo!

(yes, I searched some spanish cuss words in my online dictionary ;) )

And now about something happy :D
I did not write the force from absolut to relative code, that I need for my physics, as I was entertaimed the last few days:
SMA test, VKM test, Engish presentation (I got a +B, because I've spoken too fast, one even sayed that I speack like a english man! Woot!)

And I finaly don't to pay back anymore, and 200€ on my balance! ... - 60€ for GTA 4, - 50€ for a 360 controler for my PC (and the game development).

And the other 90€ ... I played with the thought to buy a instrument, and finlay start playing one (I wistle the whole day melodys, only because I can't play one), but I don't think that I'll get one for that much, so it will stay on my balance. :)

So Long

Gre the Mad

Control

2008-04-24T18:57:00.004+02:00

I just have writen a the second way of controling my space ship.

The first was the engine controls, accelorate, deccelorate forward.

And now the sceond way are the jets.

If you ever have seen a Star Wars movie or any other SciFi thing, you may have noticed that there are always little jets of gas when they land a space ship. I took that idea of little jets all around the ship and created so the 'Emergency Control Jets'!

The idea behind that is, that even if your ship is hit by a EMP bolt, you still got at least weak jets to turn and accelorate/deccelorate your ship, very usefull if you're hit while you try to land on a planet (see => Serenity). This is possible because the jets, or valves, a connected to the cockpit via several lines, and got tornister filled with enougth gas presure to lift the ship up for a few seconds with out any other energie.

As the presure tornistor get constantly refilled, if energie is avaliable, you also can use them for a perfect landing on a space station/planed. But keep in mind that, on planets, the forces, that the jets have to provide, are much heigher than in space, so even if you got a black hole reaktor in your ship, you might woun't got endless energy to hoverer longer than a few seconds.

Currently I control those jets with the Numberblock, but I already got some ideas how I can swich to those controls on a 360 controller. :)

The next thing would be the Mouse control unit, but once I got this thing done I'll focus on how to transfere a force from absolut (used for the acceloration) and relative (used to turn the ship) ... that'll get complicated ...

Gre the Mad

Turn, Scale, Move ... Rebuild!

2008-04-22T19:10:00.002+02:00

I had a few little confusing moments in the last days.

For example is the Vector3.Forward value equal (0,0,-1). Minus?!? Its called 'Forward' but actually points into the negative direction?!?

Ok, that would not the a problem, you can live with it.

But what next?
The Blender Y-axis is not equal the XNA Y-axin, but ther to are some ways you can live with.

I have to scale a Blender model with 0.001 to get it more or less right into XNA, but the exproter got 0.01 as the smallest scale value.

It appears that my force physics, somehow, work now. It may turns the ship into the wrong direktion, but after I spend two days (!) in changing the ship model (because of that the title), it still don't work yet.

Fortunatly I build the TPS camera with such a great code that I only had to change two values and it looked into the same direction like the ship.

But its still not finished. I still don't put any great deal of time into the absolut force into relative force thing. For example did I just a few minutes ago discover that the forces I used where something beyond absolut and relative ...
Not to mention that I also changed the relative axis with the whole ship changing thing, so it may take a few minutes till I cleanded the code up ...

So long.

Greg the Mad

Publishing

2008-04-19T20:26:00.002+02:00

There is a new page online http://www.xnawiki.com/index.php?title=Main_Page

Its XNA Wiki!!!

That what makes it a special awsome to me is that it freatures a code I put on.!

Woot!

Its my old camera movement class, that lets you hover the camera free through space to watch the awsomeness you're programming ;)

Else ther is noting new, yet.

I didn't found any time for the physics yet, because a friend of mine decided to come to my home and play Halo 3 with me.

So Long

Greg the Mad

Progress?

2008-04-16T22:24:00.002+02:00

As my ship started turning (spinning would probably be the right word) and moving based on the one force I apply at the rear, next to the planed exhaustfumes, I somehow feel good.

Good about where this is going. Just thing about how much stuff I'll be able to make once I got such basic physics?
Particles (good animated particles ;) ), ... objects that react physical correct, and ... a bunch of other stuff ...

.. Its just so basic to got a force and its effects ... *whiping a tear away* ... I'm so proud of my physic engine ... even if it dose not work right, even if I only use on force and no collition, but ... but ...

Anyway, no about something complet differnt:
I start to get scared. The end o thies years term comes closer, and I still got that subject where I'm in the red numbers, and if I don't start learning for test, that one I got tomorrow, ... Math, I don't got any problems with it, ... I programmed a own programm on my hand held calculator just to calculate the half of tomorrows test, so ...
... I'll have to start to lear, ... for those subject where I got bad grades, and the want to bee's ...

(In on subject I earned A, A, C, and now the teacher wants to tell me that I might get a E in the end WTF?)

So thats all for now. Its already later here, and I still want to go to bed, so long and thanks for reading.

Greg the Mad

Physics? Ship Control? Baby?

2008-04-14T19:00:00.003+02:00

Hmmm ...

I'm done with the basic structure of the physics I'll use to control my ship. ... ok ... I have to admit that it was a work of 5 minutes, I did in a short break at school, ... but its a structure.

And so that what wondered me was that it pretty looks like physics I also could use for other, not controled, objects ...
I may would have to make some changes here and there, but it apears solid to me ...

The only thing why I didn't applayed the new code yet is that I somehow fear to loos the old one ... I'll have to make a back up of it, even if its nothing special on it, to be honest ... I even would say that the whole code is crap, ... but its my baby :(

I even will have to add a lot of new values, like the float that tell the code of strong my shields are and so how strong the effects of the controls are, not to mention the pill of stuff I'll have to do to make the jet controls (that a little jet, like you know from real spacecrafts, which a supposed to work even if your hit by EMP, and will make fun when you got gravity to fight with :D )

So there may will pass some time till I got jing and jang in perfect flow for this task, but once I got it I can applay it to the editor and got something ... yeah ... I actually don't know why I did stop working on the editor and made that ... but it will be done soon ... ?

Greg the Mad

Forcing the ship to turn

2008-04-12T15:37:00.004+02:00

Hey, it worked!

I now got a ship that turns in use of forces.

It might not be finished as I only turn the ship propably and not accelorate it with them ...

Hey ... while I was writing the last line I read the article on wikiperdia about torque (How the heck to pronounce that word?) and read there that a force dose accelorate a mass and rotates it if the force goes not straigt through the center of gravity ... GREAT!

All I need now is to get that some how into a system ... where I put the keys (AWSD) and the mouse position in and get the rotation out ... with pysics!!!

Now that I more or less got the basics, all I need it to draw a ground concept of it on paper, falt that paper, create a cigarett, smok it, use the ash as shampoo and I can create the control system for a space ship!!!

Why the fuck I want to make it with forces?
Easy! Not only that I so can make that shield stuff that I've talked of last post, but also that I'll get a realistic change in fly physics when I change the weigth and sice of the ship!

AWSOME!!!

Greg the Mad

... and it made damage

2008-04-10T16:11:00.004+02:00

Well I actually spend 20 mintues on this new physics thing yesterday ...

I stoped it because it ended up with my ship shooting through my little solarsystem.
Ther problem was not that I don't got any control about the physics, but because I ended up without any control over the forces. It was like my first trys of 3D motion.

The problem is that I don't got those anti momentum shield yet, that I've spocken of. All that they would make is to applay a force that would affect the actuall velocity so that its always pointing into the direction the ship looks. No problem, applay a force that rotates the ship and deliveres enought acceloration that also turns the actuall velocity vector.
But how dose a Force realy turn a object like a ship?

F = m * a

M = F * l

M = J * 'alpha'

J = ?

'alpha' is that what I need, but how dose I got J?
My ships are normaly not a easy shape so I could use the basic shapes J's for that ...
One way would be to easy take every object as a sphere and use J=2/5 m*r^2 ...
But somehow I would never be quite happy with it, but for now it have to be enougth ...

Also how dose I know how much a force dose rotate a object and how much it accelorates it? I don't got an answer on this one yet ...

And I made a misstake.
Its a habbit I dislike, but which can be handy from time to time. ... Somehow I don't got fear ... OK, I got fear from ... I can't think of anything yet, but I got it ... sometimes, as long its nothing like to code physics. What I mean is that did not prepare for that yesterday. Ther was no line I've drawn on paper before I started, and that is not good. You easyly loos track if you work like that ... and I'll have to change this!

And I'll start now with it ... today ... soon!
And make some basice logic for the physics!

Greg the Mad

A Apple hit my head ...

2008-04-09T14:38:00.003+02:00

Last week I spend around 5 minutes in coding anything usefull, and even less in doing anything meaningfull, I think oyu can imagne how I feel now about the last week ...

And just on monday I've seen something that should change my code, and now is the moment I'll start with it!

I watched Serenity and found out that the system I used till now woun't work in futur. Till now I tolled the space ship where to be in the next frame, but that would get hard to tell, once I start to make stuff like landing on planets (shaking), or if one of two engines is brocken and the ship starts turning around all three axis ...

And so I plan to use some physics for that, easy stuff like F=m*a => a=F/m only to accelorate the ship and later a use a little method to change the resulting Vector based on the rotation of the ship. (I easyly could turn the velocity vector, but that would not fit to my planed design ;) ).

That would be the first step to create the final ship behav, with anti- external force shields, anti momentum shields, atmosspheric control trusters, multiple engines typs and all that stuff can be toggled on and off.
That would add a nice simulation touch to my game. I your ship is heading towards a enemy ship and you start shooting, but instead of stoping shooing and flying pass the ship, you just disable your anti momentum shield and the thrusters, so that you can turn your ship will you stay on your flypath, enabling you to continuo the shooting.

Its just a little detail and the player may woun't use it that often, ... but he can!

So enougth talk, I'll now grap my old prototype and try to applay that new system, wish me luck!

Greg the Mad

Its getting better

2008-04-05T14:53:00.002+02:00

My cold is getting better. I already was at school yesterday for a test, ... which was a mistake ...

It don't look that good if you sneeze and all that snot hangs out of your nose ...

Not to mention the amout of hankys I needed. I run out after the 6th lesson, fortunatly it was the last lesson and because of my high driving skill (which disables every kind of sneezing while I drive) I made it home in time to reach for the first hanky and make a big honk.

... This adventure persueded me to stay at home for the next day (today). Yes, I got school on saturdays, ... as long I don't got a cold.

Anyway. I finaly found out why I make all that stuff, no not the point of life, I figured that out years ago, no, but why I write this blog while it appears that I'm the onlyone who reads it.

Not only that I practise my english skills, but also because its great to get thougth, no matter what kind of thoughts, into a string. To focus them, got think about them, to make them better!

In the last post I've writen that I did nothing about my editor project, guess what I did just a few minutes after a I'vs clicked on 'PUBLISH POST', yep, I sat down and spend some hours in my project,
I'm may didn't added that great pile of code (because I still don't fell that well), but I did at least something! Thats all what it is about, ... the project, the editor and the game.

No, I don't mean that I only make it now to wast some time, but because I don't have to learn all that stuff now.
I found a public school in vienna, that got a field of study called: "Game Engineering and Simulation Technology'. Its a masters degree and so I'll have to make a bacelor before that, something like ... computer science.
So I got a way of finaly becoming a Game Designer, I realy can afford the money for! (ONLY: ~400€ à semester!).

But just think about it ... How cool It had to be in a interview to be able to say: "I got a degree in Mechanical Engineering, a Bacelor of Computer Science and a Master of Game Engineering and Simultaion Technology" ... I know that still woun't get me the job and stat I'll need stuff like my current project (port folio), good ideas, sympathy, evil madness powers, hamster like skills and luck to get a job, ... but ...
Man, ... that would be so cool!

All I need now is to finish my current school (D'OH!) and pass the accepance test. The test should be that hard and the school thing ... well ... we'll see :)

And yes, it look like not only my cold is getting better. :D

Greg the Mad