Yeah it's a pretty good idea, but the people who ask all the questions are generally the people that don't want to look up the answers. I say that because there are all kinds of articles on GameDev.net that cover most of the topics we discuss here, but evidently they don't get used as much as they could be.
Ah, but what of the fun of spending 5 days on a problem? Then all you would have to do is look up the answer. People would get used to it... Them the day comes when the web site doesnt have the answer. People will be at a loss... Riots will ensue, Looting, and other Rampant Destruction! ...errr... got a bit carried away =). Wonderful idea though =)
Although, web pages are likely to have been written properly as information, a reply will usually be a lot shorter with less explanation or in depth detail.
I refuse to tie my hands behind my back and hear somebody say "Bend Over, Boy, Because You Have It Coming To You". -- Linus Torvalds
Personally, i HATE short "Do this: " replies that have no
explanation of the "Why?". You cant really learn or
expand on a thing, unless you know why it works. Im
sure most every programmer out there has had a
project or two that just died, becuase they were using
some idea that someone had just given them and
said "Do This: ", and they couldnt expand on the idea
because they had no idea why it actually worked. My
example was the MS Winsock Tutorial. I got the single
client/ server thing working, but i couldnt expand it,
because i didnt know about control arrays, or dynamic
control creation at that point. Thats just my two cents,
but im sure that a WHOLE lot of people can relate.
Good point, but that's how most of the posters around here do, just put in short "do this", yes it helps for the current issue but usually doesn't give you explanations, and the qwestion asker soon has to return and post something similar. The problem is either that the repliers don't want to waste too much time on a single post or that they don't know how to explain it themselves, they just know how to solve a common problem. Even shorter posting a link to a site that explains is a lot better approach, so the idea with having a vb related programming site is good. There are though many sites out there but people here just don't know where to find them. I've been thinking about making a game programming site for some time now but i have had problems with it so i could as well help writing articles if someone else (like parksie) programs the web stuff
Use
writing software in C++ is like driving rivets into steel beam with a toothpick.
writing haskell makes your life easier:
reverse (p (6*9)) where p x|x==0=""|True=chr (48+z): p y where (y,z)=divMod x 13
To throw away OOP for low level languages is myopia, to keep OOP is hyperopia. To throw away OOP for a high level language is insight.
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Hey, I have another idea: what about a web site with all those articles, but also some CGI-thingy to allow people to post messages in the same page?
So, this way, other people that had read it could ask some questions about it or optimize the code a bit... that way it would be a lot more flexible, have better explanations and better code.
Also, the author of the article would be e-mailed when a new message is posted so he could help the person quickly... what do you think?
To learn how to use realistic effects in your games like fire, rain, snow and magic effects, read my article on particles systemshere.
Jotaf's Theories!
"Cats land on their feet. Toast lands peanut butter side down. A cat with toast strapped to its back will hover above the ground in a state of quantum indecision."
Someone should take a look at http://blackhole.thenexus.bc.ca/
The setup for that site is nice, users post news, articles,
etc, and it allows for people to have a small site for any
projects they may have.
Another idea would be to have a program people could
download, that would hook up to a Database. it could
also check the net for updates, and download a new
database, etc.
Also, When somone posted code, or an article, code could be designated with [ code ] and [ /code ] tags, then, when it was posted, the document could be searched for keywords that arent in the code, such as DC, hWnd, PictureBox, etc, and have those words link to explaination pages, similar to Help files.
Personally, I dont think it is necessary to have sections
for If statements or Functions / Subs. If people are
even thinking of creating games, they should know how
to do the basics. You could have a link to VBWorld, for
example, so they can learn the basics.
Also, no game programming web site is complete
without a "Making QUAKE Is Hard" article. =)
I'm not gonna give you my IP address! Ok... Portugal, South-Western Europe, 3rd rock from the sun (our star is easy to find, a 47 Ursae Majoris in the Milky Way :p )
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I have one, it's called "Making a Basic Adventure Game" and should help people developing non-hardcoded levels for their games.
It has a module to access INI files and uses them as the level information they need (they only have 1 limitation: a maximum of 255 characters per "key", but that's hard-coded in the APIs I used).
The article has lots of comments, and 90% of it is either comments or explanations... It was written to help out someone who asked "I wanna make an adventure game! How?" here a while ago.
To learn how to use realistic effects in your games like fire, rain, snow and magic effects, read my article on particles systemshere.
Jotaf's Theories!
"Cats land on their feet. Toast lands peanut butter side down. A cat with toast strapped to its back will hover above the ground in a state of quantum indecision."
I can write a quick intro to scripting using the MS Script Control later today. I can also do some D3D8 Tutorials, if you want, and, as a special bonus, if you want to expand the site ever, I can translate the D3D code to C++. Let me know =)
I can write about the GDI and it's functions... like rotating text, filling a region with a texture, pattern, gradient, how to outline the text, how to use the font wich is not installed, blitting and things like that.
I'm not gonna give you my IP address! Ok... Portugal, South-Western Europe, 3rd rock from the sun (our star is easy to find, a 47 Ursae Majoris in the Milky Way :p )
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I can optimize (make it faster/cleaner) any code you have too and comment it. Anyone interested?
Hey, Istill haven't seen a reply from the website's author!
To learn how to use realistic effects in your games like fire, rain, snow and magic effects, read my article on particles systemshere.
Jotaf's Theories!
"Cats land on their feet. Toast lands peanut butter side down. A cat with toast strapped to its back will hover above the ground in a state of quantum indecision."
In the manual, don't forget a FAQ and Common Mistakes page for each topic.
EG -
1. Gdi32 Api
1.1 What is the Gdi32 Api?
1.2 What can I use it for?
1.3 FAQ
1.4 Common Mistakes
1.5 Contact the Contributors
1.6 Blitting Functions
1.6.1 What is a blitting function?
1.6.2 What blitting functions are there?
1.6.3 How do they work?
1.6.4 How can I use them?
1.7 Drawing Functions
1.7.1 When would I use drawing functions?
1.7.2 How do I use these functions?
1.7.3 How do these compare with the non-api equivalents?
Hehe... kinda got carried away there. But that's what the manual should look like, I think we should all contribute our pages, and have them ALL recognised, like the Visual Basic Manual... all 5,621,782,221 pages.
See ya all on the forums, hope ya dont get lost!
All contents of the above post that aren't somebody elses are mine, not the property of some media corporation.
(Just a heads-up)
It'll be about doing things OTHER than VB related to game programming, eg, making sprites, making sounds, music, scripts, believable plots, characters, and NPCs. Just for when you're a one-man programming team.
Shall I post my first article(s) soon?
intro.htm - what you need to be prepared for
decide.htm - what decisions to make before you get started.
makgfx.htm - how to make graphics for your game
belchara.htm - how to make believable plots, characters, and NPCs.
I'll make the intro.htm first *DUH*and then move down the list. Shall I send the files to you, PlenderJ?
All contents of the above post that aren't somebody elses are mine, not the property of some media corporation.
(Just a heads-up)
I'm not gonna give you my IP address! Ok... Portugal, South-Western Europe, 3rd rock from the sun (our star is easy to find, a 47 Ursae Majoris in the Milky Way :p )
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Cool. If you want the article I told you about, tell me.
To learn how to use realistic effects in your games like fire, rain, snow and magic effects, read my article on particles systemshere.
Jotaf's Theories!
"Cats land on their feet. Toast lands peanut butter side down. A cat with toast strapped to its back will hover above the ground in a state of quantum indecision."
I should be able to post an article when i get home. The idea is forming in my head as i type, so ill post it up here later today (I Hope). Also, i probably wont write any articles unless someone tells me to, and what to write about =). Im too lazy for my own good. Or maybe its that my mind is taken up with nothing but code =).
Some one made a tool that adds on to the IE context menu when the textbox is at a vb-world post page. Quite ingenious, actually! Search around, it's either in ChitChat or Forum Feedback. Actually, I think it was MOVED from FoFe to ChCh. Check at FoFe first.
All contents of the above post that aren't somebody elses are mine, not the property of some media corporation.
(Just a heads-up)
Hrm... maybe you could let me get on to the site, and edit it, for I know a ton of HTML bells and whistles... Such as CSS, have TONS of Java Applets, have access to flash, JScript, and VBScript.
Not trying to brag or anything... aw heck, who cares, I AM bragging
I'll post my content here. I added a file called temp.htm, its a template for all of my files there, you can use it if you wish. Good luck all!
I'm only an email away - Sastraxi
All contents of the above post that aren't somebody elses are mine, not the property of some media corporation.
(Just a heads-up)
Zip File is cast into the flaming pit, chopped up into cubic 0.001 millimetre pieces, thrown in the garbage, frozen, reheated, flash frozen, microwaved, put in a bag and shot at by 15 policemen armed with confiscated AK47s unloading 30 rounds each on the zip. Then it was thrown in the garbage once again.
Actually, I quite like new design.
All contents of the above post that aren't somebody elses are mine, not the property of some media corporation.
(Just a heads-up)
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