DogP wrote:
I’d like an adjustable threshold for the map constructor… basically if I input a BMP w/ 4 colors, I’d like those 4 colors to be black through bright red (either automatically or manually selecting the threshold), instead of having to adjust the colors in the original BMP until it detects the 4 colors like I want.I’ll try to think of other stuff, but that’s one I’ve run into a few times.
DogP
What are the four colors it will detect?
Thank you both kindly for your help.
RunnerPack, I did try to find it on my own. I downloaded the source code for some of the homebrew games to see if I could find something there, but couldn’t get it working.
DanB, Thanks a lot, that’s just I was hoping for in simplicity.
I couldn’t get it working, so I went to GCCVB and am using the make.bat with success so far.
Thank you very much for putting up the source code for your demonstration. The style is good and gives me ideas about where it could be taken.
One thing I would like to ask about is the size of the sprite, is that the actual size of what it was on the SNES or a reduced resolution made to make some things easier? My poor eyesight cannot even make Chrono out on the screen.
As far as your C coding style, I’d like to give a few tips. First this depends wholly on how you approached the program, if you decided just to do it quick and dirty because it’s a simple demo, then my tips may not apply too much.
The first thing I noticed is that you have a very large main() function, you may want to break up the operations into discreet functions that can be re-used as needed. This helps from a readability standpoint as well as or identifying and fixing problems. It is difficult to fix a problem if you have identical code in multiple places.
Secondly, you may wish to consider using fewer multiplies if you can avoid them. Replace them with bit shifts (if multiplying or dividing by a power of two) or by adding to an accumulator with each loop iteration. The Virtual Boy is a low power device. Multiply instructions are extremely expensive when compared with addition, so if you can get away with an add instead, do it.
My previous post may have been hasty. I did a bit of research about the origins of C++ and found some interesting things.
The creator of C++ Bjarne Stroustrup designed this language in 1983 in AT&T labs. One would assume that he would be testing it out at that time to verify the theories that he had. Commercially available programs for PCs using this style appeared earlier than 1987. Memory for those machines varied widely, some having less than the VB and others, like my father’s Tandy 1000 in 1988 had as much as 640KB.
It’s worth noting, that those machines also had to run DOS in the background which is comparatively memory expensive compared with the TRON variant that the Virtual Boy runs. DOS can eat up as much as 384 KB of memory.
In SAMS Teach Yourself Wireless Java With J2ME In 21 Days, they give a specification for the CLDC profile for use with J2ME. In part the CLDC requires a 16 Bit CPU with 160 KB memory available to Java. Now this takes into account the interpreter, which is not cheap with regard to memory. It looks pretty possible. The J2ME specification does not diminish the language features ie Inheritance, Polymorphism, Abstract Base Classes (ABCs) and others.
I can’t be sure that C++ would run well on it, but given the historical precedence described above it may not be as bad as we think. I’ll try and come up with some kind of benchmark and test it out. It’s worth a shot at least. Assembler would be the best for performance, but not all code segments need to be in Assembler for it to function effectively. Only about 15 to 20% of the Linux Kernel by volume is Assembler.
That’s good to know. I’m just getting started, mind. Currently I’m designing a headband to play the Virtual Boy on the 4 hour bus ride each day (back and forth to work.) I’m using Disney key chains, the cloth is pretty thick and I’m hoping it will work well. I’ll put up pictures when it’s completed.
With the job I’m at now, I demo’ed my thesis for my BS in Math, it’s a tree that can be rotated in three dimensions. Pretty rudimentary but I did get hired, so it must have been pretty good. For that interview, I strategically placed a Master’s level book so they would see it when I was getting at my developer’s journal.
Showing that the interest and motivation is there is quite important in an interview, aids like that reinforce the message. Like your current job, according to my supervisor, I was hired solely because of my dedication and interest.
I’ll have to try and get that version of GCC onto my ThinkPad to get started. I wanted to first try and get David Tucker’s guide memorized. I’d prefer to handle the low level stuff at one end, but have the flexibility to do high level stuff like Polymorphism as well.
The concept of virtual methods really makes a lot of things possible beyond simple tasks. With that, a Mario that inherits from sprite could manage how it’s going to move, die and so forth. A spiny or turtle could determine their actions as well. The Object Oriented Paradigm simplifies the debugging and testing aspects quite a bit. In SMB, some turtles (green shells) can not go beyond the ledge they are on. Others (red) could go past the edge to fall to a lower platform or into a pit. Of course if implemented in VB both would have to be red.
Plus, I get extra experience with the OOP stuff I need for work, while doing something fun!