The Binary Zoo Bog

[TheKhakinator]

Oh... just looks like a white box with a black line in it... not sure what's goin' on.

[fog]

Oh... just looks like a white box with a black line in it... not sure what's goin' on.

Me neither as it's just a gif.  I bet you're using an inferior browser

[TheKhakinator]

I have tracked down the problem I had. Not browser related, and shouldn't affect others.

Carry on...

[fog]

I have tracked down the problem I had. Not browser related, and shouldn't affect others.

Carry on...

I know my games are full of bugs but I'd be getting seriously worried if my avatar was too.  Nothing to see here 

[PaulCunningham]

That'll be the hidden bonus avatar you've unlocked there.

[fog]

That'll be the hidden bonus avatar you've unlocked there.

At least mine isn't just a red cross   Looks like the changes over at YakYak have eaten yours.

[JDog053]

How goes those puzzle games Fog ?

[outlaw99775]

Anything new?
It seems you have not updated in about a month...

[fog]

Hi outlaw99775 and welcome

Well illness has disrupted development for some time now but we're currently discussing getting things moving again and in which direction we will head.

I'll start updating regularly in a day or two once I've discussed it with everyone and decided what to do.

Thanks for your patience.

[JDog053]

Hi outlaw99775 and welcome

Well illness has disrupted development for some time now but we're currently discussing getting things moving again and in which direction we will head.

I'll start updating regularly in a day or two once I've discussed it with everyone and decided what to do.

Thanks for your patience.

Get well soon FOG !!! Good to hear you are on the mend !

[outlaw99775]

Good to hear!
Get well, and I'm looking forward to seeing whats up next.

[fog]

BunnyMonkey Likes the Taste of XNA 

Anyone following threads elsewhere wont be too surprised to hear that I've decided to give XNA a go.  It hasn't been an easy decision for a number of reasons and it's by no means a permanent shift but, after discussions with the rest of the team, I feel I'd be mad not to at least see what it has to offer.

Firstly lets deal with the negatives.  It's not only a new language for me to learn, it's a whole different way of coding.  I've never done anything OOP related so there's obviously something of a learning curve here.  Also the minimum PC spec and install requirements will no doubt increase, but when I started coding in DBPro a few years ago the DirectX9 requirement was a relatively big stumbling block for some people, and now it's no longer even a minor issue  So the first year or so might limit our potential PC user base slightly but after that I don't see it as an issue.  Likewise the download size for games will increase but as time goes by this will also become less and less of an issue.

On the plus side we now have a potential new audience.  So far we have mainly been restricted to PC releases and the one non-PC release we've made required a complete rewrite by SiN.  Great though that was, it's not an ideal way for a very small team to operate.  Using XNA we can target PC, XBox360 and soon the Zune and I personally see the 360 in particular as a natural home for the style of simple arcade games I write.  Some freeware Binary Zoo titles on there really appeals to me.

Some I've got everything installed and tomorrow I'll dive in and see what it's all about.  I don't do tutorials or any of this "Hello World" stuff so I'm going to have a stab at writing something mono or Echoes like straight away.  I'd rather do something new and start porting Tension straight away but I figure if I port a game I know well then I can concentrate on learning the language without worrying about other stuff.  And with any luck XNA will be a bit faster than what I have been working with and we can throw some more crap around on screen than usual.

I'll try and keep updates as regular as possible now.  Wish me luck....I'm going in. 

[JDog053]

Now that is a big leap ! Infact I am really surprised with that. Great stuff though, I can't wait to play Mono on 360...With a 360 controller, over live, team based games, leaderboards !! Its like a dream come true, I could just be in the Twilight Zone...but I doubt.

OOP isn't friendly to begin with but when you embrace it, its a nicer world.

I wish you the best of luck, Fog ! Or shall I say Fillious Fog ! Who has litterally gone around the world in 80 bytes (its the best I could come up with given the time...). Awesome, i'll be reading this with less haste, mini waste.

[PaulCunningham]

Great news fog.

Now that is a big leap ! Infact I am really surprised with that. Great stuff though, I can't wait to play Mono on 360...With a 360 controller, over live, team based games, leaderboards !! Its like a dream come true, I could just be in the Twilight Zone...but I doubt.

No leaderboards in XNA.

[T_M_C]

Fillious Fog ! Who has litterally gone around the world in 80 bytes

  lol 

I would say XNA is a good choice.  Even though i don't have any coding experience with it.  But from what i've seen, it looks stable, well supported, fast and feature packed.

Best of luck with it, and i'll look forward to hearing your experiences with it.

TMC