wednesday April 15th: prepping for beyond the break

greetings, Java-nated ones,

as you may have guessed, I am not in today. That being the case, I have decided to go forward with two items I meant to work on after the break, to wit:

A) Anything that you have missed passing in, either as an attached Java assignment or as a group discussion posting, start getting that made up today. If you forget what you owe, just compare recent blog posts that I have made to group discussion posts you were supposed to have made

B) Begin setting up a list of basic (no, I can't hear you from here) ideas for developing some sort of game program in Java, using knowledge which already have and employing both AWT and Swing components as needed. I'm not necessarily talking about WoW or Halo -- obviously-- but something a little more doable. When I return, I'll demonstrate something along those lines. Here are some things you should consider for your game:

1) What is the object of the game?

2) does it have identifiable characters?

3) does it have multiple skill levels?

4) how does it register input?

5) can it have more than one player?

6) how does it keep score?

7) how do you determine when the game ends?

8) can you save games? high scores? levels

9) can you "build" a character? -- (that'd be a bit more difficult, but perhaps fun to try)

Please think about these issues, then create a Group discussion post named after yourself, plus the phrase "Java gaming". Describe what you have in mind for your game.

And yes, in answer to your question, you may work with partners on this if you wish. Please include that in your posts...but remember, ALL of you must make that first post.

Mr. L