Over the past few weeks, I have been working in the (now) free-to-use game engine 'Unity3D'. There is always a lot of speculation when delving into the use of 3D game engines and their usage for 3D applications, and the first of many initial thoughts that sprang to my mind before I dove in head-first were mainly that of confusion and/or distress. I had no idea of what to expect from this software, let alone how hard it would be to get used to...

However, once I had re-acquainted myself with my love for game-designing, and read a few (very helpful) Unity online tutorials in order to get my head around the interface, I can say, whole-heartedly, that it is most definitely NOT as horrifying as I first imagined.

Unity gives designers and developers the power to create almost anything they wish, and the interface and real-time feedback it provides allows for even more control over what is created. The possibilities for game, e-learning and any other 3D environment applications is endless, not to mention the interface customization included with the engine, thus allowing for an even broader spectrum of creative solutions.

In fact, I would even go as far to say that it is one of THE MOST ENJOYABLE GAME DESIGN EXPERIENCE I have had to date, and that I wish more online games and 3D environments were created using this engine!

Yeah that’s right… I went there…

That being said, I am now determined to find anything I can on the development of Unity games, environments and even e-learning courses that are being made with this glorious and powerful toolset…

My first of many posts of any note-worthy Unity developments comes in the form of a little game called ‘Feist’ - http://www.playfeist.net/

An original game concept (albeit a tad on the ‘Little Big Planet’ side) with a unique style and aesthetic that is sure to make a sizeable difference to the gaming community.

Watch this space, and I will keep you posted with any new updates on all that is interesting with Unity3D...

 

Don’t bother pointing out how far behind I am with this but…

I started Mass Effect (yes, the first one!!) on the XBOX360 at the weekend and I am totally blown away! What a game!! I’d heard it was good, but this is AMAZING! And it’s 3 years old!!

I have heard even better things about the sequel, hence why I’m playing the first one as quickly as I can. My plan was to run through it as fast as I can and then buy the sequel ASAP, but last night I was so distracted by the plight of a group of plucky colonists that I couldn’t turn down the request for help!

So much for finishing it quickly…

Al

While investigating ways to anti-alias text in FireFox I came across myoats which is a web app is designed to make the creation of pattern/fractal style imagery super simple. You can have something that looks relatively impressive in a matter of seconds but if you spend a bit more time then the possibilities are almost endless...

Over the last few weeks I have been working on a project in Excel. Like (I suspect) most, I had used excel before but never for anything more complex than simple grid data and translation documents. But my most recent project required so much more. A lot of what I learnt was in VBA script but I won't bog down this post with script. Instead I will cover some of the features that I learnt about that pretty much anyone could find a use for. Maybe some of this is already common knowledge but it wasn't for me so here you go:

Freeze Panes: I'd seen these a lot in other peoples spreadsheets but I didn't know how to do it myself. It allows you to fix the first few rows or columns so that the scrollbar only moves the other half of the spreadsheet. This is great for making the headings on your columns remain visible even after scrolling.

To do it, simply select the row or column where you want to put the freeze line and select Window > Freeze Panes from the file bar (I am working in 2003, I'm not sure of the equivalent for other versions of Excel).

Control toolbox: There’s too much to go into detail here but the control toolbox basically allows you to add elements such as text input boxes, buttons and dropdown boxes into your spreadsheet. They can be made extremely powerful with the use of VBA script but still can be very useful without, especially using the 'LinkedCell' property which will tie the objects data value to a cell in the spreadsheet, even one on a completely different worksheet. This means that you can hide the actual data and formula cells away, reducing clutter and protecting important cells.

To work with the control toolbox you need to enable its toolbar. Once you have a control in your spreadsheet you can edit its properties by switching the spreadsheet into 'Design Mode' (there is a toggle button on the toolbar) and then right-clicking on the object and selecting 'Properties'.

Conditional Formatting: This allows you to set rules about how a cell should look according to various different circumstances that you define yourself. At its most basic you can just set it according to the value in a cell. For example, you could make a cell turn red if its value is less than 0 or turn green if its value is larger than the value in another cell. If you want to get more complex you can use a formula. For example making the highest value cell in a list turn gold (well...orangey-yellow).

To set the conditional formatting of a cell, select 'Conditional Formatting' from the 'Format' dropdown on the file bar. You will then be presented with a window in which you can set your rules.

IF formulas: I said I wouldn't cover scripting and IF statements are very much a scripting concept but you can type them directly into a cell and I think the logic behind them is pretty strait-forward and yet so powerful they are well worth getting to know for any excel user. To explain how they work, I will use the hint that Excel its self displays while you are typing one out:

=IF([logical test],[value if true],[value if false])

You are basically asking the computer to work out if something is true or false and then telling it what value to put into the cell in the event of those outcomes. So to use a trivial but hopefully understandable example, lets say that you have a cell (A1) that shows a percentage and you would like another cell to state "Incomplete" if the percentage is less than 100 and "Complete" if it is 100 or more. First we need to determine our 'Logical test'. In this example we will test to see if cell A1 is less than 100 in formula terms this will read as A1<100. We now need to decide our 'Value if true' or in other words, what would we like to put in the cell if A1 is less than 100. Or answer in this example is "Incomplete". Finally we must decide what our 'Value if false' will be, in other words, what would we like to put in the cell if A1 is 100 or more. Our answer is "Complete".

So to add the IF formula, type this into a cell: =IF(A1<100,"Incomplete","Complete")


Well that is all I have for now, if it helps someone let me know!

Jamie

This site is wonderful if you are interested in fiction and its storytelling conventions:

http://tvtropes.org

You can find out about the Red Shirts from Star Trek (the ones who always die) to the Lancer, the character who is second in command to the main hero of the story. It's a bit tricky to navigate but, like other wikis, way too much fun once you get into it!

Enjoy!

I saw this in the news and was shocked!!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/8415597.stm

So even Microsoft aren't above nicking code...

Al

The Signals’ calendar had become quite an institution. We started doing them back in the last century and they became increasingly more sophisticated as the years went on. Last year though we thought we would call it a day! It took a hell of a lot of thought, creativity, time and money and we just wondered if it was really worth it. Who would care we thought? Would anyone notice?

Well yes, quite a number did and quite a number complained, or bemoaned its loss. It had officially gone missing and needed to be found! So we have decided to resurrect it.

This year’s theme will be our very own ‘Signals Annual’. Do you remember the thrill when you were a child of getting that book packed with your favourite comic or hobbies or interests? Mine was always the Eagle or the Beano, but we are taking a sideways look at all sorts of other themes including Marvel Superheroes, Tintin, Peanuts and Manga.

Here’s the cover to just give you a taste.

If you haven’t been on our mailing list for a calendar in the past, and would like to receive one this year, please drop me an email.

bsmeaton@signals.co.uk

www.youtube.com/experiencere

Pretty clever

- Scott

Next year I could be racing Button into the first corner at Monaco!!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/click_online/8332846.stm

Al

Once upon a time…

There was a girl who very kindly (or very smartly) gave her brother a broken Plasma TV. The brother worked with computers and thought he could fix it. He tried everything he could (including turning it off and then on again) but to no avail! So he called upon a man known to be a Wizard with Panasonic Viera TVs who travelled the land to mend the poor broken screen.

After several minutes and a confused look, the Wizard said he’d work out a cost for the parts that would need to be conjured to get the broken screen mended. “It is five years old,” he said, “so it shouldn’t be much”.

The brother was in for a shock…

Whenth the Wizard returneth the call the brother discovered that the charge would be Five Hundred English Poundoolies!! Plus labour. The brother was taken aback! He had seen a 32” HD Plasma TV on the magical interweb the day before (brand new!) for only Four Hundred and Forty-nine English Poundoolies (delivery included). He could even get it on credit. The 5 year old Plasma was sent away the very next day to the far away land of ebay (for cheap parts).

The moral of this story? Chuck everything you own away when it breaks! It’s not worth fixing!

Brother Al