[tcaudilllg]

I just realized that I can use the PNG making function of HTML 5 to render maps for Gamestar. Seems like if I use that, I eliminate my performance issues across the board... lol I remember DevX's Dream Destroyer game used that technique to build the maps.

Also gonna add a neat tile randomizer function to help build varied environments.

[tcaudilllg]

I bought a Samsung Galaxy, so now I can finally live my dream of making games on a handheld device. There will probably be additional work on Gamestar soon.

[tcaudilllg]

So I tried Gamestar on FF Mobile and... it doesn't work.

Not only that, but Mozilla removed access to file saving/loading functionality in the last version of Firefox. So in the latest Firefox, Gamestar doesn't work at all. It will probably be reinstated in the next stable version, according to Bugzilla, but developers are making it clear they intend to remove it again once File API is finished. (they only brought it back because a semi-popular math proggy required it).

Apparently Mozilla is obsessed with "IndexDB" as the means to bring local file management to the masses. They appear to be in a "browser war" with Chrome over it, and the general outcome of HTML5/File API.

Apparently the only browser with a decent file interface at this time, is Opera (and IE if you risk ActiveX, which I don't).

I'm not sure if file saving/loading ever worked in FF Mobile at all. Will try downloading prior versions to find out for sure. I am gonna put together a general file lib for file saving/loading, however, which will work in Chrome, Opera, and Mozilla all.

[BadMrBox]

Dang, they dont make life very easy now do they?
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[tcaudilllg]

It's ridiculous. Mozilla says they have to work out the "ideal" way to allow programmers to access the user's file system -- mounting My Docs and My Pics directories, for example -- but Opera has integrated that in their widgets system for years. They're reinventing the wheel.

Making Gamestar an extension is out of the question. The format for extensions changes every year, causing them to break every few versions.

It all feeds into the mentality that has taken root, the mentality of power. "Do what I say because it works out best for me." The mentality of obligation to the customer is all but extinct. I have to say I'm mystified as to what a client-side, browser-managed database can actually accomplish that file reads/writes can't. I think this all has to do with rivalry and suspicion between Mozilla and Google, at this point. It's irrelevant: Opera has always out-innovated them them both, and they will still be adding features that first appeared in Opera for the indefinite future. But christ I can't even give my users saving and loading. This is RIDICULOUS.

[tcaudilllg]

Anyway, started on the file lib.

Opera has a "widgets" Active-X-alike system which permits file access. This functionality is apparently being phased out (since last April). The only thing Opera now seems to be offering (that I can pick up from their web site) is local storage (ineffective) and extensions (unworkable). The extension system is supposed to replace the widget system, which was far easier to manage in that you just had to package the widget's code alongside the page which made use of it. Extensions involve user profiles and restricted file access... it's a mess.

The root problem is that people in power in Browser Land have come to the common cynical conclusion that the potential to create products that are secure for all users outweighs the right to develop for users who are careful. This because, I guess, security is now seen as the defining factor in the browser wars.

Anyway, gonna see if I can get something going with Chrome (although it's my understanding Chrome doesn't have much power yet either).

[tcaudilllg]

I found this lib for FileSaving. Apparently it works with all the major browsers.

http://eligrey.com/demos/FileSaver.js/

In Firefox it opens the data in a new window without saving directly, perhaps as a security precaution. Annoying, but I can live with it. :P Does it work in IE and Opera?

[tcaudilllg]

For next version of Gamestar, gonna make a better code editor window. ...Although, the code is not so complex that syntax highlighting will assuredly be better option. Thinking more along the lines of smart formatting and possibly separate windows for events, a la QBASIC.

Also gonna try to get some little ad going along the top or bottom, try to generate some income. Will try to calibrate it to make it something other than a hog.

[tcaudilllg]

Gamestar is broken beyond repair.

Google Chrome will not permit file access by locally stored pages except under a special flag that must be invoked from the command line.

Java is now the only totally cross-platform app solution. There is no free software solution anymore. Which means it's time for war. The only question is what strategy to use. It does involve custom builds, I'm sure. That's a lot of work, however I think a lot of people are falling out of love with Mozilla. It has been mismanaged for a couple years now, wasting money on doomed projects (I'm sure you're all chomping on the bit to buy a phone loaded with Firefox OS). I think there's potential for a fork... gonna talk to some people and see if anything can be started.

I'm looking at the situation, and it looks like Google is gobbling up all the independent browser makers by proxy. In other words, Moz and Opera are becoming figureheads of Google. Google apparently managed this through subversion of the W3C, by created a flood of APIs and functionality that is outpacing the ability of other orgs. In other words, Google is using standards to create a monopoly.

[tcaudilllg]

*sigh* I'm gonna have to make it an add-on.

[tcaudilllg]

Forget it. Add-ons are impractical. No one wants an add-on cluttering up their browser. People have favorites for a reason. Mozilla has gone nuts. It's no better than MS anymore... just as aloof and tone-deaf.

Tell me, do YOU want a browser add-on that lets you make your own game?

[tcaudilllg]

Finally, Gamestar has a PERMANENT home!

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/gamestar-gcs/

[tcaudilllg]

Work on Gamestar continues. The next version will be skinnable via Javascript. I'm using Eval to let users redefine CSS values in script, this way they can for example change the type of the input buttons to images, if that's what they want. I'm also gonna fix the game board draw bug that happens when the tiles aren't fully loaded at the time of redraw. I figure a try-catch plus continuous redraw until the draw is completed without errors will do the trick.

I'd just as well use an onload event(s), but I tried it before and it didn't work.

Also gonna make sure I've got a hook functionality in the Javascript so that container content clicks can correspond to var changes in script.

I figure that it's possible to use CSS 3D transforms to make a 2 1/2-D shooter, amid other mode 7 effects. Non-square objects, however, appear not to be possible with CSS.

[BadMrBox]

Would you mind making a youtube video showing off what you can do with Gamestar?
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[tcaudilllg]

Wouldn't mind at all. Give me a bit of time and when it's ready I'll link to it here.