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This blog post is solely to commemorate the day that I first contributed to Ubuntu packaging. Today, Daniel Holbach uploaded the fix to Bug #516744, which is a Tahoe 1.6 update for Lucid. I did the update, and there was only one real change that Daniel had to make. So yes, this makes me happy. Carry on.

I’ve never really spent time with Java. My experience with the language was limited to examining Java code in books on design patterns. I am now taking a class at Johns Hopkins University that uses Java, so it was time for me to learn how to work with the language. This post describes my initial [...]

I’ve never really spent time with Java. My experience with the language was limited to examining Java code in books on design patterns. I am now taking a class at Johns Hopkins University that uses Java, so it was time for me to learn how to work with the language. This post describes my initial […]

I’ve never really spent time with Java. My experience with the language was limited to examining Java code in books on design patterns. I am now taking a class at Johns Hopkins University that uses Java, so it was time for me to learn how to work with the language. This post describes my initial […]

It's the first of the month. Here are some things that I'd like to explore this month: Tahoe LAFS - Distributed file system, twisted (which I'd always like to learn more about). Zooko gave a talk at the local NCLUG meeting a few months ago about ... [More] it, and I've been intrigued, but only recently have I learned more about it. If nothing else, I'd like to play with it. Node.js - Server side javascript, made of awesome. [Less]

A few months ago, I posted a a quick note on Apple v. Nintendo. I've been exploring writing indie games recently. I like quick, fun games, and I like the landscape of games that are coming out from all sorts of platforms. I'd like to dabble in ... [More] developing games like this. Now, before you continue reading, please go read Mark Pilgrim's post Tinkerer's Sunset. This post isn't about piracy, or homebrew, or anything like that. It's about me wanting to explore creating video games and getting them into hands of people who like to play video games. Unfortunately, it's not that easy anymore. I figured the best way to get my game into the hands of gamers is to go through one of the major distribution channels. Of those publisher/distributors, I've evaluated these five: Apple's App Store, Android, Xbox Live Indie Games, Wiiware and PSP Minis. App Store Requirements: An iPhone, iPod Touch, or an iPad (as of four days ago), $100 developer fee that expires in 1 year, a Mac with Xcode installed. Pros: Businesses are actually being supported solely by App development. You can actually make money doing it. The distribution potential is huge. Cons: Well, Apple has some crazy rules. This is true. It's not actually all that bad. The biggest issue I've seen in releasing Apps to the app store is that it's a very big pond, and without some big marketing, is very difficult to get noticed, in developing games or apps. The $100 membership fee is pretty big, especially for someone who isn't even sure that this is a path to be pursued. Android Store Requirements: $25 developer fee to publish apps to the store. Android development tools (integrated into Eclipse). An Android phone is optional. Pros: The few things you need to start up. The Android development tools come with an Android phone emulator. It's awesome. I tried out Android development when the tools were first released (and quite a while before the G1 was first released). Also, the community of Android developers is by far the best of all these options. Cons: The Android store is still pretty young. The variety of devices for Android can often mean you spend a lot of time dealing with incompatibilities between the various devices. The problems appear to be smaller bugs, so it's probably not a huge issue. I also have to wonder if there will be similar issues with iPhone/iPad issues. Also, even though $25 is significantly smaller than the $100 charged by others, it's still a barrier. You don't have to pay it if you want to distribute the app yourself, but that's really outside what I was researching. Xbox Live Indie Games Requirements: $100 membership to Xbox Live Indie Games. A Windows PC with XNA Game Studio installed. Pros: The same game can be targeted to Xbox 360, Windows, and Zune. The XNA game tools are actually pretty nice. Cons: Very few people are actually aware that Xbox Live Indie Games exist. Also, who owns a Zune? Not anyone I know. Since XBLIG isn't marketed much, the games are marketed even less. See also: Xbox Live Indie Game Sales for 2009 Wiiware Requirements: A previous relationship with Nintendo and a game development track record, a Wii development kit ($2500-$10000) which can only be obtained if you have an actual office not in your home. Pros: Who doesn't own a Wii? Seriously, there's no greater platform to get your game on. Also, how cool would it be to develop against a device like the Wiimote?! Cons: Even though Wiiware is aimed an indie developers, getting a dev kit is next to impossible. Take a look at the developer application process See also: WarioWare Authorized Developer Application PSP Minis Requirements: A developer kit ($??), an unknown amount of money. Pros: Sony will do QA for your games. That's huge. Sony also seems to be pushing PSP Minis very hard. Cons: In order to get started, Sony must accept you (similar to Nintendo), and even then, you'll need to fork over at least $1500 for a dev kit. See also: Q&A: Sony on PSP Minis Caveats Etcetera So, one platform that I've left out is Palm's new store. I obviously couldn't cover every "app store" that's getting set up. I also only know one person with a Palm Pre which I held and played with for ~1 minute, so I don't have much experience in the hardware. My exploits into Android, App Store, and XBLIG will eventually be published. I have absolutely no experience with development for PSP Minis or Wiiware. My investigations are based on what I've read on the net. If I'm wrong, please correct me. [Less]

I have a soft spot in my heart for Perl. It was the first language that I made any serious use of as a professional software developer. I’ve learned a lot from Perl and about Perl, and I know that the language has a reputation for being ugly. So how does a developer transform an […]

I have a soft spot in my heart for Perl. It was the first language that I made any serious use of as a professional software developer. I’ve learned a lot from Perl and about Perl, and I know that the language has a reputation for being ugly. So how does a developer transform an [...]

I have a soft spot in my heart for Perl. It was the first language that I made any serious use of as a professional software developer. I’ve learned a lot from Perl and about Perl, and I know that the language has a reputation for being ugly. So how does a developer transform an […]

I used to loathe JavaScript. It was a language that looked ugly, had no obvious structure, and seemed like a toy that web developers would use. Then I read “JavaScript: The Good Parts” by Douglas Crockford and my viewpoint changed for the better. I’ve now seen that JavaScript can still be the hopeless mess that […]