My Favorite Things

 

My favorite thing during EPGY was making my own code and making sure it worked the way i wanted it to.

 

What does a void function return?

Nothing! It is a “void” function.

What does an int function return?

An int function returns an integer.

What is the difference between a function and a datatype?

A function is an action, but a datatype is a characteristic. For example, eating a cookie is a function, but the size of the cookie is a datatype.

http://processing.org/tutorials/objects/

What is the difference between a function and a class?

A class is used to define a type of something, but a function is an action that can be defined by parameters.

http://processing.org/tutorials/objects/

What is the difference between a class and a data structure?

A class is meant to define something, but a data structure is meant to organize something.

What goes inside the curly braces?

Inside the curly braces (” {”  “}”), you are supposed to put the commands that you want your function to do. For example, if  you have the “draw” function, you put what you want to draw inside the curly braces.

What does the And Gate (&&) do?

If you have an And Gate, the function will not be true unless both the input commands are true.

What does the Or Gate (||) do?

The Or gate says that you only need one of your input commands to be true in order for the whole statment to be true.

 

^picture of our class
The best video games I played at camp were:

This is the Only Level:  http://armorgames.com/play/4309/this-is-the-only-level

Bubble Tanks 2: http://armorgames.com/play/1920

My favorite types of games are RPG games like Maplestory because I like being able to customize my character and control it so that it does what I want it to do.

Here is the EPGY gallery of photos: https://picasaweb.google.com/110478996885609825075/MSP2013

Thanks for reading!

Game Review #9 – Storyteller

Link to the game: http://www.ludomancy.com/games/StoryTeller.html

I don’t like the game “Storyteller” because it is hard to understand, and there aren’t that many controls that actually affect the outcome (or end of the story).

Compared to the Logic Gate Simulator (http://www.cs.kent.edu/~volkert/F10-10051/notes/logsim.html , Storyteller is really bland and doesn’t have a lot of input or output options. In Logic Gate simulator, there are a lot more variables to change and as a result, there are many more different outputs.

 

Thanks for reading!

Computer History Museum

 

^Picture of our EPGY summer camp

 

Yesterday, we went to the Computer History Museum somewhere in California. I thought that the museum was really interesting and organized, because the exhibit was built in a circle, where you started from the beginning of computers, and went around in a huge circle and going through time. The museum was very informative and easy to follow.

Thanks for reading!

Project Proposal

I am going to make a Processing project where if you move your mouse, the car will follow it (on the road). If you click, a bunch of smoke will  come out of the back of the car. This is going to be cool because it already looks good on Paint.

 

Thanks for reading!

Game Review #8 – Tuper Tario Tros (Mario Tetris)

The game Tuper Tario Tros (Mario Tetris) combines Super Mario Bros and Tetris by allowing you to switch to Tetris mode and let block fall down from the sky. This game is pretty fun, and follows the aspects of both games well, so you should definitely play this.

The link to Mario Tetris is here:  http://mariotetris.com/

Thanks for reading!

Robot Arm

^Kevin the Mad Scientist

So Kevin had built this Robot Arm, but the problem was, the robot arm only went left or right, never up and down, and never opened its claws. To fix this, we looked in the code and found some logic errors. After fixing those, the robot arm worked! The robot arm, after being fixed, could move up and down, side to side, and hold/let go of a ball.

Here are some questions:

What is the difference between when Eclipse uses a yellow line versus using a red line? Which one is an error and which one is a warning?

When Eclipse uses a yellow line, it is just a warning, but your code still works even if you don’t fix it. However, a red line means there is a compile error, and Eclipse will return an error if you try to run the code.

What is the difference between a LOGIC error and a COMPILE error. Which type of errors did the Robot Arm have?

A logic error is when something in the code doesn’t make sense, but the code runs anyway, even if the output isn’t quite right. A compile error could be a syntax error or some other error, and the code won’t run if there is a compile error. The Robot Arm had logic errors because the arm ran with the messed up code, so we know it was a logic error.

Why do we use code libraries like the leJOS NXJ?

We use code libraries to store codes so that we can move/transfer them to another object, such as our LEGO Mindstorm robot, Hugo.

What is gamification?

According to Wikipedia, gamification is ” the use of game thinking and game mechanics in a non-game context to engage users and solve problems”. In other words, it is using the concept of games to stimulate people to solve problems. Here is the Wikipedia link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamification

How mad was Kevin, the mad scientist? Why was he mad?

Kevin was pretty mad because he had spent so long in his cold shack that his brain probably lost half of his brain cells…

Thanks for reading!

Building my Robot

Today, we built and programmed our very own Mindstorm Robot.
We were Team 4, and our members were me (Julia) and Myria —–>http://myriagaming.wordpress.com (her blog).

Our robot is named Hugo because that is the awesomest name ever.

So first we built the robot using the NXT Mindstorm LEGO kit. Then we used a code from online called Bumper Car, where the robot would bump into an object and rotate backwards in order to get away from the object. The code also makes the robot use its sonar (where the eyes are) to detect walls and rotate backwards away from them. Then we created a new java project called “Bumper Car” and a new class called “BumperCar”, and pasted the code in. Then we added the Libraries, and converted the project to LeJOS NXT Program. Finally, we uploaded the code to the robot, and Hugo did the above mentioned things!

Thanks for reading!

Game Review #7 – Duolingo

Here is a new educational “game”: Duolingo. You can find the profile to my account here: http://www.duolingo.com/#/jdai578

The link to the website is here: http://www.duolingo.com

First off, I would consider Duolingo a game because you can compete with friends and earn points and advance levels, which are all aspects of some games. However, Duolingo is a VERY educational game because all you do is complete exercises that are designed to teach you things. If you continued to use Duolingo, you would probably not be fluent in the language that you pursue though because it doesn’t teach you a lot of the grammar that you need to know; it mostly just teaches you the terms and words in that language.

I don’t think that Duolingo is that fun because a lot of my friends don’t use Duolingo, so I can’t compete with them, and there are no rewards (that I know of)  for earning points. However, the concept of Duolingo is good, it just needs more publicity and a better language vocabulary.

Thanks for reading!

 

Java, Eclipse, and When Things Get Rough

What is one way to start a new programming project in Java?

First, you open Java, and in the toolbar, go to File>New>Java Project. This will open a window that asks you to name your project, and then you are ready to start a new programming project.

What is an API?

API stands for application programming interface, and it specifies “how some software components interact with each other” (Wikipedia). In other words, it is like a library, and it gives you information about the relationship between variables. Go to this link for more information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Application_programming_interface.

What is a getter and a setter?

Getter and setters, which are better known as accessors, allow you to read and write the value of a variable in a program, and help make API’s more stable. Go here for more information: http://java.dzone.com/articles/getter-setter-use-or-not-use-0.

What are the different languages for the Mindstorm NXT?

The “official” Mindstorm NXT language is NXT-G, but you can also use Java, Lua, LabView, and RobotC. Check out this site to learn the difference between them: http://www.wired.com/geekdad/2007/11/the-best-progra/.

What language will you be using to program your robot?

I am going to use Java to program my robot.

What is a prototype?

A prototype is usually a working model of something that you want to build, and you can use your prototype to determine what you want/need in your final model.

Explain to someone how you swap 2 values in Java.

Well you have to create a temporary variable, and use that to do a three-way swap. It looks like this:

How does selection sort use 2 for-loops?

Selection sort uses two loops, one that looks at the numbers and determines the lowest value and another loop that has to swap numbers so that  the number is in its proper place.

How do you print all the values from an array?

To print all the values of an array, you have to assign a variable to the array (let’s say “i”) and make a “for loop” that looks like this:

What is the difference between a thermometer and a thermostat?

A thermometer measures the temperature of the air but a thermostat is an object that regulates (changes) the temperature of the air, such as an air conditioner.

Why is plagiarism bad?

Plagiarism is bad because you are taking some one else’s words and passing them off as your own, which means that you aren’t giving any credit to the work that the original author had to do.

How do you avoid looking like you are stealing someone’s code?

Well, you can give credit to the author, so then you aren’t “stealing” their code or you can change some parts of it for your own purposes.

What are a few things you can do if you get really confused, lost, or stuck when trying to program?

When you don’t know what to do, you can search online for answers, or ask a person who knows stuff about programming. Another way is to look at other people’s codes and learn from that to make your own code.

Thanks for reading!

Game Review #6 – Sandtest

New Game: Sandtest! The link is here: http://www.kongregate.com/games/onimatrix/sandtest

So Sandtest is a sandbox game where you can build anything you want and design it to your wish. Sandtest uses pixels of different elements (i.e. water, sand, soil, electricity, etc…). Since it is a sandbox game, there really is no purpose, but you can use your imagination to create something. There aren’t any items in Sandtest, but there are materials like metal, oil, and seeds. I think that Sandtest is an okay game, but could be better with more elements. The game is pretty simple, so there are no real challenges, and the game tends to lag a lot if you add too many items onto the screen. Other than that, I like that Sandtest allows you to explore and test out all the features.

 

Thanks for reading!