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[increpare]

Only Derek knows.

I know that D is easier to code in and has more functionality, but I was wondering about cross-platforming (if I can compile for Windows/Linux/Mac) and the difference in performance to C++.

It's quite cross-platform mac-wise, though it doesn't quite work with xcode at the moment.

[muku]

Only Derek knows.

I know that D is easier to code in and has more functionality, but I was wondering about cross-platforming (if I can compile for Windows/Linux/Mac) and the difference in performance to C++.

It's quite cross-platform mac-wise, though it doesn't quite work with xcode at the moment.

There was some news about that recently, though I can't try it for lack of a Mac. Apart from that, yes, there are definitely compilers for all three major platforms, but I've only used it on Windows so far. So I'm afraid I can't help in that particular regard.

EDIT: Oh, and regarding performance: I've usually been quite impressed with how close D gets to C++ in performance, having GC and all that, and with DMD being a one-man affair. Sure the optimizer probably isn't quite as mature as with C++ compilers which have been around for much longer, but it's definitely in the same ballpark.

[moi]

Doesn't Kenta cho use D ?

[Gnarf]

Oh, D! muku, I'd really rather like to know what you use for editing code, compiling and building stuff and such. I've been using D for, eh, 4 days or so now, and I'm not sure what options I've missed out on and so on.

I'm currently using the Descent plugin for Eclipse, DSSS and the DMD 1.030 compiler. I wanted to use something 2.0, but it seemed that a lot of other stuff available was only compatible with 1.0. Using Derelict for SDL and OpenGL stuff.

It's really pleasant to work with. I'm sure I'd be interested in tutorials and stuff. There's a chance I can write something as well.

[Melly]

Only Derek knows.

I know that D is easier to code in and has more functionality, but I was wondering about cross-platforming (if I can compile for Windows/Linux/Mac) and the difference in performance to C++.

It's quite cross-platform mac-wise, though it doesn't quite work with xcode at the moment.

There was some news about that recently, though I can't try it for lack of a Mac. Apart from that, yes, there are definitely compilers for all three major platforms, but I've only used it on Windows so far. So I'm afraid I can't help in that particular regard.

EDIT: Oh, and regarding performance: I've usually been quite impressed with how close D gets to C++ in performance, having GC and all that, and with DMD being a one-man affair. Sure the optimizer probably isn't quite as mature as with C++ compilers which have been around for much longer, but it's definitely in the same ballpark.

Good to hear. I'll be looking into it. Which graphics/sound libraries do you recommend using with it?

And I guess that since D is derived from C++ directly I'd imagine the performance difference would be very small. Just wanted to be sure.

Doesn't Kenta cho use D ?

He did, though the last time I heard he had done games in Java and XNA as well.

[muku]

Oh, D! muku, I'd really rather like to know what you use for editing code, compiling and building stuff and such. I've been using D for, eh, 4 days or so now, and I'm not sure what options I've missed out on and so on.

For a very long time I've just used SciTE for editing and dsss on the command line for compiling, and it worked fine. I've recently switched to using CodeBlocks (for editing and building) because the lure of an IDE proved too strong after all. It works fine, I guess, though code completion is very very patchy. I've heard good things about Descent too, so if that does the trick for you I guess there's no reason to switch.

I'm currently using the Descent plugin for Eclipse, DSSS and the DMD 1.030 compiler. I wanted to use something 2.0, but it seemed that a lot of other stuff available was only compatible with 1.0. Using Derelict for SDL and OpenGL stuff.

I wanted to use 2.0 at first too, but it's very much a moving target at the moment, and many libraries don't support it yet. So the 1.0 series is definitely the way to go right now.

Basically, I use whatever compiler version comes bundled with the latest Tango distribution; it's DMD 1.033 right now. I'm dying to get my hands on the new array operations in 1.034, but I'd rather wait until an official new Tango release rolls around.

There's this whole issue with the two standard libraries, Phobos and Tango. I personally use Tango because it's much more feature-complete than Phobos, and I really think it's more future proof. It has an entire team behind it while Phobos is just what Walter does when he has some spare time.

And yes, Derelict is nice. Although I recently noticed that SFML seems to have D bindings too, so that's enticing as well.

[increpare]

There was some news about that recently, though I can't try it for lack of a Mac.

Ah. I'll have to give that a look

[muku]

Good to hear. I'll be looking into it. Which graphics/sound libraries do you recommend using with it?

At the moment I use Derelict which is a collection of D bindings to SDL, OpenGL and some other essential libraries. On top of that, I have my own framework for sprite handling etc. You might also be interested in ArcLib, which is a 2D game engine/library.

As I said I recently also noticed that SFML seems to have D bindings, so that might be interesting because it would do all the sprite handling, font rendering etc for you. Sooner or later I want to look into that.

And I guess that since D is derived from C++ directly I'd imagine the performance difference would be very small. Just wanted to be sure.

It's not as much derived from C++ as a new design for a cleaner language with the same capabilities, but yeah. The thing to keep in mind is that Walter Bright, the guy behind D, wrote the Zortech/Symantec C++ compiler back in the day, so he definitely knows what he's talking about, and he's really good at what he does. His marketing sucks though, so that's probably why D isn't as widespread yet as it should be

[Gnarf]

For a very long time I've just used SciTE for editing and dsss on the command line for compiling, and it worked fine. I've recently switched to using CodeBlocks (for editing and building) because the lure of an IDE proved too strong after all. It works fine, I guess, though code completion is very very patchy. I've heard good things about Descent too, so if that does the trick for you I guess there's no reason to switch.

Yeah, I've been pretty happy with Descent. Although I haven't been able to make it format my code exactly the way I like it, and it seems it won't build stuff for me (but does parse things to check for syntax errors). Building isn't much of an issue since it's a lot more straightforward than with C++ stuff anyway, and I can run DSSS from Eclipse in order to get output from there in the Eclipse console. Code completion works proper good and pressing F3 to jump to the declaration of whatever is real handy (and possibly works better than with Java stuff in Eclipse as far as standard library stuff is concerned). And I'm familiar with and like Eclipse anyway, so

His marketing sucks though, so that's probably why D isn't as widespread yet as it should be

Yeah. Something like that. I've come across the language a rather infrequently throughout the last few years. Hardly ever by running into people who actually used it, so I've sort of assumed that there's something horribly wrong with it. That I finally got around to checking it out is partly thanks to you mentioning it in some thread here recently. So like thanks to you.

[Cthulhu32]

   TUTORIAL REQUESTS GO HERE.


I request a C++ game-making tutorial!

Please?

Alec said he'd do it.

I could work on a tutorial for this, probably next month if nobody takes this one on. C++ game engine writing is complicated work so I'd have to do it in installments. What kind of game do people want to see done in C++ in a tutorial style write-up? Also we could have multiple tutorials, just let the community know exactly what you guys wants :D

[mjau]

There's this whole issue with the two standard libraries, Phobos and Tango. I personally use Tango because it's much more feature-complete than Phobos, and I really think it's more future proof. It has an entire team behind it while Phobos is just what Walter does when he has some spare time.

It'd be nice with an explanation of the differences between Phobos and Tango, pros and cons of both etc.

[muku]

It'd be nice with an explanation of the differences between Phobos and Tango, pros and cons of both etc.

Phobos is what comes with the DMD compiler by default. It is maintained by Walter Bright himself. Its API reference can be viewed here:
http://www.digitalmars.com/d/1.0/phobos/phobos.html

Tango is a community-developed replacement for Phobos. The API is not compatible to Phobos. It has much more functionality than Phobos and seems more actively maintained, which is why I prefer it. Its API reference is here:
http://www.dsource.org/projects/tango/docs/current/

Whenever you program in D, you have to choose either the one or the other; I chose Tango for the reasons mentioned above. The easiest way to get a DMD installation with Tango going is to download one of the binary packages they supply: http://www.dsource.org/projects/tango/wiki/DmdDownloads

[ChevyRay]

A PHP/MySQL tutorial!

Because I can't seem to find out how to apply a content management system / rss devlog into my site

[Evilish]

A PHP/MySQL tutorial!

Idk, doesn't seem very game making related, but maybe I'll write one later today for ya, ^_^.

[tok]

I'd like (more) tutorials on any of this stuff:

programming:
online/LAN-based multiplayer
online high score tables

game design:
simple AI stuff (like, designing movement/attack patterns for enemies to match the movement/attack capabilities of the player, bullet patterns, etc)
level design principles (placement of barriers and resources, controlling view, flow, etc)
procedural generation (levels, stuff in general)

storytelling:
characters with interesting backgrounds
creating a setting
making stories with endings
keeping players motivated
presenting story in a game without cutscenes

art:
character design
anatomy
colour theory
light/shading/rendering
animating walk cycles
animating combat (especially this)

if anyone thinks that they couldn't pull off a tutorial on something I've listed, but could manage an opinionated essay, or, like, an anecdote, I'd like to read that too. I just want to see people talk about this stuff, more.

[ElTipejoLoco]

I'm not really new around these parts, just more of a lurker. Oh well.

Anyway, I wanted to just toss in my five cents and quietly inquire if anyone feels like writing up a tutorial on writing C++ code that allows someone to extract stuff from a layer in a PSD files (much like one would do with a sprite sheet). DrPetter has done something similar to this in the past a couple of times, and seeing how I have Photoshop 6 handy...

That aside, fourthing (methinks?) a C++ game making/programming/engine writing tutorial. I already know how, at the very least, to make a text based game. So, technically, I have 50% a betasuppe capability at my disposal (minus the unique wit, the charm, and the general graphical and musical aspect, which would actually bring me down to a measley 5%, if not smaller... but I have SOMETHING, I s'ppose).

If anyone's curious, I'm using Visual Studio 2005 for my programming needs, though I also have the lite version of Game Maker 7 just hanging around on my computer, taunting me with its non-Pro status.

I find it humorous that one of the examples that comes with the Lite-version of the program uses code that can only be compiled by the Pro-version, effectively making it a useless example for people that aren't planning on purchasing anything any time soon.

...

Man, I sure do like to type- for an ex-lurker, huh?

[ஒழுக்கின்மை (Paul Eres)]

A PHP/MySQL tutorial!

Idk, doesn't seem very game making related, but maybe I'll write one later today for ya, ^_^.

Well, website design is an important part of being a game developer, every game needs a good website. And MySQL databases are important to most online games, even just to online high scores.

[ஒழுக்கின்மை (Paul Eres)]

I find it humorous that one of the examples that comes with the Lite-version of the program uses code that can only be compiled by the Pro-version, effectively making it a useless example for people that aren't planning on purchasing anything any time soon.

Well, the same tutorials come with both versions of the GM, it's not like there are separate tutorials for pro and lite versions. Plus they need some way to encourage people to buy it, and making the lite version have nothing that makes you want to buy it would be bad business. It'd be like making a demo of a game that didn't show anything that you could only do with the full version.

[ஒழுக்கின்மை (Paul Eres)]

I'd like (more) tutorials on any of this stuff:

programming:
online/LAN-based multiplayer
online high score tables

game design:
simple AI stuff (like, designing movement/attack patterns for enemies to match the movement/attack capabilities of the player, bullet patterns, etc)
level design principles (placement of barriers and resources, controlling view, flow, etc)
procedural generation (levels, stuff in general)

storytelling:
characters with interesting backgrounds
creating a setting
making stories with endings
keeping players motivated
presenting story in a game without cutscenes

art:
character design
anatomy
colour theory
light/shading/rendering
animating walk cycles
animating combat (especially this)

if anyone thinks that they couldn't pull off a tutorial on something I've listed, but could manage an opinionated essay, or, like, an anecdote, I'd like to read that too. I just want to see people talk about this stuff, more.

I agree with this list. So far most of the tutorials have been programming-oriented, but programming is usually not the limiting factor in good game design. There are more good programmers who aren't good game designers than vice versa. I'd like to see more tutorials that had nothing to do with the technical side of things, and more tutorials that have to do with the pure game design side.

[ElTipejoLoco]

Well, the same tutorials come with both versions of the GM, it's not like there are separate tutorials for pro and lite versions. Plus they need some way to encourage people to buy it, and making the lite version have nothing that makes you want to buy it would be bad business. It'd be like making a demo of a game that didn't show anything that you could only do with the full version.

Good point, but I think that once the people trying out GM try to move onto advanced stuff, it would be enough incentive to move on. And though I understand that the example are the same for both versions, isn't it also true that you would turn away would-be consumers if you basically put a padlock on something that is merely a sample?

Ah well, but I'm just ranting unnecessarily. It's not that big of a deal, truly- I just personally find it silly.