Milestone 2 - 18/11/08

Exactly what milestone 2 is and when it will take place have yet to be finalised. However it is known that the final presentation at the end of the semester is to be Milestone 3 and that a rough plan exists to use the two weeks before Milestone 3 as preparation time for the presentation. As such Milestone 2 should be expected sometime around the Eighteenth of November, 7 weeks into second term (assuming the presentation will take place on the Ninth of December in the second last week of semester; second last because the last week is usually reserved for catch up).
28 hours of class time minus 8 hours for planning, discussion, and other miscellaneous tasks leaves little time to achieve our goals. Before the term break the programming team assigned prioritised tasks, with estimated work time, to each member. Below is the working task list:

Jordan

1. Implement multiplayer - 1 hour
   
2. Light Tank Model - 6 hours
   
3. Light Tank Code - 3 hours

• Total: 10 hours

Brett

1. Base Code 3 hours
2. Power-up Code 6 hours
3. Power-up Model 3 hours
4. Upgrade Power-up Models 12 hours
5. Refine Power-up System 12 hours

• Total: 36 hours

Dhiren

1. Implement Multilayer 1 hour
2. HUD Graphics 6 hours
3. HUD code 6 hours

• Total: 13 hours

Matt

1. Base spawning code 12 hours
2. Scoring 12 hours

• Total: 24 hours

As seen above the time for assigned work is not completely balanced, however it is important to note that the estimations for the time required for most tasks was made optimistically and it there was an unspoken agreement to not place too much on the schedules of all members so as to allow those members to be able to deal with unexpected issues that may arise. Already since this plan was created a previously overlooked task has arisen; this task being the loading and saving of player data from an external database. Alternately it is notable that some of the above tasks are complete or nearing completion.

At the commencement of the new term it would be advisable to have a meeting involving the entire class in order to restate our goals, refine the tasks required to reach them, and give members a better understanding of what others are doing and how that may relate to their own work.

Milestone One Slides

Milestone One Presentation

Milestone One Presentation

Well we reached Milestone One, so a great big pat on the back for all those involved!

MiniTanks was well received and the team would like to thank those who have already provided very constructive feedback and welcome any form of input (however large or small) that people may have.

Now for an update on the all important!

Have spent the better part of Tuesday afternoon wrestling with a Slideshow hosting website. I am 80% sure that it is working now so should have the PowerPoint from the presentation up and running shortly for you viewing pleasure.

Tanks are coming along nicely, the light tank is now ready for export and most of the scripting is finished.
This brings us to a grand total of 3 tanks -and yes I still count my floating box as a tank. From what I have seen so far the Light will be a much easier beast to tame than the Heavy; those animated tracks are an absolute nightmare that make elm street looks like sesame street!


All going well (but when does that happen?) we will have a rather sizable chunk taken out of Milestone Two by the end of next week.


-J

Project Management

Yesterday during Mark's class we discussed the difficulties the networking had at the first milestone talk and how to avoid such problems in the future. The talk became quite heated and there was some finger pointing going on but in the end there emerged a re-newed focus and enthusiasm.
It was generally agreed that there had been problems with the teamwork within the group, with members working without a clear understanding of what other members of the team were doing and how it related to their own work. In order to make better use of the time remaining it was proposed that a greater focus be placed on the management of the project.

This proposal revealed the core problem the networking group had; a lack of understanding about the true purpose of the class. I believe that this class is about Project Management and as such the focus should be on working efficiently as a group and creating documentation; rather than producing results. Naturally I assume that by placing greater emphasis on management the work produced will be of a higher quality and more in line with the goals of the project.

cs 1.6 under vmware

Cluster Information

Just a quick link to information on how the cluster operates, the procedures to plan it and the hardware required. I'm sure this info will be helpful to everyone including the programmers who might wanna get a bit familiarized on how it works. This will also help the guys doing the documentation aswell as the rest who are trying to get the cluster to work now physically as virtually it seems impossible.
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc805802.aspx

mongoose + vmware + games =

as you guys might have heard, the network team had problems in getting the game server running because it woundnt work with out some sort of 3d Acceleration.

but dont worry, i have manage to run CS 1.6 in vmware and it works really well, and its playable and i managed to make in to a dedicated server and it works well

so after that i thought i would test a slightly better game
so tried Q3A but wasn't successful in getting the single player to work, so i tried setting it to be a dedicated server, and it works.

ill chat Calvin and Mark about it later on this week

cheerz

Game Server 2003

After trying to set up a domain to run a gaming server & have clients run the game on their machine [faulty equipment, dodgy network cards, A++ computers prevented this], we ran a version of the torque game example, Stronghold, with the batch file, on the domain controller for Windows Server 2003.
It came up with the error of DirectX not being installed.
Upon installation & running the batch file again, the dos command interface went "crazy", showing Brett, Terry , Travis & myself that the game should run on Windows Server 2003.
We have now successfully ran a 4-node cluster but are unable to have the game operate due to the cluster being virtual & successfully ran the game on a physical Windows Server 2003.
The next step is to show that the game will be able to be played on client computer/s, then the cluster can implemented on physical nodes in a real network.

testing game

mark and I ( Terence) are were doing tests and saw that the game works on windows 2003 server after direct x9.0c was installed . this was done on a acctual machine running windows 2003 server so the problem we were having with vmware was because vmware doesnt support a good enough graphics cards or do graphics cards emulations .
More Info will be posted at a later stage .

Mongoose Update

Nagios Update--

Iv got Nagios up and running with out any problems.
iv fownd a few plugins for Nagios, to give us a better way to monitor our cluster
ill be attempting to install it over the holiday.


Firewall--
In order to protect out server ill be impementing a Firewall that will be based on IPCop.

its based on Linux, its been highly rated in the Linux world for its security.

Doc--

And with the documentation thats in note pad atm, over the holidays ill plan the structure of the document.

cheerz

Game on Cluster

To see if the game works on a Windows 2003 Server platform, we will try it with 2 physical machines, 1 a domain controller, 1 as a platform for the game to run. We have been trying to run it virtually, but the graphics card is unable to execute the game, even though a batch file had been created to run it.
From this, we shall try & run it in multiplayer. When we have got this work, we can transfer it onto a working cluster.

Milestone 1 Presentation

The presentation when well even though I had a minor part in it. I was alittle disappointed that the objects weren't aligning to the terrain correctly in the demo, I will be taking a look at that.

Presentation

To the games people, sorry about my talk so short and could of said alot more.
Next time i will make sure it a lot longer than what i did!! Good job to them who spoke well and showed our game and what it was really about etc!!

Dhiren Adatia 23/09/2008

First Milestone: Complete!

With today's presentation we have achieved our first milestone. The primary goals set by our programming group were all achieved and all but one of secondary goals were also reached. Multi-player implementation was the only goal we did not manage to realise.
Now that we have a firm base on which to build we will begin working on gameplay and server communication issues. Pending tasks will include the following:

• Creating models for the different types of tanks
• Writing code for the different types of tanks
  
• Creating models for power-ups
• Writing code for the power-ups
• Creating models for bases
• Writing code for bases
• Writing code so a game can be won
  
• Setting up different game types
  
• Multi-player implementation
• Assisting the networkers with issues for communication between the server, website, server game, and client game
• Finalisation of menus and load screens
• Implementation of a HUD
• Creation of mission files for each planned level (e.g. textures, objects, spawn points, weather conditions)
  
• Writing any necessary code for each level (e.g. traction physics, terrain generation settings)

That's all I can think of for the moment, but I'm sure there's some stuff I'm forgetting and that new issues will arise in future.

A final note regarding the networkers presentation:
From what I remember of the goals they set, all were achieved (even if their presentation of their achievements was somewhat lacking).

Presentation

Actually, Calvin is half right, The presentation was well received but there were definate points where it fell down. He is correct in the lack of networking documentation, but I will make sure that the programmers aspects are put online to show you all soon.

Part of the feedback received and part of what i noticed is that as with a lot of these showcases there is a lack of confidence in those that spoke. Being able to sell yourself with confidence, without resorting to 'blaming' others for mistakes, is a big part of public speaking.

A little bit more preperation, being a little positive, and noticing the acheivments and acknowledging the challenges you are facing will get you all there in the end.

Presentation

The presentation didnt go well at all! Next week i would like to see some documentation done for the networking side of things. The cluster is up and running and we are just waiting on the programmers for the dedicated server. Once we can verify that the cluster is working we can start to look at the next phase of the project, which includes getting the ISA proxy server going and the web server. Time is running out and we need to get stuff done...

Should be happening

The cluster should be up and runnig today by 09:59"59
calvin , mark , and Terence have been working on it.
more info to follow shortly

GUI update

This weekend with the GUI so far this is what it looks like...It's only a draft so obviously the final look will be different.

I still need to include the minitanks logo i have will do that tomorow in class. Also get more screenshots of the game and the tank models when they're all done to get a better background for the gui.

Dhiren

Cluster D-day

We should be testing the cluster tomorrow, the dedicated server we used last week didnt work as it was trying to load a map from the web and not locally. Jordan and Brett were working to rectify this problem so we can carry on with the testing, we are hoping this will be done tomorrow.
Hold on guys we'r almost there. I can see good progress with the networkers and the programmers seem to be on a role....!!!
Keep it up guys!

gui

Hopefully by tuesday ill have the gui draft done.

I just need to get a hold of the mini-tank logo and a picture of the tank or maybe a screenshot of game during gameplay.

Dynamic Terrain Textures

I've spent today building a function from the map of the functions that are required to run in order to add a texture to Torque and apply it. After 500 hundred lines I have a function that I believe will work as we want. An attempt to break the function up into multiple functions was derailed due to calls to functions from the C++ source code.
I will attempt to test the function later this week and hopefully will be able to integrate Dynamic Terrain Texturing using a single texture into the Alpha Demo later this week. Once Dynamic Terrain Texturing using a single texture is working modifications will have to be made to apply however many textures are required for a mission using necessary filters (e.g. Apply by Height).

Sickness

Sorry, I won't be in today. I'm currently laid up in bed sick. On a side note I need to discuss with the gamers about the SQL database. What databases/tables they need created, if they need to be a special format, or anything else that they may need, so I can then start doing some PHP to read the tables and format them etc. for the website.

See you next week,
Lee

logo

Trees!

I have been able to get trees to randomly appear over the terrain in different sized groups each time the level is loaded. I'll be using the same method for any object randomly scattered over the terrain. The models and textures are by Tim.

A realistic screenshot with 2000 trees.



A unrealistic screenshot with 15000 trees.


Close up

Terrain Texturing

After my initial approach to handling dynamic terrain texturing failed to produce results, as such I have spent today working on a new method.
The new method required that I map the functions run when terrain textures are applied manually. There are two major actions that must be carried out in order for textures to be applied, first the texture must be loaded and then it must be applied. By stepping through the script as the game runs I have determined the functions run, the important lines of script they run, and the expected formats for variables.
Using what I have found I should be able to create a function to run at Mission Start that applies a texture to the terrain. Once this is achieved it should be relatively simple to add fucntionality to apply multiple textures at different locations.

No Tanks I'm Full

Well unfortunately the tank pack model structure is quite complex and contains a myriad of control objects... A minor setback, but just requiring a little more time than first expected.

Will be using the tank pack as a proxy model until I can get this sorted out :S


-J

Website Development

I have been doing some work on the website. I found a nice template in which I'm going to edit, I still have to add the PHP code, and edit the graphics in Photoshop. Below are some screenshots of the website as stands at the moment.

Good News???

Both the domain controllers are up and running, One main one and a secondary one for Active Directory and DNS backup. The cluster seems to be running now and the nodes take over from each other in the event of a failure. We are currently trying to test the cluster with a dedicated server we were given from the programmers. We shall let you know when we get it working.

test-web-Server

Hi all

Just letting you know that Lee and i have build a test Webserver software specs:

MySQL
Apache2
PHP
PhpmyAdmin - (this sofware is to monitor the server)

Tank Pack Update

Well it looks like the good folks who sign the checks like the look of Mini-Tanks, as we have just acquired the Brave Tree Tank Pack!

Currently implementing the changes, which in itself is a laborious task, as our engine is vastly different to the one the Tank Pack was designed for.

I will be looking at the models to see what changes need to be made to ours in order to use this awesome resource.

-J

Tank Pack

The programmers have been looking at getting TAFE to purchase the Tank Pack by BraveTree. It will provide important engine source code for turret and turret base control.

Server

Im building up a Server that will monitor the Minitank-CLuster,
ill be using :

Ubuntu Server 8.04
Nagio 3.x


cheerz

Models into Torque

Today I started adding models to torque, bowing to the games students in their knowledge of the game engine. It seems the process is fairly straightforward but laborious, creating dummy nodes and boxes to represent bounds and collision meshes.

With This step acheived it becomes a series of steps; model, texture, set-up, export, engine. Which makes it a little easier for the Art-Folks like myself to create a pipeline of work.

Gui splash screens

I have added the "We Aint Real" Logo into the start up gui so before the game menu loads the garagegames logo, the west coast tafe logo and then the company logo will appear.

This was done by looking on www.garagegames.com searching for SplashScreens.

Dhiren

Terrain Texturing

By examining the Torque script that runs when a texture is applied to terrain using the 'Terrain Texture Editor' I have come to understand how it may be possible to apply textures dynamically using scripts at Mission Start.
Unfortunately the method used for storing information in variables is similar to that used in the 'Terraform Editor' which prevented me from using more than one algorithm to modifiy the terrain. This problem is further compounded by the fact that the first line values accepted by variable in question is simply the path to the texture and its identifier. There is a possibility that this information is passed as bitmasked data structured in such a way that binary addition of different data results in a unique number. I will carry out some tests to determine if this is true, if not the only possible work around will be to have a single terrain texture per map and for each map to be a different mission.

Clustering

The clusters domain controller and back up domain controller are activated and ready to go! I'm currently also trying to get the latest updates for server 03 so they can be as secure as possible.

what been happening

I Terence McCarthy have been helping Mark and Calvin With the cluster and also just for fun been messing around in 3d max. all the problems have been noted by Mark and Calvin

Document -

Sorry for that lateness of this blog.

I've been looking up for some, applications/Software that would be sufficient to the Cluster
Later on too night ill be setting them up and testing them with a test cluster the next day.

cheerz