Howdy folks. Haven't been posting much around here recently but I've been lurking. I've pretty much stopped using TGC products because I've been moving on to other things, not necessarily game related, but I won't forget that TGC gave me a start in programming so I still frequent here to hear the news.
I recently moved to Greece to stay with my dad after things started to go downhill in Scotland (reminds me, I should change my location in my profile). Having been born here, I am legally required to do 9 months national service in the Greek army, starting on the 13th of this month. I could just go back to the UK and avoid it altogether, but I feel it's too soon to return, so I am pretty much forced to go. I believe it's worth it, despite what you hear about a lot on the news regarding this country, things aren't actually so bad, at least, not in Corfu, the island I'm staying on. I've discovered that as much as politics and economics can screw with the world, people will always find the time to go out for a coffee with their friends and enjoy the weather. Incidentally, it's early November and the sky is completely clear, it's still like summer.
I had taken a break from programming to explore other interests. At first I started getting involved in boat-y things. I was crewing on a small tourist boat which was a lot of fun, but didn't pay much. I then started cleaning charter yachts which paid fairly substantially. I've also been getting into motorcycle culture. My dad owns a well-known bike parts/repair shop and he has a reputation on the island as a biker, and is part of a local club that meets every Monday and Thursday, and often goes on road trips through the mainland. I got my first bike, a small Honda CY50, to practice on, and I've taken to it like a duck to water. My hope is that I can make enough month by month in the army to buy a Honda CBR125 that my dad has in his shop.
That's my rant about life in Greece and going to the army. Now my other rant.
As work started to dry up for the winter, I got back into programming and revisited some of my old projects. Some of you may know I have an interest in programming language development and GUI development, so I decided I'd do something about those, and I believe I have a couple of well-made systems.
Here is an example of a Unity-inspired game editor I've been working on using my GUI and programming language.
Notice the 'ControllerComponent' on the bottom-right. This is the script for that, in my language:
package studio
{
using eco.game2d;
using eco.io;
/** Controls entity using arrowkeys */
[Requires("BasicPhysics")]
class ControllerComponent : Component2D
{
/** Movement force */
[Range(0.0, 1000.0), Init(100.0)]
float MoveForce;
/** Rotation speed */
[Range(0.0, 5.0), Init(2.0)]
float TurnSpeed;
/** Empty constructor */
new() : base("Controller")
{
}
/** Update component */
void Update()
{
BasicPhysics phs = (BasicPhysics)Owner.GetComponent("BasicPhysics");
if (IO.Upkey())
phs.AddForce(Math.Sin(Math.DegToRad(Owner.Angle)) * MoveForce, -Math.Cos(Math.DegToRad(Owner.Angle)) * MoveForce);
if (IO.Leftkey())
Owner.Angle -= TurnSpeed;
if (IO.Rightkey())
Owner.Angle += TurnSpeed;
}
}
}
Now, I'm fairly proud of all this work. But some things are starting to occur to me. I'm solving problems that nobody needs solved. The world has enough GUI-systems and programming languages. I've only been developing them because I find it interesting. My talents are good enough to find a good job in the industry, but unfortunately, with every job I've had, I've been extremely bored solving problems that people need solving, but that I find too boring. This dilemma that given me a bit of an existential crisis, to be frank. Do I continue doing that I find interesting at the risk of not making a living wage out of it, or do I sacrifice a bit of my passion in exchange for a bit more wealth and comfort? On a related note, what shall I do with these projects I've been working on? I don't think anybody wants or needs them, and as I grow older, I feel the need to take care of my responsibilities before indulging in wasting time on things I happen to find interesting.
Part of the reason I'm going to the army is to have the time to think about these questions, but I'd be interested in hearing everyone else's take on this. Thanks!
"everyone forgets a semi-colon sometimes." - Phaelax
