Worklog for Matthew Smith
Project Studio IDE
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| The new express version was released on Sunday - a minor issue here and there, but no problems reported thus far. Thanks to all the people who have downloaded the latest version! Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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Have released a new build to the beta testers which contains all the
fixes below plus a few extras. Thanks to Seb's thread on the debugger, I
have managed fix a couple of minor refresh problems with mine. It
appears to work really well, is accurate and fast (at least for me
anyway). Give the guys a couple of days to find any probs, then I'll get a new Express version out - hopefully on my new website layout. 'Max3d' ------- Great to see Mark blogging away about Max3d - I'm sure everyone is looking forward to it. Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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Sorry about the lack of updates lately - work has been flat out and
have been doing many late nights and weekends due to lack of team mates.
Anyway, the end is nigh (thankfully!) and will be bringing a new
update out in the next couple of weeks. I do have a fairly large update
essentially ready to go with many fixes: * Updated the usersettings to include storing the main window status ie. Position, WindowState etc * Fixed an exception where a temporary project has been compiled/run and is saved to it's selected location * Fixed a quite strange issue where if the startup page was shown and you created a solution or new item, the startup document in the project would not stay activated * Fixed an issue highlighting certain compilation errors within the editor * Fixed an issue identifying if a token has parameters on the very first line/word - Blitz3d/Basic plugin * Fixed a long standing issue with the tabbed document lists due to not properly assigning a new Guid to the window :) * Fixed spelling of Compile Output items - Blitz3d/Basic plugin * Fixed an issue raising multile builds via pressing the F5 key a number of times (Thanks GFK) * Fixed ongoing issues with shortcut keys (eg. F5 and CTRL+S) not always working * Fixed an issue with the Import Project wizard where a default solution configuration was not selected * Fixed a couple of issues in the compilation routine * Updated to latest release of Actipro SyntaxEditor v4.0.0274 * Updated the Project Studio application stucture for more program types * Updated the New Solution process to use a Guid for the internal folder structure * Added a Start Page button to the Standard menu * Centralised all generic program settings to easily customise the application framework for more program types Have a couple more to add from recent reports (thanks Michael!) so once this is done I'll get a new release out. Sorry also to those people looking for the Pro version - the Blitz3d release will be coming very shortly. Live Mesh --------- If you haven't heard about this new service from Microsoft - check it out (still in beta - you can apply throught Connect). Essentially it provides a central repository for files which you can add a number of sources to access it to/from. I've been using it as a on-line project repository for all my source code. Work offline on the train, get into the office, go on-line and it syncs up automatically - great! Once you sync up all other PCs linking to the repository will be updated as well. Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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| Woah - it's been awhile! First up I’m currently making some changes, enhancements and fixes to Project Studio that will be rolled-up into a release (Express version) in the next few weeks. On the BlitzMax plug-in side of things, I’m still not that happy. I feel it will require some rework to get it to a level I believe it suitable for general use. The current implementation is quite complex and slow when dealing with the possible 15,000 to 20,000+ keywords. I’m going to investigate using LINQ to assist me to filter the keyword structure down to find items I require. I’ve been playing with it on another project I’m working on, and it’s quite amazing to be honest. I haven’t got a timeframe on this, but the current implementation will always be available with the Express version. With that in mind the Professional version will be released soon for Blitz3d, so that you can start using it to the benefit of your development. Stay tuned. Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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Well my aim of getting the Prefessional version out before Christmas is
unfortunately not going to happen. I really want to make sure the
intellisense works as close to perfection before anyone puts in their
hard-earned, so onwards we go. That doesn't mean we are still not close. The next release will infact be pretty close to finished. I've been working on getting extended type feeding up the chain - was suprised my current implementation was a little way off where I thought it was. Anyway, appears to be very solid now. The one area I'll need further work is on the tooltips - extended types just don't work as yet. I will get another version out before christmas for the people taking some holidays - apart from the above there has been quite a few fixes and enhancements. Merry Christmas! Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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Ok, have gone through and basically finalised the BlitzMax Express
version. This will work in the same manner as the Blitz3d/Basic version
in that you have your open files within the editor and compile the
active file (just like the BlitzIDE). The one added bonus I have included is that the intellisense will now also take into consideration all open files (for the language of the active file) rather than just the one currently active, giving you much better coverage of your files. It won't be as flexible as the Professional version which pulls intellisense info from closed files, but it will provide a pretty good development experience. By the way, I've also updated the Blitz3d/Basic plugin to match! Look for a release in the next day or so! For those looking for the Professional version, just a another week or so to go. Remember, this version has the full project management functionality as well as other features such as tasks lists and user defined comment lists! Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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Just to provide an update - we are very close now to making available a
full Professional version with both the BlitzMax and Blitz3d/Basic
plugins available for purchase. Final testing is being completed on the
BlitzMax plugin and the final touches are being made to the installer
and user guides etc. With that I'm anticipating a release to be available latish November (one probably two weeks from now)! Hooray! Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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| Intellisense is nearly re-done! A couple of items left to be updated and we shall be ready for release. Can't wait :) Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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Just released a new beta to the testers - hopefully will get a good
response and not too many issues. The whole intellisense stuff has been
rejigged as outlined in previous worklogs. The number of intellisense items is now controlled by the user with a number turned off by default. Infact, a couple of mods take up more than half the intellisense items, so it is quite managable with those turned off (or a user-selected mix). Have also setup an internal list to store the first pass validation of the main list, so that has helped speed up the use - works quite well me thinks! We'll see what feedback comes back, but it may not be too far away from a full release! hooray!! Been thinking that a special gift of including the Blitz3d/Basic plugin in with the BlitzMax professional release for Christmas might be in order! Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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Well my continuing efforts to intellisense the entire BlitzMax language
has met with some interesting results. Just the BRL and PUB modules
alone contain something like 13,000 items! This is probably a little more than I would have expected, so speed is definitely going to be an issue with that amount of items (especially once you add other mods). It still is pretty quick with the intellisense, but there is a little delay now. I may need to look at storing the items a little differently.... I might also offer an alternative - access the currently documented items (as per the BlitzMax IDE) or access the entire list, or perhaps a mix. Anyway, still progressing well. Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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The development is coming along - not spent much time as yet on tidying
up more of the BlitzMax intellisense as I’m waiting for my holidays to
start once my wife gives birth. I’ve have been working on finalising the Code Snippets though. The snippets manager is now complete so you can see the snippet structure plus view and edit the snippets themselves in the IDE (snippets can be grouped in sections and sub-sections). Also formalised the user folder for them so you can add your own now via your program folder area in MyDocuments (or Documents in Vista). Have also added a new intellisense dialog in the Options for BlitzMax that allows you to select the main mods you wish to include in the intellisense ie. BRL, PUB etc (not gone down to the individual mods but we’ll see how the feedback goes). Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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Just release a new Express version (refer www.projectstudioide.com ) as
well as a new beta for the Professional version for the beta testers. Fairly happy with how the BlitzMax plugin is coming along, but still a few issues to sort out. I'm pretty confident of getting them done in a reasonable time-frame. Need to get the website up and make the Blitz3d/Basic Professional version available for sale soon! Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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Just a quick update - the intellisense is working great and is just
about finished. The tooltips are the last real outstanding issue as the
determination code needs a makeover from the Blitz3d/Basic base - but
most items are working fine. Will hopefully finalise the last little bits quicky before I release a new beta to the testers - looking at around another week probably. Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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Have started working on gathering full information from all BlitzMax
mods for the intellisense. I've currently implemented the commands.txt
list, but this does not provide me with all the relationshsips between
keywords. I've converted the DocMods module into .Net which is working fine, but now that i've got a proper understanding of how this works there is the issue of documented keywords. I would like to include all required keywords including Consts, Globals etc to ensure full intellisense, but as they are currently not documented, this method will not provide all relevant info (only items with Rem ... End Rem are documented - which is a good system as you don't need to know public vs. private etc) For now, I will continue as doing my own scan will provide information I just don't want or need. Hopefully a few extra items may be documented going forward - or I can probably come up with a system to document these items on a needs basis. We'll see how it goes... Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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Just released another Professional beta version to the beta testers
fixing a couple of bugs and adding a couple more user requests. The pro
version (Blitz3d/Basic) is now just about ready to go as last couple of
things in the IDE itself I really needed to get done are finished. Got the website hosted now, so just need to get the website done and I'll release the pro version. The express version appears to have been downloaded quite a lot according to the website numbers, but not a lot of feedback unfortunately - most appear to be waiting on the BlitzMax plugin. Anyway not long now (I have been saying that a lot haven't I)... Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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Well, the express version is pretty much ready to go and are currently
setting up my Share-it account for the Professional version for
Blitz3d/Basic which is also basically finished. Whilst I wait for this to be completed, I've restarted on the BlitzMax plugin and will have a beta for the testers hopefully tomorrow (after I give it a good test!). Still quite a way to go, but a fair chunck of functionality is in already. Just need to finalise the website and get some of the basic required stuff going and will be ready to launch sometime in the next week or so. Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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The express version is now just days away. Have added a whole stack of
editor features plus finalised the Font and Color editor (except add
you own templates) which has a number of default templates which you can
change. Just need to now update the graphics, set the website up and will be ready to go. Look for a release in around a weeks time!! hooray! Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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Well the Blitz3d/Basic plugin is now ready to go. I'm currently just
adding some final dialogs to the Options to give a bit more userability
to the Editor. Only need to finish the Font and Colors and add some gfx
to the splash screens and start pages. Once complete, I'll release the Express version (hopefully be the end of the month) and continue to finalise the Professional version and the BlitzMax plugin. Finally can now see the light at the end of the tunnel! Also thanks again to the guys beta testing for me and sorry to keep delaying the BlitzMax plugin - will get there eventually :) Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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Well not too far way now from finishing the Blitz3d/Basic plugin. The
intellisense has come along great and is now extremely functional and
works very much like Visual Studio - dare I say better than anything
currently available.... (well it's good to have an opinion!!). Got a couple of extra features in such as userlib editing, basic viewer option for them and auto-refresh when needed. Bought a new wizard control from Divelements today, so will add a project import before releasing the next test version. Once I can confirm all is working well, I'm going to release the Blitz3d/Basic 'Express' version to the community. Finally, congrats to the Aussies for winning the cricket World Cup once again!! Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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New version is up for testers! Spent the last couple of days tidying
up the new intellisense functionality and creating a couple of sample
code snippets. Looking forward to getting some feedback. Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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Well - the last couple of days have been very productive. All
functionality is in and working for Blitz3d/Basic, just needs a tidy up
and polish. I have also added Code Snippets (just need to work on the templates), and user Comments ie. TODO, HACK etc - just add them to your code and bang - updated in the task list (comments list). Again a little more of a tidy and all should be great. Very pleased with the current progress!!!!! Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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Well, the syntax editor control from Actipro is awesome! Can't believe
how much I've been able to accomplish - stuff like Member Lists,
Parameter Info, Quick Info and Word Completion are all in the
Blitz3d/Basic language plugin. I still need to do more work on
identifying some of the keywords correctly, but the majority is working
great and I'm very happy with the speed. Loading projects/files has slowed a little as its scanning for tokens as it loads, but this will have no effect once your underway. This obviously provides all the required info for the intellisense and words pretty good if a must say so! Might look to add the Code Snippets as well if I have the time. Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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| The token parsing is coming along very well - most pleased with the speed and ease on scanning this stuff now. Have completed the Type/Member selectors - now fully automated on a seperate thread! Also the main scanning for the required token keywords is also happening in the background - all in all no visible slowdown. This has allowed me to start the road the completing intellisense. The first step is the automated tooltips when hovering over items like Global/Local/Const variables, Types/Methods/Functions/Fields. The speed is great (must admit not seen the sort of problems [yet???] that Ziggy has with his editor) and once I get the parsing of these done correctly, I can start to put the real important stuff together. I have extended the dynamic parser so I can add my own custom stuff and split the functionality for the languages across the the different plugins. I'm really enjoying this again and are looking forward to the next month or so! Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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Making slow progress with the syntax editor. I'm still finding the
advanced parser generator stuff hard to understand, so I'm going to
concentrate on getting the dynamic stuff (as per current, but better)
going for now (until they put together some further samples or I
actually get it!). What that means is updating to the 4.0 syntax editor control (hurray! faster/better), which I have now done. I have a couple of languages (BlitzMax, VB.Net and C#) processing with outlining etc and I'm currently trying to get some further parsing of document tokens for the Type/Method selector and User Tasks going on another thread - should be cool! Will then hook in the user task output and code snippets and see how where going from there. Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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Well, the Solution Explorer stuff is proving quite interesting to
implement. The base file copy/move was OK, but the Folder and sub-items
are quite tricky indeed. Been trying a couple of different methods and
(hopefully) have found one I think will work fine. Vb.Net has some nice new stuff in the my.computer functions. The file stuff will auto handle copying/moving entire folders, even prompting to replace files and giving you the standard progress bar as per Windows - nice! Hopefully the folder stuff won't be too much more work as I want to get onto some other stuff, such as the User Tasks etc. Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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| Well, you have all the best intentions of keeping your worklog up to date and six months later... where does the time go!! Stopped development there for a while from early November - needed to take a break, work was busy anyway, had some painting to do at home and of course have some time with my 15mth old daughter. But, I have retarted the last week re-energised and quite productive as well. Apart from fixing a couple of little things, I have make some great strides on the Solution Explorer, adding Drag and Drop (files only at this stage) and file monitoring (if you have a document open and are also editing outside the environment, you will now be notified). So far it appears to be working well! Once I get a bit more feedback, I'll implement folders as well as multiple node selection. Looking to update a couple more things such as user Task List items, finish of the Solution Explorer stuff and finally get started on the proper intellisense stuff using the new ActiproSoftware SyntaxEditor I purchased (as long as my wife doesn't find out how much I spend on controls, I should get to finish the IDE one day!). Anyway, will attempt to post a little more regularly in the future - stay tuned. Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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| Well, been quite a while since the last log - upto test build 9 now (as of last night). The IDE is finally coming together and can now be considered useful enough to use as a default editor. Haven't got too many more features to add, but quite a few to finally finish off (you know how it is - get the majority of the stuff in to get it working...). Recently added the following: * Blitz3d/Basic plugin - can compile, create projects, basic intellisence etc. * Configuration Manager (Professional) - set Debug/Release configurations * Find and Replace * Fully Synchronise and build modules * The parser is now working quite well, just haven't implemented a lot with it yet. The Type/Module/Function selectors use this and work very well. The editor control I use is currently being updated, so most of the intellisense stuff will be coming once this has been released. It's quite an advancement on the current version I'm using (one version behind as it is) - so should see some really good stuff coming soon. Delta ------ Never quite got enough done to include it in the Retro Remakes comp, but gave me a good look at BlitzMax (which I hadn't really used up till this point - love it though!). What it did help me do was to sort out a couple of issues, so was handy. SidPlayer --------- Just like to thank gman for taking on the challenge of building a module to play sid tunes - works great (especially the new streaming option), and will be a great edition to the crapy remakes I love doing. Thanks gman! Speak to you soon! Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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Well, the guys are up to the 5th build in the testing - not too many
issue have been picked up, and some quite good ideas have been
suggested. All-in-all I'm quite happy with what's been happening. The last couple of builds have seen some nice functionality added, such as: * Sync modules * Advanced Rebuild modules (single and/or multiple modules as selected) * Debugger Tree (works well, but is still slow for large projects - need to take another look) * For the advanced version, you can optionally change back to the base version to work like MaxIDE. * The Solution Tree is now quite advanced * Context sensitive help and access to the index and command lists. * Expanding (constantly) the Options dialog to incorporate more features. * Many others I can't think of at the moment! Currently for the 6th beta, I'm building the Type/Module/Function selectors at the top of the document (very happy with the speed it parses this stuff!) and incorporation of these items into the intellisense. Thanks again to the testers for their support! Coding ------- Well after a year of not using BlitzMax at all (due to spending lots of time trying to get the IDE done!), I've started my first game in BlitzMax (helps me pick up issues with the IDE). After initially being a little confused about Types/Methods/Functions, it works great - Mark and Simon have done a terrific job! The game is the C64 shooter Delta which I'm hoping to have done for the Retro Remakes competition. Will keep you posted! Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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Finally after a very long development the first beta is available to
the testers!!! Thanks to those people who have put their name forward
to assist with this. I'll keep you posted on the progress!! Time for bed - the wife is going to kill me (it's 3am) Edit: Yup she wasn't happy!! Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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Finally getting there! I've decided to freeze the development at this
time so I can get some feedback from the testers. It's been a long time
coming (in fact much longer than I anticipated, with more work still to
be completed) but I've reached a point where the product is quite
usable to the point I can get some decent feedback. Therefore the
testers will be able to have a look in the next couple of days. I'm certainly looking forward to getting some feedback on the product as it stands and hopefully some further ideas to enhance the program. - Solution Explorer - This has really come together the last week or so as I've added all functionality found within VS2005 (except drag-drop and cut/copy/paste). This will give the user much flexability as they can Load/Reload projects, show all files within the structure of the project (not just the ones within the project, but any folder or file!!!) and easily include any file simply using a popup menu - I've quite pleased with this I'll tell ya!! - Options - Added more dialogs to the Options function - it's really starting to fill out now - still have a bit of work to get everything in, but it's quite easy to add a new page and settings to the plugins. - Finally - Tidying up a couple of final things in the product and just getting my server re-installed at the moment in preparation - should be an exciting week or so coming up... Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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| Can't believe how time flies... Finished off the Solution Explorer (well almost all, not the copy/paste as yet though) and began some testing of this area along with the New Project stuff (it all sort of ties back). Found a few issues that made me go back and streamline the process a little further - it all seems to be working pretty well now. - More Testing - I really wanted to take a bit of a break and decided to do some 'user' testing - it was a good chance to do some end-to-end testing which I hadn't done as yet. Found a couple issues and thought I might as well go through some of the other major parts of the program - ended up tiding the Compiler, Debugger, the menus and toolbars functions. It's really helped get the program to a very usable point now. - Options - Next up is the Options dialog. This needs to allow me to grab stuff from each the plugins, so back into the XML templates. Got the basic stuff going now: Build the tree (attaching the associated 'option' dialog) and when you select an option it copies into a panel. All I need to do is initialise the plugins (this loads each of the options), build the tree and dispose when closing (saves the options). It all ties back nicely into each dialog (a user control) so it's easy to update and maintain. Woohoo! - Coming Up - I'm currently behind schedule due to my cricket finals, some holidays and work - all have taken considerable time in the last month. Anyway, I'll keep beavering away - not too long now I keep telling myself!!! Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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| And so it goes on... Well still working on the Solution Explorer module - not too far to go now thank goodness! I've re-added much of the editing functionality: delete, remove, create folders, add existing items etc. This had the added benefit of tidying up the code for creating the tree structure. I only really have the Add New Items dialog left to do - which much like the New Project stuff, relies on XML templates. Also re-hooked in the Properties dialog as well - you can now edit/rename files/folders and other properties either via the Explorer tree itself or in the properties. I'm starting to get real close to completing this area, which means the beta won't be too far away. - Solution Explorer - One area I still need to complete is the cut/copy/paste from within the Solution Explorer tree. I don't see a real issue doing the work as I think I've got my head around all the issues, but it could turn out to be fairly tricky. I'll keep you posted! - Grid Wars - As usual Mark Incitti has created an awesome game that shows off what can be done in BlitzMax. He has always produced well developed games and is always willing to share his code (which I'm setting aside to check out!). All the best towards the completion of this project. Note: I also noticed you have started recoding Marble Insanity in BlitzMax - can't wait till this finally sees the light of day! Also great to see the Aussies back kicking arse in the Cricket and doing it the way to should be done - tough but fair (with a splatter of sledging thrown it for good measure). You Poms are in serious trouble come November!! Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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Been a pretty productive couple of days. Brought over a fair chunck of
the Solution Explorer Tree code and associated Properties item mapping
(not that there is a lot to do here as it's all part of each item's
property validation within the object's class). Also tidied up the
remaining code in the save dialog to prompt for any solution, projects
and files changes. All in all, it's now working pretty well, so I can
now create, save, close and open solutions! Have some further work to do in the Solution Tree to allow users to rename, delete, change files etc, but cannot see this taking much more than a couple of days. Once this is all done, will need to do some serious testing to make sure it's all hanging together properly and closely mimics VS2005. At this stage I am probably still on target for the volunteer beta testers to begin testing in late February or early March. Once their underway, I'll start having a crack at the GUI editor and code generation. - GUI Editor - As for the GUI editor, I'm still tossing up about the best way to do this stuff. I can probably generate the code easily enough as the editor creates an XML template. Just wondering how I will go about re-generating the form from the code itself. Also thinking about generating forms to be stand-alone (I guess as per .Net) which you would create a type and display, but I've not yet had much of a play with MaxGUI (if anyone has any suggestions, drop me an e-mail!). Its my birthday tomorrow - 35 - where do the years go!!! Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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| Things always appear easier on first look, but as you go deeper... Have created the New Project dialog and associated functionality - this part is working pretty well as I didn't have to change too much code (see first log for further info). Most of the Create/Load/Saving of solutions is just about done. Always like getting to this point as the IDE gets quite usable as you can open and close stuff. Once this has all been tidied up, the Solution Tree will be re-added. I can see the light!! - Project Templates - What I have also done is expand the project templates to be fully read from the plugins. So for each language, I can create an xml template for any number of project types (template includes all sorts of information about files, settings and code etc), store it as a resource and process it once the user selects the required project type to create. Should allow a lot of flexability and easy manipulation. Later down the track I will do some sort of user templates to allow users to create their own project bases which will be available from the dialog. As an example I can create a Windows Application template that will include a form (maxgui) and base starting file, or specific game project templates targeting DirectX, OpenGL etc. - Discard or Save - As in VS2005, you can have a quick play with a project, compile it etc and then discard it without essentially saving it into your project folders. This has added some extra complexitiy to the process but don't have a lot much more to do here - should keep your system tidy without clogging up your project folder with rubbish. On a side note, at cricket last Saturday I finally cracked my first 100! 132 to be exact - it's only taken 21 years of trying, but very nice to get there. Until next time... Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |
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I've been wanting to a do a worklog for quite some time, so now the
website is finally up (www.projectstudioide.com), I thought the time is
right. I've always loved reading these sort of things and enjoy looking
at everyone elses. Reminds me of the old days reading ZZap64 - Andrew
Braybook and Martin Walker had some great diaries which were always very
insightful (there on the net, check them out). Anyway, currently working on a re-write of the Debugger Tree - it's amazing, just when you think you got it worked out, something doesn't quite work or is really slow. Sat back and took a bit of a look over the last day or so - think I've finally cracked it!!! The Blitz IDE appears to objectdump around 3 levels of data - here I thought it was the whole lot and was wondering why mine was so slow at times (playing with Digesteroids source, once it was into the main loop it would take 2-3 mins to read the entire dump!) Anyway after comparing to the Blitz IDE I suddenly found this limit. I've therefore created a process which allows the number of levels to be set - this should give a bit of flexability to read a bit deeper if necessary and it's very quick now - good show! The other feature I have included is the ability to skip over BlitzMax module code - this will allow the user to concentrate on their own code and not have to worry about stepping through this area. - Solution Manager - Next up is re-adding the Solution Manager back into the code. I've already written it in the prior project I started in VS2003, so need to bring it over. Once VS2005 was released, I upgraded it only to find a couple of thousand 'Code Analysis' issues (if you haven't used or heard of this feature, it scans your code against coding rules and advises where/how to fix problems - it really helps your coding thats for sure). After seeing all these issues, I restarted the project in VS2005 and along with some upgraded controls in .Net 2.0, I'm very happy with the results. Anyway, got a go and change the baby's nappy - until next time! Regards, Matt Pentium4 2.4gHz, 2GB PC2700 Ram, 128MB ATI Raedeon 9600SE, Windows XP 32bit, Dell Inspiron 6400 Laptop, T7200 2.00GHz Dual Core, 2GB Ram, GeForce 7300 Go, Windows Seven 64bit |