New Challenge Forum

[wildcard]

Welcome to the new challenge forum. There will be a weekly or bi-weekly challenges. Each challenge will require different skills to the previous ones. So for the first challenge I've let it be decided by a poll for the type of challenge.

Each challenge should not take long to complete but there will be no maximum time allowed(therefore take as much time as you need).

[wildcard]

The poll seems to show a game but it'll only finish within 6 more days, after then the challenge will be posted.

[Neo]

You can also do a GFX-Demo compo.

Making a graphical or sound demo. (Or somethin' else).

-Neo

[LooseCaboose]

Im a bit of a geek so I like the more mathy challenges.

I dont know how many people would be interested but you could hold an obfuscated qb code contest. The object is to create a complete program that does something, but is almost impossible to understand. www.ioccc.org hold an obfuscated C code contest every year (I have a half finished entry).

I have done some cool coding challenges where you have to write a program (usually only a few lines) to perform a certain task, but with heavy constraints (such as only being allowed one for-loop or not using some statements), this really challenge peoples ability to use a language to its fullest.

Just my 2 cents

[Neo]

Writing very complex programs, that do something simple, sound good :bounce: !

-Neo

[wizardlife]

Well, if you intend us to finish it within a week or two, it'll have to be relatively simple. I recommend that most or all of the challenges be pureQB. That way there isn't preference to one library (since often one is more appropriate than another in a particular situation -- eg. DirectQB has more functions like rotation and scaling and so on, but RelLib is faster.)

I also propose that rather than having really general stuff like 'make a cool minigame', give very specific direction like 'make a platformer that sidescrolls in Screen 12 and involves a multiple on-screen projectile weapon, and allows the player to perform at least five basic operations: Left, Right, Jump, Duck, and Fire.

Evaluation should be on a per-contest basis. As in, a different rubric for each time around. Fun Factor, Graphics, and GUI might be categories in a game, but in a graphical demo, it might be more like Ingenuity, First Impression, and Attention to Detail.

Finally, having a contest every single week isn't necessarily a good idea. Particularly with us all going back to school this week. For the example I laid out above, a more realistic deadline would be two or three months down the road. But that doesn't mean the forum would have to fall silent for that time: Each entrant could start a thread for their project and then post updates and screenshots and whatever other hype material.

Just my suggestions.

[na_th_an]

I vote for wizardlife's suggestions.

Also I challenge you all to write a short program which inputs your name and writes "Hello, "+name$ on screen without using PRINT, INPUT nor INKEY$. C'mon!!

[wildcard]

Agreed, I'm aimimg for different aspects for each challenge. I think I'll move them to a monthly or bi-monthly minimum(time isn't always freely available, I know).

[na_th_an]

Oh - Nobody even tried... Here's my sollution

The input routine needs much improvement as it doesn't still support all the keys nor CAPS / ALT+GR combinations, but, oh well, I coded this straight from scratch in ten minutes... Don't ask me more

Code:

DECLARE SUB myLocate (xx%, yy%)
DECLARE FUNCTION myInput$ ()
DECLARE SUB NL ()
DECLARE SUB myPrint (a$)
DECLARE SUB myCls ()
DECLARE SUB ScrollScreen ()
' Write an INPUT "what's your name";a$:PRINT "Hello "+a$ program without
' using INPUT nor PRINT nor INKEY$

DIM SHARED myPrintX%, myPrintY%
DIM SHARED kc$(127)      ' Far from complete

DIM SHARED MaxKey%

myCls

tecladata:
kc$(1) = CHR$(27)
kc$(2) = "1"
kc$(3) = "2"
kc$(4) = "3"
kc$(5) = "4"
kc$(6) = "5"
kc$(7) = "6"
kc$(8) = "7"
kc$(9) = "8"
kc$(10) = "9"
kc$(11) = "0"
kc$(12) = "-"
kc$(13) = "+"
kc$(14) = CHR$(8)

kc$(15) = CHR$(9)
kc$(16) = "q"
kc$(17) = "w"
kc$(18) = "e"
kc$(19) = "r"
kc$(20) = "t"
kc$(21) = "y"
kc$(22) = "u"
kc$(23) = "i"
kc$(24) = "o"
kc$(25) = "p"
kc$(26) = "{"
kc$(27) = "}"
kc$(28) = CHR$(13)

kc$(29) = CHR$(0)
kc$(30) = "a"
kc$(31) = "s"
kc$(32) = "d"
kc$(33) = "f"
kc$(34) = "g"
kc$(35) = "h"
kc$(36) = "j"
kc$(37) = "k"
kc$(38) = "l"
kc$(39) = ":"
kc$(40) = CHR$(34)
kc$(41) = "~"

kc$(42) = CHR$(0)
kc$(43) = "|"
kc$(44) = "z"
kc$(45) = "x"
kc$(46) = "c"
kc$(47) = "v"
kc$(48) = "b"
kc$(49) = "n"
kc$(50) = "m"
kc$(51) = "<"
kc$(52) = ">"
kc$(53) = "?"
kc$(54) = CHR$(0)

kc$(55) = "*"
kc$(56) = CHR$(0)
kc$(57) = " "
kc$(58) = CHR$(0)
kc$(59) = "F1"
kc$(60) = "F2"
kc$(61) = "F3"
kc$(62) = "F4"
kc$(63) = "F5"
kc$(64) = "F6"
kc$(65) = "F7"
kc$(66) = "F8"
kc$(67) = "F9"

kc$(68) = "F10"
kc$(69) = CHR$(0)
kc$(70) = CHR$(0)

kc$(71) = "7"
kc$(72) = "8"
kc$(73) = "9"
kc$(74) = "-"
kc$(75) = "4"
kc$(76) = "5"
kc$(77) = "6"
kc$(78) = "+"
kc$(79) = "1"
kc$(80) = "2"
kc$(81) = "3"
kc$(82) = "0"
kc$(83) = "."
kc$(84) = "END!"
MaxKey% = 84

myPrint "Enter your name: "
a$ = myInput
NL
myPrint "Hello, " + a$ + "!"

SUB myCls
   myPrintX% = 1
   myPrintY% = 1
   CLS
END SUB

FUNCTION myInput$
   t% = 0
   o$ = ""
   x% = myPrintX%
   y% = myPrintY%
   myLocate x%, y%
   myPrint ">"
   x% = x% + 1
   WHILE NOT t%
      ' Clear buffer
      DEF SEG = &H40
      POKE &H1A, PEEK(&H1C)      ' Head = Tail so clear :)
      DEF SEG
      ' Inp:
      k% = INP(&H60)
      IF k% < MaxKey% THEN
         ch$ = kc$(k%)
         SELECT CASE ch$
            CASE CHR$(8):
               IF LEN(o$) > 0 THEN
                  o$ = LEFT$(o$, LEN(o$) - 1)
               END IF
            CASE CHR$(13):
               t% = -1
            CASE ELSE
               o$ = o$ + ch$
         END SELECT
         WHILE INP(&H60) = k%: WEND    ' Depress
      END IF
      myLocate x%, y%
      myPrint o$ + "_ "
   WEND
   myInput$ = o$
END FUNCTION

SUB myLocate (xx%, yy%)
   myPrintX% = xx%
   myPrintY% = yy%
END SUB

SUB myPrint (a$)
   DEF SEG = &HB800
   FOR i% = 1 TO LEN(a$)
      m$ = MID$(a$, i%, 1)
      POKE (myPrintX% - 1) * 2 + (myPrintY% - 1) * 160, ASC(m$)
      myPrintX% = myPrintX% + 1
      IF myPrintX% = 81 THEN
         myPrintX% = 1
         myPrintY% = myPrintY% + 1
         IF myPrintY% = 26 THEN
            ScrollScreen
            myPrintY% = 25
         END IF
      END IF
   NEXT i%
   DEF SEG
END SUB

SUB NL
   ' CRLF :)
   myPrintX% = 1
   myPrintY% = myPrintY% + 1
   IF myPrintY% = 26 THEN
      ScrollScreen
      myPrintY% = 25
   END IF
END SUB

SUB ScrollScreen
   DEF SEG = &HB800
   FOR y% = 1 TO 24
      FOR x% = 0 TO 79
         POKE (y% - 1) * 160 + x% * 2, PEEK(y% * 160 + x% * 2)
   NEXT x%, y%
   FOR x% = 0 TO 79
      POKE 25 * 160 + x% * 2, 32
   NEXT x%
   DEF SEG
END SUB

[wildcard]

Sorry na_th_an but I caused some problems on the site by accident so many people can't access it unless they know to go via http://hybd.net/~qbnews