₦airaland Forum

wiegraf: Building an engine may be superflous as there are many free ones available, quite a few even opensource. And there are affordable commercial offerings as well. Even at that, assessing which would be ideal for the project at hand, I believe you should be experienced with such tasks, still remains an ordeal. You don't want to make your choice then half way through development you discover you're limited in some way or the other

Your target group. If you're building for 9ja, you cannot expect us to be armed with ps4s or even 3s.

The above 2 points would lead me to thinking adopting an engine like unity, which works across mobile platforms and the pc, is very extendable, supports various languages, has a large community/support structure, etc etc, would be prudent.

There's also microsofts xna framework/network, and sony has strong support for indie studios as well (not sure how it works, but easily rivals microsoft considering their catalogue of games).

Jivi: The Custom game engine I am proposing supports recent rendering techniques and has Nvidia PhysX engine integrated like any other game engine and new features can easily be built in for a period of three years running. We can add the latest hardware enabled techniques as they come rather than waiting for an established engine to make the change if they ever make it or trying to master the huge code base which definitely takes time in order to make such a change. Also, I wrote the engine and since I am part of the team. They get first hand knowledge if they run into problems and I think that is a very big advantage to using such an engine. Also, new features requested by the team can easily be added on time. However, I am opened to people's suggestion concerning the game engine.

I totally understand what both of you are saying. Using a proprietary game engine is a good idea but this would only work if the team is in a physical working environment. I suggest we use a more popular game engine like Unity. It has so many advantages, the latest version allows you to publish on the Ps4, i know we are not targeting consoles but that might change in future. Most of us are not that experienced in this field yet. Unity has alot of tutorials to get you started in no time, they are alot of playlist on Youtube dedicated to unity, it has a very large online community we can always run to for help if we encounter any obstacles we can always Google for help This is not the case if we use a proprietary game engine.

PS: Any Storyline should be Nigerian in nature. Those Indians, Chinese and Japanese are not smarter than us!.

Creatrixity: Wow!Apple is very stringent about issues like that.
Apparently they expect you to make your app's design to be consistent with ios7 design language(flat opposed to skeumorphic).
Well,when i focus on mobile app development,I will definitely go with android.
Please announce your app's release here,I would love to check it out!

They are really strict, they can reject your app for the silliest of reasons. I would notify every one when the app is set to launch.

aManFromMars: I see a few of my guys are here. I've been hoping to move from the religion section to some other section. The gaming section has more cobwebs than threads. This zone looks interesting, God arguments don dey taya me.

ROFLMAO! Please!!! don't leave, you are one of the reasons i visit that section 5 times a day.

Shallat to Creatixity and Phenomenom.

@javanian: how far ur app?

Apple and their wahala rejected it because of some flimsy excuse, asking me to redesign my U.I. I couldn't go through the stress of doing that and bothering you all over again so i abandoned it, what annoys me more is the $100 i spent getting the developers account. But the Android version is set to launch next week.

kambo: There's always a price tag.
Time and money wise.
If u ar self taught,u'll may stii end up spendg N200k+ (or significant amount) to attain proficiency AND it will take longer
than if u were under a capable teacher.
You'll make all d mistakes beginners make,battle the fear and demotivation they battle
, etc.
Self taught doesnt mean - zero/lil cost.
E.g internet cost * x years u'll b self teaching urself.
Data storage cost
data recovery cost (wen u experience data loss . It always happens at d onset)
electricity generation cost
computer parts + accessories cost
expect to go thru at least 1 xtra computer b4 u turn pro
, you'll buy and replace hard ware parts often
books - depends on d level u want to settle at- ebooks will not cut it in d very long run and some books u cant get as free download
expect to spend at least 1 - 3 years evolving a personal distinct programming style.
Update cost- a lot of outflow will go in this direction,cuz watever ur specialty, tht field is a moving target u gotta keep learning, relearning new stuffs in d field.
By the time u beat ur chest and say i'm gud enuff, N200k will b chicken change. Even at tht u'll b humble to know u aint started yet! There's still a lot to learn.

I do see some ads saying they'll teach you programming in a couple of weeks..
Thts mor like playng on d ignorance of the prospective learner.
I once went to a computer school to make enquiries after i was already knowledgeable in programming,the attendant was selling dot net stuff and i asked wat about java , then began a silly attempt to hide his ignorance.
He began disparaging java , talkg bs about how i'd need to memorise a lot of code in my head and stuff. Cock and bull.
In d long run ur better off self taught cuz then u set ur own boundaries and dont hav to acquire the teacher's limitations.
But beware, a truly good teacher will charge serious money to teach you (esp if he's self taught and productive).
If i were to interview a teacher to teach me my focus would b on looking at wat he has been able to accomplish so far. Wat significant software has he/she written. That's d litmus test cuz , in reality, its easier to teach than code and most lazy programmers opt for the easier path while milking their victims silly.
Also if he's going to teach u, both of you shud wrk on a significant project tht uses all/most of d concepts you've been taught so far. Lazy teachers avoid this part.

You made some sense and got somethings totally wrong. Most of these so called schools would teach you little or NOTHING! i was a victim of such. I thought i had it all there and had known it all but with time i found out i was just starting. Most of the expenses you would incure while being self taught you would incure them even if you have a teacher. You would have a laptop of your own, still spend money on internet plans, still spend money on electricity, still spend money on data storage cost, still spend money on every other thing you mentioned! Not even in the M.I.T would they teach you every thing. Most of what you would learn in this field you would teach yourself. If you think going to an institution would make you pro, you are in for a long ride!

kennikazi: ok...tank peepz for your fatherly advises, i'll try my best and take the learning process as slow as possible. why i got tired of google was because, the results they gave me was overwhelming and sent moi into confusion
all is well, i have no bothering questions this evening and would still post questions on this thread when i get confused.
biko thanks @everyone once again

p.s: at what level can someone say he has learnt much in a programming language? i have finished swaroop's ebook on byte of python and it still seems like i am still starting??

You would always feel you are starting until you have built something with it to appreciate what you have learnt. Build something, No matter how small and trivial, something that interest you

kennikazi: Tnx alot @Javanian....uv settled my mind on a lot of aspects.

Now, my plan is to create a web application and I am told to master html/css(complete), javascript(in progress), python(in progress), django(confused), and database management(more confused).

Please is there any "simple" ebook you could refer me to that would further accustom me to the this database ish??

Sorry to say this but Google is your friend. They are different types of databases out there but mysql is the most common and it is free. Try and learn python first, create some simple apps with it before talking of databases. like I said, just relax you would get there. Also, for mysql and most other relational databases, you would need knowledge of SQL. So you can go to w3schools.com and learn SQL first. The basics of SQL are quite simple. After that you can search on google for any tutorials on mysql. I beleive Django is a framework, frameworks are basically tools that make life easier for you. But it would make sense to master the basic python syntax first before using a framework. I hope this helps. Feel free to ask more questions.

kennikazi: To help package this section and avoid clustering, I think there should be a FAQ thread for each and every programming language so that beginner programmers can ask questions and get meaningful answers to there questions.

That aside, I do have some questions I would like to have simplified/meaningful answers to:

Can I host the web app on my PC?? If yes, how can that be done?

Yes, but your P.c would have to be powered 24/7 and have steady access to the internet. But you are better of using a commercial hosting plan.

3.) How exactly does a database function?? And how can it be controlled with my web app??

A database is use for storing data. You control it in your web app with a server side language (like python) and probably SQL.

4.) How exactly is an API used? How can I connect my app/software to a web service?? Is it done with this "API"??

Yes an API can be used to connect an app/software to a web service.

Curiosity is good, but just relax, it seems you want to learn every thing at once. Just take it step by step.

kennikazi: Tnx creativixy for answering som questions,
My database and API questions are stil unanswered.
In addition to my databse question, when using the Python DB-API, does it mean that i wud not query my database with SQL again?? First of all, how can I create a database with SQLite, and is it possible to create sub-tables, that is a table under anoda table(or somtn like that)??

And finally for today, how doz a web application communicate with the client-side?? What is AJAX and JSON, and how are they involved with server side communication

Please you are rushing things, take it easy

AJAX is the art of exchanging data with a server, and updating parts of a web page - without reloading the whole page. If you visit facebook on your P.C you would notice that your timeline gets updated without reloading the page on your browser.

JSON is a lightweight data-interchange format. JSON is quite similar to xml. They are both used for exchanging data. AJAX could use JSON/XML to interchange data with your server.

@Alfa what do satanist believe? what is the true concept of satanism?

rofl

kennikazi: This thread is dead :-|...mods plz create a special Q&A thread for beginner programmers.

That aside, I have a few questions that I want to ask...

Please create a new thread and we would help. Thanks

Please the last two links are not working

dannie04: Thanks I'll give it a try. Regarding your previous topic sometime ago on unity3d have you made any progress in unity3d?

Yes, i have made a lot of progress

dannie04: something like an hymn book. The version of unity3d that I have 4.2 doesn't support 2D textures.

Do you know unity3d is a game engine? Unity isn't used for building apps. If you want to build an Android app i advice you learn java. it would be pretty easy since you already know C#. But if you insist on using C# you can check out Xamarin

what type of app?

@csharpjava please keep updating us. i am really learning from this.

@all those discouraging him, even if he is wasting his time, is it your time? let him be joor

wwweb:
Are you sure Geniuses are born? Where did you see that?... And why can't you increase your IQ? That's totally wrong.! Read more about IQ and you'll know more about it.

lol

babihouse: In my own opinion IQ develop with time(time spent working) I.e NO hardwork no IQ for You. Infact intelligent comes with hardwork.

Geniuses are born not made. No amount of hardwork can increase your IQ.

why asia ? Please Send me a P.M.

Do you have a laptop? Why do you want want to go abroad? skill or certification?

PhenomenonVFX: Since u have some knowlege already, u should try them out na. I am sure u arent just contented with the theory alone. Well maybe u havent got enough time on time on ur hands sha. But whenever u find the time, try them out. I have found that things practiced stick in ur head longer and provide far better understanding.

I hope to do something great with them but i don't think i have what it takes yet, time, money, skill and otherwise. I learnt them before venturing into 3D Game development just to have knowledge of what my game/graphics engine is doing for me and understand the API better.

@csharpjava this looks like using standard libraries to manipulate attributes of an image(3D) like size, position and orientation. I don't see how this would help build a graphics engine I maybe wrong though.

Which type of IT course do you want? Programming? Networking? Graphics? Security? Hardware?

I am willing to learn as the project goes on. I have no experience on this. Also, i have some knowledge of 3D Maths and 3D Physics, but its just theory.

@csharpjava please when you start the project let us know, i am willing to learn a thing or two. I plan on doing something like this but for now i don't think i have what it takes . Also, i love the way you ignore the insults.

Please no insults.

Thank you

Please no insults.

Thank you