How To Stay Away From Scripting
Posted: Mon Sep 07, 2009 6:19 amAs you all know, scripting can be hard, or easy. To me, it is hard, so here's a guide to make it easier to make the same thing with mechanics instead of programming.
Let's say you want to make a vending machine. If the money that goes in is 'good' money, it adds to a counter (1 coin, 2 coins...) and if the money is 'bad' it just eats is and doesn't say anything.
The scripting way: The 'good' coins have different OnCollide events on them so that when they collide with they add-to-counter box it adds one to the counter. If the coin is 'bad', they lack the OnCollide event, and simply bounce over the counter and into a delete OnCollide box, thus 'eating' the money.
The mechanical way: All 'good' coins are collision groups A, and all 'bad' coins are collision group B. When a 'good' coin is inserted, the coin bounces down and knocks a block (with collision group only A) which hits a mechanism that displays a number, done with a sequencer. When the number goes back, the next one it prepared, try taking a look at this scene to see what I mean by 'next prepared'. If a 'bad' con comes down, the box and coin don't collide, thus not triggering the mechanism, thus not doing anything, and falling into a hole, 'eating' the money.
The scripting way is much easier if you know Thyme, and much smaller in filesize, simpler to change around, and just cooler. But the mechanical one is even cooler, because there's no 'cheating' way to determine if a coin is good or not, it does it all in a way that is physically possible. Coins do not really hit a mechanism in real life, nor do they bang onto a microchip. There is a special process that has something to do with laser reading (to spark an idea or two) that tells it, I think.
BUT THEY BOTH WORK! THEY DO THE SAME JOB! THEY BOTH HAVE THEIR UPS AND DOWNS! So why not try everything the old fashioned way? Algodoo is a 'Physics' toy, not a 'Program something with 3 blocks to do something extremely complicated' toy. I'm not saying scripting is bad, but it's just not as cool.
So try to make something mechanical next time you think of a challenge, it'll be much more rewarding when it works!
Now there are some things you just can't make without scripting. Well, I say that you're using a PHYSICS program, not a PROGRAMMING program. There are (I think) no programming programs, but if there were, use that to make your programs. I think people with the talent of programming such amazing things with Thyme have the talent to make their own program for others to use! That's a good thing!
My name is 'Physics'guy, not 'Scriting'guy, so you'll never see any scripted scenes form me...
Thanks.
Let's say you want to make a vending machine. If the money that goes in is 'good' money, it adds to a counter (1 coin, 2 coins...) and if the money is 'bad' it just eats is and doesn't say anything.
The scripting way: The 'good' coins have different OnCollide events on them so that when they collide with they add-to-counter box it adds one to the counter. If the coin is 'bad', they lack the OnCollide event, and simply bounce over the counter and into a delete OnCollide box, thus 'eating' the money.
The mechanical way: All 'good' coins are collision groups A, and all 'bad' coins are collision group B. When a 'good' coin is inserted, the coin bounces down and knocks a block (with collision group only A) which hits a mechanism that displays a number, done with a sequencer. When the number goes back, the next one it prepared, try taking a look at this scene to see what I mean by 'next prepared'. If a 'bad' con comes down, the box and coin don't collide, thus not triggering the mechanism, thus not doing anything, and falling into a hole, 'eating' the money.
The scripting way is much easier if you know Thyme, and much smaller in filesize, simpler to change around, and just cooler. But the mechanical one is even cooler, because there's no 'cheating' way to determine if a coin is good or not, it does it all in a way that is physically possible. Coins do not really hit a mechanism in real life, nor do they bang onto a microchip. There is a special process that has something to do with laser reading (to spark an idea or two) that tells it, I think.
BUT THEY BOTH WORK! THEY DO THE SAME JOB! THEY BOTH HAVE THEIR UPS AND DOWNS! So why not try everything the old fashioned way? Algodoo is a 'Physics' toy, not a 'Program something with 3 blocks to do something extremely complicated' toy. I'm not saying scripting is bad, but it's just not as cool.
So try to make something mechanical next time you think of a challenge, it'll be much more rewarding when it works!
Now there are some things you just can't make without scripting. Well, I say that you're using a PHYSICS program, not a PROGRAMMING program. There are (I think) no programming programs, but if there were, use that to make your programs. I think people with the talent of programming such amazing things with Thyme have the talent to make their own program for others to use! That's a good thing!
My name is 'Physics'guy, not 'Scriting'guy, so you'll never see any scripted scenes form me...
Thanks.
