Insights from a seasoned Computer Science Trainer
There are 16 entries for the tag
gaming
For the past ten months, I have been waiting and waiting sometimes patiently and sometimes not so patient for the DreamSpark program to be available to high school students. Back in February with a huge announcement by Bill Gates about the DreamSpark program, I have been waiting. So here's the program: The Microsoft DreamSpark student program www.DreamSpark.com makes available, at no charge, a broad range of development and design software for download. The program is now available to more than 35 ......
The army is investing 50 million dollars in the next five years on games and gaming systems designed to prepare soldiers for combat. The need for video games as training aids was judged so great that the Army wanted to get products out to units before the funding came online. Check it out.
Last February, Bill Gates announced a free software giveaway to college university students and high school students as well. Here is what was offered to them: Microsoft developer tools. Visual Studio is the Swiss Army knife of computer programming. These professional-grade products provide a security-enhanced and reliable environment, enabling students to program everything from a cell phone to a robot or to create their own Web page. Students will also be able to invent compelling new gaming content ......
Nearly 400 U.S. colleges and universities, including MIT and Carnegie Mellon, now offer formal training in game development, ranging from elective courses to full degree programs. The increasing complexity of computers and game systems requires teams of dozens of artists, producers, and programmers to create a game. "Twenty years ago, a game was made by one guy, or two or three people," says International Game Developers Association executive director Jason Della Rocca. "The games you see now take ......
All of my students went on a field trip today to visit the Orlando Science Center and participate in workshops that instructors from the Full Sail School in Winter Park, FL put on. The Instructors were extremely knowledgeable and had a great deal of patience answering questions from teenagers. The Science Center sponsored Otronicon over the weekend and the field trips were part of it. One workshop was on 3d modeling with Maya software and the other was on designing games using FPS Creator. Students ......
Over at the MTV News and games blog, you too can share your first video gaming memory. There are some great stories being shared as well. My first video game really had to be Super Mario Brothers on my kid's Nintendo. What was your first game? Technorati Tags: video games ......
In my game programming class next week, my students will be learning about C# data types and working with variables. I have several small programs for them to program so that they feel comfortable programming in C# and working with the IDE. These are console applications and will be easy for them to master. The students will start to learn how to program a basic windows game called BRIX. Here's a description of the game. Game Design Overview As its name implies, this is a Windows-based game named ......
I am looking for student artists to create some game sprites that my students could possibly use in their game projects. Ideally, I'd like to create a public domain library of game sprites for anyone to download and use in their game. Full credit will be given to the designer. On that same note, I'm looking for student musicians to create game sound files that could be used in a game. These files would also be put in a public domain library. Please let me know if you can provide this to our game ......
I've only taught my Honors Programming II Game Programming class for 3 days now and I'm evaluating my students C# skills with various beginner programs. In addition, I am introducing Gaming concepts with my students using the free online book called The Art of Computer Game Design by Chris Crawford. I am also using some the Video Gaming Webcast that Microsoft has available with Matthew Mead who is a Computer Science Instructor from Digipen Institute of Technology. The Webcasts does not cover XNA ......
O)rlando Elec(tron)ic (I)nteractive Entertainment (Con)vention The inaugural event in 2006 attracted more than 16,000 to experience how the cultural phenomenon of video games is changing everything from art to education to business to military training. Otronicon is uniquely Orlando and spotlights Central Florida's growing digital media industry. Last year's event in January 2007 attracted an incredibly diverse audience of 18,000, including parents with kids, grandparents with grandchildren, couples, ......
In preparation for the gaming course that I'll be teaching next school year, I came across these interesting facts about the industry that is put out by the Entertainment Software Association: TOP 10 INDUSTRY FACTS US computer and video game software sales grew six percent in 2006 to $7.4 billion – almost tripling industry software sales since 1996. Sixty-nine percent of American heads of households play computer and video games. The average game player is 33 years old and has been playing games ......
At the MVP summit, I learned about Grava. This new educational product from Microsoft is both an authoring and developer tool. Here's an example of what I mean: If you've been in the education market for long you can see that this application looks like an application created with Hyperstudio. What's different about Grava is that the product has its own SDK built on Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) and provides a programming model and tools for building rich educational experiences. I learned ......
Alfred Thompson who works for Microsoft invited me to go to this event. Alfred is a former high school computer science teacher and I worked with him on the Microsoft Faculty Advisory Board. He works hard promoting high school programming for his company. So why the AHOY? Well, this event is on the Disney Wonder Ship and it sails to Nasseau, Bahamas and the Disney Castaway Island. I'm sure you think that I'll be getting a good tan during my time there but the agenda is packed with interesting speakers ......
(O)rlando Elec(tron)ic (I)nteractive Entertainment (Con)vention will be at the Orlando Science Center for ten days. OTRONICON brings together the entertaining world of consumer video games with a behind-the-scenes view of the art, technology and science that form the foundation and the future of both the videogame and simulation industries. Families and individuals of all ages will have a tremendous range of places and opportunities to explore. There will be old school games and new ones displayed ......
I came across a great list of gaming books that should be of interest to anyone that wants to learn more about the industry. Here are the categories: Theory Design Practice Writing Graphic Design Music / Audio Online Community The History of Games Sociology People, Projects, and Businesses Other Media and Useful Disciplines Deep Background Inspirations The list is compiled by a game designer and author Ernest Adams. The first book that I want to take a look at is Fundamentals of Game Design, by Ernest ......
The Orlando Science Center is sponsoring a10-day event that will celebrate the science, art, careers, culture and fun of videogames and simulation through games, competitions, workshops, seminars, displays and much more. There will be opportunities for families, adults, kids and teens. The event is called Otronicon and for $14.95 which is considerably cheaper than I local theme parks, you can do any of the following: Play on more than 100 gaming stations, including Playstation 2, Game Cube and XBox. ......