SETTING UP "GUIMANAGER"

Check out Aaron's blog for his first tutorial, which covers setting up his GUIManager class.

From Aaron's post: "... The simplest way to begin is to use the GUI_Testbed project as a starting template. I simply created a new source file containing a class called Tutorial1, and set that as the startup Game object in Program.cs. You could also just use the existing GUI_Testbed.cs if you don't feel like starting from scratch ...".

More news after the break ...

TIPS: "SOFTWARE EFFICIENCY AND OPTIMIZATION - PART 3"

Thomas has published the latest installment of the series on software efficiency and optimization.

From the post: "... I'm trying to decide where to take this blog from here. I could continue focusing on software engineering as it applies to games. Or I could start taking in-depth looks at particular game algorithms and how to implement them for XNA — for example, I could show how I used the minimax algorithm with alpha-beta pruning for finding the best move in my Othello game, and how to implement it in XNA; or show how to implement the A* algorithm for pathfinding. Or I could start showcasing my Dream-Build-Play entry and how various parts are implemented. If you have any thoughts or preferences, please leave a comment ...".

To get to the above-mentioned part of the post -actually the final part- you'll need to read a bit more than usual ... trust me ... so you'd better hurry up and start reading right now!

MORE ON "FOREACH" LOOPS

Eli's second part of the series is available now.

From Eli's post: "... For you impatient readers, here's my results: As I just found out, this holds true on the Xbox360 as well. Read on to find out how I came to this conclusion, and maybe learn something about (deep breath) The XNA Framework Remote Performance Monitor for Xbox 360 ...".

So, want to find out? Read on ...

XNA & THREADING

Joseph Molnar, whose blog is entitled "The Pensive Gamer", has published a series of interesting articles on XNA and threading:

1. XNA Game Loop And Threading,
2. XNA Threading - The Problems, and
3. XNA Threading - Locks.

A must read.

JSEDLAK'S 'TOWER DEFENSE' PROGRESS

John Sedlak has published a new video showing off the new added menu elements and sounds to his version of "Tower Defense".

From John's post: "... A lot of progress made on Tower Defense over the week so far. We have weapons rotating and shooting as well as music and sound! Check out the new page for the game to see the latest screenshots and get the latest code release here. Note that although it comes with Thrust DLLs, it is in no way a release of the library and could be buggy and/or inefficient. Also note that I realize the video isn't the smoothest of gameplay videos, Camtasia seems to really hog up the computer when recording nowadays and I can't seem to get a smooth video anymore. I assure you the game runs at a consistant 63fps when not recording ...".

Enjoy!

UNLEASH YOUR IMAGINATION WITH XNA GSE

The XNA Team has announced that a new article about XNA GSE -by Charles Cox and Michael Klucher- is available on May issue of MSDN Magazine.

From the announcement: "... The article presents a high-level view of XNA Game Studio Express, and then walks through how to create a copy of Spacewar and modify the source to add new functionality to the game--in this case, a shield ...".

Cannot wait, ugh? Then get to the article by following this link.

MANAGING UNITS

Machaira has published a couple of examples, being one of them a class that manages units in a RTS game.

From the post: "... In response to a post on the Creators Club Online forums, I whipped up a quick sample of a class that manages RTS (or any genre) units. Check it out here. If I get a chance, I'll spruce it up a little since the current version is totally barebones (what do you expect for a half-hours, if that, worth of work) ...".

Well, I guess it's all for today ...

"EQUALIZING ARTWORK"

Shawn has published his latest installment on lighting: "Equalizing artwork".

From the post: "... Any time you draw more than one thing on the screen you need to think about how well their colors, brightness, and contrast levels will fit together. By far the most important tools for controlling this are the lighting and fog settings ...".

Read on!

GET A BETTER SERVICE

Uhmm ... typo, sorry, my mistake: "A Better GetService" by Rhysyngsun.

From the post: "... so recently there's been a lot of major discussion on the XNA forums about GameComponents. Now, I love the idea of having integrated components that automatically get get updated and also drawn in the case of DrawableGameComponent, however, when it comes to accessing the Game class's Services. I also have at issue being able to access said Services in a class that is not a GameComponent. I understand the XNA's team for making the services the way they are, however I don't want to have to derive from GameComponent and add it to the GameComponentCollection every time I want to check to have access to the ContentManager or whatever. For the most part, input components are the only issue that I have with the way Services are set up ...".

Read on!

IS "SILVERLIGHT" THE NAME OF A COLOR?

Maybe not this time ... it's the new name for the Windows Presentation Foundation/Everywhere (WPF/E).

Want to know whether XNA GSE will integrate it? Then read David's post on this regard.

From the post: "... How can I use Silverlight with my XNA Framework-based games?" I will directly answer that we have ...".

Curious? I told you to read David's post ... ;)

"GET MY BEST RELEASE EVER", SHARKY SAYS ...

... want to know whether he's right? Go and download "Air Legends" game.

From Lawrence's post: "... I’ve decided I’m going to invoke “Sods Law” once again, and take the hit for the team. I’ll release early after all. If the XNA release comes shortly afterwards then so be it. You’ll all be able to thank me! ...".

A must have ...

A CHANCE TO PRODUCE YOUR OWN TV SHOW FOR XBOX LIVE

There's a new compo with a prize of USD 100k to help you produce your own TV Show for the Xbox Live.

From Major Nelson's post: "... Got a great idea for a TV Show? How would you like $100k to produce your great idea AND have it digitally delivered over Xbox LIVE?

Hit this site for details on how to sign up and get in on the competition. To enter you must be over 18 and live in any of the 25 countries where Xbox Live is available. Fire up the camcorder and good luck ...".

Are you one of the lucky guys living in any of the eligible countries? If so, start thinking on an idea, right now and join the compo!

NEW XNA CONTENT BY FRANCESCO FORNO

Francesco has uploaded the latest versions of "XMLPipeline" and "FontRenderer" assemblies, both used by his GUIManager sample.

From Francesco's post: "... The FontRenderer is the same you find on the Creators web site, however since I slightly modified it you need my DLL for the GUIManager to work. The source code of the modified sample is public: just drop me an email.

To learn how to use the XMLPipeline and FontRender components, just look at the GUIManagerSample, or post a comment to this post ...".

Cheers!

NEW TUTORIAL: XNA OCTREE SYSTEM

Rhysyngsun has published a new tutorial explaining hot to build an XNA-based octree system.

From the post: "... First of all, what exactly is an octree? An octree is a spatial partitioning system that divides a cube recursively into eight equally sized cubes until each cube contains a specified number of polygons or objects. This tree can then be used to quickly determine visibility or to quickly rule out objects for physics purposes. For the purposes of XNA, I've designed my system to be used on a per-object basis ...".

Read on!

NEW DTD CLONE VIDEOS

John Sedlak has published a couple of videos showing the progress of his DTD clone:

Enjoy!

MANAGING GUI ELEMENTS

Francesco Forno has posted a sample solution showing how to handle GUI elements.

From Francesco's post: "... The sample at last! I managed to put together a small sample solution which shows how to use the GUIManager library. All required DLLs are included in the sample, but it's unlikely that I'll keep it updated, so always refer to the main download link (GUIManager, on your left) to get the latest library version ...".

Cheers!

FRIDAY, 13TH ...

... sorry guys for any delays in the news but I experienced some problems with my desktop that forced me to re-install everything ... before upgrading to WinXP Pro x64 I used an application called Restore-It!, but unfortunately it does not support this 64-bit OS, so I need to find an alternative -and more handy than "ntbackup.exe"- solution a.s.a.p. before a similar situation happens again.

Well, anyway, everything is getting back to normal now ... although I still have plenty of installations to do ...

I better start now, so see you all later!

BASIC EFFECT AND SPECULAR-LIGHT CONTRIBUTION

Shawn has published the second part of the series on XNA and lighting, which focus this time on "specularity": what it is, and how to tweak it by using "BasicEffect".

From Shawn's post: "... Specular light can be harder to understand. When viewed in isolation, its contribution seems incredibly minimal ... But in combination with the diffuse light, specular is a critical part of making a model look good. Set it too low, and your objects will appear flat and uninteresting. Too high, and everything will look like plastic: waxy and unnatural ...".

Read on!

"AIR LEGENDS": NEW TEASER PICS

Lawrence has published some new screenshots of the new features he has been working on for his game: "Sharky's Air Legends".

For those of you who still don't know or never heard about this game, let me tell you that it's a legend it-self, since it's one of the first XNA games that came out -if not the first- all done by a XNA user.

What is more, if you do some search on YouTube for any initial videos promoting XNA, you will surely find a sequence of Air Legends' planes flying around nicely.

From Sharky's post: "... I’m wondering if I should just release it now anyway, and follow up with an XNA v.next release when it comes out. I’m open to persuasion ..."

Want to get your hands on the latest build? Then just go and try to persuade him ...

By the way Lawrence, nice to hear from you, man!

RHYSYNGSUN WANTS TO BE ENCOURAGED ...

... to post mini-tutos and code snippets, all related to XNA, of course, since he has been working hard to implement an octree functionality, multiple viewports, input management, etc.

From Rhysyngsun's post: "... I have a few more ideas for mini-tutorials that I may post here. Some are just quick code snippets, but others are a bit more detailed. Leave some comments to encourage me ...".

So c'mon, want to get some tutos? Then give the guy the encouraging comments he is asking for ...