I've begun documentation work for the project. The game playing guide will be finished first, followed by the development guide. I'm hoping to get the 1.0 release out the door by the year's end, which I believe is an reasonable timeframe.

     In order to save users some installation frustration, I've been working on two new features for the project. The first is a CGI script that will export data from the Cog Development Application format to the Online Cog Engine format. This will eliminate the need for users to install Jython. The second is a binary compilation of the Python interpreter, which will remove the need for users (particularly Windows users) to install the Python software themselves. If I can get a binary release together, then I can probably also work out an installation program, which will hopefully give the 1.0 release a "professional" look. More information to come as development continues.

     This new release includes many new changes and improvements, most notably support for all major versions of Microsoft Windows. The only requirement is that the user download and install Python from Python.org. Other notable features include completely re-designed widgets, which change dynamically with available window space, a debug mode, and dialog boxes for all user messages.

     This latest version of The Cog Engine incorporates a modification necessary to work with the 0.90 release of the Development Application, as well as a number of bugfixes. The 0.90 release of the Development Application will include Microsoft Windows support, as well as a few other nice features. A screenshot of the new version running under Windows has been posted to the screenshots section. This release should be available within the next few days.

     A new version of The Cycon Odyssey has been released as well. This new version includes all of the current graphics, and represents a fully playable (though not fully polished) game. Feedback is welcomed and encouraged.

     Also of note, I've added 22 new graphic images to The Cycon Odyssey, again under the High Bandwidth section of the Online Games only. Sometime in the next few weeks I'll be working on Documenting all of the project's software, with the 1.0 release to follow shortly.

     We're well on our way to 1.0!

     I had the opportunity this weekend to spend a lot of time with the Cog Development Application - polishing up, adding features, and of course, fixing bugs both large and small. This new release includes twice as many changes/improvements as the last release. Lately I've been spending less time having to fix up code and more time getting actual work done with the application, which is surely a good sign! Please keep those bug reports coming in, and now's the time to hit me with feature requests - before I begin the documentation process (which will also mark a feature freeze).

     I'm hoping to have time this weekend to continue to work on my game, and to continue the process of debugging.

     As I work on finally finishing my own game, I will be debugging the application at the same time. After my game is finished, I will start writing up documentation on the completed software. When the documentation is complete version 1.0 will be released!

     In the mean time, please feel free to download the CogDevApp, play around with the software, and submit as many bug reports/patches as you can. Thanks go out to everyone for their support.

     Work on the CogDevApp progresses, and the Event Builder is 95% complete now. After this work is complete, I expect to be making an initial release. I am currently working on getting the SourceForge CVS repository in order, so that anyone who wants to take a look at what's been done so far may do so. After the initial release I plan to go back and make many usuability updates to the various individual editors. The next step will be completing my game, writing out complete documentation, and finally, the 1.0 release! After more than a decade working on this game, and more than three years working on this software, it will be a great joy to finally release a completed package.

     As one of the primary goals of this project is to make game creation as simplified as possible, all current work is focused on the "Event Builder" module - which allows events to be scripted out by selection from options on dynamically generated widgets. For instance, when you need to refer to a specific room or object for an action to involve, you select "Room" or "Item" from on dropdown menu, and instantly drop-down scrolling box next to it has a list of all of the Rooms (or Items) currently stored in memory. Instead of having to understand how to decipher an EBNF grammar, users can point-and-click their games into existance!

     Also, with the recent announcement of Pippy, as well as recent advancements with PocketLinux, I have become conviced that the Cog Engine could be ported to both systems. The Java Applet based Cog Engine already features support for text-only mode (essentially, the graphic window and compass and other boxes are all toggled off, and only the "command line" and "output window" is displayed), and I believe that the upcoming port to PyGTK and Jython will permit a portable base of utilities. I personally don't own a Palmtop organizer, but I can use the PalmOS Emulator to test the code, and am considering purchasing an iPaq later this summer. In theory, a game could be played in full-graphics mode on your PC, and then you could copy your exact savegame over to your organiser, and pick up right where you left off, thise time interacting in text-only mode. With text import/export functions for the CogDevApp (the event editor already has this) made available, you could even keep working on your game while on the move!

     Coding has gone very smooth lately, though due to the complexity of my current area of focus, progress is slow. I am hoping to get the current sources checked into our sourceforge CVS server, but I will not consider this a priority unless someone specifically asks me to do it. I would otherwise prefer to spend my time finishing up the coding. Things are getting very exciting as the 1.0 release slowly begins to peak up over the horizon.

     There is a small problem with a ghost window appearing on the left side of the interface, but this will be worked out in time, and the second Beta will be released.

     In order to convert the data files from Java to Python and back again (necessary since the COG Engine remains written in Java) Jython (a full implementation of Python for the JVM) is being employed. The programs which convert the data are now complete, as is much of the CogDevApp. In fact, the only remaining new code to implement is the Event Editor, before the first release will take place. Jython has the added feature that it can be compiled into a java .class file, and then ran without the Jython interpreter itself. It is further hoped that the GCJ project, a binary compiler for Java code, may be used to compile the conversion scripts directly into executable files. The Python/GTK+ code will also hopefully be fully compiled for both Linux and Win32 before the final 1.0 release is made.

     The next step in the development process is for myself to finish the CogDevApp, and then use it to finish my own game, the Cycon Odyssey. Finishing my own game will be part of the debugging processes for the application, and will indicate any features which will have to be implemented before the 1.0 release. Finally, documentation must be written on both the use of the Engine and the use of the Development Application. Once the documentation is complete, binaries will be compiled, packaged, and released for both Linux and Windows.

     As progress continues, I will keep this page updated. Stay tuned.

Archive of News from 2000

Archive of News from 1999