Version 1.1 now available

A zipped version with all the fixes to date is now available.

The original (lame) example now runs on 1.1 code.

Both of these can be accessed via:

http://amazonsystems.phpzilla.net/

What Next?

I think I have reached a suitable point at which to preserve the current state of the code. So I'll upload version 1.1 in due course.

Next stage will be new artwork, followed by a new puzzle, then the music problem must be solved.

Scale and Flip facilities

I have now added scale and flip facilities, to allow the same image to be used for a sprite at different sizes and reversed.

Different scale in x and y direction is possible, invert, mirror and all three.

In the diagram:
1. Normal sprite
2. 75% scale on both x and y axes
3. 75% scale on both x and y axes plus mirror
4. 75% scale on both x and y axes plus mirror plus invert

Priority

Having a little trouble with the priority of sprites, but nothing desperate yet. I have a feeling that monkeying with vector elements is the cause of the problem. I may have to try a different approach to sorting the sprite list.

(later) Schoolboy error. I was using insertElementAt() instead of setElementAt().

Thus - the Vector of Sprites appears in slist:

//      This is a sinking sort. On first pass, the highest
//      priority sprite arrives at the bottom. On second,
//      the next highest arrives at second bottom, etc.
//      Sprites of the same priority remain in their
//      original sequence with respect to each other.
    for (ii = 0; ii< slist.size()-1; ii++)
    {
        for (jj = 0; jj < (slist.size()-ii-1); jj++)
        {
            spare1 = (Sprite)slist.elementAt(jj);
            spare2 = (Sprite)slist.elementAt(jj+1);
            if (spare1.getPriority() > spare2.getPriority())
            {
                slist.setElementAt(spare1, jj+1);
                slist.setElementAt(spare2, jj);
            }
        }
    }

Gull motion bug fixed

I was dissatisfied with the original gull motion (see 30 December 2008 entry). Found out what it was today.

The previous table had the gull stopping for an extra beat at zero deflection. Now deflection goes from +3 to -3.

Important bug solved

Sorted. The solution was to drop anything being carried into the limbo room before doing the Restore. The bug was caused by the clash of an object being simultaneously carried and restored to an uncarried situation.

Also, and in connection with this bug, I added the "limbo" room to the system. All adventures need a limbo room in which to store objects that aren't anywhere else. For example, a sprite that has been destroyed, or has not yet been revealed can be left in there where it will do no harm until such a condition arises whereby the game writer decides to put the object back in play. "limbo", like "inventory" becomes a compulsory scene in the system, because it is referred to in the RestoreGame function by name.

After another sweep through the code to pick up any other anomalies or improvements, I'll publish version 1.1 in both source and runtime.