[OLPC-Games] New project: Treenimation

[Roberto Fagá]

Hello Mike

I agree with you on your first point, but the others:
- "Python is interpreted and slower" -> using PyGame you use for the
crucial code (like rendering images) C code, SDL, compiled in native
code. That mean, if you use Python, maybe yet you can take more 0.1
seconds to load your game, but isn't too much more than if you use
native code. Otherwise, SDL is a big project, using hardware
acceleration and maintained by many people/enterprises, rarely you can
get better performance programming by yourself (but isn'

On 10/4/07, Mike Hahn <mike at treenimation.net> wrote:
> Hi Luke,
>
> I'd rather not use Python to develop Treenimation for Windows for the
> following reasons:
>
> Firstly, I've been doing nothing but Delphi programming for 11 years now, so
> it seems too much of a nuisance to have to learn a whole new development
> tool and language if I can possibly avoid it.
>
> Secondly, Delphi is a native-code compiler, but Python is an interpreter. At
> the heart of Treenimation is a scripting language I call Treescript, which
> like Java is based on byte-code that is interpreted at runtime. Instead of
> byte-code, I call it the Treenimation Intermediate Language (TIL). Like the
> .NET intermediate language, it's actually a text file.
>
> All games, and even most of the Treenimation user tools (but not the
> compiler and IDE), are written in Treescript. It seems like too much of a
> performance penalty to run a Java-style interpreter like Treescript on top
> of another byte-code interpreter like Python. I copied the next paragraph
> from www.python.org:
>
> "You need to realize that your Python scripts have to be processed by
> another program called the Python interpreter. The interpreter reads your
> script, compiles it into bytecodes, and then executes the bytecodes to run
> your program."
>
> Whereas Delphi generates native code, which is a lot more efficient.
> Remember that eventually I plan to use Treenimation for Windows as a
> development tool for modern, 3D, revenue-generating games, so efficiency is
> paramount.
>
> Thirdly, Treenimation for Windows is, to be blunt, more crucial to the
> success of this project than Treenimation for the XO Laptop. Therefore it's
> important that it be as effective and playable an experience for the game
> developers and end-users as possible. The Windows version of Treenimation is
> more important because Windows runs on 90 percent of the world's computers,
> and all Windows users of Treenimation are encouraged (but not required) to
> become paying members. To learn more about how I hope to make money from
> Treenimation, please visit www.treenimation.net, click on Treenopolis (under
> Links), click on Treenopolis again, and then click on either "Building
> Treenopolis" or "OLPC Business Model" (2 business models to choose from).
>
> Fourthly, if Treenimation for Windows is as good an experience for the users
> as it possibly can be, then more people will become paying members,
> resulting in more financial resources for the organization: Treenimation.net
> (hopefully it will generate more income than expenses = profit). And that
> will enable the Treenimation for XO users to benefit as well. More power for
> Windows users = more resources for XO users, simple as that.
>
> Regards,
> Mike
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: games-bounces at lists.laptop.org [mailto:games-bounces at lists.laptop.org]
> On Behalf Of Luke Paireepinart
> Sent: Thursday, October 04, 2007 04:50 PM
> To: Games for the OLPC
> Subject: Re: [OLPC-Games] New project: Treenimation
>
> Mike Hahn wrote:
> > Hi all,
> >
> > I would like to announce a new project called Treenimation: a software
> > tool used for creating web-based (real-time), multiplayer board games,
> > as well as email-based games. Subsequent versions of Treenimation will
> > add support for 2D, and ultimately 3D animation. For more info, please
> visit:
> >
> > http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Treenimation
> >
> > I am currently in the very early stages of implementing Treenimation
> > for Windows, using Delphi. Due to my inexperience with Linux, I will
> > eventually need help porting Treenimation to Free Pascal for Linux,
> > and then translating it into Python for the XO Laptop. (I used Unix 22
> > years ago, programming part of an accounting package in C for several
> > months.)
> >
> > Anyone interested in helping out with the development of Treenimation
> > for Linux, or anyone with Treenimation-related feedback, is welcome to
> > contact me. Thank you.
> >
> > Regards,
> > Mike Hahn
> >
> Mike -
> Why not just write it in Python to start with?
> Then there's no porting necessary - it will automatically be cross-platform.
> -Luke
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