After some thought, I decided on the following concept for the assignment: a rural fire warning application for people living in potential bushfire zones in Australia, coupled with current social networking trends.

The concept itself raises several issues.

At first I searched through the Bureau of Meteorology(BOM) for any data that could be consumed for the app’s purposes. However, most of the BOM’s data only deals with weather forecasts; any inclement weather warnings are listed as textual press releases, not in any easily consumable data formats.

This then led me to look elsewhere, which eventually landed me at the department of Geoscience Australia, which provides maps similar to what I was aiming to accomplish with my application. These maps are constructed from data organised by the Sentinel national bushfire monitoring system, which pulls from the latest data generated by NASA’s satellites, namely the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS). Unfortunately, these maps were self-contained; again, no data feeds from which I could pull from. MODIS itself was unhelpful; although I eventually did find some data, I still could not make sense out of all the raw data that was available (I’m no meteorologist!).

So I turned to the Country Fire Authority, to see if there were any information I could grab from them. As it turns out, they provide RSS feeds of the latest warnings for public consumption! This was great news; I could use the RSS feed and display them on my application.

As it turns out, it wouldn’t be that easy:

1. The RSS feeds do not provide any clear information, just street names. This means there will be a margin of error narrowing down exact locations to display on a map.
2. Since it wasn’t bushfire season, there was no sample data I could build off. I would have to contact them in order to get a sample.
3. Some feeds only give images; there would be no way of customizing my own maps from data.

Next came a even bigger problem: each state/territory in Australia has its own department for bushfire response (CFA in Victoria, RFS in New South Wales etc.), and each of these departments had their own feeds. This meant it would be nearly impossible to provide a consistent representation for all the data that was available from different states.

There are other resources I have yet to investigate, so I will continue to assess the feasibility of building this application. Stay tuned for Part 2!

At the end of the semester I am required to submit a Major Project. This project is relatively flexible; students are required to develop a iPhone application based on a specific theme (Climate/Weather), however the actual application itself is to be designed by students. It must have at least 3 major features, while utilising a minimum number of advanced iPhone tools(such as MapViews, Multi-View applications, iPad portability etc.).

At the project’s conclusion, students are also required to give a presentation on the project, describing its concept, features, and development. So, I aim to record my progress on this assignment through to its completion, mainly so I may refer to it again when I do my final presentation!

Here’s looking forward to a healthy update schedule once more.

It is with great pleasure that I present to you, on behalf of my team, Gwisher.com.

The premise is simple; guys who have no idea what to get their girlfriend on an important occasion use Gwisher, inputting various information regarding their girlfriend, and Gwisher returns a list of suggestions that he may get for his girlfriend. Our advanced “Gwish” engine processes this information in order to give the best suggestions for the user.

It was definitely a great 12 hours of non-stop frenzy, and I definitely recommend this experience to anyone.

There have also been a variety of reactions to this, from the informed (“I don’t like it, but Apple has every right to do so”) to the very ill-informed (“Flash Sucks!”), so let me state my position in the matter: this whole thing stinks like a dead carcass wrapped in burnt bacon thrown in a washing machine filled with raw sewage.

The Matter

The reports point to a new clause in section 3.3.1 of the iPhone 4.0 SDK, which states

Applications that link to Documented APIs through an intermediary translation or compatibility layer or tool are prohibited

and the expectation is that Apple has effectively removed any chance of Apps compiled using Flash CS5′s compiler (or any other compiler aside from the iPhone SDK) from entry into the App Store.

There are numerous reasons being cited for this new development (via comments), including:

1. performance is impacted (by Flash)
2. battery life is reduced (by Flash)
3. Apps produced by other tools for cross-platforms do not take advantage of the iPhone’s strengths.
4. This is just to prevent alternative App stores from popping up.
5. Apple does not want people to create apps for free without going through the App store.

However, most of those points are complete and utter troll drivel.

The Facts

Lets be clear on all the facts.

Performance/Battery Life

This has got absolutely nothing to do with performance, or battery life. In fact, it has nothing to do with Flash at all. Flash CS5 is merely the tool that allows you to compile native iPhone applications. So the result is a native iPhone App. There is still no Flash on the iPhone, neither is Flash running on the iPhone at any time. So any complaints about Flash sucking away performance or battery life on the iPhone is completely irrelevant. To categorise Apps compiled on anything other than the iPhone SDK as battery and performance sucking vampires is just short of “Guilty until Proven Innocent” except in this case, there’s no chance to prove an App’s innocence.

Circumventing the App Store

There is no way (bar jailbreaking your iPhone) you can get an App onto your iPhone. Plain and simple. Any claims that say otherwise are simply wrong. I say again: these are native applications compiled for the iPhone, and submitted through the App Store. There will not be new App Stores popping up allowing you to sell Flash iPhone Apps.

The Reason

Lets think about this carefully.

Apple already have control over the Apps that go on the iPhone via the App Store review process. This allows them to reject any Apps that, as those concerned have mentioned, suck away battery life and performance, or Apps that don’t conform to some black-box review requirements. Furthermore there is definitely no way Adobe, or anyone else, will be able to set up a new App Store for downloading new Apps. Nor is Flash running on the iPhone at anytime. And if an App doesn’t take full advantage of the iPhone because of its cross-platform nature, why should this be an impact on the App Store, the store with thousands of Apps that somehow got past Apple’s quality review process. Why would they do this when they already have full control over the iPhone?

Because the only way you can build Applications for the iPhone is by buying a Mac.

Apple doesn’t want anyone without a Mac to compile applications for their flagship mobile products, increasing in market share by the minute (and even more so with the launch of the iPad). So once they realised that people were writing tools to compile for the iPhone on anything other than an OS X, they take steps to stamp it out. iPhone development is one of the big drivers in iMac and MacBook sales, without them you can’t build for the iPhone.

Conclusion

So there you have it. While Apple has every right to do so, it stinks as hell. And I hope someone with some balls and brains has the ability to see that. And, as John Gruber puts it, “[Adobe are] pretty much royally fucked”.

Author’s Note: Apology for the inflamatory language. While I don’t even work with Flash anymore, I hate to see these sorts of things happening, and the people doing it getting away with it.

I’ve mentioned to people before, Adobe is at a critical point here. They can choose to sit on their arses and ignore HTML5, which will steamroll Flash when it does come into play. Or they can choose to do something better with it. Adobe’s strategic advantage will be that they have control over the progress of the Flash platform, and they need to use that to quickly make itself relevant in a HTML5 world.

In the meantime, HTML5 is certain to replace everything else Flash is known for. Video, minimal animations and transitions for websites through CSS3 and Javascript, offline storage and rich applications. Flash needs to find a new niche to remain relevant (not surprisingly it will probably need to solidify its position as a browser gaming juggernaut) and they should be able to do that quickly without the need of a new web standard taking years to ratify, and browsers to uptake. They may even manage to do this without HTML5 gaining significant market share.

Pro-Flash campers need to see this as progress in web technologies and use the right tool for the job, not stick to their hammers for screws.

Anti-Flash campers need to see that Flash can still be a crucial technology on the web, and stop trying to mold HTML5 into something so complex that even it itself becomes a crutch on the internet, in the fool’s hope of crippling Flash with a “Anything you can do, I can do better” charade. K.I.S.S.

In essense, stop this senseless Flash hate. Killing Flash will not get rid of ads, or popup videos, or get rid of browser vulnerabilities. Yes Flash Player is shit on non-Windows systems. Yes it has vulnerabilities. But those can be fixed. Focus your energies on getting Adobe to fix shit, not on Flash.

Anyway If you’re reading this, Adobe, the ball’s in your court at the moment. Show me what you can do.

Well, there IS a way, although it is rather hacky. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t do the trick!

Lets say you have an inline element with the following styles

However, you suddenly realise that in order to apply a width to an element it has to be a block element. So, instead of changing your stylesheet and refreshing the page, type:

Press Enter, and the additional style gets added!

Quite simple, but annoying if you didn’t know about it. Hope this helps anyone out there using Chrome for their development.

Perhaps what I saw this weekend was the result of a extremely tumultuous year for everyone. Companies simply don’t have the confidence to slap down thousands of dollars at events anymore. Not events with such a low street-cred level anyway. All we have left is the hope for a better eGames Expo next year.

Read on for Images!

Unfortunately, my worst fears were proven accurate. There was absolutely nothing new to see on the 2nd day of the event. This meant that I had crawled through the eGames Expo (excluding the Digital Lifestyle and Careers events) in less than 4 hours.

What did I do on the 2nd day? I decided to get hands on with some of the lesser known games being displayed.

FairyTale Fights

Fairytale Fights is your typical top-down hack and slasher ala Lego Starwars. You play as a cutesy inhabitant of a fairytale land, but while the characters may look cutesy, the combat certainly isn’t. It doesn’t take very long for the screen to be filled with blood-red … blood splattered across the soil. Certain fatality attacks also result in a close up of the death dealt to the poor (and maniacal) creatures that charge at you like lemmings seeking an early judgement.

Gameplay, however, is quite disappointing. Don’t seek anything more than a button-mashing experience. While the game is quite amusing to watch for a short while, the novelty of it quickly grows old, and the rest of the game feels more like a WoW grind. And since the game isn’t very 13+ friendly, it wouldn’t be very suitable for your kids either.

Conclusion: Bargain bin. Its only redeeming feature might be the inclusion of cooperative multiplayer, which allows for “innocent” friendly-attacks, perfect for ongoing rivalries. Though, you may as well go back to Super Smash Brothers for something more substantial.

That’s all I can write about tonight. My internet connection decided to throw a tantrum, and its 3am in the morning. I doubt I will have more to write after tomorrow, so expect pictures from the event instead!

Ubisoft – Various

Ubisoft took center stage with a 360 degrees exhibit right in the middle of the building, with only the Microsoft Xbox360 caravan taking up the rest of the attention (whatever little attention there could possibly be on a Friday). With the exception of the new Splinter Cell, I got a bit of hands on with upcoming games Avatar and Assassin’s Creed 2.

Avatar

Ubisoft had two different setups for people to try; a normal setup with an Xbox360, and a more private setup with an Xbox360, and a pile of 3D Glasses! There’s no question which kiosk I had to try out.

The immediate impression I had when playing the game was “Wow. It sure is pretty”. If there’s any reason why you should get this game, its definitely the graphics. Vivid vibrant colours, combined with gorgeously designed monsters were only made more enthralling when they jumped right at me through the screen. I wouldn’t be surprised if “4D gaming” becomes more popular as the technology advances in the future. Just keep a bucket handy, for people prone to motion sickness; after 10 minutes I began to feel lightheaded and put down the controller.

Put aside the pretty graphics, however, and I couldn’t help finding it all but familiar. In fact, I couldn’t help but draw similarities between Avatar and Lost Planet 2:

• 3rd person view? Check.
• Squad based action? Check.
• Huge mechas? Check.
• Even bigger indigenous monsters? Check.
• Control Points? Check.
• Gungho marines type characters? Check.

I feel that Lost Planet had a much more interesting game. Its “Shadow of the Colossus” level encounters were much more interesting compared to what was essentially a “point, shoot, reload” game in Avatar. There was nearly no need for any of the “skills” available (such as the call airstrike skill), since I could accomplish the same thing with just a rifle. Of course, there could be alot more of Avatar that I have not seen.

Conclusion: Its pretty. But its going to be as revolutionary to gaming as Avatar is to Movies. No harm picking this up for a quick playthrough, but I wouldn’t hold your breath for anything Bioshock epic.

Assassin’s Creed 2

Before I go on, I must stress that the build Ubisoft are displaying at the eGames Expo is apparently the same as the build at TGS 2009, so there isn’t much more I can add to that. I do regret playing it, however. Experiencing numerous bugs and issues put a dent in my enthusiasm for the game, but I’ll try to keep that in mind as I write about it below (while trying to ignore the times Ezio fell through the floor, or crashed the demo)

The thing that I was most concerned about was the combat system; the first Assassin’s Creed suffered from an incredibly simple combat system that resulted in what was basically a “wait, counter, kill” routine. Assassin’s Creed 2 tries to remedy this by introducing a few new features such as Multiple Weapons (from swords and hidden blades to halberds) and multiple enemy types (light, and heavy guards). You also have the ability to disarm opponents, or grab them for physical attacks (to their weak points for massive damage). I quickly developed a modus operandi, involving me grabbing rooftop archers, directing them to the nearest ledge and throwing them off.

Unfortunately, other than the points above, the combat still suffers from the same problem its predecessor had. Most of the time was spent countering opponents attacks for a quick kill, while for the Heavy Guards I could simply sheathe my weapon (with the “realtime weapon change” feature)  to get the option to disarm your opponent. A guard fully clad in armour is still defenseless without a weapon, which makes for an easy kill, although sometimes it was also possible to perform a fatal counter attack accompanied by the extremely gratifying kill sequence.

Conclusion: since the build was too buggy to really judge on, I’ll have to hold out for more opportunities to try the game. I’ll probably still get it when the time comes, though.

Microsoft – Forza Motorsport 2

Microsoft decided to set up multiple kiosks all demoing Forza Motorsport 2. I spent a good deal of time trying to beat the daily record (1:45 on Laguna Seca) before ultimately giving up, but that gave me a lot of time to get some impressions on the game. Unfortunately, Gran Turismo 5 did not make an appearance, and the closest I have to it is Gran Turismo 5 for the PSP, so without a real reference any proper comparisons will simply have to wait. That, and it made me feel like a really inferior driver.

2K Games – Borderlands

The booth had a sign, warning people of violence within its confines. Inside were a couple of kiosks dedicated to Borderlands, while there was a single kiosk for NBA2k10 (which I appropriately ignored).

At this point, the only little information I had heard about Borderlands was:

• a mash of FPS and RPG.
• apparently, a censored version (ala Left 4 Dead) was distributed to Australian Gamers by accident.

The game felt alot more like an RPG compared to a first person shooter. Or, to put it bluntly, Borderlands is what Hellgate:London would have been if it had been set in a post-apocalyptic desert, rather than a post-apocalyptic London (and, actually finished). A bullet hit results in a small number indicating the amount of damage you’d done, while a little damage indicator appears over whatever is within your cross hairs.

In the end, it didn’t feel like my type of game, and as a result I didn’t spend very long with it.

Closing

A few games were sadly missed today. Considering that the eGames Expo is being billed as the “Biggest Video Games Expo in Australia”, it is an extremely good indication of the state of the gaming industry in Australia. In fact, if you disregard the numerous education institutions setting up camp at the expo, there was only 1 (that’s right, ONE) Australia based games-house (Imperial League’s Primary Clarity) that I could find. De Blob’s Blue Tongue was not present, and neither was last year’s participant Infinite Interactive (who make the Puzzle Quest series).

Sadly, other blockbuster publishers did not set up exhibits, despite their participation in 2008. There were no Activision booths (absolutely dumbfounded, especially considering the local launch of DJ Hero). EA also did not make an appearance, apparently seeing no additional need to promote Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. Another staggeringly bad decision was from Sony; from a 8 kiosk exhibit in 2008 to quite literally not being there at all, allowing the Xbox360 to attract all the limelight.

Here’s hoping I see them on the weekend.

That is all for me. More when I get back from Day 2!

The result? The next version of Google 2.0, as reported by Mashable.

It is evident that Search is the foundation of all of Google’s online strategy, and in order to stay profitable it has to stay on top. And now Google has generously allowed the general public to preview the development build of its dominating search engine.

While searching for me, there are no immediate differences in the results. I did, however, notice that the previous version of Google could not find my facebook profile (rather strange, I think), where as the new version had listed me under an expandable list of results from Facebook.

Regardless, it is an exciting (and often scary) period to be involved in the development of the internet as we know it. Be sure to hop over to http://www2.sandbox.google.com/ and give it a whirl!