Tobriand
Well-Known Member
Ok... I suggested this a while back, but shortly afterwards, Craig ran the 15 day competition, so I think it was forgotten. This is an idea, and I wouldn't (I think) be able to sort out any prizes or run it or anything simply because I have big doubts as to whether the Big sites would listen to someone they've never heard of before. Anyway here goes.
The basic idea is that its a coding competition, but the prize goes not to whoever comes up with the nicest program, but to whoever comes up with the best tutorial to make whatever program they've come up with. So a columns style game could well win over a full quake port if the tutorial on how to code it was more detailed, and easier to understand for the beginner than the one for the Quake port.
The object, of course, is to provide some entry level matterial for people who want to code in principal, but aren't committed enough to buy a book and read it, or don't have the time, or read the book and then find when they take a look at GP code that it's completely different (you try finding an explanation for what a surface is in the current sets of tutorials; it's not easy!). With any luck, that'd mean some people who've never coded before would find they had a flare for it, and we'd get some more people who were passionate about porting... whatever it is they want to port. Or remaking. Or (heaven forbid) comng up with something entirely original
Anyway - you've probably got the idea. Code a proggy; write a no-brain tutorial that anyone can follow.
Possible Rules might be:
You're allowed to refer to other tutorials on the web, as long as you don't infringe copyright in the process and these tutorials are FREE/Public Domain/Whatever.
The tutorials are marked on how easy they are to follow to the goal, and whether a complete beginner can manage it without any external help... Then you go up step by step until you've got to needing to be a coder already to understand a word of it.
In addition, they're marked on how clear they are and WHY you're doing something; the tutorials should not be aimed at producing people who can copy out code but not understand a word of it, but rather at getting people to understand the code they're writing.
All material actually entered should be GP32, although non-GP32 material (where relevant - and I'm sure it will be, say with SDL - is of course perfectly able to be referrred to).
And prolly a few more. Bounce the idea around. Chew it over amongst yourselves. See if we can get some more coding enthusiasts as well as the group we've already got!
The basic idea is that its a coding competition, but the prize goes not to whoever comes up with the nicest program, but to whoever comes up with the best tutorial to make whatever program they've come up with. So a columns style game could well win over a full quake port if the tutorial on how to code it was more detailed, and easier to understand for the beginner than the one for the Quake port.
The object, of course, is to provide some entry level matterial for people who want to code in principal, but aren't committed enough to buy a book and read it, or don't have the time, or read the book and then find when they take a look at GP code that it's completely different (you try finding an explanation for what a surface is in the current sets of tutorials; it's not easy!). With any luck, that'd mean some people who've never coded before would find they had a flare for it, and we'd get some more people who were passionate about porting... whatever it is they want to port. Or remaking. Or (heaven forbid) comng up with something entirely original
Anyway - you've probably got the idea. Code a proggy; write a no-brain tutorial that anyone can follow.
Possible Rules might be:
You're allowed to refer to other tutorials on the web, as long as you don't infringe copyright in the process and these tutorials are FREE/Public Domain/Whatever.
The tutorials are marked on how easy they are to follow to the goal, and whether a complete beginner can manage it without any external help... Then you go up step by step until you've got to needing to be a coder already to understand a word of it.
In addition, they're marked on how clear they are and WHY you're doing something; the tutorials should not be aimed at producing people who can copy out code but not understand a word of it, but rather at getting people to understand the code they're writing.
All material actually entered should be GP32, although non-GP32 material (where relevant - and I'm sure it will be, say with SDL - is of course perfectly able to be referrred to).
And prolly a few more. Bounce the idea around. Chew it over amongst yourselves. See if we can get some more coding enthusiasts as well as the group we've already got!