Posts by mattyd

my favourite "solar body" is Ceres, the biggest of the astroids in the astroid belt.

it;s not offically a planet, but it is almost a planet, itls sort of like a family pet to the solar system.

but Pluto you say? it's moon Charon is much too large to be considered a moon and pluto a bit to small to be considered a full fledged planet, so instead some people call Pluto and Charon a "binary system" (excuse me :)

"Plutoed":
http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory?id=2777380

Logic game:
http://www.i-am-bored.com/bored_link.cfm?link_id=21428

You may wish to review this link and try some of the tutorials to get you started beginning with the first tutorial entitled "OpenGL WINDOW'.

http://www.morrowland.com/apron/tut_gl.php

and

http://www.codecolony.de/opengl.htm

**NOTE: This will require at the least on your system:

• OpenGL
• A compiler that will handle OPENGL code ( Microsoft Visual C++ Expresss Edition 2005, for example. Free from Microsoft)
• GLUT (libraries possibly necessary to run OPENGL on the above-mentioned compiler)

Regards,
sharky_machine

and very likely that you'll find something else that you absolutely love in the interrim to change your direction. It's better to simply have an idea of what you want to do, and set yourself concrete steps for the near future.

Yes, it is funny how that works sometimes; originally when entering college for software engineering I was sure I wanted to work for the D.O.D., then after a year or two I was very attracted to database design and was sure that is what I would do. Now I am developing for a video game company-- I never really ever considered this as a future path or even thought I would want to do it (I was lucky to sort of just fall into it and was hired), but I love it. It's a great job, challenging, and quite fun.

It is vitally important to work one's way up after first learning the fundamentals no matter the field of study but it seems especially so in the Sciences.

sharky_machine

A very important consideration in game dev:
http://ai-depot.com/GameAI/Learning.html

TRADITION:

"Pluto started out as the ninth planet, a supported fulfillment of Percival Lowell's prediction of Planet X. Let's simply retain Pluto as the ninth major planet. After all, there is no Planet X. For 14 years, I combed two-thirds of the entire sky down to 17th magnitude, and no more planets showed up. I did the job thoroughly and correctly... Pluto was your last chance for a major planet." :)
– Clyde Tombaugh, discoverer of Pluto, in a 1994 letter to Sky & Telescope

SCIENCE\ OPINION:

"It's pretty clear, if we discovered Pluto today, knowing what we know about other objects in the Kuiper Belt, we wouldn't even consider it a planet" :surprised
– Michael Brown, California Institute of Technology.

Is there an option of some sort in the Dr. Python interpreter that would allow one to re-run the same output results after making adjustments to the code.

Example:
I run an example of source code and receive an output result. I make changes to the code. I now am able to run the same code (with the same output) to see how the new code affects a particular output result.

This just came to mind today while doing testing on a personal Python project. This would really save time and allow me to see reactions to adjusted code immediatly rather than hoping to come upon the same bug by running code again and again manually.

I am sure something like this exists in compilers in general, I imagine, but I have never made use of it.

Thanks for any help in advance.

sharky_machine

Unbelievable :eek:

http://www.i-am-bored.com/bored_link.cfm?link_id=21387

http://www.i-am-bored.com/bored_link.cfm?link_id=21411

About one month ago or so my Dr. Python compiler (interpreter) died. I had closed Dr. Python to go and eat dinner then came back to re-open and continued where I had stopped and... nothing. This came at a terrible time as I was in the middle of some very important code testing. I tried everything I could think of but did not have time to fix it nor was I sure how to. I opened IDLE and plugged away. IDLE worked, yes, but what I can say about it save for that it's better than nothing I guess. :-|

Python Mod vegaseat encouraged me to fix Dr. Python-- make it work. I tried, but gave up as I could not get any response. I was confused as to these errors so I continued with IDLE.

Today though, I thought I would give it one more try; I downloaded the latest version from SourceForge, unzipped it, and tried to run it. How I got it to open and work all centered around how it opened and with what program-- I will spare the details, but I think it has something to do with some sort of file and\or memory corruptions on my system. I opened it manually and it worked! I was so relieved. :cheesy:

The reason I am posting this is to encouarage other Python programmers to try Dr. Python if they have not yet. Dr. Python is:

• efficient and stable
• has …

[IMG]http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g31/reranger/diefenbacherM.jpg[/IMG]

I've already posted on this thread but had to put this picture up; I came across it online accidently the other night. This dates back about 3-years when I was working for the Republican Party while living in Texas. Funny. :lol: I do like my hair short, faded-- miltary cut-- but my GF will not hear of it. She wants my hair long. I like long hair, very much actually, but it is a hassle at times to deal with.

sharky_machine

:cheesy: That's great!

The new "Look" for 2007

[IMG]http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g31/reranger/crochetvests_small.jpg[/IMG]

**Note: This is probably not Kosher

[IMG]http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g31/reranger/39-1.jpg[/IMG]

What they want you to do is take the CPU's pipeline into consideration when writing the code. On the newer x86 CPU (486 onward) you can get significant speed boosts by ordering stuff so stages of the pipeline don't stall wiating for other stage results.

ex.

xor cx,cx
mov something, cx
mov di, whatever
mov ax,[di]

The load of DI and its use in the next instruction are in close proximity and can cause a stall. The code will work, it'll just be somewhat slower than something like this:

mov di, whatever
xor cx,cx
mov something, cx
mov ax,[di]

Where the CX ops were something that had to happen anyway and interposing them between the DI load and usage doesn't have any effect on the semantics of the code.

Another thing is with flag setting and usage. Newer CPU's have branch prediction logic that will try to prefetch cache lines of the most likely path to be taken. If you give the pipeline some warning about the conditions of a conditional branch that branch can happen faster.

ex.

mov cx,1234
mov dx,4567
add ax,something
jnz someplace

The setting of ZF happening right before the jump doesn't give the branch prediction much help. If you could interpose some other instructions between the setting of ZF and its usage the branch predictor can do a better job. NAturally, those instructions had better not be ones that whack ZF -- like the MOV's.

add …

I'm using IMG code and pointing it at my picture too (you can see qhat I did when you quoted me)....

I guess you need to tell me what you did differently than me rather than just what you did. IFAIK I did exactly the same thing.

I apologize for not explaining what I did clearly. I do not know if this will make a difference in your problem, but:

• I upload an image to PhotoBucket
• I copy the IMG code
• I paste it directly onto this form (I do not paste it via the "Insert Image" button above ^)

I do not see why my method works and using the the Image Insert button does not. Perhaps it does have to do with hotlinking with the host service you are using (although I suspect not).

Hope this helps.

sharky_machine

[IMG]http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g31/reranger/blowInFace.jpg[/IMG]

To Tame a Land

He is the king of all the land
In the Kingdom of the sands
Of a time tomorrow.

He rules the sandworms and the Fremen
In a land amongst the stars
Of an age tomorrow.

He is destined to be a King
He rules over everything
On the land called planet Dune.

Bodywater is your life
And without it you would die
On the desert the planet Dune.

Without a stillsuit you would fry
On the sands so hot and dry
In a world called Arrakis.

It is a land that's rich in spice
The sandriders and the "mice"
That they call the "Muad'Dib".

He is the Kwizatz Haderach.
He is born of Caladan
And will take the Gom Jabbar.

He has the power to foresee
Or to look into the past
He is the ruler of the stars

The time will come for him
to lay claim his crown,
And then the foe yes
they'll be cut down,
You'll see he'll be the
best that there's been,
Messiah supreme
true leader of men,
And when the time
for judgement's at hand
Don't fret he's strong
and he'll make a stand,
Against evil and fire
That spreads through the land,
He has the power
to make …

he's related to crows and magpies, attracted to shiny stuff :)

LOL ;)

Tried that... Didn't work...

One more try:
[IMG]http://wpattinson.com/puppy.jpg[/IMG]
Nope--- no such luck!

OK, just click this then -- darn it!
http://wpattinson.com/puppy.jpg

WaltP:

I am using the IMG code (not URL) and the PhotoBucket service for hosting, then I paste it in Daniweb editor. It has worked great each time.

Regards,
Matty D.

[IMG]http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g31/reranger/drugGrandpaUp.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g31/reranger/01005haa.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g31/reranger/80SHAIRFAMILY.jpg[/IMG]

Oh well, mine is Mercury and for the obvious reasons...;)

What are the "obvious" reasons?

What is your favorite planet and why?

Mine is Pluto. Yes, Pluto-- it shall always be a planet to me. As a child I was most fascinated by Pluto picturing it as purple-blue-black moon covered in all the debris from the Big Bang: Gold, Carbon, Silver, Boron, Neon all trapped in its thick ice surface.

Pluto stand as a sentinel at the edge of our solar system watching over the rotation and movement of the inner regions; silent, dark, and alone. Long live Pluto!

WikiPedia: Planets

[IMG]http://www.ferland.org/Ast191/pluto.jpg[/IMG]

I thought it would be interesting to see what people can't type or atleast make mistakes on. I know I make mistakes when ever I have to press the (') key and when I have to type unfortunately. I also make mistakes on "color" because in the UK it is spelt colour but because I post on this forum it often becomes luck of the draw which one I actually type.

What can't you type?

"interesting". This becomes:

• interseting
• intersesting
• intersting
• interestinmg

I seem to get lost in the key regions of "r", "s", "e", "t" :confused: or, rather, "r", "e", "s", "t" :lol: And I ask myself: "Matty, what are you writing that includes the word 'interesting' so often that makes this such a memorable issue?" This I cannot answer but it is the only word that sticks out to me and the moment. Very interseting.

Some beautiful, Hi-res pics... (#6 is especially nice)

http://www.i-am-bored.com/bored_link.cfm?link_id=21368

I am in the end part of a Python Gui game build; it is going quite well but I am finding that I underestimated one area of the logic, incorrectly coding it: The game is blackjack.

One area that, although it seemed simple on the surface (and in fact it probably is not as difficult as I am making it) is to monitor Aces that may be in one hand of the game. I will not go into the details of the game of blackjack but I will explain the basics concerning Aces.

• They have a value of "1" by default
• Aces can be played as either as "1" or "11" depending on which suits the player better without going over "21"-- that is, they can and do switch value from each card dealt depending on the other cards

I am writing code that first determines if a card is specifically an Ace. I then need to have the program decide whether or not to make the Ace a "1" or an "11". This is simple when dealing with one Ace but if you have more than one Ace it gets trickier. You must, of course, determine how many Aces you have and what their value should be depending on every other card. At this point, I check for an Ace after each new card is dealt then I try to determine its proper value, whatever creates the best hand without going over 21.

I …

The thing you have to learn is that there is always a way to get free WiFi, if you're willing to try hard enough.

http://www.oreillynet.com/cs/weblog/view/wlg/448

Yes, I have made one of those and it works quite well in my area. There are many wireless connections that are for the most part open and easy to jump onto right from my couch.

I have only used it during a period of about a week awhile ago when I was waiting for my DSL service to finally kick on (the DSL was purchased, set up, etc, but the company was having some "issues" as they told me and I was not going to wait one+ week for Net service)

It's a nice back-up to have for emergencies. ;)

Regards,
sharky_machine

http://www.i-am-bored.com/bored_link.cfm?link_id=21351

Global Warming: Myth?

Antartica

Yeah, that must be it...

Yeah, so? Star Wars is fake too, isn't it?
Wrestling is entertainment. Just like Fight Club is. But to be honest, the entertainment value is lost on me, too. ;)

Star Wars, fake too? I'm not honestly sure how to answer that :sad:. I suppose you are correct. ;)

Thank you, Joe. I get really tired of hearing that glogal warming is caused by "over-industrialized nations and their spoiled citizens". It's a proven fact that it is a natural cycle and we have little or nothing to do with it.

And add to that the average yearly temperature has risen a whopping 1.1 degree F (0.6 C) over the last century. Gee, in 600 years the low temp where I live could be -20F! Gee, that's too warm for me!

And, no, even this information is not the last word on the subject, but it does attempt to explain many of the alleged realities we see.

I understand what you are saying. I realize that the geological weather cycles have fluctuated greatly (as has been "proven" and as I would assume to some degree-- weather and it's cycles fluctuate locally, internationally, and over great expanses of time.)

As to global warming being some type of myth or even better yet, a "Liberal scare-tactic" (NOTE: I am far from being a "Liberal"), I am afraid it is not entirely the case. I am not a scientist nor a meteorologist so I am unable to provide volumes of data at the moment. What I have seen is not promising.

"Global Warming"

The extent of the scientific consensus on global warming—that "most of the observed warming over the last 50 years is likely to have been attributable to human activities"

http://www.i-am-bored.com/bored_link.cfm?link_id=21299

It's 3.1.2007... and there's no snow on the ground O_o... Does anyone have any snow, and who is the snow thief? Is it the global warming or is it just random... The newspaper said there hasn't been this little snow in 178 years and I'm starting to get a little scared. Is all the talks about the global warming true! Then shouldn't Finland be a warning exampel to everybody... AND FOR CRISTH SAKE LET THERE BE SOME SNOW HERE!!!!! I want to play hockey!:sad:

I LOVE WINTER, er... I did. It seems to no longer exist as we knew it. Who is the "snow thief"? All the Western over-industrialized nations and their spoiled citizens who must absolutely own at least two cars and drive them both everyday:evil: Mix in over-population and you have a beautiful mess. Wait until the seas begin to rise, or rise even more than they already are doing so at the present moment. Forget about the snow, I suggest you buy a gas-mask and a chem-suit as the future is near and it does not look pretty. :cheesy::cry:

Happy Winter.

sharky_machine

I love cats (my fave animal). This time-lapse film was shot over a period of 10 hours. :)

http://www.i-am-bored.com/bored_link.cfm?link_id=21322

I have just begun reading a PDF on Assembly language. One of the terms it mentioned and encouraged the reader to research further is "pipelining". I looked this up and read a brief description on WikiPedia; a section of the article stated: "In computing, a pipeline is a set of data processing elements connected in series, so that the output of one element is the input of the next one."

I am not completely clear on what "so that the output of one element is the input of the next one." means. Does this refer to a section of data being output from one element then being absorbed by another for further processing\transfer, or is it possibly referring to one pipeline element outputting data then being readied to take in and process new data in an "opposite" direction-- one dataset out, one dataset in?

I would really like to understand this better.

Thank-you in advance.

sharky_machine

Yep, pretty bad... and with a grosssssss ending!!!

The best IMO was in Star Trek's "Trouble with Tribbles" episode.

I still want to know why fight choreographers insist that a swing with fist or sword to the extreme top of the head is an exciting move. Even my grandmother can duck fast enough to avoid it!

Much of what these fight choreographers think is "exciting" is anything but (save if you are a 12-year old boy, perhaps). I wonder the same about American televison wrestling: most people today know it's fake but they still love it. :confused:

Thank-you for all the replies:

This is really encouraging and I cannot wait to begin to study this. I really felt, although I know nothing at this point about Assembly directly, that it would most likely be an important, valid, and a fundamental subject (often overlooked into today's programming industry).

I like to learn for the sake of learning, be it computers\ languages\networking, Philosophy, Human languages (I am semi-fluent in German and am slowly learning Spanish), History (especially WWII and Roman), and the sciences. Everything we learn while alive weaves together into the finest of tapestries, or at least it should\ can with effort and sweat.

Assembly does not seem to be only a fundamental aspect of Computer Science, just another "language" say-- it seems to be one of the bedrocks of Computer Science, therefore, if this is the case, it would seem imperative that one in this deeply techical field surveys the important areas and mines from the correct quarries.

The people on <DANIWEB> are great; I learn so much (I hope I am able to help others in areas too, although, at this point I learn more than I am able to teach).

Thank-you both for the encouragement. I will begin researching and studying Assembly soon and come directly to this forum when I have questions.

Regards,
Matty D.

Hello:

I am a programmer. I work professionally primarily in C, C++. Most personal programming projects I do is in either C++ or Python. I am studying Java and Ruby currently.

My quetion is: How valid do you find Assembly language in a modern sense, professionally or otherwise?

I ask this for a specific reason. I have never studied Assembly; when I went to school for Software Engineering it was not required (as surprising as that may seem). My insticts tell me that I should at least on my own learn the basics of Assembly, code some build projects in it to get a feel for it, etc.

Would it be a wise idea to pursue this, studying and familiarizing myself with Assembly, or would it be a waste of time at this point considering that, at least in my line of work as a programmer, OOP and compilers do all of the lower-level work for me.

Very interested in your honest opinions and I will base my decision on this.

Thank-you in advance,
sharky_machine

Hi!

I don't have to update anything when I disable a button:

from Tkinter import *
 
def disable_it():
    b.configure(text="Disabled", state=DISABLED)
 
root = Tk()
 
b = Button(text="Enabled", command=disable_it)
b.pack()
 
root.mainloop()

I haven't tested it with gif's, maybe there is a difference.

Regards, mawe

Thank-you for your reply. This is a nice, tidy solution. The problem is: command=disable_it. I already have a command loaded into my button code for this particular button (when the user chooses and presses this button a card image is displayed in the GUI). I cannot with Python\ Tkinter, unfortunately, have more than one (1) command in the code. I need to figure out another way to make this same thing happen minus "command". I like your submitted example and I am going to save it in my code snippet library as it seems a nice way to deal with button display issues in the future. I learned something useful today. Thank-you.

Regards,
sharky_machine

We welcome you to <Daniweb> ;)

My current GUI program, in part, will display a button which the user may choose to press (or not, in some cases):

btn1 = Button(root ,bg="Black", text="HIT", image=image01,command=show_image2)
btn1.configure(state=NORMAL,background='red' )
btn1.pack()

This is basic and works fine.

The issue I am having is that after the button is chosen and pressed I would like this button to become disabled; this would require an update of sorts. Logically, as far as I can tell, this would be to use update_idletasks(). I have used this in other areas of the code with animation (the display of GIFs, etc) and it works most excellent. I have tried it along with the above code but it does not disable the button as I wish it to:

btn1.update_idletasks()
btn1 = Button(root ,bg="Black", text="HIT",   image=image01,command=show_image2)
btn1.configure(state=DISABLE,background='red' )
btn1.pack()

The syntax is incorrect and\or I am missing something that should be in there. I have the suspicion that there is more to updating a widget (a button) than there is a GIF but no research or documentation has shown this.

Thank-you for all help in advance.

sharky_machine

I think that this can be applyed in almost all cases - that is, ones of the material world.

Now, I am not saying that a supernatural world exists. But since we have no evidence that it does not exist, we cannot rule out the possibility that a supernatural world might exist. Modern physics says it flat out can't be done. But then again, if the something follows the modern physics laws, it can't be supernatural, can it?

So if such a possibility exists, there is a chance that if such a world existed, we might at some time and place be able to percieve such things, which would be contrary to the logic we have currently. Now, no matter how much evidence was presented to you that a supernatural world existed, if you were to follow your existing logic, you would not believe that these things were happening. It would be foolish to ignore a possibility that could actually change your existing logic.

I'll give you another reason why logic isn't always correct. Think about all the physics laws, such as The Law of Conservation of Energy, and the Law of Conservation of Mass. How did we come across such laws? We of course, first observed objects and their movement in our everyday world. We had to percieve. In fact, all of our logic comes originally from perception. If our logic didn't include these originally, and following the rule given previously, we would never believe that everyday activies were …

His moustache will be much missed amongst comedy dictators the world over.

LOL ;) His moustache was one of his best qualities.

Simply, I need to understand the basics of button binding. I have researched this already and have decided just to ask for instruction.

For example, one of the programs I am building currently will require, at a certain point, user input; I want to be able to know when a button has been pushed. I think I will have to use "<Button-1>" but I am not entirely sure of the rest of the necessary code needed to do so. I do not quite understand the syntax. What I have tried thus far has not worked.

The following is a snip of a button code (no use of binding) from the current Py project:

btn1 = Button(root ,bg="Black", text="HIT",    image=image01,command=show_image2)
btn1.configure(state=NORMAL,background='red' )
btn1.pack()

Any help would be greatly appreciated as it would put me close to finishing my build.

Thank-you.

sharky_machine

I figured it out ;)

But why would someone in California, for example, care about when it turned midnight on the other side of the country? Is there no famous west coast countdown, for example?

Yes, that's true. ;) Well, I guess it has become a tradition; NYC, in many ways, is the Capitol of the World :cheesy: so I imagine even people in Australia, Russia, or London perhaps watch it on cable, possibly.

Every major city probably has their own sort of countdown but not so publicized or followed. When I lived in Texas we would watch it (NYC countdown)a couple of hours before it actually occurred there (in Texas.) It's like we had two New Year's.

sharky_machine

Simply, I need to understand the basics of button binding. I have researched this already and have decided just to ask for instruction.

For example, one of the programs I am building currently will require, at a certain point, user input; I want to be able to know when a button has been pushed. I think I will have to use "<Button-1>" but I am not entirely sure of the rest of the necessary code needed to do so. I do not quite understand the syntax. What I have tried thus far has not worked.

The following is a snip of a button code (no use of binding) from the current Py project:

btn1 = Button(root ,bg="Black", text="HIT",    image=image01,command=show_image2)
btn1.configure(state=NORMAL,background='red' )
btn1.pack()

Any help would be greatly appreciated as it would put me close to finishing my build.

Thank-you.

sharky_machine

Okay ... so I was watching the ball drop at Times Square tonight (don't worry, on television, I'm not crazy enough to commute into the city tonight) and I was wondering just how famous the NYC ball dropping thing is? Do people outside NYC tune into it on tv? Is it on the local news? Does anyone not on the east coast watch the ball drop? I would assume no since it wouldn't exactly correspond to their midnight, so that's pretty silly. Do other states and time zones have their own ball dropping? What does your region / country do to welcome the new year?

As far as the U.S. goes it is the standard New Year's observance, direct feeds from NYC for hours, etc. Everywhere I have ever lived outside of NYC has always had it (Ohio, Texas)-- it is quite common. I grew up with it.

I have never really cared that much about it, though (I find it bit depressing and sentimental so I avoid it). I was debugging code and doing laundry while the ball dropped.;)

Regards,
sharky_machine

To be honest, when perception and logic don't coincide, I know better than to trust perception. Being a magician, I rely on being able to make people's perception fly against logic.

An easy case in point -- look at any optical illusions. If you don't doubt your perceptions, then the picture is illogical, in error, physically impossible. Therefore reality is wrong. You must doubt your perception, or go crazy....

;)

Either that, or I don't perceive the logic of ~S.O.S~'s statement.

Very interesting thoughts. On some levels I agree. Logic is a valuable tool to discern most situations correctly. I do believe there are differences between between external and internal perception(s); I suppose this could be debated also.

Perception can be molded in many ways, some benign, others downright malicious. The only real-time example of perception I can think of or tackle at the moment is:

It is New Year's Eve, 11:00 P.M. I am debugging Python\ Tkinter code:) But, the bloody bugs are hiding and my logic is proving to be unreliable; I have been having obvious problems with my Python compilers (seemingly bad bugs in them too :sad: ) Weird anomalies. Trouble abounds. Where is the trouble truly stemming from? My code\logic, the compiler, my system (missing files, memory errors)? All of the above? Rationally and honestly, I would say it is primarily my own code. :-| :sad: If I was a superstitious person I would hold a digital seance!

So much for my limited …

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V75ybmmoGMs

I simply adore Ian Brown:

F.E.A.R__Ian Brown

For each a road
For everyman a religion
For everybody a rule
Everything and rumble ****
Forget everything and remember
For everything a reason

Forgive everybody and remember

For each a road
For everyman a religion
For everybody a rule
Everything and rumble ****
Forget everything and remember
For evreything a reason

F E A R
F E A R
F E A R
F E A R

Finding eternity arouses reaction
Freeing excellence affects reality
Fallen empires are running
Find earth and reap

Fantastic expectations amazing revelations
Final execution and resurrection
Free expression as revolution
Finding everything and realising

You got the fear
You got the fear
You got the fear
You got the fear
F E A R / you got the fear
F E A R / you got the fear
F E A R / you got the fear
F E A R / you got the fear

Fantastic expectations amazing revelations
Finding everything and realising
Finding each other and rejoicing

You got the fear
You got the fear
You got the fear
You got the fear

This band helped to form the core of my being during High School, 1980's:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ENnQKym0htQ

Glad you mentioned it, otherwise would have taken it for something else...;)

Yeah, quite a few mood swings, maybe I should just stop consuming cocaine..:D

LOL
My mood swings... no drugs required ;)