Chris Cowherd

If you have a sec, this is a pretty good blonde joke and is a quick read.

This was a response by Joe P. on the Casual Games mailing list to a query on “How many hours does a programmer need…”

Joe really hit the nail on the head with his response:

Crash course in programmer wrangling;

- Accuracy of time estimates is proportional to developer experience. Even
(especially?) highly skilled programmers with only a few years of
development work under their belts will see every problem as simpler than it
really is and wildly underestimate the time required.

- Productive time at programming (time spent adding useful code) comes in
bursts while in a state sometimes referred to as ‘flow’. From the point of
a cold start or starting again after being interrupted for a conversation or
something of only a couple minutes, time to flow is 15-45 minutes depending
upon the complexity of the problem. This means that length of blocks of
time available and environmental distractions or lack there of can have a
dramatic effect on actual productivity without actually affecting the hours
spent.

- As the number of programmers on a project goes up the amount of time spent
keeping in synch climbs logarithmically. This introduces a hard limit on
the number of programmers that can work effectively as a unit of 6-10. I
will assume though that you won’t be able to muster more than about 3, at
that count they shouldn’t be getting in each others way enough that they’d
be less efficient than 2, but even at that low number it will depend on how
well (frequency and quality) they can communicate and how experienced they
are working in a team.

- Many lesser programmers are very proprietary about their code, and when
other developers make changes or additions to it they get territorial. This
is a clear sign of a ‘B’ or ‘C’ class player but you won’t know about it til
possibly too late.

- Your best path to efficiency and knowing how much trouble you are in as
early as possible is to use the Sprint/Scrum method of scheduling and
working. I highly recommend you google on those expressions and read up on
it. In a nutshell the programmers agree on a set of functional code that
can be produced in 1 calendar month, they talk very briefly each day about
their progress the last 24 hours, what they expect to accomplish the next 24
hours, and any obstacles that are in their way. They also estimate how much
of their month goal they have completed and have remaining. It becomes
obvious quickly if people are estimating poorly, and cutting the project
into 1-month chunks allows you to change direction rapidly if conditions
warrant. This is a baseline ‘agile’ coding methodology everyone should be
aware of.

- The level of ability of programmers varies dramatically. This phenomenon
is sometimes described at the high end as 10x programmers, i.e. the most
effective programmers are 10 times as effective as everyone else.
Unfortunately this is not only generally true, but the 10x programmers are
at least 10x as rare as everyone else.

Well done is better than well said.

Benjamin Franklin

I’ve created an ActiveX control to embed the 3Impact 3D game engine into Internet Explorer. I’ve wanted to do this for a while and finally whacked it out Thursday morning at Starbucks. I used to work full time at Microsoft on the Internet Explorer team and also have quite a bit of COM/ActiveX experience so it wasn’t all that difficult.

I’ve taken the 3Impact game engine and created an ActiveX control that will allow you to play 3D games in your browser.

The plan is to not only embed the engine but to also allow you to use browser JavaScript to control the engine and create and control game entities. For simple games, you should be able to do the whole thing in JavaScript as long as your logic isn’t to heavy. The Microsoft JScript engine used by Internet Explorer is really fast, especially when you compare it to Spider Monkey used by FireFox. Not dinging FireFox mind you, just the script engine speed differences are pretty substantial.

My goal is to have all the original game engine demos running over the web.

All of the assets like 3D models, textures, sound, music and code will be streamed into the ActiveX control over the web via HTTP. The game code will be able to interact with the JavaScript engine and the browser so you can do things like keep score in the HTML document or interact with a Flash movie.

I was getting almost 70 frames per second when I shot the video but it appears Windows Media Encoder chokes when recording a DirectX window so the video looks pretty chunky. It also only seemed to capture it in 256 colors. Oh well, you get the point. In person, the demo runs buttery smooth and is gorgeous!

I’ve had a hell of a time getting this video to show up. Sometimes it works for me and I think I’ve nailed it and sometimes it doesn’t. UGH! If it doesn’t show up for you, try downloading the wmv version.

Also, I should note that if you want to make a game that will run in this control, you will have to purchase a license for 3Impact.

A Crazy Idea

I think it was a Thursday afternoon late in February when my cell phone rang. It was Carol and she had an idea. Nothing unusual for Carol but what I typically expect is a request to go to an early dinner or perhaps a plan to head out to Port Angeles to my parent’s summer house. No this was a big idea.

“Let’s take Holly to Disneyland for her birthday” she exclaims. Short pause. This was very last minute. Her plan was to take Holly to Disneyland for her 10th birthday which was only about a week away. I didn’t have to think about it very long. I thought it would be an unforgettable birthday trip that none of us would forget. If she could pull out her magic wand and make it magically happen on such short notice I thought it was a great idea.

She called back a few minutes later with the plan. It wasn’t quite as cheap as she had hoped as Kelly is too old and doesn’t fall under the “kids fly and play free” deal that you see on TV. The ad on TV is also for an off-site hotel. I had no problem with the higher price tag since I wouldn’t even consider staying anywhere but the Grand Californian. We stayed there on our trip last year and was so impressed with the experience that it was a no-brainer. More on the hotel later.

We were scheduled to depart around 6:30 AM on the 5th of March. We didn’t want to tell the kids where we were going until the last minute to make it a surprise. Carol had an idea to tell them that my parents got a high water bill and were worried that a water line had broken or a toilet was running so we had to take a very early trip to Port Angeles to check out the house. It was a great excuse to get them up really early on Sunday so we could catch the first ferry over.

We were headed to the airport shortly after 5:00AM. The kids finally asked where we were going once we entered the airport parking lot. I think Kelly asked first, “Where are we going?” “Let’s go to Disneyland.” Carol responded. Pause. “Seriously, where are we going?” I think it was by the time we actually parked and got out of the car that it finally sunk in.

We were the last ones to get on the plane and we noticed that first class was hardly full. The kids are always asking us to fly first class so Carol asked about upgrading. We had to use 10,000 frequent flyer miles each to upgrade but since it was a such a special trip we took the opportunity to go ahead and upgrade. If there was a down side, it had to be the jabber mouth A.D.D. kid in the seat in front of us. It was not only his first trip to Disneyland but also his first plane ride. I’ll tell you what, he just could not hold still or stop talking. If he doesn’t stop talking so much he’s gonna get his tongue sunburned. He jumped from seat to seat running his mouth exclaiming about all the different things he could see and wondering what everyone was doing in coach; running back and forth between the sections.

Regardless I’m glad we upgraded because Carol and I had not gone to sleep yet. Carol was up the whole night packing and we barley got out the door in time! About 45 minutes into the flight, after eating a pretty decent breakfast of spicy sausage and egg quesadilla, Carol and I were out cold. It was nice having the extra room and it was a bit quieter up in front of the roaring engines. A couple of other benefits the kids noticed were the exclusive use of the first class restroom up front and also the fact that you get off the plane first. It was really a great start to the vacation.

We flew into John Wayne airport, which I would recommend if you are going to Disneyland. It is the closest airport to the park and you don’t waste a lot of travel time which leaves more time at the park! Carol had already pre-paid for a ride on the Super Shuttle to take us to the hotel.

Disney’s Grand Californian

The Disney Grand Californian hotel is meticulously designed in the classic California Arts and Crafts style. From the mammoth stone surrounds on the lobby fireplace to the enormous timber framing, the place really pulls off the look accurately for a commercial building. Accurate textiles, furniture and beautiful lighting throughout round out the experience. It is truly a gorgeous hotel.

To top it off, the hotel is meticulously clean. Considering the sheer number of people that must pass through that place, it is amazingly clean. You can hardly walk through the place without seeing the staff, dressed in period uniforms, cleaning, scrubbing and dusting every inch of space. It might sound silly but my biggest surprise was how clean the carpet was in the room. How many times have you been able to walk around in a very busy hotel room with only white socks on and not have them turn black on the bottom?

Our fourth floor room was very nice and overlooked the Downtown Disney area and was directly above the huge Disney store. With the balcony doors open you got a very pleasant cool breeze flowing through the room and you could hear the music from the shopping area down below. From the balcony you could also see the fireworks show they have on weekends.

There are two restaurants at the hotel: the Storyteller’s Cafe and the Napa Rose. Storyteller’s is a family style buffet with menu items available and the Napa Rose is more of a fine dining restaurant and lounge. We ate at both and they are a far better dining experience than anything you will find in the park. In summary, if you are in the park, stick to the turkey legs and churros and go to a decent restaurant back at the Grand Californian or Downtown Disney. Granted there are a couple of decent places to eat in the park they are not as good as the hotel or downtown restaurants.

Carol and I had planned on eating at the Napa Rose Monday evening. We had reservations at 8:30PM and by that time the restaurant was not too busy. The last time we had eaten there we had an excellent experience so we were both looking forward to it. We were not let down. Carol and I enjoy fine dining and the Napa Rose is surely one of our favorites. If you can swing it, you will have one of the best dining experiences. The food is absolutely delicious, highest levels of service and one of the biggest selections of California wines to choose from. To me, the Napa Rose is priced fairly considering the quality and flavor of the food and service. Our bill came to about $250 including drinks, appetizer, salads, meal and desserts.

The Storyteller’s Cafe seems to always have a buffet going as well as a regular, but short menu. I’m not much for buffets but it looks pretty good. We opted for some items off the menu though. We were there for breakfast on the morning of Holly’s birthday. The kids and I opted for the banana stuffed French Toast, orange juice and a cup of coffee. Carol ordered the Mickey shaped Belgian waffles. Everything was very tasty and well made. The bill came up to around $75 with tip.

There is also a very nice gift shop in the hotel as well. I would argue that it has the best quality items for purchase in the whole resort. We spent a lot of frustrating time looking for souvenirs and gifts for ourselves and others but there was surprisingly little that was interesting to us in the entire park. The stores in the park frankly have a bunch of crap. It must be marketed for someone else because we really didn’t find anything unique that you couldn’t buy at home. in contrast, the hotel gift shop had some truly unique items and actually reasonably priced! Be sure to check it out.

California Adventure Park

We spent our first day and last day at the California Adventure Park. This is the newest park at the Disneyland resort. It is directly connected to the Grand Californian Hotel so getting to the park is very quick. They have a private entrance for hotel guests which is one of the perks for staying there.

We arrived a bit before regular check-in time so our room was not ready. We left our bags with bell services and sat by the gorgeous fireplace for a few moments to get our stuff together. Then we headed into the park.

California Adventure is themed around everything California. They have great up beat music going all the time, all related to California that really gets you into the spirit. From the private hotel entrance you first see a water flume raft ride beautifully themed to camping and white water rafting. The backdrop is a huge waterfall over large boulders with running water everywhere. Out front is a shop and the queuing area all built out of what looks like recycled lumber which pulls off the whole cabin look.

The Disneyland parks have a Fast-Pass system where you can walk up and get a “reservation” for a ride. You simply get a ticket with a time range on it. If you come back to the ride within the time range you get to go nearly to the front of the line and avoid almost all of the waiting. You can hold only one Fast-Pass at a time. We found the best thing to do is get a Fast-Pass for a ride then go ride some other rides or eat while you are waiting. When it is within the time indicated, go grab another Fast-Pass at another attraction because you can burn up some of the time on the next Fast-Pass while riding the first one. Rinse and repeat.

Our first Fast-Pass was for Mulhulland Madness which is a smaller roller coaster with very sharp non-banked turns which is a bit unnerving for me. There is just something about whipping through a tight 90 degree turn with no bank five stories up that makes me nervous! Anyway, it is really fun and the kids love it too.

While we waited for the Fast-Pass to mature, we rode the Orange Stinger. It is a tilting swing ride that is set inside of a giant orange. Following that we took a ride on the Jumping Jelly fish and the Golden Zepher. Both are little kid rides but do a good job at killing some time.

After finally riding Mulhulland Madness we grabbed a Fast-Pass for the California Screaming roller coaster. This is the largest roller coaster at either of the two Disneyland parks and is really a blast. You get launched from straight and level by a magnetic propulsion system from 0 to 55 in 4 seconds. That’s pretty fast. From there you immediately shoot up and over a hill which is probably my favorite part of the ride. From there it continues with a nice mix of hills and banks. The climax of the ride is a loop that goes through the middle of the giant Mikey Mouse head logo. At the end there are 3 small hills and a left turn. Be ready because you’ll get your picture taken during the turn!

Afterwards we stopped at the Corn dog Castle right next door to the ride. I chuckle thinking about it now but this place serves the biggest corn dogs I’ve ever seen! They are about $3.25 and include a small bag of Lay’s potatoe chips. They had to be a full 2 inches in diameter, about like a raquet ball and a foot long. What’s funny is they put them on a standard corn dog that is pathetically small and could never support the weight of the beast. You have to peel the wrapper and eat it like a banana. Anyone who attempted to hold it by the stick soon lost it to the birds when it hit the ground. If you get one of these beasts, your best off splitting it, especially if you are going to ride any rides afterward!

After a few more rides we headed back to the hotel. As I mentioned, the Grand Californian is directly connected to California Adventure so it is incredibly convenient to pop back to the hotel. We freshened up and went to poke around Downtown Disney.

Downtown Disney

Downtown Disney is an outdoor mall area with some pretty nice stores. Several of them are ones that you would see in any large metropolitain mall but there are some unique ones there as well. We stopped at a stand called the Pearl Factory. This was pretty unique in that they have small tubs of oysters all of which have pearls inside. You can choose a piece of jewelry then go grab some tongs and pick an oyster. They basically take the pearl inside and mount it to the setting you choose. You have to be happy with whatever color pearl comes out but they are all really nice. Carol and Kelly stayed at the Pearl Factory for a while trying to choose something for Kelly and Holly and I headed over to the Lego store.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen a stand-alone Lego store before. The whole store is Lego toys. They have giant models of animals, movie characters, buildings etc all made out of real Legos. Holly shopped around for a while and decided to get a fill-your-own bucket where you pay a fixed price and you can fill the bucket with whatever kind of Legos you want.

The first evening we ate over at the Jazz Kitchen in Downtown Disney. We had called ahead and made reservations for that evening which I would highly recommend! I would definitely recommend eating there. We were seated in the main dining room where they have live jazz music. The jazz band consisted of three guys: a drummer, bass player and a pianist named Billy Mitchel. The piano was completely covered in shiney colorful Mardi Gras beads the matched the festive environment. We had a great time and a lot of it was the great job the band did to liven up the atmosphere. When I asked Carol if she had some cash to tip the band when we left, she suggested we buy their CD as a form of tip. It’s a pretty good album although not quite what they played that evening. Regardless it makes a nice souvenier.

Carol had Angus medalions, I had a carmelized pork tenderloin, Kelly had a coconut shrimp and Holly had corn flake chicken strips and mac-n-cheese. For a very special dessert, we ordered two souffles. These required a 20 minute preperation time but it was well worth the wait.

Afterward at about 8:00PM, Carol and Kelly wanted to continue shopping for a bit and Holly really wanted to go ride California Screamin’ again. We decided to split up and I would take Holly back into the park and then meet back up in the room to watch the fireworks from the balcony.

When Holly and I arrived back at the coaster, we were pleasantly surprised to see that there was practically no line for the ride! Coasters leave every 30 seconds or so and that’s about the longest we had to wait. Holly wanted to ride again and again. Since we were there for her birthday I agreed. Round and round we went. Again and again… piture after picture. We ended up riding seven times in a row, all the way up until the last second before the fireworks were going to start. We were on our last ride and we got a pretty good view of the show from the tops of this hills on the ride. When the ride was over we ran all the way back to the room. The fireworks show was over by the time we got there but we were able to see most of it from the ride and on the paths back to the room.

Disneyland Park

On Monday, we decided to sleep in since we were still behind. We slept until about 10:30! We ordered room service for breakfast and took our time getting ready. We finally headed out to the park around 1:00PM!

We decided to spend the day over in the Disneyland park and what a day it was. The weather was overcast and cool but nice. Particularly pleasant was the fact that there were literally no lines or very short ones on any ride! The park was ours!

We started on the left side over in Adventure Land. Carol had never ridden the Indianna Jones ride and there was only a 15 minute wait so that’s where we started. It felt like it took 15 minutes just to run through the queuing system! We pretty much got right onto the ride.

We followed that with adventures on Spash Mountain and then the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh ride. Splash Mountain is always a favorite. Holly sat up front as usual and whhheeeeeeee! She got particularly wet this time! Walking around the park we kept telling her she was walking like she went to the bathroom in her pants. I guess being that wet it probably felt like it!

We were very disappointed to find out that both Pirates of the Carabbean AND the Haunted Mansion were CLOSED!! Two of Carol’s favories were closed. UGH! Disneyland doesn’t feel complete without Pirates of the Carabbean or Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride. Well, lets head on over to Frontier Land and ride Big Thunder.

Big Thunder Railroad was closed the last time we came so this was new for Kelly and Holly. They loved it of course and Holly proclaimed that it was her second favorite ride next to California Screamin’.

Next door at Fantasy Land we rode some of the usual suspects: Snow White’s Scary Adventures, Pinocchio’s Daring Journey and the King Arthur’s Carousel. One of my very favorite rides in this area is Peter Pan’s Flight. What makes this one different is rather than driving around in an electric cart with painted plywood swinging around you climb into a flying pirate’s ship suspended from above and fly over moonlit London while getting a first-hand look at Peter Pan’s adventure. I just found on the Disneyland website that the Peter Pan’s Flight ride is one of the original rides from 1955. Be sure to try this one out. Of course a visit to Fantasy Land isn’t complete without a ride on Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride but unfortunately it had closed temporarily for some reason. They said it would be open later today so we decided to keep going and head over to the Matterhorn Bobsleds.

Just past the Matterhorn is where the old 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea ride used to be. It was open the first time we came before Holly was born but it is closed for good. Apparantly it’s going to become a Finding Nemo ride of some kind. In the back of the Autopia shop is a hole in the tarp I was able to peek my head through. It is definitely under a lot of construction. I’m sure it will be fun but the nostalgia of the old sub ride will truly be missed.

Be sure to grab a Fast-Pass for Autopia if you plan to ride. Even with a Fast-Pass you will have to wait in line for 15 minutes. I think Disney needs to rethink that one. Since we were in the area we did a tour of Tomorrow Land.

Space Mountain was getting reworked last time we came but was open this time. Wow! What a great ride that is! It’s a coaster that runs through the dark with the exception of lots of lights being projected on all the walls and beams of the ride. It gives you a pretty nice space experience. All of the cars have built in speakers and the play some cool space-themed rock music while your riding.

Any of the new rides or newly retro-fitted rides will most likely take your picture. Disney gets a real benefit of increasing your burn rate but you get a great souvenier.

The Blue Bayou is not bad but fairly pricy for the quality of the food. At least you can get a view of the Pirates of the Carabbean ride. The turkey legs and churros are actually quite good and you can eat them on the go.

>>> Fast Forward >>> I’ve had this post in my Drafts folder for months. I had a lot more I wanted to post but I don’t think I’m going to finish it so I’m posting it as-is.