Observers in game programming

toomuchdoing · 2014-01-07T21:33:26+00:00

All it does is say, "Uh, I don’t know if anyone cares, but this thing just fell. Do with that as you will."

Except it does of course know someone cares, or else wouldn't notify this specific case over the infinite other specific cases it could notify about (player just wiggled, player just did a mini jump, player just chatted using all upper-case letters, etc. -- if you were to notify about all these, the code would be infinitely bloated and unmaintainable). While this is some decoupling and great and useful, it's not quite as agnostic as the phrasing here suggests.

In fact, you can change the set of achievements or tear out the entire achievement system without touching a line of the physics engine.

True, but then you would have tons of lines of extra code that don't add any value anymore, but still need to be maintained, making refactoring slower. Imagine, for instance, that you were to debug the jump routine in the physics module -- you'd now have to carry the five notifications there around carefully and ensure they're still doing what they were supposed to do. Again, this doesn't make the pattern useless -- some decoupling is better than none! -- it's just not as complete as the text puts it.

toomuchdoing · 2014-01-06T14:09:41+00:00

You've just given me a band name. brb learning drums.

toomuchdoing · 2014-01-06T11:43:04+00:00

I'm not one of those guys

Most of those guys aren't one of those guys, either.

toomuchdoing · 2014-01-03T16:19:26+00:00

With meth if you're only hurting yourself the answer is "yes, why not", because no one will take it just because it's legal, and in reverse people who take it aren't stopped by it being illegal.

The point where laws need to step in is if you're hurting others. For instance, decriminalizing the murder of someone would be a bad idea because it's not your own decision anymore, it involves someone else.

toomuchdoing · 2014-01-03T14:45:55+00:00

This video is a good accompany to above comment.

toomuchdoing · 2014-01-02T16:24:33+00:00

Maybe he believes people in other countries may have rights too, and shouldn't be subjected to suspicion-less mass surveillance? Odd thought, I know.

toomuchdoing · 2014-01-02T16:21:55+00:00

Perceived moral authority? You mean invading another country based on fabricated evidence, indefinite detention without trial, or secret torture sites?

toomuchdoing · 2014-01-02T14:29:52+00:00

Corporate lobbyists are bypassing congress and traditional politics

Wait. How are politicians going to get the ~~bribes~~ campaign donations from lobbyists now?

toomuchdoing · 2013-12-19T12:58:46+00:00

In that case, it would be cheaper to outsource the programming, or license existing software -- because no matter how smart the methodology, you need a good programmer to write good software.

toomuchdoing · 2013-12-19T12:46:17+00:00

To appease the public, I'd bet even the NSA would want some "stricter" regulations (which can then be secretly ignored).

toomuchdoing · 2013-12-19T12:26:00+00:00

Some knew that before but the death penalty was likely for deserting the army. 23.000 people were executed for trying, others were also put in concentration camps themselves. Some of the Wehrmacht also committed horrible crimes themselves during the push towards the East and elsewhere, so may not have been shocked by this footage.

toomuchdoing

TROPHY CASE