March 2011
14 posts
5 tags
Native-ish iOS Wheelpicker in Corona (Works Great)
While we’re waiting for “Corona UI” to come out, I put together a script that uses web popups and a script from Cubiq.org to create a very native looking/feeling iOS control.
What?? Web popups? Javascript? Wheelpicker?
It sounds strange, I know, but check it out for yourself here.
Even if you’re not interested in a native-ish wheelpicker ui control for Corona, you can...
4 tags
Our Next Game...
While it’s too early to reveal the name, this post will serve as the first “dev diary” entry for our upcoming Beebe Games title.
As you can see in the (somewhat tiny) screenshot, the game bares a resemblance to other games that use the PlanetCute Graphics Set—such as Base 2’s Walkabout—but we are actually not using Danc’s popular graphics set for this...
5 tags
Idea: Use Corona's Simulator for Internal Tools
Until Corona SDK includes support for native desktop apps, something you might consider is creating “simulator apps” to serve as internal software tools for your Corona projects.
For example, for our next game, I created a simple tile-engine and each of the levels will be read from an external map file in a format that I created specifically for this upcoming game.
It would be very...
5 tags
Skyrocketing Your Game's Visibility
Whether you’re developing games for iOS, Android, or some other platform, it’s going to be pretty easy for your app to get lost in the vast sea that grows at an alarming rate each and every day.
If you don’t want your app to drown, however, you’re going to have to take an active role in getting the word out. Nobody believes in your game better than you do—so the...
5 tags
TexturePacker Review: Absolutely Essential...
After releasing five games in the iOS App Store, it’s hard for me to imagine just how I got along without using Corona’s built-in spritesheet support… that is, once I discovered TexturePacker by code’n’web.
When I worked on our original title, Doodle Dash (now Tilt Monster), I started coding the game with spritesheets, but I was running into some significant...
1 tag
I'm Blogging for iDevBlogADay on March 22nd
The article will be published here, but linked to from the iDevBlogADay website. Lots of high quality stuff there, so looks like I’ve gotta come up with a good article :-)
UPDATE: Not just on the 22nd, but every two weeks starting on the 22nd.
4 tags
Forward Referencing Will Save You
When I first started using the Corona SDK and programming with Lua, one of the things that got to me was the structure of the Lua files, and the goal of keeping everything local.
I understood the benefits of using local variables and functions over globals, but putting everything into practice often felt like I was putting together a complex puzzle just trying to keep things local.
This was...
3 tags
Calling All Corona SDK Bloggers!
I subscribe to quite a few mobile development feeds, and they are interesting, but much of the content (especially the “hands on” stuff) doesn’t apply to me as a Corona developer.
So right now, I’m reaching out to all Corona SDK developers who are also bloggers to please shoot me over a tweet with a link to your website!
My twitter handle is @beebegames.
I’m...
7 tags
Biffy's Latest Graphics Inspiration →
Danc from Lost Garden released a free set of prototyping graphics in 2007 that he dubbed “PlanetCute” that I’ve actually seen in quite a few iOS and flash games since then.
Well, Biffy and I came across those graphics quite a while ago, and they have since become her latest inspiration.
For our next game, Biffy will be creating (from scratch) graphics that closely resemble...
4 tags
Group Cleaning Script Updated to 1.1 →
When it comes to removing display objects, the best practices include:
Remove any associated event listeners from the object.
Call removeSelf() on the display object.
Set the display object’s variable to nil.
In the latest iteration of cleangroup.lua (1.1), as a “backup defense”, I added a check for any touch listeners to display objects before they are removed. You should...
5 tags
Proper Group Cleaning in Corona (Script Download)
The other day I was browsing the Corona forums to see if I could help anyone out who hadn’t already been helped, and I stumbled upon a thread where a particular member was confused as to why all of the children display objects in a group weren’t being removed when removeSelf() was being called on the parent group.
I replied and told them that all of the children display objects are...
3 tags
GameSalad's New CEO Seems to be Mistaken →
In his recent letter to the GameSalad community, new CEO states:
My favorite GameSalad game has to be Secret of Grisly Manor…
But… I think someone should let him know that Secret of Grisly Manor, in it’s current-and-awesome iteration … is actually made using Corona.
Someone should really let him know that…
Lol.
5 tags
First Corona SDK Developer Kitchen on March 23rd →
Everyone’s invited to the Ansca Offices to talk about your Corona SDK apps, issues, etc. in person. I highly encourage anyone who can to try to attend.
Biffy and I will be there, so if you feel so inclined, you can shoot any questions our way as well. See you there!
Event details: Wednesday, March 23, 2011 (5:30-7:00pm PST) @ Ansca Offices (1900 Embarcadero Rd. #207, Palo Alto, CA)
6 tags
Apple iPad 2: It's Almost Unfair
So…
It’s thinner than probably anything else that’ll be released anytime soon.
It’s going to be blazing fast—and if anything else comes out this year that’s faster, is it even going to be noticeable from a consumer’s standpoint?
It has an eco-system and marketplace that’s better than anything else out there.
It comes in white and black…...
