Sun's Project Wonderland and jMonkeyEngine

Many of you are no doubt familiar with Sun's "Project Wonderland", the "toolkit for creating collaborative 3D virtual worlds" built on Java 3D technology and Sun's Darkstar server platform. Paul Byrne, of Java3D and Project Looking Glass fame recently announced that Project Wonderland will be making a switch from using Java3D to using jMonkeyEngine. Paul cites the support for features such as multipass and render-to-texture as part of the reasoning as well as a rich set of utilities. I'd have to imagine that the lively and very supportive community we have was another potential dealmaker.

I certainly welcome the switch and look forward to the boost in smart technical discussions this will no doubt bring to jME.

Too Funny

Gordon Freeman calls into a radio program... really! Hear it for yourself.

Prince of Blades

An interesting open source game was announced on the jME forums recently. It looks a lot like the old Prince of Persia games from long ago, which is great because I really loved those.


Also included is a nice looking editor which looks like an easy way to make custom levels.


You can get more information and download the source here.

Programming and Joy

I was having one of those introspective, self-examining moments the other day when I realized something fundamental about why I love computer programming. It is actually something that's been true since I started programming as an eight year old (over twenty years ago now... wow.) I think it is also a trait that has made me a valuable teammate me to some but irritated or turned off others.

I have always seen programming as an act of creation and discovery; a way to breathe life into something new and in the afterglow, observe and explore its many intricacies. The process itself ensnares me in its alluring embrace with promises of a journey into territories previously uncharted and mysteries yet unsolved by me. Of course, many of these "mysterious secrets" have been cracked by others far above and beyond my talent, but that does not matter - it is the personal journey that I find compelling, regardless of the footsteps already present in the sand.

Each step along the path often uncovers new surprises and in my resulting excitement I find myself compelled to call out to others to come view and share in the process. The difference of sharing this excitement versus holding it in it is huge to me. Not sharing would be like trying to have a party by yourself. The more participants the greater the shared joy, right? And yet, therein lies my divisive nature as this trait can be viewed by some as bragging or showing off. I have tried to address this negative reaction by curbing my enthusiasm and taking other such steps over the past year. While this has worked to a degree, it has also slowly leeched away the joy from that twenty year love affair I've had with programming.

As my self-reflection drew to a close, I realized that it was more important to keep that joy in my life than it was to be as non-offensive as possible. It was time to let go of that particular concern and embrace those who could share in the experience without feeling threatened or put out. After all, are we not meant to find joy in this life? So, if you are one of those that winces when I type up a new missive or when I come around smiling about my latest coding project, I'm sorry. To the rest of you, let's party!