Avoider Game

avoiderAs part of the lecture, we developed a small JApplet game. I decided to create an avoider.

Rules:

  • don’t toch the wall
  • don’t touch the red circles
  • circles will bounce off the walls and each other
  • circles will grow over time
  • catch the green circle to reduce the size of the circles and gain 3 seconds of shield power
  • the shield will protect you from all threats
  • you have 3 seconds of shield power for an easy start

» Open the game in a new window

» Download the source

I also wrote my own “collision detection” for the game, as there is no intersect method for ovals:
let’s call our circles a and b:
If sqrt((bx-ax)²+(by-ay)²) < (a.radius + b.radius), then a and b are colliding.
The collision is only 1D, without friction etc., so I just swap the velocity-vectors of the circles.

USB Battery Pack

After watching Systm Episode 86, I decided to build the second version of the USB Battery Pack. This is, as David has pointed out, not the best way of charging a USB device, as it simply relies on a 7805 Voltage Regulator. But I had one lying around, so I decided to go with this version.

usbbatterypackaltoid

I used an altoids-maxi-tin, which left me with enough space to fit an iPod cable in as well.

HDD coaster

There are many things you can do with a dead hard drive. A stylish coaster is one of them:

hdd_coaster

Use some double-faced adhesive tape to hold the individual platters in place – that’s it.