CompSci 4Starting AliceSept 6, 2005Prof. Susan RodgerAlice is named in honor of Lewis Carroll’s Alice in WonderlandNote: Thanks to Wanda Dann and Steve Cooper for slide ideasAnnouncements• If you missed class Thursday, see me right after today’s class• Reading quiz – announced by email, must be completed before next class• Due Thursday – on your web page– Assignment 2– Classwork from Sept. 1• HELP – How do I get help? Prof, TA, UTAsAlice Software – is free!• In your book or download from webwww.alice.org• Laptop cart– Put back in correct slot with number showing– Plug it in!How this class will work•In class– Lecture/Demos – Work in assigned pairs – create new folder to work in for each class period– Checkoffs – show work to TA/UTA/Prof• Outside of class– Finish work done in class in pairs or singly– Reading before coming to class– Reading Quizzes– Assignments – individual work unless statedWhat Is Alice? • A modern programming tool• 3-D objects – automatically keeps track of– Which objects are in virtual world– Types of objects– Positions of objects in the world• Animation– Objects can be made to move in world• Written in Java – runs on PC only for nowMemory Management• Alice automatically manages memory• Crashes can occur– Writing and testing an animation is an intense load on a computer• SOLUTION– Save your world every 15 minutes• Alice will remind you!– Save a backup copy, maybe on another systemObject Position• Objects– Are positioned in 3D space– Have six degrees of freedomGalleries of 3D Objects• Sources of 3D objects– Local gallery – comes with Alice– Alice web galleryTypes of Animations• In Appendix A – viewed two kinds of animations– Movie• User “watches” animation• “machine-centric”– Interactive• User “participates” – clicks mouse, types a key• “user-centric”Events• Animations that are “interactive” depend on user’s actions– Mouse click– Keypress– Others (HeadMountedDevice, etc.)• Actions are “events”• Interactive programs are “event-driven”Interactivity in Alice• No interaction –Octopus Ride – movie• Animation with interaction –Ice Skater– What are the events?– What response does the skater make to each event?Objects• What is an object?– Can be identified as unique from other things• How is an object unique?– Has a name– Has properties• Width, height, color, location, age, ss#, id#– Has a purpose• Associated actions it can perform• Tasks it can carry outClass• Objects are categorized into classes• Each object is an “instance” of the class• All objects in a class – Have similar properties– Generally can perform the same tasksObjects in a Virtual World• In Alice, each 3D model is a class of objects– chicken, chicken2, chicken3– Has colors• red, white, blue, grey, black, …Object Parts• Objects may be composed of partsCenter• At the center of mass• Where it stands on the ground• Where it is heldToday’s Classwork• Create a folder to work in each class period– My Documents => compsci4 => sep0605• Finish Appendix A – Part 1 and Part 2– Get checked off• Exercises 1, 2, and 3 on page 18– Get checked off• Copy work over to Duke accountToday’s Class• Assigned groups• Copy files for today from CompSci 4 web• Classwork– Appendix A – Part 1– Appendix A – Part 2– Problems in Chapter 1• Get Checked off when finished• For today only, you do not need to complete your work outside of class if you do not finish• Do copy your work to Duke account, put in folder public_html/compsci4, new folder
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