What a Java Dabbler!

Yes, I work at Sun Microsystems. Yes, this is a Java shop, in fact WE INVENTED IT. So once in a while I horse around and work out a Java program or two. In particular, I write games to use at our annual New Years Eve party. One past year the theme was GAME SHOWS. We played Jeopardy on the big screen TV, and let me tell ya that was a huge hit with folks! It's definately something worth downloading and playing around with.

Things in the works: I've also been rewriting the original version 1.0.3 of Hack in Java, because, well, I LIKE Hack, and my little dog, too! Nethack just doesn't do it for me. I am creating a trivia box thing for my friend Kieran, like Party Quiz for the old Atari systems if you remember that one.

Fill Or Bust!, a great dice/card game that everyone says they never heard of but love it once they play it! I am often told they've never played anything like it, either. There are a few rules missing that I haven't coded up yet, check the History and TODO files to see the most current state of the game. It is definately playable just as it is right now, so enjoy!

Jeopardy! was the big New Years 2006. It now has the daily double implemented, but the final Jeopardy question you have to ask out loud. Other than that the game plays well. You may not like my questions, but hey, make your own! It's a simple flat ascii file. I now include the info on where I got the Quiz Show device that makes this a real party game!

Hollywood Squares! is the game we be played for New Years 2007. I snapped digital pics of my party goers, dropped them into the image directory, and voila their faces appeared on my 100+ inch projection screen. Everyone loves seeing their face on TV!

Trivia Box is the project I am doing for my bud in Minnesota. It's all done and included is a Notes file that explains specific things for those truly interested. The effort was on a scale of 1 to 10 about a 4, with both software and hardware to build from scratch. If you are really curious, you can see my construction page. This could be a great party game or a handy survey tool for a street fair (sort of how he's using it)

If anyone wants me to build the hardware for them for the fun projects I've discussed on this page, I'd be glad to do it for the cost of components and a little bit for my time, especially if you're going to use them for Godly opportunities! Just drop me a line and I can gladly haggle it with you. And, of course, if you decide to be cheap and make it yourself do NOT be afraid to ask me anything you want, like where I got the parts or help in debugging your work. This, along with my video game work, is simply a hobby to me. I have a real life outside of electronics. Of course my wife accuses me of working on the house as a hobby, teasing short pretty girls as a hobby, collecting and repairing clocks as a hobby, playing Quake and Serious Sam as a hobby, dragging home and fixing up broken Geo Metro convertibles as a hobby, and of course eating lots and lots of ice-cream/chocolate as a hobby.

What can I say, I'm a man of varied interests!