Pop the FizzBuzz in Eclipse

Let's recall the first day of class: sit down, take out a sheet of paper, write some random program, raise hand to see how fast you finished. Well, this assignment is that random program called the "FizzBuzz" program. This program should print out all of the numbers from 1 to 100, one per line, except that when the number is a multiple of 3, you print "Fizz", when a multiple of 5, you print "Buzz", and when a multiple of both 3 and 5, you print "FizzBuzz". Instead of writing the program on paper, we needed to compose the code on eclipse and time ourselves to see how long we take to complete it with the correct output. So lets start now…

(types on the keyboard).

Time's up! Five minutes and 53 seconds. Wow. So does it work? Well, from a view point, the output looks correct. The overall code is similar to that we went over in class. There are two methods in my program rather than one. The first methods takes in a number and returns an output depending on the number such as numbers being a multiple of 5 returns "Buzz". The second method is the main method that is the basic loop of the program from 1 to 100. This method calls the first method and prints out the output.
Overall, I am satisfied with the code I wrote. I could have made a one method program that would have been faster to write, but having this second method could ensure correct output with a test program. Coding the program went smoothly and I did not run into problems with eclipse. I do notice that I take my time to choose variable names and try to make them specific, rather than one character names. The only thing I think I could improve on is to rely less on eclipse. Having used ellipse for several semesters, there are many shortcuts to do a task. Maybe that's why I took a while to write this code on paper. I've become too dependent on eclipse over the years.

Being More Social Online

My professional portfolio is now up. you can view it at (https://sites.google.com/site/elmarcarillo/). It contains information about myself and will be updated with the projects that I will be working on. Also signed up TechHui which is an online community for science, technology and new media in Hawai'i. My home can be accessed at (http://www.techhui.com/profile/ElmarCarillo). I will be using these two sites including this blog for this ICS 314 class.

Three Important Pixels

Graphics editing today seem to be dominated by Adobe Photoshop. Don't get me wrong, Photoshop is an amazing program but the one thing that defer users from getting it is it's price. Photoshop is not cheap and with every major revision, users will need to pocket out a couple hundred dollars just for some new features. Personally I have purchased and used Photoshop for many years with the thought of not looking anywhere else for a similar program, but I've always wondered if there are any free graphics editing programs with exceptional features.

Come across the open source software website of sourceforge, I find the program, "Pixelitor". Pixelitor is a simple graphics editing program. When compared to Photoshop, I would suspect some people to burst out in laughter, but hey, what do you expect from freeware, right? Pixelitor may not be Photoshop, but it does bring in some basic tools combined with some advanced features.

Using the Three Prime Directives introduced in this class (link), we'll see how Pixelator ranks out as an open source software with what it has to offer to end users.

• Prime Directive 1: The system successfully accomplishes a useful task.

Pixelitor provides users with a basic graphics editor. It features several image tools such as the included 70 image filters, and image layers. Image filters give users some fun ways to manipulate images with neat effects such as a kaleidoscope or creating a fisheye effect. Located in the menu, I was able to apply some color effects to an image. Image layers helps users break down the image into sectors that show up as layers. Just like photoshop, the layers show up as a panel on the right side and it easy to move a layer to the top or bottom of the stack with the arrow buttons. It would have been great if you could drag and drop, which is not presented in the program. Pixelitor may not contain as many features for a graphics editor, but it sure beats many simple image programs such as Microsoft Paint. Sometimes having less tools makes you think in more creative ways to compose an image.

• Prime Directive 2: An external user can successfully install and use the system.

As soon as the user is finished downloading Pixelitor, it's already ready to run. The program comes as a .jar file, so there's no installation involved (unless you don't have java on your system, which is very unlikely for this class don't you think?). I opened the .jar file and the program was up and ready. On the Pixelitor website, there are direct links to download the program and even a link that provides installation instructions. This is a simple process and I don't think anyone should have any difficulties running this program.

• Prime Directive 3: An external developer can successfully understand and enhance the system.

Written in Java, Pixelitor is a program that developers could successfully understand. However, even though the source code is neatly formatted, I could not find that many comments within the code itself. If a developer wants to enhance this program, they will need to read through the entire code to better understand it. It might sound like a fairly simple task, but when you consider that this project contains 360 .java files, this will be a lengthy task, not one that many would take unless they are really interested in this program.

Screenshot of Pixelitor

Links:

Project Home (http://pixelitor.sourceforge.net)

Support (http://sourceforge.net/projects/pixelitor/support)

Downloads (http://sourceforge.net/projects/pixelitor/files)

Evaluation of Working Environments

We did an evaluation of our working environments, or simply our "laptops" in today's class. Fairly simple right? Well it did take awhile for most of the class to finish the evaluation sheet but that's not a bad thing in my opinion. Learning about your machine gives you a sense of what it's capable of and if it's adequate for the tasks it should accomplish like these projects we'll have in this class. Many might over look this step and just program right away, but I think taking the time to check if everything works and is in place is just as important. Don't you agree? Even though class was short today, the groups we had made us meet new people who we'll be working with this semester towards the same goal.

Creation of This Blog

I just got my email approved for my ICS class, did you? Of course you did, otherwise you wouldn't be reading this right? This blog is about all things happening in ICS 314 plus more (hence the more). I'm not much of a blogger, but I do keep up with my social network (Mainly Twitter and FaceBook, also my current project 365 that's going well.) Hopefully this blog will NOT be neglected. Trust me, I hope to share the many things I encounter in this class with all of you and to everyone in this class. Good Luck!