No work today as it is the first day of Chinese New Year.
27 January 2009
No work today as it is the second day of Chinese New Year.
28 January 2009
When I arrived, Ryan informed me that I'm working with You Hock on the 'Whiteboard' application and that I'm using the MacBook Pro instead of the iMac in the other room. So I brought myself over to the other room and started customizing the MacBook Pro. Here's how the MacBook Pro looks like:
Not long after, Kevin came in and brief us on what we are to do - an individual article and to listen to a few podcasts from iTunes. I took some reference from Ryan and You Hock and started working on the article.
Kevin then help me printed my article and all four of us read out our articles to Kevin and Cheng Teng. They gave us comments and decided how we should write an article for the IHPC's newsletter. We decided to use Leonard's article format and add in our individual experiences. Leonard and I would work on the article together. However, Leonard also had to work on the 3D application with Ryan. So we decided that Leonard would work with Ryan, and if I had any questions about the article, I would go ask him.
At the end of the day, I managed to finish editing Leonard's article by re-phrasing his sentences. I'll add the individual experiences tomorrow when I get back.
29 January 2009
When we got to the lab, we had a discussion with Kevin, Cheng Teng and Ming Hong about our project plans. We first discussed about the progress of the article. I told them that I'm done with editing Leonard's article, and what's left was just to add our individual experiences. We then discussed about what podcasts we had listened to and we found how useful the podcasts were. Finally, we then discussed about our applications. The decision was to have You Hock and I work on the 'Whiteboard' application with Ming Hong, while the rest work on the 3D application with Cheng Teng. As soon as You Hock and I finish the application, we'll join the rest to work on the 3D application.
After the discussion, I continued to work on the article. At lunchtime, we went to buy plants to add some color to the lab. Here's how our lab's plants look like:
So after decorating the lab with the new plants, I continued working on the article. I managed to finish around 4pm and emailed kevin. Then, I joined Ming Hong and You Hock to work on the 'Whiteboard' application's matching function.
30 January 2009
We continued working on the matching algorithm and managed to do it for the single user. So we tested an realized that the image for the white marker is not displaying when selected. When debugged, I found out that one line of code was missing. By noon, we manage to fix it.
I didn't join the rest for lunch today as I need to fix my LG monitor. After lunch, when the rest came back from lunch, we tried to get the 'Whiteboard' application to go multi-user. Did some testing and it wasn't working as well as we expected. So we spent the day working on the matching algorithm for multi-user.
Though it has been a short week at IHPC, I still managed to learn something new - podcast. I found how how useful it is to keep me updated about the latest global news. Besides being updated on the latest global issues, I'm also able to learn new things by listening/watching the podcasts. Few of the things that I've learnt from listening/watching the podcasts are new words and functions on the Mac.
We brainstormed on how to write the article as soon as we reached. There were 2 type of styles we were discussing about - an interview style and from a third-party view style. After much discussing, we decided on using the interview style. Once decided, You Hock and I went to do a "photo shoot" for Kevin's Lightdraw paper while Ryan and Leonard start working on the article. Here are some of the pictures we took:
After we were done with the "photo shoot", You Hock went to work on the "Drawing Board" application's multi-user function while I joined Ryan and Leonard to work on the article. We used Pages, a word processor and page layout application developed by Apple Inc., to do the article.
As we were unsure if we could use the interview style for the article, we wanted to ask Daryl from Corporate Comms. However, he wasn't at his desk when we went. After lunch, we went to Daryl's desk to try our luck, but he's still not back. So we went to ask Kevin instead. He said we could try and just show him the draft when we were done. We also borrowed the MacSpeech Dictate CD from Kevin as we wanted it.
MacSpeech Dictate, a speech recognition software for Apple Macintosh computers, was fun at first, but it grew to be quite troublesome as the computer might not generate the word that was spoken due to pronunciation. So we went back to the old-school way of typing the article for the rest of the day.
20 January 2009
We continued to work on the article when we reached. We then discussed and decided to try doing a third-party view style instead. So we took what we have done yesterday and converted it. Before lunch, Daryl came in and passed us some rice crackers and mandarines.
After lunch, we continued working on the article. We managed to finish it and passed it around to see if there's anything we need to add on before sending it to Kevin. As Leonard was busy helping Kevin, I went over to help You Hock with the multi-user function.
Not long after, Leonard read the article and said that it was fine. We then sent the article to Kevin for review before the end of the day.
21 January 2009
During breakfast, we were discussing about creating animated gif pictures in Adobe Flash. However, Bernard taught us a neat trick which is easier and faster. By using video editing softwares, we can achieve the same result. I've never thought of such a way.
After breakfast, I continued working on the multi-user function with You Hock. Ming Hong also helped us with this function. In the javascript, we use the "parse" function to try convert string to number. After much research, we found out that only a "+" sign was needed to convert a string to a number.
When we were done making the changes, Terence came in and we showed him our progress of the "Whiteboard" application. After demo-ing, Kevin told Terence about the plans for our new project - 3D model application.
At lunch, You Hock and I left as we were required to head back to school for a feedback session with the school's Director.
22 January 2009
I tested the overlay function in Cocoa with the newer version of the "Whiteboard" application. Everything was working fine except for the same problem; the application is unable to toggle off. After testing, You Hock continued to work while I went to pack my area for Chinese New Year.
After lunch, we spent the rest of the day working on the multi-user function.
23 January 2009
Did not come to work as I had my National Service Medical Check-up.
Reflection for the week:
This week was mainly spent on writing the article and working on the multi-user function.
Writing an article is totally different from the reports I'm used to doing in school. Especially writing an article based on personal experiences. Initially, we thought it would be simple as we are blogging regularly about what we have been doing here at IHPC and how we feel. However, it is not as simple as it seems. Nonetheless, it is still something new I've experienced here at IHPC.
As soon as we reached the office, Leonard showed us a very neat Mac trick. And no, I'm not going to reveal the trick here. On the way out to have breakfast, we were approached by Daryl from Corporate Comms to write an article for IHPC Newsletter: "Powering Discoveries!". We were asked to write about our experiences here in IHPC and the project which we are working on. We need to submit a first draft by the 22 January 2009. I guess we'll have to start drafting the article soon.
After lunch, I helped Leonard and You Hock with their testing before heading back to fixing the Cocoa application's toggle function. However, the result was still fruitless at the end of the day.
13 January 2009
Helped out with the testings of Ryan's, Leonard's and You Hock's features: "Drag and draw" & "Creating new pen". We found some problems when tested. The drawing for the pen did not follow the laser and the pen was unable to drag out of the palette after it is being created. We managed to fix the drawing part before lunch with the help of Ming Hong.
After lunch, we managed to fix the dragging out of palette function before showing Kevin our progress. Here's how our application currently looks like:
Kevin gave us comments on how we could improve the application and what are the plans after that. I've also told him about my problem with the Cocoa and he said that Ming Hong would help me on that. After the discussion, You Hock went for his video shoot as he missed the video shoot last week.
Once You Hock was done with with his video shoot, we continued working on the application. Ryan and You Hock worked on touching up the version we showed Kevin to create a working demo-able version while Leonard and I designed the new pens, eraser and palette in Photoshop Elements.
I managed to finish designing the eraser by the end of the day.
14 January 2009
I discussed with Leonard on how we should design the new pens when we reached the office. We then agreed to switch the design of the pens and eraser. So I used the design I completed yesterday and used it as the pen while Leonard designed the new eraser. We managed to finish designing the pens before lunch and exported them to ".gif" format. However the images are distorted.
After lunch, I edited the pen images with Leonard's help. Here's a before and after picture of the pens:
As soon as we were done, we showed the images to Kevin and Ming Hong on the large display.
Ming Hong commented that we should smoothen the edges of the images. I guess we'll smoothen the edges of the image tomorrow.
15 January 2009
After the usual breakfast routine with Bernard, I helped Ryan with making the new palette slide in when the application is toggled while Leonard and You Hock worked on their task. Ryan and I managed to complete the patches for making the palette slide in before lunch. Here's how our patches to make the palette slide in looks like:
After lunch, we first tested the sliding palette with the mouse and it was successful. We then moved on to test the sliding palette with the laser, but the result was not as expected. Ryan and I seek help from Kevin and Ming Hong and we managed to solve the problem.
Ming Hong also commented that the image for the palette is too big and Leonard went to crop the palette image. After Leonard crop the image, we went to re-position the palette. After the re-positioning the palette, I helped You Hock check the positioning of the trash bin, eraser, colors and brush size and testing for the rest of the day.
16 January 2009
As soon as we got to the office You Hock and I discussed on what we had to do while Leonard starts on writing the article. You Hock and I decided that we should finish up the smaller features before making the major ones. We managed to change the image of the pen when dragged to the palette, disable the toggle function when a pen is being dragged or is drawing and disallowing the pen from changing size, color and mode when it is drawing before lunch.
We wanted to change the codes for the "Drag and Draw" function but were unsure on how to go about doing it as Ryan went for his NS medical check up. Luckily, he came back by noon and was able to help us on that.
Since Ryan is back, I went over to help Leonard with the article. We decided that we should refer to past articles on the newsletter so that we could get a brief idea on how we should go about writing it. Hence, we went the the receptionist to ask for the past newsletter issues. Here's a picture of the issues we received for reference:
After reading a few articles, we realized that what we had written was totally of a different caliber. So we spent the rest of the day researching on how to write an article.
Reflection for the week:
This week have been spent on making enhancement and changes to the "Whiteboard" application in Quartz Composer. In the process of enhancing the application, I realized that by improving the application's visuals, it would make others want to try the application - like how the desktop for Microsoft Windows 7 looks like a Mac. I would definitely keep this lesson in mind for my applications in the future.
On a side note, I found out a really cool "hidden" feature in Safari. In Safari, you could do this:
Helped Leonard and You Hock with their testing after having breakfast. Once their testing was done and their functions was working fine, we started integrating our parts together. We only managed to finish integration a few hours after lunch. Tested the integrated application and found some problems because we forgot to copy a few patches while integrating. We tested it again to make sure it was working fine. Here's a picture of our testing:
After making sure the integrated version was working, we showed the application to Kevin. He seemed please with our progress. We then went to see what Ming Hong was working on. He used iGlasses, which adjusts and manipulate the webcam's video settings, to make Lightdraw work with iSight. I guess the setting up for Lightdraw is just going to get easier.
We then made plans for the next phase of the "Drawing Board" application. Here's the plan:
Drag and draw within the pen(Ryan)
Transparency of the images(Leonard)
Dragging a pen out of the palette(You Hock)
Getting the Quartz Composition to work in Cocoa(Myself)
As Leonard and my part for this phase seemed to be the easiest, we would be helping the others once we are done with our parts.
On a side note, Kevin agreed to let my build my DIY PC in the lab tomorrow. Will be heading down to Sim Lim Square tomorrow to purchase the stuff needed.
6 January 2009
I tried to run the integrated Quartz Composition in Cocoa, but it is still unable to compile and run. This was the same problem which I faced last week when I tried to run the Quartz Composition of the 'Toggle' function. Tried to get it working before lunch, but it was fruitless.
At lunch time, we headed down to Sim Lim Square to purchase the parts to build my PC. And the rest of the day was spent on building the PC. These are the stuff we bought:
When we got back to the office, we started fitting all the parts together. Here's a before and after picture:
And the finished product:
Kevin almost jumped when he found out that we only installed Windows XP on it. However, it was a good experience as I never really got so close to the hardwares in my life until today.
To Kevin: Don't worry Kevin, I'll install Linux and stuff once I'm done installing the required hardware drivers and softwares. As for the Mac, I'll get one before I get into university. =)
7 January 2009
We tried to find out what new products was introduced at Macworld 2009 and this is what Leonard found:
Initially, we thought it was true and was commenting how it was easier to use a keyboard to type instead until Bernard told us that this video was a hoax. It turns out that the video was made by The Onion is an American "fake news" organization, which publishes satirical articles reporting on international, national, and local news through an entertainment newspaper and website.
After watching a few more videos made by The Onion, I continued with what I left of yesterday. Leonard came over to help me as his part was done and we managed to get the Cocoa application to build and run. The coordinates for the Quartz Composition in Cocoa was off and tried to fix it by changing the initial window position of the cocoa application.
With the help of You Hock, we managed to set the initial window position of the cocoa application. Here's the code we used in the Cocoa application:
We continued to test and found out that there was a problem. The integrated application was able to toggle on, but not off. I guess we'll have to find out the problem tomorrow as we had to go to the pantry for our big boss, Terence's birthday celebration. At the celebration, You Hock was asked to sing. Here's a video of him singing:
After the celebration, we went to take a video for Lightdraw. For today, we shot the clip for the ease of setting up Lightdraw and Ming Hong's "White Board" application. Here's a sneak peak of our behind the scenes:
8 January 2009
I changed the wallpaper of my iMac(I guess I've caught the Chinese New Year bug) when I reached the office. Here's how my iMac looks:
Once my wallpaper had been changed, Ming Hong came in and gave us a quick mathematics lesson on matrix and how it is applicable in application development. I never thought these maths formula could be applicable in real life situation when I took my mathematics lesson in school. Nonetheless, I've still learnt something new today. =)
After the quick mathematics lesson, I continued the checking for the Cocoa application. The toggling value changed, but the image of the pen and palette is still there. I discussed with Leonard and You Hock on how to solve the problem. They suggested that I ask Kevin on how to solve the problem. I guess that's what I would do when we get back on Monday as Kevin and Ming Hong have a meeting tomorrow.
Helped Leonard and You Hock with the testing of their parts before heading out for lunch. After lunch, we integrated our parts together. Around 3pm, we continued our video shoot with Cheng Teng on the applications which worked with Lightdraw - Cooliris, Puzzle game and 4 Player Pong. When we were done with the video shoot, we asked Cheng Teng to send us the footage as we wanted to create a behind the scenes video(it should be fun and amusing).
After the video shoot, we continued with integration before calling it a day.
9 January 2009
When I arrived at the office, Kevin asked us to pack the room as it was messy after the video shoot before heading for his meeting. So we packed the table and did the checking for the new palette position. During lunchtime, Kevin came in and told us about a power shutdown later in the day and we were given the day off.
We decided to head down to Temasek Polytechnic Open House because it has been awhile since we have been back to school. At the open house, my final year project we being used. Here's a picture of my project's booth:
Reflection for the week:
This week at IHPC has been a very fruitful week for me. I've learnt stuff such as building a PC and more about Cocoa. I've also experienced the feeling of being in a video shoot as it was my first time taking a video.
On building my own PC, it feels like I'm back in school for my Computer Architecture lesson when we "operated" on the school's computer. However, it was just a minor "operation" compared to the one here at IHPC where I went to the shop and get the individual computer parts and putting the parts together. It was also my first time installing the Windows OS onto a computer. It was really a great experience and would definitely help me to cherish my computer more. However, I still feel that I have to read up more on the different hardwares in the market and how it affects the performance of the computer(as mentioned in last week's post).
Video shooting-wise, it was my first time taking a video and having a "cameraman" and a "director" instructing us on how we should position ourselves and what we should do in front of the camera. I'm sure that this experience is not what any other IT interns would get to experience and am truly grateful to have my internship here at IHPC doing Lightdraw.
