[Scummvm-devel] Java port of SCUMM

[Jonathan Gray]

On Fri, 20 Feb 2004, VGDB wrote:

> Hi James,
>
> Thanks for your response.
>
> I originally wanted to publish the source code of the Java port/rewrite on
> the ScummVM official site.
> Though most of the code is clearly the same, maybe you could consider this
> work like a subproject.

I think hosting this on the ScummVM site would only lead to confusion,
that and its not something we would be looking to provide support for.

>
> As for the clear distinction you ask, I will rename the project as JavaScumm
> (or something like this)
> and just publish the source code and says it is based on ScummVM.
>

Although currently you're looking at BASS not SCUMM?
Have fun coding in all the game logic...

> Maybe I am insane :)

Been playing too much Full Throttle? (had to get the INSANE refence in...)

>
> Here are a few reasons that make me think it is still an interesting idea:
> - When support for Ms-Dos will completely vanish in NextGen operating
> systems, only emulation or ScummVM-like engines will allow to play again
> these games. If the project is java'ized, you can extend even more its
> lifetime...
> - Java is available on many platforms and even embedded in smartphones and
> the like. If you want to have a port for a new model of phone or handheld
> device, you need to write a dedicated port. A Java port could open new
> horizons and make ScummVM available more easily on a lot of NextGen
> platforms.

ScummVM already runs on most platforms around, from what I gather of
various J2ME implementations on phones they are all slightly incompatible
with each other to some extent anyway.  Due to ScummVM being open source
its not hard to recompile or tweak parts of it anyway.

(random thoughts)
How do you handle things like MIDI in java? Where is a JVM for dreamcasts?
Why will ScummVM stop running magically at some point in the future?

> - Most of people nowadays are lazy to install a software and configure it.
> They often prefer web facilities like ActiveX, Flash or Java applets.
> Playing Beneath a Steel Sky in your favorite browser in a matter of seconds
> does not sound interesting ?

No it sounds horribly painful and a waste of bandwidth.  Not to mention
that most (all?) of the the technologies you mention are not standards and
are controlled by one vendor. For example I'm not sure if any of them are
available at all for LinuxPPC users (so much for the portability
argument?).

> - I can find bugs in the normal source code. Since Java is more restrictive
> than C/C++, bugs are easier to locate.
> For example, in sky\screen.h, _seqGrid should have 20 * 12 +1 as size or you
> could experience an out of bounds memory access.
> - It is better to understand code that you rewrite and debug than code that
> you only read...

I think a cleaner approach would be to document how things work
independant of a particular language then implement from the
specification.  This also has the nice affect of helping the next person
who comes along wanting to write an interpreter/understand something.

> - It is fun...
> - It makes me happy... :)

Well at the end of the day as ender said no one is stopping you :)

> - People that created ScummVM are insane too...

More dedicated/stubborn than insane.

regards

Jonathan