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Re: [pygame] Pygame community platform?



On Fri, Dec 18, 2009 at 3:36 PM, Olof Bjarnason <olof.bjarnason@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
2009/12/18 Thadeus Burgess <thadeusb@xxxxxxxxxxxx>:
> I don't think I could live without the plethora of libraries available to
> python :)
>
> What about playdeb.net / getdeb.net?

Thanks for the links!

>
> Wouldn't it be easier if we packaged games for the OS package manager ?
>
> deb and apt-get can handle any needed dependences automatically.

Yeah sure - but I would not regard them as easy to use. Learning
debian packaging is like, well, learning another programming language.

If it was trivial to package Python+Pygame source games, this idea
would not have survived from my neural net to this mailing list :)

>
> Then perhaps all that would be needed would be a GUI wrapper around the
> package manager command line, that only includes pygame game packages. And
> some utilities to help developers package their games.
>
> -Thadeus
>
>
>
>
> On Fri, Dec 18, 2009 at 8:27 AM, Olof Bjarnason <olof.bjarnason@xxxxxxxxx>
> wrote:
>>
>> 2009/12/18 jug <jug@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>:
>> > Hi Olof,
>> >
>> > Olof Bjarnason wrote:
>> >>
>> >> I have this crazy idea of making a "pygame community platform" to make
>> >> distributing/finding/testing/installing pygames simpler.
>> >>
>> >
>> > Interesting idea.
>> >
>> >> For end users, it would be a program to install, maybe called
>> >> something like "PygamePlatform". It would provide a graphical user
>> >> interface,
>> >> for the ubuntu platform to begin with, since that is what I'm using.
>> >> It would feature search/install/uninstall/run interaction.
>> >>
>> >
>> > What do you do with dependencies? Include them to your game source?
>> > Or add some often used 3rd party packages as extra projects?
>>
>> Ignore them? :)
>>
>> No I just thought Python+Pygame could be assumed. For example, the
>> program itself could be written in Python+Pygame to make a flashy GUI,
>> and of course then Python+Pygame would exst on the system for "pool
>> games" to depend upon.
>>
>> Do many Pygame games depend on other third party libraries than
>> Pygame? I have only used Python+Pygame+builtins so far. Python is so
>> flexible I have not felt the need for any additional library.
>>
>> >
>> >> Installing would mean downloading .py+bin files and placing them in a
>> >> PygamePlatform local "games pool". Thus uninstalling is as easy as
>> >> installing.
>> >>
>> >
>> > Rene is working on something like this, but I think its more for bin
>> > files
>> > including python and all dependencies. So for people who do not know
>> > python etc. but want to play your games. Is that what you want to do or
>> > just making it easier for people with python to find and install pygame
>> > games?
>>
>> Think of it as the find-install program of ubuntu; a little
>> descriptive text and one or more screenshots, a link to a home page
>> etc.
>> A button to download game, a button to run (if the game exists in
>> local game pool, that is has been downloaded).
>>
>> That would make it really simple to publish games, and let your
>> friends test out the games.
>>
>> As a developer, you would simply manipulate the PygamePlatform wiki
>> (or similar) to add your game to the database.
>> The "game page" would include information of where to download the
>> source+binaries of the game, plus the descriptive text + screenshots.
>>
>> So primarily: simplify publishing Python+Pygame-based games. And when
>> that is simple, testing+feedback+quality comes along.
>>
>> For the end-users, they may think of the PygamePlatform program as
>> Valve's Steam utility for Windows (and more platforms maybe?).
>>
>> But for free, casual-style primarily 2d-games. Like pygame games usually
>> are :)
>>
>> >
>> >> GUI: Much like Ubuntus add programs, combined with the start menu.
>> >>
>> >
>> > A GUI wouldn't be a problem I think.
>> >
>> >> The database of pygames would reside on some wiki-like web page, so
>> >> pygame-developers could easily add their creations without any updates
>> >> to the PygamePlatform-installations out there.
>> >>
>> >> Of course this is a great deal of work, but provided it does
>> >> PygamePlatform could be ported to Windows, Mac etc. without any
>> >> changes to the wiki-database or the games themselves.
>> >>
>> >
>> > Depends on what existing tools and libs you use/ what you want to do
>> > You could also just write a wrapper for easy_install with a
>> > project filter/ own db with project names, a nice GUI and some
>> > additional
>> > game informations.
>> >
>> >> Feedback? Is there earlier projects that has tried (and failed) doing
>> >> this kind of thing?
>> >>
>> >
>> > Well, there is a pygame community platform/website with project listing:
>> >
>> > http://pygameweb.no-ip.org/
>> >
>> > Its still a beta/rc version, but it has an api (actually two: XMLRPC and
>> > REST,
>> > see the "more"-tab) that allows you to get some (maybe more soon) data
>> > about the projects. Currently you could use it for a "check for
>> > updates/newer
>> > version" inside your games/programs. It also gives you the download urls
>> > for
>> > bin and source files (if available).
>> >
>> > So if people would add their games to pypi and insert a game description
>> > and
>> > pypi-url/-name on the website, only the GUI would be left to do.
>> >
>> >
>> > Regards,
>> >
>> >  Julian
>> >
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> twitter.com/olofb
>> olofb.wordpress.com
>
>



--

True, apt-get isn't exactly user-friendly; that's why Thadeus mentioned creating a GUI to mask the command-line interface. I agree with him that an existing package manager should be used to manage dependencies and packaging.

It would be trivial to start a repository and add pygame and a few simple games. If a debian repository were dedicated to pygame and compatible games, an Ubuntu user could simply add the repository to his repository list (a simple file edit) and install the games he wanted. The system would be instantly accessible to most debian users.

Of course, the GUI would simplify things for inexperienced users, but those with debian experience could start using the service immediately. The GUI could be cross-platform, handling the game installation itself if apt-get wasn't available to help.

--
Evan Kroske
http://welcome2obscurity.blogspot.com/
The personal blog of Evan Kroske,
novice software developer.