Designing Computer Games - Interactive Fiction - Games

	AllExperts > Experts
	Search

About Howard N Smith
(Top Expert on this page)

Expertise
I can answer questions pertaining to 3d game programming, Cpp, Pascal, Delphi, and various APIs and libraries including Windows, LUA, DirectX, OpenGL, and other things specific to game programming. I have had experience working in third party engines like Source, OGRE, Irrlicht, and Torque. Design, implementation, theory, specific algorithms and other topics. I will have difficulty answering technical programming questions outside of my domain such as database programming, web programming, IT, hardware, etc and I am not as comfortable as some others when discussing big O time complexity calculations and other academic computer programming questions (I can certainly give it a try but I'm out of practice.)

Experience
I've been programming video games (with a slight focus on RPGs) for almost 15 years, and have learned many tips, tricks, and valuable insight. I've written a few articles concerning specifics (Including a workshop on an Object Oriented Approach to 3D Engine and Design) as well as completed a number of personal and professional projects in the field. I've shipped a number of casual and AAA titles, and in my relatively short time in the industry gotten the chance to work alongside some major publishers, including Capcom and Valve. I am currently employed as a Software Engineer at a game development studio.

You are here: Experts > Games > Interactive Fiction > Designing Computer Games

Subject	Date Asked	Expert

PRP help	11/20/2008	Alexander Hodgkiss
Q: my name is Katy,and I am working on my progressive research project. I am doing mine on computer ... A: Howdie Katy, I can give a few suggestions on where to look. Big players to check out would be ...
simple motion capture	11/20/2008	Howard N Smith
Q: I want to use an ordinary webcam focused on a subjects head. Either using markers or face ... A: Hey Bob, motion capture and head tracking are really complicated fields, and a little out of my ...
opengl and directx	11/14/2008	Howard N Smith
Q: I'm taking a programming course in high school and i was wondering what opengl and directx do ... A: OpenGL and DirectX are both a collection of graphics APIs not to be confused with game engines. ...
openGL 3d space-scene camera	11/10/2008	Howard N Smith
Q: I'm trying to write mouse rotation functions for my game, using quaternions and an approach similar ... A: Short answer: What you need to do is recompute the up vector to match the rotation of the current ...
Game Designing	10/21/2008	Howard N Smith
Q: If you can please tell me the best way to get on my feet and running and where best to get scripting ... A: Your best bet is to pick up a game that you enjoy or are interested in working with. Some popular ...
shooting game	10/20/2008	Howard N Smith
Q: well first of all, i have ABSOLUTELY no experience in programming or making games of any sort. I've ... A: A language is just a method which you give instructions to your computer, there are many different ...
wanna ask about gaming career	10/17/2008	Howard N Smith
Q: I AM 15 YAR OLD. I WANT TO MAKE CAREER IN COMPUTER GAME DESIGNING.WHAT IS THE PROCESS ACCORDING TO ... A: it's great to hear you have a passion for game design. I'm afraid I'm not an expert in the industry ...
game design	8/11/2008	Alexander Hodgkiss
Q: I am attending the art institute of Atlanta for game art and design. I'm only a freshman but I'm ... A: Howdie Kayla, First, I'm not too familiar with everyone in the industry who is based in Atlanta. ...
GB and MB	8/5/2008	Howard N Smith
Q: I was wondering how many MB are in .98 GB?? A: The prefixes are adapted from the SI unit of measurements ( International Standard Units of ...
Program	7/26/2008	Howard N Smith
Q: when i was in highschool i took Drafting class. they had a program that aloud you to "make" your ... A: I'm afraid I'm not familiar with the exact program you are talking about, but I can recommend a ...
Graphic Design Major	7/16/2008	Alexander Hodgkiss
Q: Hey Alex. I'm about to be a senior in high school and I've had this question for a long time. If I ... A: Howdie Omatayo, This is really an open question. By definition, Graphic Design is print work, like ...
video game industry	6/1/2008	Howard N Smith
Q: Why do video game providers chose to sell consoles at break even or even at a loss when it comes to ... A: these are two really good questions. I do not pretend to be an economist, but there are a number of ...
Career interest	5/27/2008	Alexander Hodgkiss
Q: and I'm doing a project on career interests. I would be grateful if you could help me out with the ... A: Howdie Croix, I'll try to answer this the best I can for your project. Keep in mind when you say ...
LEAD ME TO A BRIGHTER PATH !!	5/10/2008	Howard N Smith
Q: AS MY BACHELOR DEGREE WILL COMPLETE WITHIN 1 YEAR AND THE FORMS OF VARIOUS UNIVERSITIES WILL START ... A: Don't worry about the english =D 1)i knw who game designers r but if u could tel me in brief what ...
LEAD ME TO A BRIGHTER PATH !!	5/2/2008	Howard N Smith
Q: AS MY BACHELOR DEGREE WILL COMPLETE WITHIN 1 YEAR AND THE FORMS OF VARIOUS UNIVERSITIES WILL START ... A: Sorry it took me so long to get back to you, I was on a business trip. First of all I'd like to ...
career interest	4/30/2008	Alexander Hodgkiss
Q: ! I'm a 5th grader from Mississippi. I am very interested in working as a computer game designer ... A: Howdie Kurston, I think I do need to ask by what you mean when you say you "have invested a lot of ...
career exploration	4/18/2008	Howard N Smith
Q: My name is Kurston Green. I am a 5th grader in Natchez, Mississippi. We are working on a project ... A: I'm glad to hear you are interested in computer engineering, and I would be happy to answer your ...
Make Games	3/26/2008	Alexander Hodgkiss
Q: Hello I'm under 16 and I want to make games is there a simple way to make games A: Howdie Matthew, I'll let you know up front, making video games is not a simple thing in any right. ...
Game Designing	2/17/2008	Howard N Smith
Q: i am 16 years old and i live in the uk. is there any jobs in the game industry that you do not need ... A: To answer your question, I'm afraid every job requires some kind of qualification, as in, you must ...
3D camera	1/3/2008	Howard N Smith
Q: I have been struggling for a few years now writing a proper 3D camera class. I am working on a space ... A: This is a pretty in depth question, and I'm hesitant to quickly answer it since it's not in the ...
game designing	12/2/2007	Howard N Smith
Q: I want to be a gamedesigner and also an animator and I was wondering if its possible to do both ,is ... A: I would stay away from any school that is offering a specific "Game Design" degree. One of my ...
game designing	11/27/2007	Howard N Smith
Q: I want to be a gamedesigner and also an animator and I was wondering if its possible to do both ,is ... A: Sorry it took me so long to answer, things have gotten a little busy at work. Believe it or not, ...
game dev	11/13/2007	Howard N Smith
Q: hey howard, this might be the wrong place to ask, couldnt find anywhere els tho. i am lookin to get ... A: Sorry it took so long for me to respond. C++ isn't one particular software, it's actually a ...
game dev	11/12/2007	Howard N Smith
Q: hey howard, this might be the wrong place to ask, couldnt find anywhere els tho. i am lookin to get ... A: You came to the right place! There are a number of different skills that are needed in the video ...
beginner	10/22/2007	Howard N Smith
Q: i did C++ and i want to start 3d game programming. I was introduced to a 3d game programming with ... A: welcome to the wonderful world of game development. It sounds like your questions are mostly aimed ...
video game design	9/26/2007	Howard N Smith
Q: what is it like designing games? what classes do you have to take? do you make good money? and what ... A: I'm sorry to say that the type of "Design" I specialize in isn't quite what you are talking about I ...
Game Programming	9/19/2007	Howard N Smith
Q: Hey, I was thinking about making one of those old school RPG games. I know some C++ and have fooled ... A: Hey Jay! Thanks for asking, that's a great question. In a time before today's 3d accelerated ...
...Noob ^^'..hopefully this is my last follow up	1/19/2007	Neal Hallford
Q: ...^^' Im hoping thisll b the last follow up otherwise maybe u could give me an email or im account ... A: Sorry, I really don't know Zack. The only 3D program I've really seriously used is Maya, so I ...
...Noob ^^'	1/19/2007	Neal Hallford
Q: 2 follow ups if thats ok. What is a good (defanitley affordable..good graphics, etc) program for 3d ... A: As I said in my previous answer, modeling is not something I do much, but Maya would be the modeling ...
...Noob ^^'	1/19/2007	Neal Hallford
Q: Good to know, thnx. I talked with one of my friend, and I was thinking I might get started with some ... A: I've done very little 3D modeling myself (that's not generally part of my job), but I can tell you ...
...Noob ^^'	1/17/2007	Neal Hallford
Q: Yea, I'm a noob to all this. I am hoping to make something of myself in game designing when I get ... A: Are you thinking about becoming a game designer or a programmer? I know that both might seem like ...
VB games	11/16/2006	Neal Hallford
Q: You sound like a professional. I'm not sure if you'd be able to answer a question like this, but the ... A: Well programming isn't really what I spend my time doing. I've done some scripting based on C++ and ...

Page: 1 All

Questions by
Active Experts:

Alexander Hodgkiss

Howard N Smith