Homework 5

Due Saturday, December 11, 3:00 p.m. (no late homework)

The Applet

Use the K and L keys to move left and right.

Some specifics

• Basic Ideas
  • Events (KeyEvent, ItemEvent, WindowEvent, ActionEvent)
  • Components (JFrames, JRadioButton, JComboBox, JButton, JLabel, Panel)
  • Double buffering (animation in a JApplet)
  • Programs as both an applet and application

• General
  • Class homework5 is a subclass of JApplet.
  • For this program, I'm not giving you a lot of directions or hints in the specifications, which means that I want you to look at this applet and figure out how to do things. However, example5.java is the majority of this program. So before starting on this program, I would spend a couple of hours getting familiar with example5.java.
  • The homework5.java program is basically example5.java with the following additions:
    • The user should be able to move the paddle using the keyboard. (For the grader's convenience, use the K and L keys for left and right movement.)
    • Your homework should get parameters from the HTML file for the number of rows and the number of columns, and it should have default values in case the user doesn't specify parameter values in the HTML file.
    • Your homework should keep track of current score, high score, and balls left.
    • Once the five balls are lost, the game ends.
    • You should be able to pause, resume and start a new game via the keyboard.
    • You should be able to control the brick colors and the difficulty of the game via JFrames which you get to via the keyboard.
    • Be sure that your game does NOT have the ball bounce off the bottom of the game.
    • Your program should be able to run as both an Applet and an Application.
  • The size of your applet in the HTML file should be approximately the size of mine (my applet is 500 wide x 300 high).
  • The way I wrote my program is that it is a JApplet, on which the animation is done, plus two Panels: one Panel at the top that includes the three JLabels for scores and balls left, and the other Panel at the bottom (south region) of the applet which includes five JLabels which simply list how to pause the game, etc. For some reason, if I use JPanels instead of Panels, then the JPanels get painted over. But if I use Panels, the Panels remain above the painted applet.
    You are free to do the program as you like, but example5.java is given using the applet with two Panels on top of it.
  • EXTRA CREDIT: add some cool feature to your game. See below.

• The bricks
  • The current score should change when the ball hits and removes a brick.
  • Each of the bricks in the bottom row of bricks is worth 1 point, each of the bricks in the second to bottom row is worth 2 points, and so on, so that the bricks in the top row is worth n points if there are n rows.
  • The current score should change when the ball hits and removes a brick.
  • If you hit the last brick, a new set of bricks should be created. Don't worry about waiting until the ball clears the bricks to create the new set of bricks (although you can if you like--it's actually better to do it that way).

• Other
  • Where the number of balls left is displayed, you should display "Game Over" when the last ball is gone.
  • When you select something in one of the JFrames, the effects should be seen immediately. Specifically:
    • when you select a new color for one of the rows of bricks, when you click the "Set New Color" button, the specified row of bricks should change colors immediately (you can do this by simply calling the drawImage method of the applet).
    • when you select a paddle width, the paddle should change widths immediately (if you have selected a width different from the current width). You can do this in both cases by simply calling the drawImage method of the applet.
  • Be sure that in you JComboBox you have the correct number of rows. Also remember that the number of rows is not fixed; that is, the user can control the number of rows in the HTML file so your program, including the value in the JComboBox, must be written more generally in this respect.
  • You will be using the ColorCreator in homework5. I will not collect a ColorCreator file from you; rather, I will supply the ColorCreator when I compile and run your programs. So that you can write your program using the ColorCreator that I will use in grading your programs, here is the code for my ColorCreator.java file.

• EXTRA CREDIT
  • You can add some feature to your game (as long as it doens't change or remove part of the basic version of the game--if you're unsure if your idea would hurt the basic version of the game, you can tell me your idea and I can make sure that it's fine).
  • Examples of what you could do:
    • Have the top row of bricks change to a second color upon being hit the first time, then have them removed upon being hit the second time.
    • Have your program do something cool when you remove an entire set of bricks.
    • Other ideas......
  • You can earn up to 10 points extra credit (reminder: you can earn at most 100% for your homework grade).
  • If your game has an especially cool feature, I may put your applet up on the web for everyone else to see (I will include your name if you like or you can remain anonymous).

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  The files to submit

  • homework5.java
  • homework5.class
  • homework5.html

  At the top of your .java file, be sure to include your name, login ID, student number, assignment number, and the honesty pledge.

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  Clarifications and answers to specfic questions from students

  1. QUESTION: None yet.
     ANSWER: