From the Forum — Issue #90

18 September 2015

From the Forum — Issue #90

Welcome to the latest installment of From the Forum. In this series, guest blogger Alex Jackson highlights outstanding threads from the Corona Forum. The goal is to bring attention to the most captivating, interesting, and thought-provoking discussions taking place in our very own backyard.

Please visit the forum to join these conversations or start your own!

1. Just as easy as turning the page…

Getting started with software development when using Corona could not be more simple. Writing your own apps and games in a high-level language like Lua cuts down on time spent trying to wrap your head around fundamentals that might never come into play. However, when you want to get some complicated functionality into your code, it’s true what they say, kids: pay attention in math class.

StarCrunch has long been dazzling the Corona community with his command of trig functions, and the latest result is a buttery-smooth page-curl effect, ideal for an eye-catching feature in a journaling app, or a children’s storybook game. Touch listeners have just been added, so getting this into an app should take minimal effort (famous last words!). Head on over to the original thread to grab the relevant code, and don’t forget to say thanks!

https://forums.coronalabs.com/topic/58691-page-curl-effect-using-graphics-20-and-shaders/

2. Corona’s IAP just got that much easier

I admit to struggling with IAP when starting out with Corona. It can be a bit confusing, combined with the multiple testing methods between the different stores, and the fact that they can change at the drop of a hat without much notice ahead of time. Having my own drop-in module was the best answer I could come up with, and I suspect that others went the same route.

One intrepid developer decided to create their own module, and also share it with the rest of us! This one allows you just require it in your app, just like Corona’s normal API does, and it goes a few steps further by providing “a unified approach to calling store and IAP whether you’re on the App Store, Google Play or Amazon”.

The developer is taking steps to turn this into a plugin, which would make your life even easier! For now, check out the original thread if you want to get this into your games ASAP.

https://forums.coronalabs.com/topic/59137-iap-badger-a-unified-approach-to-in-app-purchases

3. A dissertation in image creation from some of the best

As developers see that Corona SDK has that heady combo of being 1) free to deploy to markets, 2) easy to pick up and learn and 3) cultivating a robust and helpful community of fellow programmers, winning converts is a matter of course. What often happens, however, is that questions come up that refer to some deep-end Lua implementation logic. Lua isn’t much like other languages, so folks that are dyed-in-the-wool in other disciplines can get tripped up.

Fortunately, that bulletpoint #3 up there always comes to the rescue. The Corona heavy-hitter crew came out to provide some serious analysis and explanation regarding display object population and variable inheritance. There is a lot of sample code involved, so that we can all follow along with the bouncing ball. Head on down to the original thread to get in with the cool kids!

https://forums.coronalabs.com/topic/59113-how-are-display-objects-passed/

About Alex

Alex Jackson is an indie developer and the founder of Panc Interactive, specializing in retro-style gaming. He has created several mobile applications, enjoys long walks on the beach, pixel art, and reading the Corona forums. Contact him by email or follow him on Twitter: @pancinteractive. Check out his new game Segreta on iOS, Android, Windows Phone and Amazon devices.