Linux and Chrome, a shakey start
Mar 31
So last week I installed the βeta of Google Chrome for Linux, and yes I know it’s a “βeta” and can’t really start moaning but seriously, I’ve used hundreds of programs in βeta and have never found them to be so problematic. I currently use Chrome on Windows so I know it’s not an cross-platform problem. Chrome for Linux has serious problems. Even more so, the more I use it the worse it seems to get, it’s like it’s a rusty car slowly falling apart the more it’s used. A lot of the problems are actually encountered when entering Google sites like Gmail, Google Calendar, Chrome Extensions. Google uses certain bits of CSS which cut down image loading like the one shown to the right. It’s a good technique which I use myself quite often.
When i visit parts of Google where techniques like this are used instead of Chrome dealing with the CSS and seeing that only part of that image should be used, the whole image is used about 400 times on the page as different parts are used all over. Making the page a little hard to read.
The other main concern is that Both Google Mail and Calendar don’t load with Chrome. Calendar doesn’t even know what browser its being viewed in, and throws a message at the user explaining this, and Google mail gets all the way to 99% and decides that it doesn’t want to do anymore and freezes. Even the HTML version breaks. Why?!
Countless errors with pages only using the most basic of designs even seem to struggle, I wonder if this is just me or if others get the same problems. It’s a dying shame as Chrome for other OS’s is working well and has taken over the use of Firefox, a long running top browser for many years.
I currently run Linux on two desktops and one laptop, all seem to have these problems with Chrome. Let’s hope the wizz kids at Google get them fixed soon, else it’s back to Firefox.
Ok so my little rant is over, for now Firefox is back, but not for long.
Achieving Efficiency
Feb 16This one could go on for a bit, so I’ll try to be short and set out things into sections.
Bugs and Fixes
So there’s been a lot of problem with bugs near the end of the programming assignment. When I first started out there was next to nothing in the way of bugs. But now it seems as I stitch the final part of the canvas, other parts are beginning to rip. My main script is programmed chronologically, so now I work at the bottom of the page, it feels like I’m working in the basement of a large building where all the little things make the building tick, strange analogy but it’s what it feels like.
What I always find, as a programmer of sorts, is that the smallest most insignificant parts of programming cause the most damage and hassle, why? Because they have to assert themselves somehow! If they’re not noticed in the final outcome then to make things equal they’re a pain in the backside behind the scenes! That’s my theory on it anyway. I’m sure I’m not the only crazy guy thinking this.
I think I’ve spent more time overall on this assignment debugging it, than actually doing some proper coding. It’s a bit annoying at times as I feel like I’m not getting anywhere, then suddenly out of nowhere I’ll manage to fully fix the problem and feel slightly better about it! Here’s a couple of the main bugs which are currently killing my will to live.
Problem Number 1
First and foremost, there is a major problem with my puzzle coding, I’ve designed it so that there are no hard-coded parts to the script, it’s all database driven. And by doing this means I only have to add new entries to the puzzle table for it to appear in the game. Dynamicity at its’ purest. Anyway at the moment I can only seem to add a maximum of two items to the puzzle, by items I mean items required to complete the puzzle. The reason is most likely to do with whitespace or something that’s going terribly wrong inside my insane two tier foreach loop:
foreach ($items_required as $item_required) {
if (in_array($item_required,$inv)) {
foreach ($objects as $object) {
if ($count == 1) {$object = str_replace(" ","",$object);}
if (in_array($object,$items_required)) { $i = $i + 1;}
}}}
Ok so for people not php orientated, or not code orientated in general. Here’s what this little beast does.