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Author Topic: Java Version, developed under Mac OS X  (Read 116364 times)

Offline ujs

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on: February 04, 2008, 08:02:36 PM
Hi, I did a rewrite of the program in Java which can be found here: http://www.uweschmidt.org/wiimote-whiteboard
It should work out of the box under Mac OS X Tiger on an Intel Mac (at least that's my development environment).
Haven't tested any other platforms hence feedback is highly appreciated. Tell me what you think...

Uwe

Java WiimoteWhiteboard for Mac OS X, Windows and Linux.

Offline Desca;zp

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Reply #1 on: February 05, 2008, 11:08:45 AM
I tried it on my MacBook Pro, and it was tough to get it to work.  I didn't know I had to put the WiiRemoteJ and BlueCove jar files in Extensions, but once I got that figured out, it paired and loaded fine.

I had some problems, though:
1. I can not check the Cursor Control box.  Maybe this is on purpose, because you're trying it out or something.  I don't know.
2. It is not sensitive enough for some reason. It can't read the LED when I draw on the whiteboard, it doesn't even see the IR dots.  When I aim the LED back at the WiiMote, it can see it, but not well, and it doesn't receive a steady signal.  I know this is OSX-specific because I rebooted into Boot Camp and it works like a champ.  The WiiMote is in the same place and everything.

Good things:
1. It seems to work on the main monitor only on a dual-monitor setup.  Maybe that's just the way it's supposed to work (it's the same way in Windows), but that's the way I like it.
2. It's finally going to happen on OSX!  I've been waiting for this since I first heard about it.
3. It's in Java, which I have been meaning to learn about anyway. My little brother is bigtime into Java so he can help me learn to program again (it's been about 15 years, and that was in BASIC).

If there's anything specific you want me to try or look in to, let me know.


Offline ujs

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Reply #2 on: February 05, 2008, 02:35:12 PM
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I didn't know I had to put the WiiRemoteJ and BlueCove jar files in Extensions, but once I got that figured out, it paired and loaded fine.
WiiRemoteJ and BlueCove are bundled with the program (inside the WiimoteWhiteboard.jar), so it should work without putting those 2 files in the Extensions-folder.

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1. I can not check the Cursor Control box.  Maybe this is on purpose, because you're trying it out or something.  I don't know.
You can only check the Cursor Control box after successful calibration or when a calibration file was found at startup and has been loaded.

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. It is not sensitive enough for some reason. It can't read the LED when I draw on the whiteboard, it doesn't even see the IR dots.  When I aim the LED back at the WiiMote, it can see it, but not well, and it doesn't receive a steady signal.
Can you elaborate on that? I didn't have an issue with that, but I only tested with a flashlight since I don't even have an IR pen yet.

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I know this is OSX-specific because I rebooted into Boot Camp and it works like a champ.  The WiiMote is in the same place and everything.
Did you run the original or my Whiteboard-program under Windows? I couldn't get my program to work under Windows...

Quote
Good things:
1. It seems to work on the main monitor only on a dual-monitor setup.  Maybe that's just the way it's supposed to work (it's the same way in Windows), but that's the way I like it.
I just use the default screen. I guess it wouldn't be too hard to list all available screen and to select the one you want to use.

Quote
2. It's finally going to happen on OSX!  I've been waiting for this since I first heard about it.
That's the main reason I wrote it :D

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3. It's in Java, which I have been meaning to learn about anyway. My little brother is bigtime into Java so he can help me learn to program again (it's been about 15 years, and that was in BASIC).
The program is relatively short (about 400 lines of code in a single Class).
Especially all the perspective transformation is entirely handled by an existing Java class :D

Quote
If there's anything specific you want me to try or look in to, let me know.
Spread the word so that I can get feedback from people trying it on various platforms.

Uwe

Java WiimoteWhiteboard for Mac OS X, Windows and Linux.

Offline Thisisjon

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Reply #3 on: February 05, 2008, 05:04:57 PM
Ive been messing with your program on Mac and PC. I have it working well on both. On both XP and Leopard, it's more receptive and sensitive than the original wiimote whiteboard. I have yet to find any major flaws in it. Good work.
Since you havent gotten it to work on pc, if you want me to check anything or elaborate, just let me know


Offline Gilthalas

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Reply #4 on: February 05, 2008, 06:18:54 PM
I too don't seem to be able to register a source (I don't have an IR pen yet, but I've used a flame in the past for testing in Windows).  It connects fine and gets a battery reading, but no dots or any sort of recognition that it is seeing IR.  Thoughts?

By the way - you rock for porting this to Java - I work with Java IRL and will be happy to add on to it!

Gilthalas


Offline Thisisjon

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Reply #5 on: February 05, 2008, 07:05:58 PM
I used a radioshack IR led, and it worked just fine. When you say "no dots" what do you mean? Do you mean the lights on the wiimote or dots on the screen?


Offline ujs

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Reply #6 on: February 05, 2008, 08:05:34 PM
Quote from: Thisisjon on February 05, 2008, 05:04:57 PM
Ive been messing with your program on Mac and PC. I have it working well on both. On both XP and Leopard, it's more receptive and sensitive than the original wiimote whiteboard. I have yet to find any major flaws in it. Good work.
Since you havent gotten it to work on pc, if you want me to check anything or elaborate, just let me know

Great to hear that! Which Bluetooth stack do use on Windows XP?

Quote from: Gilthalas on February 05, 2008, 06:18:54 PM
I too don't seem to be able to register a source (I don't have an IR pen yet, but I've used a flame in the past for testing in Windows).  It connects fine and gets a battery reading, but no dots or any sort of recognition that it is seeing IR.  Thoughts?

I sometimes have the same problem, seems to be a Bluetooth connectivity issue. Try to restart the program and see if it works. If it doesn't work for a couple times in a row then it might be another problem.

Quote from: Gilthalas on February 05, 2008, 06:18:54 PM
By the way - you rock for porting this to Java - I work with Java IRL and will be happy to add on to it!

Thanks! I thought there is a need for a Mac version, especially educators could use the program in classrooms. I actually don't have any need for a Whiteboard application. I just like to play around with technology ;)


Btw, I added a quick demo video to the page (http://www.uweschmidt.org/wiimote-whiteboard).
Quality is poor, but it should serve its purpose...

Uwe

Java WiimoteWhiteboard for Mac OS X, Windows and Linux.

Offline Gilthalas

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Reply #7 on: February 05, 2008, 08:28:39 PM
My initial testing shows that if I run it from XCode, I can see an IR source.  If I run it straight from the JAR file, I cannot.  I'm not sure how to interpret that. 

Nice video, by the way!

How did you make your IR pen?

Gilthalas


Offline Thisisjon

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Reply #8 on: February 05, 2008, 10:07:37 PM
Im using the Bluesoleil stack, it was the default stack with my adapter.


Offline ujs

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Reply #9 on: February 06, 2008, 05:43:00 AM
Quote from: Gilthalas on February 05, 2008, 08:28:39 PM
My initial testing shows that if I run it from XCode, I can see an IR source.  If I run it straight from the JAR file, I cannot.  I'm not sure how to interpret that. 

Do you see any Exception when you run the JAR file from the command line?
How do you run it from XCode? Did you create a Java project, added the library files (BlueCove and WiiRemoteJ) and compiled it yourself?
I never used XCode for Java coding...

Quote from: Thisisjon on February 05, 2008, 10:07:37 PM
Im using the Bluesoleil stack, it was the default stack with my adapter.

I also tried with BlueSoleil. My problem might be related to BlueSoleil's version or my Bluetooth dongle.
When I try to run it, I get an error like "Not supported on BlueSoleil" from BlueCove.


I don't even have an IR pen yet, so I'm using an ordinary flashlight.

Uwe

Java WiimoteWhiteboard for Mac OS X, Windows and Linux.

Offline Gilthalas

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Reply #10 on: February 06, 2008, 08:23:58 AM
An ordinary flashlight.... with an IR bulb, I'm assuming?

I didn't see an exception because I just double clicked on the JAR - I'll try running it from the command line tonite.

As for XCode - yeah, made a java project, added in your source, and included the lib files. 

Gilthalas


Offline ujs

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Reply #11 on: February 06, 2008, 08:39:43 AM
Quote from: Gilthalas on February 06, 2008, 08:23:58 AM
An ordinary flashlight.... with an IR bulb, I'm assuming?

No, it is a regular filament lamp. Most (all?) of those lamps are also emitting infrared light.
But the accuracy for the Whiteboard program is poor, since I have a a rather big spot of light.
And you might noticed that I had to hold the lamp in a certain angle so that that screen reflected enough light back to the Wiimote.

Uwe

Java WiimoteWhiteboard for Mac OS X, Windows and Linux.

Offline Gilthalas

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Reply #12 on: February 06, 2008, 09:56:51 AM
Interesting!  I may have to try that!

Gil


Offline Gilthalas

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Reply #13 on: February 06, 2008, 06:36:26 PM
OK, I got things to run (albeit crudely) using a flashlight.  I was able to run Uwe's version in Java on OSX and I was able to run Johnny's on Windows using BlueSoleil (in Parallels on the MBP as a matter of fact).  I'm gonna try to track down a finer/tighter/more accurate source of light ---- but things are looking up!  I'll post more on the command line launch of the java version soon.


Offline Desca;zp

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Reply #14 on: February 06, 2008, 10:23:49 PM
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WiiRemoteJ and BlueCove are bundled with the program (inside the WiimoteWhiteboard.jar), so it should work without putting those 2 files in the Extensions-folder.
I had unzipped them into weird locations.  I fixed that, removed them from Extensions, and it is still working.

Quote
You can only check the Cursor Control box after successful calibration or when a calibration file was found at startup and has been loaded.
I see that now.  I did get it to successfully calibrate.

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Can you elaborate on that? I didn't have an issue with that, but I only tested with a flashlight since I don't even have an IR pen yet.
The software, or the wiimote, or something, is picking up a poor signal for some reason.  It doesn't send a clear message.  I've tried it with 2 IR pens, with similar results: it works better in XP.  It us unusable in OSX.  It just occurred to me that the bluetooth module in this MBP is a piece of poo (my bluetooth mouse gets less than 3 feet of range, and it's not a very reliable signal at that), so maybe I should try to make it work with a bluetooth dongle instead (the Logitech one has awesome range).


Quote
Did you run the original or my Whiteboard-program under Windows? I couldn't get my program to work under Windows...
I use Johnny Lee's program in Windows.  I'm going to try it in Parallels.

I hope this has been helpful.  Am I the only one with such a crappy bluetooth card in my MBP?  Another co-worker has one (we ordered them together) and I'll have to try it on his and see if it's any better.


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