Graphics programming is a new realm for me and I’ve been searching for the ideal tool sets to use for practice. Processing is a great way to get started. Created by Ben Fry and Casey Reas in 2001, it’s a work of art for creating works of art. It’s incredibly quick and easy to setup, and it’s very satisfying to see your creations moving around on the screen after a few lines of code. However, the Processing IDE leaves much to be desired, lacking any sort of debugging or intellisense. Luckily Eclipse is a great free IDE which makes using Processing an even more pleasant experience.
Processing + Eclipse = Proclipsing
Proclipsing makes using Eclipse for Processing very straightforward. Plus, it allows you to use some powerful Java constructs in your Processing app. It was recommended to me by my friend Mario (aka OneDayItWillMake) who has been my guide to proclipsing effectively.
SoundGround is a very basic app that responds to mic input. I used a simple particle engine and modeled some 2D physics. It’s easier than it sounds, I learned everything from Robert Hodgin’s cinder tutorials a couple years ago. They are an excellent resource for anyone doing any interactive programming in any language. Also made use of controlP5, a great library to create a parameter box in Processing.
Here’s the code.