Last Online: 6/14/09

Ken Finney

     
Started programming in 1974 in BASIC with paper tape on the good old HP 1000. Professional Software Engineer since 1984. Worked as senior programmer, principal engineer, project manager and quality assurance engineer in the following areas: Telecommunications technology for remote sensing; Nuclear Non-Destructive Examination systems (Ultrasonic & Terminal Solid Solubility) for CANDU-6 & CANDU-9 reactors, Robotic Pharmaceutical & Medical Control & Delivery Systems. Developer of IN-SCAN - world's fastest large-format document scanner & analyzer: winner of CIO Magazine's prestigious ITX (Innovation and Technology Excellence) award in 1997. I've been a consulting military scientist for the Canadian Department of National Defence in Future Armoured Fighting Vehicle Design and have taught at Seneca College at York University in Toronto where I taught Product Development and Technical Writing.

In 1998-2000 I developed a mod for the Delta Force 2 engine from Novalogic called 'Tubettiworld-Online Campaign' which provides a battle-directed method of controlling map rotation (for a game that is not really mod-able). I have written a remote hosting tool for DF2 called QnD (QuicknDirty) that allows hosts to remotely monitor a game, post information to players in-game, ban or punt players and so on. I've also created several tools for extracting, organizing and managing statistics from DF2 games.

My primary focus in online gaming is the social interaction of players. I believe that games in general do not sufficiently exploit the social dynamics of online gaming communities. Chat windows, extra-game forums and blogs and voice comms are merely the coastlines of that uncharted territory.

I am developing the online adventure/shooter game Return to Tubettiworld using Torque. It is a family project with all members of my family participating in the the design and development, with the help of a few family friends. The game was formerly called Tubettiworld II, but the rename has come about as the result of some fairly major scope changes, and some minor theme adjustments. It maintains the battle-directed campaign mode and persistent world system of the original Tubettiworld game.

(Return to Tubettiworld is dedicated to the memory of my late father-in-law, George Tubetti, who would love the idea of association with Garage Games because he owned a small chain of service stations and garages and always had grease under his finger nails...)

I am the author of 3D Game Programming All In One,ISBN159200136X, Thomson, 3D Game Programming All In One, Second Edition,ISBN1598632663, Thomson, and Advanced 3D Game Programming All In One,ISBN1592007333, Thomson.

I also teach Game Development, Design, and Prototyping at the Art Institute of Toronto.


UPDATE Dec 16, 2006
I'm now V.P. at the newly created Sprite House Games, Inc., where we are working on "The Edge". So Tubettiworld is on the back burner for the moment. It's okay, it'll keep.

Systems I Own:  
Keep Cool, But Do Not Freeze

Kudos Given to this user

Given ByReasonDate
Great Books Ken!!!August 5, 2007
By the sounds of things, this man is a very hard worker, and very smart aswell. Nice work.May 30, 2007
Thanks for the resources - I have version 1 and 2. :)

(Wish you didn't use Milkshape though - even though it's a good starter - their Vista support has been terrible - but there was no way to forsee that.) :)
March 13, 2007
Great books!January 30, 2007
Great books! Thanks a million!January 29, 2007
For a very good book on Torque with an easy to read style.January 21, 2007
An automatic kudo for writing two Torque how-to books. Thanks.January 14, 2007
Well.. it would take me like 202 paragraphs to explain why so here...January 5, 2007
Converted from old rating systemJanuary 2, 2007
Just look how leet he is :DJanuary 1, 2007
Converted from old rating systemDecember 30, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 29, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 27, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 27, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 26, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 23, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 23, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 21, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 21, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 21, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 20, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 20, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 20, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 19, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 19, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 19, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 18, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 18, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 17, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 17, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 17, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 16, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 15, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 14, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 11, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 9, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 9, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 8, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 8, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 7, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 6, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 6, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 5, 2006
Converted from old rating systemDecember 5, 2006
Converted from old rating systemNovember 30, 2006
Converted from old rating systemNovember 28, 2006
Converted from old rating systemNovember 21, 2006
Converted from old rating systemNovember 15, 2006