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the daryljewkes.com homepage
Welcome to my Homepage
Well, I'm planning on taking over the world one day from my secret island hideout. Own a rocket/tank/super car and employ endless henchmen. (No agencies please).
And if you hadn't noticed already, this page is hosted on GitHub.Pages - so expect a certain level of geekism...
About Me
I have an extensive background in software development, creating content-rich web applications and background services/APIs using established technologies and design patterns.
Amazon Alexa development has become an obsession since 2016. My most popular Skill Popcorn Quiz, released in May 2017, stormed into the Top 10 Featured, Recommend, Staff Picks and Most Popular categories on the Amazon homepage and has stayed there for over 7 years now. With about 5,000,000 games played to date, there is no better way to build new features, improve my UX skills, and manage cloud-based deployments when you have 387,000 world-wide players playing your game 24/7 fighting for the top spot!
My first venture with Google Assistant development had brought Popcorn Quiz running on the same game engine. This had opened up a whole new dynamic now that the Alexa players had some fierce competition to contend with on the league table! Sadly, Google decide to cease all voice-conversational applications from its Google Assistant platform in 2023, resulting in over 50,000 players no longer able to access the game.
Delving into AI and Machine Learning, I created a NodeJS application using TensorFlow that could play BattleShip against itself. Just to make it interesting, and wanting to learn more about the Alexa Web API for Games, I created an Alexa skill called Battle Ship where you play against the same AI, using my web development skills to create a visually rich gaming experience. As it stands so far, the AI has won 67% of the games played against human opponets.
Employed as a Team Lead Developer working with new and up-and-coming technologies, I specialise in data-centric analyitic web applications and dashboards. Throw in the innovative concepts and prototypes for future markets and opportunities, gives me plenty of reasons to want to code.
In my spare time, I'm working with Node.JS and MongoDB - this is evident if you take a look at my repos. I'm loving the performance and scalability of the MEAN stack and the friendly, pro-active community support that comes with it - a refreshing change from my day job working on .NET Enterprise solutions.
You can also find me on the education discussion boards at MongoDB, which I'm a heavy contributor to since starting a series of online training certifications.
When not attached to a keyboard, you'll find me on a mountain bike trying to get as muddy as possible on a woodland trail, jogging in all weather conditions or carving up the white stuff on a snowboard trying not to break myself.
My Projects
A brief overview of some of my projects...
"Alexa, play Popcorn Quiz"
"Let's do this!"
Think you know movies? Test your skills against the world!
Popcorn Quiz
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Popcorn Quiz will ask five true or false questions from a vast range of movies and actor biographies.
For a given movie, Popcorn Quiz will quiz you on opening lines, the release years, actors, slogans, directors or characters. For actors, Popcorn Quiz will quiz you for their birth year or place of birth.
Popcorn Quiz will keep your score and tell you your world ranking position compared against other Alexa and Google players.
The more games you play and the more questions you answer correctly, the greater chance to increase your world rank. To reward your dedication, every 5th consecutive game will be a double-point round. Every 10th will be a triple-point round!
Double-point events happen every three days, so every player gets a fair chance to storm the ranks.
Look out for triple-point events - a few are scattered throughout the year. Otherwise, leave me a review on Amazon and I'll reward everyone with a full day of triple points a few days after!
Popcorn Quiz wird Ihnen fünf wahre oder falsche Fragen stellen, um Ihr Wissen über Schauspieler, Regisseure, Charaktere und Jahre der Veröffentlichungen aus einer wachsenden Sammlung von über 80000 Filmen zu testen, die die letzten 80 Jahre umfasst.
Popcorn Quiz wird deine Punktzahl behalten und dir deine Weltranglistenposition im Vergleich zu 250000 Popcorn Quiz Spielern mitteilen!
Je mehr Spiele du spielst und je mehr Fragen du richtig beantwortet hast, desto größer ist die Chance, deinen Weltrang zu erhöhen. Wenn Sie die volle Punktzahl erreicht haben, können Sie doppelt punkten oder alles verlieren ...
マルバツをポップコーンクイズ一緒にプレイしましょう。 は5つの質問をして、80,000以上の映画と80年以上の映画からの俳優、監督、登場人物、長年の出版物に関する知識をテストします。
ポップコーンクイズはあなたのスコアを維持し、あなたの世界のランキングを250,000人の他のポップコーンクイズ選手と比較して伝えます！
La skill vous posera cinq questions vraies ou fausses pour tester votre connaissance des acteurs, des réalisateurs, des personnages et des années de sortie d'une collection grandissante de plus de 80 000 films couvrant les 80 dernières années du cinéma.
La skill gardera votre score et vous indiquera votre classement mondial comparé à plus de 250 000 autres joueurs de Popcorn Quiz!
Popcorn Quiz le hará cinco preguntas verdaderas o falsas para poner a prueba su conocimiento de actores, directores, personajes y años de lanzamientos de una creciente colección de más de 80,000 películas que abarcan los últimos 80 años de la película.
Popcorn Quiz mantendrá su puntaje y le dirá su posición en el ranking mundial en comparación con más de 250,000 otros jugadores de Popcorn Quiz.
La skill Popcorn Quiz ti farà cinque domande vere o false per mettere alla prova la tua conoscenza di attori, registi, personaggi e anni di uscita da una crescente collezione di oltre 80.000 film che coprono gli ultimi 80 anni di cinema.
La skill manterrà il tuo punteggio e ti dirà la tua posizione in classifica mondiale rispetto a oltre 250.000 altri giocatori di Popcorn Quiz!
O 'Popcorn Quiz' fará a você cinco perguntas verdadeiras ou falsas para testar seu conhecimento de atores, diretores, personagens e anos de lançamento de uma coleção crescente de mais de 80.000 filmes nos últimos 80 anos de cinema.
'Popcorn Quiz' manterá sua pontuação e lhe dirá sua posição no ranking mundial em comparação com 250.000 outros jogadores 'Popcorn Quiz'!
popcorn quiz, पिछले 80 वर्षों के सिनेमा के 80,000 से अधिक फिल्मों के बढ़ते संग्रह से अभिनेताओं, निर्देशकों, पात्रों, रिलीज़ के वर्षों और फिल्म के नारों के अपने ज्ञान का परीक्षण करने के लिए आपसे पांच सच्चे या झूठे सवाल पूछेगा। popcorn quiz आपके स्कोर को बनाए रखेगा और आपको 250,000 अन्य popcorn quiz खिलाड़ियों के खिलाफ अपनी विश्व रैंकिंग की स्थिति बताएगा!
"Alexa, ask Popcorn Quiz what my rank is"
"Ok! Your rank is..."
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BR |
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frCA |
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| Rank | Score | Points Needed |
Bonus W / L / S |
Last Played | Joined |
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| Last 10 Games Played | |||||||
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| Rank | Total Score |
Game Score |
Last Game |
Game Streak |
Last Played |
Joined | |
| Total Players: | 0 | Daily Avg: | 0 | Today: | 0 |
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| Total Games: | 0 | Daily Avg: | 0 | Today: | 0 |
| Recently Added or Updated Movie & Actor Trivia |
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| Events Calendar |
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| Bonus Round Intermission | |||||
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| Won: | 0 | Lost: | 0 | Skips: | 0 |
| Alexa |
0 | 0 | Google |
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| This Skill was launched on Alexa on 28th May 2017 | This Action was launched on Google on 3rd Sep 2018 | ||||
The Skill provides an addictive, engaging and challenging game that keeps you coming back to increase your score.
Based upon previous experiences, I've been building a dynamic personality engine for Alexa that will tease, encourage and taunt your gameplay, so expect her to get more integrated into the Skills I create.
Latest Popcorn Quiz News
19 Dec 2023 - New question type live! - movie boxsets!
Are 'Secret of the Tomb' and 'Battle of the Smithsonian' part of the The Mummy series?
Does the Underworld saga have 'Rise of the Lycans' and 'Blood Wars' in its collection?
This question type will test your knowledge of movie franchises.
15 Jul 2023 - Movie stills update!
We now have over 5,000 movie stills and more are added every day.
In additional, the screen layout has been improved to support the widescreen images.
12 May 2023 - New question type live! - movie stills!
For those who use screen devices, movie stills will now be part of your question set.
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Jaws
UPDATE 19 Mar 2023 - If you are going to be affected by this and you also own an Alexa device, I can help transfer your game progress from your Google Assistant to Alexa.
Please reach out to me before the deadline to prevent your progress being lost.
3 Jan 2023 - Disappointing news, but Google has given developers notice that they have finally decided to drop all voice-conversational applications from its Google Assistant platform.
Therefore Popcorn Quiz will sadly disappear from all Google devices on June 13 2023, along with many other Google Assistant Actions you may have.
28 Mar 2022 - Look out for more movie-related dates such as Wickerman Festival (May 1st), Ferris Buellers Day Off (May 5th) and Goonie Day (May 7th) where PQ will be treating everyone to triple-points.
1 Jan 2022 - Happy New Year PQ Players! - For those who unwrapped an Alexa screen device over Christmas will be treated to the new UI version, with visual questions and touch screen gameplay.
23 Jun 2021 - Was the movie called 'Matrix Reloaded' or 'Matrix Rearmed'? Or how about 'The Perks Of Being a Sunflower'? Movie Title Jumble questions are now live!
13 Mar 2021 - New question type live! - which character says the famous quote! Was it Quint who shockingly said "You're gonna need a bigger boat."? Or Jack Nicholson who shouted "You can't handle the truth!"?
23 Jan 2021 - There has been lots of optimisations behind-the-scenes of PQ to ensure that the game remains stable and responsive as the number of players increases.
3 Jan 2021 - Happy New Year PQ Players! - Look out for more movie-related dates such as Star Wars Day (May 4th), Groundhog Day (Feb 2nd) and Terminator Judgement Day (Aug 29) where PQ will be giving out triple-points.
18 Sep 2020 - NEW QUESTION TYPE IS NOW LIVE - Poster Mosaic! For screen devices, can you make out the movie poster hidden behind the tiles??
02 Feb 2020 - NEW QUESTION TYPE IS NOW LIVE - Movie Details! Do you know your Nostromo from your Sulaco? Are there 6 members of The Incredibles family? Did Keanu take the red pill or the blue pill? Lets see how you compare!
18 Jan 2020 - NEW QUESTION TYPE IS NOW LIVE - Movie timelines!!! Do you know you post-apocalyptic from your period drama? Some are obvious. Some are tricky. Some will catch you out!
Popcorn Quiz gets a mention...
1 Jul 2023 - Join DTD as they jump back into another round of PQ on their daily podcast. Link here
30 Apr 2022 - DTD play another round of PQ on their daily podcast. Link here
23 Oct 2021 - DTD are back playing another round of PQ! Link here
13th July 2021 - DTD are back playing another round of PQ! linky here
12 Jan 2021 - The Netherlands-based website focusing on smart devices Domoticavergelijken have blogged about how to play games with your Google Home, picking PQ as an example.
23 Oct 2020 - German audio/technology specialists Teufel have blogged about Alexa movie skills in the run up to 🎃 Halloween, with PQ getting a shout-out.
24 Jun 2020 - voicemarketdata.com have done a full comprehensive analysis of the UK Alexa adoption rates, listing PQ in the top 15 Skills.
22 Apr 2020 - smartdomotica.it lists all the great things about owning a Google Home, which mean Popcorn Quiz hits the games section.
4 Apr 2020 - Popcorn Quiz gets a mention in the official Amazon Alexa UK email!
28 Feb 2020 - Popcorn Quiz gets a mention in the official Amazon Alexa UK email!
24 Jan 2020 - Popcorn Quiz gets yet another mention in the official Amazon Alexa UK email! 🥳
20 Dec 2019 - Popcorn Quiz gets another mention in the official Xmas Amazon Alexa UK email!
8 Dec 2019 - www.danielegiudici.it lists all the great things about owning a Google Home, putting Popcorn Quiz at the top of the games section.
15 Nov 2019 - Popcorn Quiz gets another mention in the official Amazon Alexa UK email!
12 Aug 2019 - androidplanet.nl ranks Popcorn Quiz in at #4 as one of the best games on Google Assistant!
16 July 2019 - Popcorn Quiz gets a review on SmartHomeWeb.nl and is listed as a Top Google Home App!
9 Jun 2019 - Multiple shout outs from a few media sources following a huge marketing push from Amazon :)
7 Jun 2019 - Popcorn Quiz gets its 4th mention in the official Amazon Alexa UK email!
20 Apr 2019 - Popcorn Quiz gets its first mention in the official Amazon UK email! As part of their Easter promotion, PQ was recommendated to help players win a gift voucher.
17 Apr 2019 - Popcorn Quiz gets a mention over on mummyconstant.com
30 Mar 2019 - Popcorn Quiz gets another mentioned over on Vocal Assistant Italy in an article on gaming using voice assistants.
20 Feb 2019 - Popcorn Quiz gets mentioned over on Vocal Assistant Italy in an article on gaming on Google Home.
20 Dec 2018 - Popcorn Quiz gets the first review spot on brand new podcast from Voiciety.io!
19 Oct 2018 - Popcorn Quiz gets its 3rd mention in the official Amazon Alexa UK email! Go #TeamPQ! This introduced over 1,000 players who played 4,100 games and helped push PQ to 119,000 players and 705,000 games!
13 July 2018 - Unlucky for some, but not me! Popcorn Quiz gets featured in the official Amazon Echo email for the second time! This introduced 900 players who played 3,000 games and helped push PQ to 90,000 players and 469,000 games!
2 Feb 2018 - Popcorn Quiz gets featured in the official Amazon Echo email! This introduced nearly 3300 players who played over 6200 games and helped propel PQ to almost 52,000 players and 155,000 games, making this the best day ever for PQ!
12 Jan 2018 - Reddit user alexainteractions has made a video review of Popcorn Quiz! Check it out: -
6 Oct 2017 - Dot to Dot plays Popcorn Quiz live in a podcast!!! linky here
"Alexa, play Battle Ship"
"Happy hunting, Marine!"
Welcome to Battle Ship - the classic Naval warfare game!
Play against a relentless AI enemy that won't stop hunting you until your fleet is destroyed!
The AI will position your fleet for you, so you jump straight into battle - no faffing setting up your game.
Command your crew with the coordinates to fire against and rid the sea of the hostile forces.
| Player vs AI | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Player Won: | 0 | AI Won: | 0 |
| Total Players: | 0 | Total Games: | 0 |
Earn your promotion through the ranks and compare your achievements with other Battle Ship players.
Optimised for play on Alexa screen devices, but plays perfectly well on the Dot using the companion app.
| Last Games | ||||||
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| Device | Tactical Grid | Player Fleet | Total Games | Won/Lost | Last Played | Joined |
This Skill was launched on Alexa on 28th May 2020
FlappyJS
Jumping on the Flappy Bird bandwagon, a complete browser-based game written in HTML5 and JavaScript. Based upon the classic original and with graphical help from a few versions that exist already.
More of a playground for learning about the HTML5 canvas object in modern browsers. My focus is understanding features like touch/event-driven behaviour across multiple devices and browsers, and game-specific design patterns for collision detection and sprite animations.
It is great fun to play so I'm updating this game often with new features and fixing any bugs found. The wife is addicted to it and puts in the change requests...
There is a Halloween version available. It activates in October after 6pm. Or by clicking this link...
Formula One Stats
An AngularJS application which focuses on the MVW design pattern to consume a public Formula One REST API.
Using the great UI Router and Bootstrap for fluid, cross-device responsiveness while learning the core features of AngularJS.
I've used some great libraries: Chart.JS and Isotope to help show data in different ways. Where possible all data is cached in a MongoDB instance for the fastest possible retrieval.
Get in Touch
You can get hold of me in a couple of ways. LinkedIn or the old, classic way contact.github.io@daryljewkes.com
