At first it seemed the best independent study for computer science would be one of game design.  I could work on the game with Jeff, learning how to work as a team in software development.  Then I realized it would really not be that exciting or even educational to reimplement old games and string them together.  So, I decided on the web as my medium.

My first program is a hybrid.  It uses Java to combine the accessibility of a web applet and the power of an application.  And it also draws the Mandelbrot Set.  It uses programming for one of its first uses, mathematics.  The Mandelbrot Set is actually based on a very simple mathematical equation, Z_n+1=Z_n²+Z₀, where Z is a complex number.  The fun comes in the coloring, since all complex points are either in or out of the set.  But black and white makes for a boring fractal, so there are different coloring methods based on the "escape count" from the set — how far away points are from being in the Mandelbrot Set.  I used what I think is a unique coloring method, since I have never seen it before.  Feel free to take a look at my Mandlebrot Set Viewer and see for yourself.

My next study was on the wiki, an important part of "Web 2.0".  A basic wiki, from a programming standpoint is very easy — take user input and put it on a web site.  Of course there are other elements too in most wikis, such as allowing for user formatting, logging changes, etc.  These features made their way, one at a time, into my Basic Wiki.  This wiki became a place to test out the new features I had added, but more importantly to look for bugs.  I enlisted the help of some of my friends to find as many errors as they could.  After that, I was able to put my wiki into "production," meaning using it for a worthwhile purpose.  That started with my Spanish Wiki, which Kirt, Isaac, Tim, and I used to write and edit the script for our Spanish end of year project: a video titled Juan, el soñador (Juan, the dreamer).

Then I decided to make what I jokingly call "Web 4.0"  (Web 2.0²).  It is a wiki-maker, so any person not only can edit a pre-made wiki, but make one of his/her own.  This tool was used to make Spanish Translation, the translation of  the aforementioned Spanish Wiki for use in subtitles, as well as wikis for future games to be produced by Roma's Nemmy Games: a politics game and a side-scroller.