C64 loading screen

Question

I have made a loading screen (splash screen) just like the old C64. I have used a series of picture boxes and just change the coloured image using a timer and a case statement.

namespace c64
{
 public partial class Form1 : Form
 {
 public Form1()
 {
 InitializeComponent();
 }
 private void Form1_Load(object sender, EventArgs e)
 {
 timer1.Start();
 timer2.Start();
 timer3.Start();
 }
 private void timer1_Tick(object sender, EventArgs e)
 {
 Random rnd = new Random();
 int a = rnd.Next(1,8);
 int b = rnd.Next(1,8);
 int c = rnd.Next(1,8);
 int d= rnd.Next(1,8);
 int n= rnd.Next(1,8);
 int f= rnd.Next(1,8);
 int g= rnd.Next(1,8);
 int h = rnd.Next(1, 8);
 switch (a)
 {
 case 1: 
 pictureBox1.Image = Properties.Resources.image1;
 pictureBox8.Image = Properties.Resources.image1;
 pictureBox10.Image = Properties.Resources.image1;
 pictureBox2.Image = Properties.Resources.image1;
 pictureBox11.Image = Properties.Resources.image1;
 pictureBox9.Image = Properties.Resources.image1;
 break;
 case 2:
 pictureBox1.Image = Properties.Resources.image2;
 pictureBox8.Image = Properties.Resources.image2;
 pictureBox10.Image = Properties.Resources.image2;
 break;
 case 3:
 pictureBox1.Image = Properties.Resources.image3;
 pictureBox8.Image = Properties.Resources.image3;
 pictureBox10.Image = Properties.Resources.image3;
 break;
 case 4:
 pictureBox1.Image = Properties.Resources.image4;
 pictureBox8.Image = Properties.Resources.image4;
 break;
 case 5:
 pictureBox1.Image = Properties.Resources.image5;
 pictureBox8.Image = Properties.Resources.image5;
 break;
 case 6:
 pictureBox1.Image = Properties.Resources.image6;
 pictureBox8.Image = Properties.Resources.image6;
 break;
 case 7:
 pictureBox1.Image = Properties.Resources.image7;
 pictureBox8.Image = Properties.Resources.image7;
 break;
 case 8:
 pictureBox1.Image = Properties.Resources.image8;
 pictureBox8.Image = Properties.Resources.image8;
 break;
 }
 switch (b)
 {
 case 1:
 pictureBox2.Image = Properties.Resources.image1;
 pictureBox11.Image = Properties.Resources.image1;
 pictureBox9.Image = Properties.Resources.image1;
 break;
 case 2:
 pictureBox2.Image = Properties.Resources.image2;
 pictureBox9.Image = Properties.Resources.image2;
 break;
 case 3:
 pictureBox2.Image = Properties.Resources.image3;
 pictureBox11.Image = Properties.Resources.image3;
 pictureBox9.Image = Properties.Resources.image3;
 pictureBox18.Image = Properties.Resources.image3;
 pictureBox18.Image = Properties.Resources.image4;
 break;
 case 4:
 pictureBox2.Image = Properties.Resources.image4;
 pictureBox9.Image = Properties.Resources.image4;
 break;
 case 5:
 pictureBox2.Image = Properties.Resources.image5;
 pictureBox9.Image = Properties.Resources.image5;
 break;
 case 6:
 pictureBox2.Image = Properties.Resources.image6;
 pictureBox9.Image = Properties.Resources.image6;
 pictureBox12.Image = Properties.Resources.image6;
 break;
 case 7:
 pictureBox2.Image = Properties.Resources.image7;
 pictureBox9.Image = Properties.Resources.image7;
 break;
 case 8:
 pictureBox2.Image = Properties.Resources.image8;
 pictureBox9.Image = Properties.Resources.image8;
 break;
 }
 switch (c)
 {
 case 1:
 pictureBox3.Image = Properties.Resources.image1;
 pictureBox13.Image = Properties.Resources.image1;
 break;
 case 2:
 pictureBox3.Image = Properties.Resources.image2;
 pictureBox13.Image = Properties.Resources.image2;
 break;
 case 3:
 pictureBox3.Image = Properties.Resources.image3;
 break;
 case 4:
 pictureBox3.Image = Properties.Resources.image4;
 pictureBox1.Image = Properties.Resources.image2;
 pictureBox8.Image = Properties.Resources.image2;
 pictureBox10.Image = Properties.Resources.image2;
 break;
 case 5:
 pictureBox3.Image = Properties.Resources.image5;
 pictureBox18.Image = Properties.Resources.image1;
 pictureBox18.Image = Properties.Resources.image1;
 pictureBox17.Image = Properties.Resources.image2;
 break;
 case 6:
 pictureBox3.Image = Properties.Resources.image6;
 break;
 case 7:
 pictureBox3.Image = Properties.Resources.image7;
 break;
 case 8:
 pictureBox3.Image = Properties.Resources.image8;
 break;
 }
 switch (d)
 {
 case 1:
 pictureBox4.Image = Properties.Resources.image1;
 pictureBox14.Image = Properties.Resources.image1;
 pictureBox17.Image = Properties.Resources.image2;
 pictureBox8.Image = Properties.Resources.image2;
 pictureBox10.Image = Properties.Resources.image2;
 break;
 case 2:
 pictureBox4.Image = Properties.Resources.image2;
 pictureBox18.Image = Properties.Resources.image2;
 pictureBox18.Image = Properties.Resources.image3;
 break;
 case 3:
 pictureBox4.Image = Properties.Resources.image3;
 pictureBox17.Image = Properties.Resources.image5;
 pictureBox18.Image = Properties.Resources.image8;
 pictureBox18.Image = Properties.Resources.image7;
 break;
 case 4:
 pictureBox4.Image = Properties.Resources.image4;
 break;
 case 5:
 pictureBox4.Image = Properties.Resources.image5;
 pictureBox14.Image = Properties.Resources.image5;
 break;
 case 6:
 pictureBox4.Image = Properties.Resources.image6;
 pictureBox17.Image = Properties.Resources.image7;
 break;
 case 7:
 pictureBox4.Image = Properties.Resources.image7;
 break;
 case 8:
 pictureBox4.Image = Properties.Resources.image8;
 break;
 }
 switch (n)
 {
 case 1:
 pictureBox5.Image = Properties.Resources.image1;
 pictureBox15.Image = Properties.Resources.image5;
 break;
 case 2:
 pictureBox5.Image = Properties.Resources.image2;
 break;
 case 3:
 pictureBox5.Image = Properties.Resources.image3;
 pictureBox15.Image = Properties.Resources.image3;
 break;
 case 4:
 pictureBox5.Image = Properties.Resources.image4;
 break;
 case 5:
 pictureBox5.Image = Properties.Resources.image5;
 break;
 case 6:
 pictureBox5.Image = Properties.Resources.image6;
 break;
 case 7:
 pictureBox5.Image = Properties.Resources.image7;
 break;
 case 8:
 pictureBox5.Image = Properties.Resources.image8;
 break;
 }
 switch (f)
 {
 case 1:
 pictureBox5.Image = Properties.Resources.image1;
 pictureBox16.Image = Properties.Resources.image3;
 break;
 case 2:
 pictureBox5.Image = Properties.Resources.image2;
 break;
 case 3:
 pictureBox5.Image = Properties.Resources.image3;
 break;
 case 4:
 pictureBox5.Image = Properties.Resources.image4;
 break;
 case 5:
 pictureBox5.Image = Properties.Resources.image5;
 break;
 case 6:
 pictureBox5.Image = Properties.Resources.image6;
 break;
 case 7:
 pictureBox5.Image = Properties.Resources.image7;
 break;
 case 8:
 pictureBox5.Image = Properties.Resources.image8;
 break;
 }
 switch (g)
 {
 case 1:
 pictureBox6.Image = Properties.Resources.image1;
 break;
 case 2:
 pictureBox6.Image = Properties.Resources.image2;
 break;
 case 3:
 pictureBox6.Image = Properties.Resources.image3;
 break;
 case 4:
 pictureBox6.Image = Properties.Resources.image4;
 break;
 case 5:
 pictureBox6.Image = Properties.Resources.image5;
 break;
 case 6:
 pictureBox6.Image = Properties.Resources.image6;
 break;
 case 7:
 pictureBox6.Image = Properties.Resources.image7;
 break;
 case 8:
 pictureBox6.Image = Properties.Resources.image8;
 break;
 }
 switch (h)
 {
 case 1:
 pictureBox7.Image = Properties.Resources.image1;
 break;
 case 2:
 pictureBox7.Image = Properties.Resources.image2;
 break;
 case 3:
 pictureBox7.Image = Properties.Resources.image3;
 break;
 case 4:
 pictureBox7.Image = Properties.Resources.image4;
 break;
 case 5:
 pictureBox7.Image = Properties.Resources.image5;
 break;
 case 6:
 pictureBox7.Image = Properties.Resources.image6;
 break;
 case 7:
 pictureBox7.Image = Properties.Resources.image7;
 break;
 case 8:
 pictureBox7.Image = Properties.Resources.image8;
 break;
 }
 }
 private void timer2_Tick(object sender, EventArgs e)
 {
 pictureBox21.Visible = true;
 }
 private void timer3_Tick(object sender, EventArgs e)
 {
 pictureBox21.Visible = false;
 }
 }
}

Is there a more efficient way to get this effect?

• Chris Devine: I cant link a picture (or at least I dont know how to) but if you google C64 loading screen it will help (even select a video) But the boxes are long line stripes across the page of one solid colour, that colour changes to another solid colour after a few ms. So I have roughly 21 of these boxes down the page and using timer I change them with a random number and a case statement (shown above) I have 8 case statements but its very untidy.
• 200_success: timer2 and timer3 control the visibility of pictureBox21. What is special about pictureBox21?

Answer 1

There's quite a lot of code duplication going on here... I would suggest refactoring the switch statements into a method.

I'm assuming there are 20 PictureBox objects and you want to randomize the shown image on each of those, because your provided code is a bit bizarre (e.g. pictureBox11.Image only ever gets assigned Properties.Resources.image1 or image3, and sometimes there are multiple assignments for the same pictureBox inside a case)

namespace c64 {
 public partial class Form1 : Form {
 private Random rng;
 private const Image[] Images = new Image[]{
 Properties.Resources.image1,
 Properties.Resources.image2,
 Properties.Resources.image3,
 Properties.Resources.image4,
 Properties.Resources.image5,
 Properties.Resources.image6,
 Properties.Resources.image7,
 Properties.Resources.image8
 };
 public Form1() {
 InitializeComponents();
 rng = new Random();
 }
 private void RandomizeImage(PictureBox pictureBox) {
 int index = rng.Next(0, Images.Length - 1);
 pictureBox.Image = Images[index];
 }
 private void timer1_Tick(object sender, EventArgs e) {
 RandomizeImage(pictureBox1);
 RandomizeImage(pictureBox2);
 RandomizeImage(pictureBox3);
 RandomizeImage(pictureBox4);
 RandomizeImage(pictureBox5);
 RandomizeImage(pictureBox6);
 RandomizeImage(pictureBox7);
 RandomizeImage(pictureBox8);
 RandomizeImage(pictureBox9);
 RandomizeImage(pictureBox10);
 RandomizeImage(pictureBox11);
 RandomizeImage(pictureBox12);
 RandomizeImage(pictureBox13);
 RandomizeImage(pictureBox14);
 RandomizeImage(pictureBox15);
 RandomizeImage(pictureBox16);
 RandomizeImage(pictureBox17);
 RandomizeImage(pictureBox18);
 RandomizeImage(pictureBox19);
 RandomizeImage(pictureBox20);
 }
 // rest of your code ...
 }
}

Of course, you could pack those pictureBoxX (X = 1 to 20) into their own array and iterate over them in a loop.