5 comments about VRML 2.0 Sourcebook, 2nd Edition.

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2. Doesn't take you through the subject in the conventional manner. After the first couple of intro chapters, you can then easily delve into any other chapter for what you need. Very useful as a reference once you understand the basics. A bit weak on using scripts to control and interact with VRML worlds. Other than this minor gripe, a great book.



3. This book is perfect for beginners and those that already now the basics and want to advance further. It has many examples and is written in a intelligent manor. If you are advanced in VRML you may still benefit from this book however when it comes to scripting and adding Java to your 3d worlds you will need to invest in other books.



4. I agree completely with the other reviewers. This book is has an amazing wealth of information about VRML and will have you making some amazing worlds by the time you are finished. Many important subjects are covered, from beginning to advanced topics. I do agree that there isn't NEARLY enough information about scripting with VRML, just a brief talk of how to do it. Some more examples with this would have been a huge help, but otherwise, I'd recommend this book to anyone who uses VRML, no matter your expertise.



5. Even nearly nine years after it was first written, this book continues to be valuable for more reasons than when it was published. If you are still involved in VRML and have some need to learn this language, this book is a complete guide that starts from the beginning with the simplest concepts and shape definitions and then builds to advanced concepts such as textures, lighting, and fog. Throughout the book there are figures of the resulting images and plenty of sample VRML files for all examples. I do agree with the other reviewers that chapter 30, the one on scripting, is really the only chapter that is no longer worthwhile since so many changes have been made to the scripting part of VRML. Other than that, this is truly one of the best written and most instructive tech books I have ever bought. If you are going to study VRML, there is no longer any other book in existence but this one that is worth owning.
   The second reason to own this book has only popped up over the last two or three years. Since Xj3D began to come on the scene several years ago as the XML-based open-source replacement for VRML, this book has become invaluable for evaluating that tool's ability to build virtual worlds. In fact, the Web3D consortium's "test files" for Xj3D, which continues to be a work in progress, are VRML files from this book that have been translated into Xj3D. Since the base tags are the same in Xj3D as they are in VRML, if you are able to understand VRML you should be able to understand what's going on in an Xj3D file with just a little investigation into the basic differences. This will allow you to intelligently evaluate Xj3D and determine if you can find any weaknesses or discrepancies in that tool's implementation.

5 comments about Engineering Design with SolidWorks 2005 & MultiMedia CD.

1. This is the second of two books, the first being, "Assembly Modeling with SolidWorks 2004 / 2005" that I purchased from these authors. Both books are well written and provide clear and succinct instructions.
   
   If you are looking for a good SW book to learn how to use the software and to learn about design intent, this is the book. There is also a great deal of emphasis on creating and modifying parts and thinking about the manufacturer's process. This is an area that was not taught to me in school. I had to learn it in industry, the hard way! There are plenty of pictures in the book, all black and white. I would recommend this book



2. I purchased this book three weeks ago. I took a one week course with my VAR and was overwhelmed with the amount of materials presented in the short time frame. I needed a book that I could use to learn and reference various commands of SW and to reinforce the areas that I learned in my one week class. This is the first book that I have seen where the author spends the time to insure that you are correctly following the procedure with wonderful pictures of the screen for the parts, assemblies, drawings, etc. This book saved me numerous hours of searching and asking questions on using SW. Thank you.



3. I had the pleasure to meet both authors at the Eastern Regional User Conference in MA this week. I was very impressed with their working knowledge of SolidWorks and their commitment for developing learning materials for the masses.
   
   The book, "Engineering Design with SolidWorks 2005" does an excellent job in providing a foundation to address Part Modeling, Assembly Modeling and Drawings. There is even a Sheet metal section in the book. The book is well laid out with excellent step by step procedures and pictures to enforce the learning process. I would recommend this book to all levels of SW users.



4. For those who are serious about learning SolidWorks or for CAD professionals using this software who would like to have a book for reference, this is the one to choose. Very well written and outstandingly organized! Two thumbs up for the Planchards!



5. Amazon lists this as "my recommendation." I however neither endorse nor recommend this or any book from Amazon.

2 comments about Foundation Flex for Designers (Foundation).

1. I'm sorry, but this book is trash. The description states that the reader will learn how to customize a Flex app to look unlike the rest. It's clear that the author was either incapable or too lazy to create a Flex web site designed in Photoshop.
   
   I give this book zero stars (though Amazon forced me to give at least one star).



2. I was really excited about this title I have been wanting to learn Flex! As a Flash Interactive Designer I wanted to learn how to do what I can in Flash in Flex. I received the book I quickly scanned it , looked at the lessons it looks AWESOME! I am excited. I open the book follow the instructions I realize I need Flex 3 ...OK that's fine I go get the beta, removing the earlier version first I now have 90 days with Beta 3 ...cool...
   
   I open the book begin the lesson and I am met with a errata error it seems that Adobe changed the Beta from the one used in the book ..the instructions tell me to right click and select the anchor point ...there are no anchor point or a context menu??
   
   So I did what every designer would do, I think ? I went to the books web site lookng for Errata...NONE!, Looking for a contact NONE! Filled out the eratta form an submitted but I was anxious so I went to one of the authors blog Lord Alex and sent a email titled "Can't use the Book"! He replied with in hours! Wow! He said it appeared I was right Adobe had changed the Beta versions and he would work out a solution...well he was better than his word..he posted a animated screen capture on the steps to complete, and aided me in debugging..
   
   I completed the lesson and on to lesson 2....I will keep you informed!
   
   Just let me say thanks to Lord Alex his book is just what I need to get started and he has been great...FOE still has not posted an errata page yet though... FOE get on it ,please!

5 comments about Scanners for Dummies.

1. As a long term fan of the Dummies books, I can't begin to express my disappointment in this offering. Scanners for Dummies is so exceptionally elementary as to offer absolutely nothing beyond how to "push a button" or "move a slider." Nothing is presented that couldn't be discovered by simply turning on the scanner and playing with it for a half hour or so.

   The worst part, however, is that much of the information about scanners and Paint Shop Pro is misleading and in several cases, just plain wrong. This is the absolute worst Dummies book I have ever read and, while it is not my first one by Mark Chambers, it may well be my last.




2. This book is as good as the amazon editor claims, I got my new HP scanner up and running in an hour so you know the installation and setup chapters were good! The coverage of web graphics is very good and provides lots of tips and instruction. You won't find as much on PhotoShop but the step by step Paintshop pro material is worth its weight in gold. Well written and funny. I am going to add this author to my Dummies watch list!



3. This book told me all I needed, I'm using my scanner just about every day now that I know what to do. (Plus I have it set right to take the best scans) Great coverage of filters and plugins too.



4. Although I don't have a Microtek scanner like the author has, I was still able to follow along and learned everything I needed to know. This book also has almost as good a selection of novice material on Paint Shop Pro as PaintShop Pro for Dummies! Well worth the money.



5. 'Scanners For Dummies' was shockingly empty of helpful content. I was looking for useful advice and helpful tips for archiving photos, practical tips for best scanner settings and insights about how to deal with less than perfect images. This book had little information of relevance and nothing of depth.
   
   I must own a dozen 'Dummies' books, and this is by far the least instructive and practical.
   
   That said, who would benefit from reading the book?
   - An absolute beginner who needs encouragement to start exploring scanner settings.
   - A scavenger who wants a full chapter on how to connect a SCSI scanner that he/she obtained for free on Craigslist.
   - Someone who wants instruction on Paint Shop Pro and not Adobe photo applications.
   - Users who have no interest in retouching or restoring older photos.
   
   The author, it seemed to me, had little interest or experience in scanning, retouching and restoring older images. To be more specific, the Histogram setting is not even mentioned and the info on adjusting Highlights, Shadows and Gamma settings is so superficial as to be of little or no help. However, the author does excel when discussing hardware issues.
   
   I have since read and recommend as vastly superior 'How To Do Everything With Your Scanner.' Even 'Digital Photography For Dummies' has more detailed and practical help for scanning and restoring damaged photos.
   
   If you buy this book for under $1, you are doing OK. But, if you want detailed and practical advice for scanning and improving photos, look elsewhere.

5 comments about Digital Character Animation 2, Volume I: Essential Techniques ([digital]).

1. Overall, i felt this book was good. If you are looking for a book that tells you which buttons and numbers to type to create a character, this book WONT help. This book is not specific to a type of program (the author wants to make money, not have an outdated book in a year). This can be a good and bad thing. The book does share tequniques for creating characters, but it is mostly helpful in adding real personality to your characters. It gives you tips on creating higher quality animations of your character.



2. The book focuses on character modelling (from the basics of modelling to the setup of the skeleton system) and takes time to explore the concepts of timing, anticipation.

   It is written in a software independent way and adds a lot of pictures. You will need to have a decent understanding of your own software of choice, but that's what manuals are for...

   It was my first real course on character modelling and I learned a lot about it. Not for the real pro's but for anyone who likes to get started or get past the intermediate level.




3. This book was very useful in teaching myself to make and animate 3D characters. The step-by-step direction are truely useful. The image details don't always match the the written directions and leave a bit to be desired, but it isn't really a hendrince.



4. George Maestri know's how to make a good tutorial book. He has nice clean pictures and doesn't go beyond what the reader may not know. I bought the first book, which i used constantly, and the new edition builds on the old one and makes it better. Highly recommended for those looking at techniques in computer animation. Its even got facial expressions =)



5. This is such a good book on learning the basics of modeling for animation, rigging, posing, locomotion and even facial animation and dialogue. I read this book to learn character animation and I noticed I keep coming back to it because it is a very good source of fundamentals. the importance of staging, timing, and the principles are covered with useful 3d renderings to match. examples of jump and walk cycles, etc are included. and core facial expression poses are shown also noting which muscles are used. the cd contains some nice clips of animation cycles done.

   Although simple in its approach, it's basics is rooted deep from a solid understanding of character animation knowledge. and since it is software independant, it will never go out of date.

5 comments about Maya Character Creation: Modeling and Animation Controls (VOICES).

1. Going into Chris Maraffi's Character Animation course at Full Sail, I was apprehensive about organic modeling and rigging. This book made a great companion during the experience of learning how to model bipedal characters and create their rigs. It provides a great spectrum of information on the subject, and makes a great addition to anyone's tech library. A must have for your tool kit!



2. I bought this book because of a recommendation and I wish I hadn't wasted my money.
   The modelling section of the book explains one of the worst ways to model a character I've EVER seen. All the screenshots right up to the final render look like mushy cg without any definition.
   The rigging part of the book is slightly better (but not by much). The author explains the rigging process quite well but the final model bends in the wrong places (eg the neck bend in a very strange manner which doesn't look natural at all).
   Frankly you could easily find a better book out there like the new one from (...), The Art of Rigging Vol. 1(I'm not associated with them in any way).



3. Being new to Maya and having difficulty getting my characters to act properly, I purchased this book. When it arrived, I thumbed through it and thought that it was a little beyond my comprehension. I would read it from time to time before I went to sleep.
   
   I continued trying to make my characters work properly (failed miserably) so I took out the book to give it the ol' college try. What a great book!
   
   Coming from a background in Poser, I have invested a lot of resources in content; that said, I'm not creating my own characters at the moment. I began creating a rig for my character using the exhaustive chapter on creating character controls. I got about 1/3 of the way and bound the skin and skeleton just for kicks. I gotta tell ya that I felt that I had really accomplished something. The controls did exactly what they were supposed to, had more flexibility than I would have thought to create and looked really cool. I am very excited to complete the chapter and see what happens.
   
   There are a couple of mistakes in the text that were frustrating at first, but applying logic after re-reading solved them. The author's style is as exciting as a saltine cracker, but it's clear that he knows how to create a great rig (that looks somewhat chaotic in the hypergraph, keeping in mind that I still have not completed it yet).
   
   I would recommend this book to someone who is pretty familiar with Maya. Some parts are a little beyond me but I keep plugging away to become more than the novice that I am now.



4. We're using this book for my advanced rigging class at the Savannah College of Art and Design. That said, I think it is most certainly not a book for someone who has no experience in 3d.
   
   I skimmed the modeling section, and the instructions are for a character modeled in NURBS. NURBS are certainly not what I would suggest modeling in if you're a beginner. If you've never modeled anything before, I would suggest finding a book that teaches you how to model with polygons first, which I consider much easier to begin with.
   
   As for the rigging section, I will reiterate that you should probably have some idea of how to rig before attempting this. It has some really good MEL expressions for controlling the rig. The drawback is that there are some errors in the book that my professor has pointed out and given us solutions for. This could be a problem if you are trying to teach yourself, as your rig may function strangely or not at all if you don't already understand the basics of rigging. I know some examples of where there are severe problems with the rig presented and that was with the stretchy spine and the breathing expression (which you annoyingly can't turn off).
   
   I probably wouldn't have bought the book if it hadn't been a requirement for the class. The instructions and notes that our professor gives us are more helpful than any book and no book can replace actual instruction from another human being.



5. This book is great to have because it tells you much about rigging and building models in CGI programs, mostly Maya. This book is a must have for any CGI animator.

5 comments about The Art of Cartooning with FLASH (With CD-ROM).

1. This is a pretty decent book. However, for the most part it had nothing new or original to offer that I hadn't already seen in other animation books. Nice artwork thought and it's definitely pretty to look at so I guess in a way it's useful in providing inspirational material. But you're not really going to gain anything new by reading it.



2. Shows you how to make use and organize symbols. Also some helpful hints and how to make use of alpha and tint functions. I learned how to make use of the transitions and shape tweens in animation very helpful. If only it were more specific on character animation and staging it would get a five star rating.



3. I bought this book thinking it was for beginners but it's not. This is what I'd call an advanced flash cartooning book. I was frustrated with some of the examples in the book. I didn't like how the author did his walk cycle. The walk cycle was too complicated for me. I tried several times to read the book with an open mind but that didn't help. I also didn't like the fact that their animatic wasn't created using flash but with quicktime. I did enjoy their flash cartoon "Jicketts Speed Shop Episode 1". Go check out jicketts.com/pilot/index.html
   The best flash cartooning book I've come across for beginners is "Flash 5 Cartooning" by Mark Clarkson. I'd recommend "Flash 5 Cartooning" instead of this book.



4. A few years ago I tried learning Flash animation by using tutorials on the Internet. I learned a little bit, but most of the tutorials weren't concise and they were confusing and usually I found myself aggravated with Flash deeming it was "too complicate to learn." I found this book for $5 and decided to give Flash another try. Gray made this book easily accessible for novices and advanced users alike with clear instructions. Each chapter begins with a few words on the techniques you will learn in that chapter and some tips. Then the rest of the chapter consists of hands-on exercises. Artwork and sample files are included on the CD-Rom if you do not have any original artwork. These exercises are very easy to follow. I completed the first four chapters and I made a short movie with music. That was only two days after reading the chapters. I read the help file about importing music. This topic isn't covered in the first four chapters but it is in later chapters. It does not take hours upon hours to learn Flash animation using this book. Knowing some basics of Flash beforehand will come in handy, though. I highly recommend this book if you want to learn to make Flash animations. You will not regret your purchase!!
   
   *The CD-Rom also includes software. Macromedia Flash 5, Adobe Photoshop, Bias Peak VST, Bias Peak LE, Bias Deck, and Sonic Foundry's Sound Forge. Most of the programs are PC & Mac compatible.*



5. I don't get why other guys gave 5 stars to this it's not giving enough information.The chapter go like this:
   
   chapter 1 : Is only talking about the author and what he thinks of the book
   
   chapter 2 :It talks about Very Very Very basic stuff of animation
   
   I don't want to bother myself by writing more about this book
   it's just a waste of time unless you don't know what is flash!
   It's 32.99$ l wouldn't buy it even for 5.00$ I recommend to everyone to buy "Animating Flash characters" it's cheaper and better.
   The guys who rated this item with 5 stars are surely the author or his frieds, or maybe they didn't even see what's on the book
   Anyway l made the mistake of buying it and l am writing this so you won't do the same mistake as l did.

5 comments about Softimage ®|XSI Character Animation f/x and Design.

1. Thankfully, this book covers character animation very comprehensively and also goes into some of the preceeding tasks that often aren't covered. The first few chpters don't bother with the software but cover possibly more important issues such as character design, storyboarding and creating rough animations in various manners, which is much truer to how most animaton studios would work. I feel this is far better than jumping straight in and hitting the "ok, what next stage" since everything is pre planned. Elements such as cinematography are given a nice introuduction too to give the reader more angles to think about to improve their end product. The character set up stages are well thought out with consideration for areas which can cause problems. The ik setups are solid and flexible. The expressions add extra value too. Various controllers are used for facial animation in the later sections, so most areas are covered very well.... I think this one is a worthy addition.



2. This book shows you everything you need to know about character set up and character animation in XSI.The first part of the book shows you how to develop your character and other things (storyboards,camera staging,lighting ect) you need to know about production and on the second part you learn all the secrets about character animation.The author guides you from a basic rig to an advanced rig with sliders, expressions and other powerfull features of xsi but it's not only that.He encourages you to dive deeper and explore all these cool features the pro's use.The new animation mixer is covered in depth and some advanced ways of facial animation are explained step by step.Even though this book was written for XSI users it's valuable for every serious animator who wants to explore powerfull character animation!



3. Considering the almost complete lack of real documentation in XSI (even in the program itself), this book is almost a godsend, even though it's a bit weak in some areas.

   Overall, it works as a primer for beginners, touching lightly on interface and basics, but has some excellent chapters on technique and workflow.

   I would recommend this to a beginner (there's really nothing else out there, anyway, but it's still a good book to have) with no problem. It makes a few assumptions about knowledge (in other words, pair this with some other animation and modeling books) but again, it's an excellent way to get started using what is really, in my opinion (and I know Maya users' hackles will rise at this), the most intuitive 3D application I've ever used.

   Final analysis: give it a whirl, you really can't go wrong. Any documentation is better than no documentation, and you WILL learn something from it (and likely, you'll learn quite a bit).




4. This book really goes well beyond just using XSI to do character animation. The first chapter discusses fundamentals of XSI, doing a rushed but adequate job of it. The next several chapters discuss the "animation process", including things like the necessity of creating a character profile, storyboarding, style and color selection, etc. This stuff was genuinely useful and interesting, but not really the meat of the book.

   The really excellent information comes in the later chapters of the book, where he discusses the basics, tricks, and advanced proceedures for character rig setup (specific to XSI). He shows you how to create a rig, and then layer controls all over it. While some controls can be manipulated directly, he shows you how to hook most to sliders in organized property pages. He goes further to show how to created automatic animation (through expressions) such as automatically rolling the foot as the character takes a step, breathing, automatic muscle flexing, etc. He touches *very lightly* on control of clothes and the like. Beyond that, lip syncing and facial expressions are covered in fair detail, all in XSI specific discussions so you know right where to find the tools that you need to accomplish the tasks (you won't, however, get a comprehensive list of lip shapes for English phonetic sounds for example).

   He shows you how to make animated "clips" for use in the animation mixer, and then how to mix those clips together to achive a fluid animation. Lip syncing in the animation mixer is also included. There is enough detail in the animation mixer discussion that even if you know nothing about the animation mixer, you will be producing solid animations once you finish the book.

   Things that are *not covered* are features in XSI that are relatively unrelated to character animation, such as texturing and the render tree, simulation, etc. Hair isn't covered either (the book was written for XSI 1.5, not 2.0). Also, while modeling is discussed, the book does not go into great detail about the modeling of your character, as the focus is more on controlling the animation rather than building the character (he does mention several interesting points about why the animation stage is more important than the modeling stage, particularly for a new-comer like me). Finally, advanced features of XSI such as the ability to transfer animated clips betweem unrelated character rigs is barely touch on, and the transfer of envelope weights between characters is not mentioned.

   Overall, a *very* informative and useful read for those who *don't* have a rock solid knowledge of XSI and who really don't know much about rig setup and the animation mixer. Oh, and the CD has a couple *excellent* skeleton rigs pre-built with slider controls and all.




5. I, too, was glad that when this book came out, there finally was some kind of documentation. However, it wasn't really the kind of user guide I was looking for. There is an awful lot of pages wasted in this book, on such things as storyboards, drawing charaters, and so forth. Really what I wanted was a technical manual, that guides me through the features of XSI. If I want a book on storyboarding or cinematography, I'll buy one. For this proud price the Softimage book really left me dissapointed. If you are looking for a comprehensive user guide that introduces you to all the features of XSI and guides you through using them, you've come to the wrong place...

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