No comments about Visual Design on the Computer, Second Edition.

5 comments about Real-Time Strategy Game Programming Using MS Directx 6.0 (Wordware Game Developer's Library).

1. The book does what it says it does.
   The text alone is worth 5 stars.It's not a beginners book but it doesn't say it is either.

   If you are an intermediate/expert programmer you should have no problem with the source code.




2. ...because the noise from the guy patting himself on the back kept distracting me.

   When I read a technical book, I don't like to spend 50 pages reading the author's opinions on things. I don't like to read every other sentence starting with "this wasn't quite what I wanted, so ME AND JIMBOB wrote it this way...".

   Though there is some useful information in there, you have to wade through way too much of the author telling how he is great, MS isn't, and how you should write code exactly like he does (keep in mind that I'm not a huge MS fan, but the writer doesn't need to express his opinions on the matter every 3 pages).

   When I read a game programming book, I want information that I can build off of. This book is so convoluted, the information that you can build off of you could have pretty much figured out on your own given short enough time. With the exception of a few "hmmm"-inducing topics, this book is one for the circular file.




3. This book covers a few more rogue aspects of RTS programming. It describes several different key areas in nice detail. However, the book failed to wrap these ideals up into a complete package.
   Reading this book was like following a bread crumb trail for miles and miles. Licking your lips at what surprise may be in store for you at the end of the trail the whole way there. Finally crossing over the last peak you find out that the bread was all used up making the trail.
   The CD includes very little that a trained group of decrypters wouldn't have to work weeks on. The code was almost totally UN-commented, besides the copyright, and very buggy.
   The writer many times throughout the book showed examples of how to emplement certain ideas in code then offered small suttle hints on how to improve the idea leaving you with a less than perfect code example. Come On!
   Final thought! I wouldn't buy this book at its cover price. Wait for it on sale or in the bargain bin at the book fair.



4. The book is fairly out of date at the time I'm writing this, but I had hoped when I picked it up that it would have some valuable tips for writing games that are relatively timeless. The DirectX API has certainly changed a great deal from 6.0 to 9.0, but good game architecture doesn't change much.

   The book was disappointing. At times it reads like a collection of disjointed articles written by an amateur programmer, and at other times it demonstrates a clear "been there, done that" presence.

   Many aspects of the book are, simply, annoying. After briefly mentioning the Age of Empires scenario editor, the author writes in a separate note offset from the main text: "I worked on the scenario editor and it is largely the same as I programmed it to be, at least functionally." This self-important commentary does nothing to promote anyone's understanding of game development.

   The author's programming skills are poor. Other reviewers have said this; no need to beat it into the ground. I get the sense the author was working on tools for the games he worked on, not the games themselves. This comes out in the text: good explanations of the game development process and tools used by animators and developers, but shaky descriptions of game architecture.

   The choice of topics is a mix of good and bad. The early chapters on planning are very good, but then we get into a very long chapter on painfully optimizing line drawing, complete with a bad clipping algorithm ("Actually I wrote it myself without any help.") The chapter ends with, "but also realize that there isn't much line drawing in games these days", calling into question the purpose of spending so much time on it.

   It does have a long chapter on pathfinding, which was nice to see.




5. I can't believe how bad this book was. It gives simple concepts and then beats them to death with pages and pages of code. The author only touches on the truly difficult problems and refers the reader to web sites for the real material. He fills the pages with endless prose containing little substance.

   I bought this used for $5 and I paid too much.

No comments about Beginning Math Concepts for Game Developers.

4 comments about Flash 3D Cheats Most Wanted.

1. This has to be about the best book I have ever seen. The 3D cheats in it are amazing -- and you surely wouldn't know you were cheating. There are some incredibly insightful techniques, and some more staple things if you're not quite steady on your feet yet.

   I think I am, but this book showed me how much more there was to know!




2. TOC:
   
   Chapter 1 Introduction to Flash 3D
   Chapter 2 Light and Shadow
   Chapter 3 Scaling for 3D
   Chapter 4 Isometric 3D
   Chapter 5 Focus and Depth of Field
   Chapter 6 Parallax Scrolling
   Chapter 7 Text Effects in 3D Space
   Chapter 8 Drawing API and Math for 3D
   Chapter 9 3D Slice Engine
   Chapter 10 Departure Lounge: Moving beyond Flash 3D
   
   Chapters 1, 2, 3, 4, 6 and 10 don't require a trigonometry
   background. One of Chapter 6 topics uses XML though.
   
   The best chapters for me were 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6.
   
   I gave the book 5 stars because it has something for everyone.
   Some people use Flash to create digital art while others use it
   for practical purposes. This book delivers to both people.
   Unfortunately, I belong to the latter kind and some of the topics
   aren't for me.
   
   I also think that some chapters are impractical unless you're
   really a math geek. For example, I think Chapter 8 - Drawing
   API and Math for 3D -- is unnecessary because you can import
   Swift 3D files.
   
   Some of the authors also show you Actionscript without really
   explaining what it does (I think they assume you do know trig).
   I work for a software engineering firm (not as an engineer
   though) but I do know that it's bad practice to embed magic
   numbers -- literals that don't have apparent meaning -- in
   any code. It's better to put them in constants.
   
   One of the authors (the Chapter 4 author I think) said to get
   a good book on trigo. I don't think I will because there are
   plenty of free trigo tutorials on the web. I agree though that
   to get the most out of Flash and this book, learning trigo is a
   must.



3. This is the best book I have read in years! If you know the basics of ActionScript and you know sine and cosine, this book opens up whole dimensions of possibilities for both games and business applications of Flash.
   
   It is clearly written and reads more smoothly than most programming books. While it does assume a basic literacy with ActionScript, it does not leave you flailing with complex 3D concepts. You may have to pull out your definitions of sine and cosine, but beyond that, it is pretty light lifting.
   
   The genious of the book is that it violates commmon assumptions, and this results in simple, elegant techniques that are also powerful for a wide range of problems. The common assumption is that Flash doesn't do 3D. Don't believe it anymore. If you are willing to use some basic limitations to your application (such as keeping your polygon count down), you can have some smoothly flowing, useful 3D applications with relatively little effort. And unless I'm mistaken, those applications will run equally well on a browser running on a Mac, Windows or Linux.
   
   The solutions are simple and eclectic. The authors have created a variety of 3D engines - each optimized for a given purpose. The engines are simple enough that (in theory) you can take the source and enhance it to your needs. Each technique is backed up by source code that you can download from the publisher's web site. But don't shortchange yourself with only the sample code - the explanations in the text are worth the cost of the paper book.
   
   Here are my favorite techniques:
   
   * ch 8 (P 195) - Drawing API and Math for 3D - here they explain and provide a working polygon 3D engine. The demos work smoothly (at least 20-30 frames per second) on my cheap Dell laptop. The demos include a oragami bird and a rocket ship with at least 10-20 polgons each. It doesn't support bitmapped textures, but it does offer fill color and shading support.
   
   * ch 9 - 3D Slice Engine - this is the more clever, powerful and non-obvious technique of the book. Check out "dad.swf" in the binary samples from the web site to get an idea of the power of this approach - the author has made a 3D talking head of his father from a photograph! The idea here is that if you can view your 3D world as a topographical map, then you can model it with a set of parallel planes, where each plane represents a certain cut through the entire 3D model. This approach, though not immediately intuitive, is extremely powerful in Flash because it plays on the strenghths of Flash. Each plane is represented by two "movieclip" objects, with one embedded in the other. The first one handles scaling, and the second handles rotation, within the scaled clip. The hidden surface problem is finessed because the planes are parallel - so you only reverse the rendering order once every 180 degrees of change in viewer angle. This enables you to handle full bitmap detail of your scenes, and the result is pretty dazzling! The basic rendering engine requires only about 50 lines of ActionScript!
   
   * Ch 6 - Parallax Scrolling - This name is misleading - it really goes beyond a scrolling 2D game model. In the Wyvern's Claw" example, it explores the idea of building a 3D world like a movie set - with a set of strategically placed flat surfaces (like the fronts of buildings in the studio sets). Each surface is a movieclip, and your script manages the proper scaling and shading as the viewer moves through. The demo then shows an animated walk-through of a small town rendering in such a way. This seems very cool for a potential game.
   
   I'm already using the Chapter 9 slice engine for a work-related project - multidimensional data browsing. So for me, the book was not only stimulating to read but valuable!



4. I didnt buy this book to learn about flash coding, or web development. I bought this book because I am interested in Software rendered graphics. That is, applications that dont utalize OpenGL or Direct 3D for rendering to the screen. I bought this book for the techniques it discusses in "faking" 3d, and also producing real 3d. So far it has done a perfect job in giving me ideas and techniques that I can use in my applications. For anybody interested in producing anything that is real time, and 3d, I would reccomend this book.

No comments about Image Synthesis Theory and Practice (Computer Science Workbench).

No comments about Old-Time Toys, Dolls and Novelties CD-ROM and Book (Dover Electronic Clip Art).

5 comments about Exploring Motion Graphics (Design Exploration).

1. When going through school you have books that you keep and you have books that you get rid off (I like everyone else try to sell them and get some money back). This is one of those books that I am keeping. Well written, easy to read.



2. This book is very well written. It is understandable, but not insipid, and is actually quite useful.



3. Great book and easy to follow. It definitely peaked my interest the whole time.



4. For the first time in a while I was able to read a book without getting bored. It is written on a level that is easy to understand and incorporate in everyday life.



5. This book is like a communication theory course for elementary school students. Cheesy samples on jurassic theories of design and communication. I wonder how could they find this bad reference samples as "modern animation etc". They're all pathetic works even for a rookie.
   So the Authors. One web designer and a journalist. Come on, do you have a clue on "Motion Graphics" around the world?
   If you like the amazing work of motion graphics & animation studios such as MK12, Psyop, Shilo and want to be a professional motion graphic designer, welcome to the real world and stay away from this book.
   And the production of book is really bad. Terrible binding. Full black & white pages except color chapter (19 pages) thanks god. Thin paper. Finally no thanks for the dvd.
   I have almost all books about motion graphics, animation that you can find in amazon but thats only the one I never recommend.

No comments about Algorithms for Graphics and Image Processing.

No comments about Package Structure & Mechanism Design with SolidWorks 2007.

No comments about Ordnance Survey Mapwork.