Can't decide which math/physics basics book to get

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12 comments, last by legends2k 11 years, 1 month ago

Don't get the same book for "math" and "physics"... that's not very effective. There's just too much to cover to expect a single book to do a good job. For the physics part, I suggest "Game Physics Engine Development" as being easier to consume, highly practical, but less theoretical than the Eberly alternative. Make sure you get the most recent edition (by Ian Millington, published 2010 July 23).

Which is the best math book for 3D graphics is more difficult to choose, but you've got some good suggestions already.

For "collision detection" I'd suggest you buy "Real Time Rendering", even though collision-detection is only one of many topics in this fabulous book.

Also, here is the single best resource to get you started on "narrow phase collision detection": https://mollyrocket.com/849 . After you watch the video, wander through the forum. This is a great resource. If you decide to implement GJK for narrow-phase and/or sweep-and-prune for broad-phase and/or need to perform collision-detection on arbitrarily irregular "concave objects", you can contact me for more detailed conversations.

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If you think Mathematics for 3D Game Programming and Computer Graphics is too advanced for you, (or at least too fast on the basic) you should take Practical Linear Algebra: A Geometry Toolbox.

You could also attend the Khan Academy, in th elikely case that he doesn't have a 10,000$ book budget.

https://www.khanacademy.org/math/algebra

Thanks for all the advice, I've pondered quite a bit on this.

I've decided to get Mathematics and Physics for Programmers now. It covers a lot of ground I'm already familiar with, but it really seems like a comprehensive reference of all the basics, explaining them much better than Wikipedia (which I usually turn to for refreshers). And it really covers a lot of ground, from what I've seen pointing to more advanced books for further reading. But it does seem to cover all the things I really need right now.

Essential Mathematics for Games and Interactive Applications

Seems appropriate for my level
Seems to use proper terminology
Does not cover trigonometry or calculus, doesn't even include a reference of the trigonometric identities

Nope, I've this book, in the disc provided with it, you've 4 appendices. Perhaps you didn't look at the TOC properly.

Appendix A - Trigonometry

Appendix B - Calculus

Appendix C - Coordinate Systems
Appendix D - Taylor series

My review of the book is that it covers the basics extremely well, the authors seem to be very sincere in what they did, giving so much of attention to detail. I've come up till Chapter 6, and so far so good!

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