Anyone using "Zen of D3D Game Programming"?
Author
I was going to use Zen of D3D Game Programming as a reference as I try to build my lacking skills as a game programmer and was wondering if anyone here has taken this road before me. I''m sure someone has. Basically I was wondering if there are any pitfalls that I should know about, or you could just post your successes with it. Anyway, just wondering. Thanks in advance.
I got the book, but I don''t like it much. On first glance it looks like it covers a lot of topics, but when actually reading thru, VERY little of the book deals with D3D and most of it covers 2D stuff. Not to mention that the author has some odd ways of doing things.
Lo,
I have almost finished the book and found it an interesting
read. The section on 3D graphics has helped me a lot in building my own 3D engine, but I found the chapters on 2D & GDI graphics to long.
But after all I learned a lot from the book and I can surely
recommend it to you.
Cya!
I have almost finished the book and found it an interesting
read. The section on 3D graphics has helped me a lot in building my own 3D engine, but I found the chapters on 2D & GDI graphics to long.
But after all I learned a lot from the book and I can surely
recommend it to you.
Cya!
Coupled with the book "Beginning D3D Game Programming" (same series), these books will give you all the knowledge you''ll ever need on creating your own fully-functional, albeit basic, 3D game engine. Between the books you will learn more than enough D3D to much of you need. Those books and the fine programmers that post on this site are what got me where I am with my engine (I can fly several starships around in space, run them into each other, shoot them down, and blow them up, all with fully functional 3D sound, joystick input, and a killer collision detection library). I''m not telling you that buying one or both of these books will turn you into a master programmer; this engine took months of hard work and many brain farts (I now have an incessant nervous twitch in my right eyelid), but if you''ve got any kind of natural talent, that book will definately point you in the right direction. Hope this helps, and good luck with future endeavors.
HanSolo
Sector 13 Games
HanSolo
Sector 13 Games
G''day!
I''m about 300 pages in, and so far it''s almost entirely been made up of examples of how to things and then at the end he says, ''But you would never want to do it that way'' and promises to show a better way later.
A lot of time is wasted and I already have some real issues with some of the ideas presented.
The author is also very opinionated and at times it feels like reading a propaganda document. DirectX is the most wonderful thing ever created. Microsoft is either wonderful or they suck, it changes from chapter to chapter. Apple just plain sucks, this has been mentioned a number of times and I haven''t finished the book yet.
I haven''t reached any sections that actually deal with D3D yet (though it''s a book on D3D) so I can''t comment on that stuff yet.
With the quality of game programming books that I''ve seen, it seems that just about anyone can get published. So far the Prima series seems to be a lot of fluff and filler.
Maybe I should write a book...
Stay Casual,
Ken
Drunken Hyena
I''m about 300 pages in, and so far it''s almost entirely been made up of examples of how to things and then at the end he says, ''But you would never want to do it that way'' and promises to show a better way later.
A lot of time is wasted and I already have some real issues with some of the ideas presented.
The author is also very opinionated and at times it feels like reading a propaganda document. DirectX is the most wonderful thing ever created. Microsoft is either wonderful or they suck, it changes from chapter to chapter. Apple just plain sucks, this has been mentioned a number of times and I haven''t finished the book yet.
I haven''t reached any sections that actually deal with D3D yet (though it''s a book on D3D) so I can''t comment on that stuff yet.
With the quality of game programming books that I''ve seen, it seems that just about anyone can get published. So far the Prima series seems to be a lot of fluff and filler.
Maybe I should write a book...
Stay Casual,
Ken
Drunken Hyena
It''s good book and is great for begginers, I highly advise you to get it. If you are more of a intermediate 3d game programmer and now how the tuts on NeXe and DH work, then wait for this one new book I dunno the name of 
that will be coming out during beggining of next year.
Eric Wright o0Programmer0o
NeXe
My Homepage
that will be coming out during beggining of next year. Eric Wright o0Programmer0o
NeXe
My Homepage
G''day!
If you don''t count the appendices, I''m half way through the book and vertices haven''t even been introduced. Sprite and Font engines implimented using CopyRects, LoadSurface, and manual pixel twiddling? Ewww. So far it''s a detailed manual on how to do all the things the DirectX team tells you never to do.
I don''t think that it''s unreasonable to expect that in a book on D3D more than half of the book should be on D3D. I''ll probably finish the book, but more due to my innate stubborness than anything to do with the book itself.
The RPG book that Torn Space posted a link to looks promising. But after some bad experiences with excessive fluff in Prima books, I have some reservations.
Stay Casual,
Ken
Drunken Hyena
If you don''t count the appendices, I''m half way through the book and vertices haven''t even been introduced. Sprite and Font engines implimented using CopyRects, LoadSurface, and manual pixel twiddling? Ewww. So far it''s a detailed manual on how to do all the things the DirectX team tells you never to do.
I don''t think that it''s unreasonable to expect that in a book on D3D more than half of the book should be on D3D. I''ll probably finish the book, but more due to my innate stubborness than anything to do with the book itself.
The RPG book that Torn Space posted a link to looks promising. But after some bad experiences with excessive fluff in Prima books, I have some reservations.
Stay Casual,
Ken
Drunken Hyena
G''day!
I contacted the author of the RPG book (Programming Role-Playing Games with DirectX 8.0, Jim Adams) and now I''m looking forward to the book. The book is listed at 975 pages, and when I asked how much of it was the Windows retread this was his response:
There a solid chunk on the different DirectX technologies (DirectMusic, DirectPlay,DirectInput) and it looks like he goes into useful depth on them.
The rest of the book is all about implimenting various types of engines geared towards RPGs. It sounds like this is a book with real focus. And though it will be presented with a slant towards RPGs, these engines could be used for a lot more. I think I''ll be buying this one.
Stay Casual,
Ken
Drunken Hyena
I contacted the author of the RPG book (Programming Role-Playing Games with DirectX 8.0, Jim Adams) and now I''m looking forward to the book. The book is listed at 975 pages, and when I asked how much of it was the Windows retread this was his response:
quote:
In fact, the Windows portion of the book is under 50 pages! I only show how to create an application Window and how to create a skeleton Windows app in order to start game programming
There a solid chunk on the different DirectX technologies (DirectMusic, DirectPlay,DirectInput) and it looks like he goes into useful depth on them.
The rest of the book is all about implimenting various types of engines geared towards RPGs. It sounds like this is a book with real focus. And though it will be presented with a slant towards RPGs, these engines could be used for a lot more. I think I''ll be buying this one.
Stay Casual,
Ken
Drunken Hyena
Author
I checked out the link too and I thought the book looked great but 
I cant even get through Game Programming for Dummies so this one will probably be above me too.
I cant even get through Game Programming for Dummies so this one will probably be above me too.
I bought this book and I have a lot of mixed feelings. For example, on page 356 the author begs me to run the layer example:
"Please run it, pleeeeease. It just looks rad, dude."
It may look rad, but I can not seem to find it on the CD or the Web site?
The book is full of code examples that don''t seem to link back to the CD. And finally, the Zen Cursor in the last chapter does not even display on the screen.
If anyone has resolved these issues, please let me know.
Thanks
"Please run it, pleeeeease. It just looks rad, dude."
It may look rad, but I can not seem to find it on the CD or the Web site?
The book is full of code examples that don''t seem to link back to the CD. And finally, the Zen Cursor in the last chapter does not even display on the screen.
If anyone has resolved these issues, please let me know.
Thanks
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