DX8.1 book recomendations
Author
Hey,
I''m getting into DX8.1 now after using the DX6 which came with the TOTWGPG''s book. I have checked through all the tutorials in the faq''s page and got about 86 pages of pretty useful stuff.
I''d prefer to buy a book though, wondering if anyone had purchased any recently which are useful for a beginner/intermediate to DX8.1
I have been on Amazon and can only find Special effects game programming with DX8 - which seems to be any good.
Any suggestions anyone?
Thanks,
Paul
there''s this one, which is very new, and i have no idea what it''s like, but it''s on dx8.1.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1931841101/qid%3D1020184977/ref%3Dsr%5F11%5F0%5F1/002-9809649-2540811
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1931841101/qid%3D1020184977/ref%3Dsr%5F11%5F0%5F1/002-9809649-2540811
Real Time Rendering Tricks and Techniques in DirectX uses DX8.1 and concentrates on the newer features of the API.
special effects game programming. oh btw, crazed genious wrote real time rendering just to let u know and i''ll be buying it as soon as i can(prob a couple of weeks).
This is the better description I hope to see on Amazon soon (If you search the forums, there are chapter lists, etc. in other threads):
There are many books that describe the theory behind rendering techniques without walking the reader through actual source code. There are also samples available on the internet that supply source code without explaining how and why the code works. There are very few resources available that walk the reader all the way from the theory to the implementation details. Real Time Rendering Tricks and Techniques in DirectX bridges that gap by presenting over 25 rendering techniques using the latest version of DirectX. The book begins with basic concepts like matrices, vertices, and textures before moving to advanced topics such as vertex and pixel shaders.
Most of the rendering techniques are based on vertex and pixel shaders. Included are three different techniques for generating shadows, reflection and refraction, Bezier surfaces, matrix palette skinning, bump mapping, image processing, and much more. There are also several techniques which are not based on shaders. There are chapters that cover using the stencil buffer, video textures with DirectShow, picking, timing, 2D drawing, and drawing text efficiently. Each chapter presents the theory behind the technique before walking the reader through the shader and application code that makes each technique possible. Each chapter ends with a short discussion of performance considerations, limitations, and ideas for improvements. After studying a given technique, the reader will understand what the technique is, why it works, and how it works.
The CD includes several tools, as well as all of the application code, shader code, and media needed to implement the techniques. It also includes sample applications and technology papers from nVidia and ATI. As readers understand each technique, they can go to these third party resources to see how other people have approached similar problems. The book and CD give the reader a well rounded view of these exciting rendering tricks and techniques.
There are many books that describe the theory behind rendering techniques without walking the reader through actual source code. There are also samples available on the internet that supply source code without explaining how and why the code works. There are very few resources available that walk the reader all the way from the theory to the implementation details. Real Time Rendering Tricks and Techniques in DirectX bridges that gap by presenting over 25 rendering techniques using the latest version of DirectX. The book begins with basic concepts like matrices, vertices, and textures before moving to advanced topics such as vertex and pixel shaders.
Most of the rendering techniques are based on vertex and pixel shaders. Included are three different techniques for generating shadows, reflection and refraction, Bezier surfaces, matrix palette skinning, bump mapping, image processing, and much more. There are also several techniques which are not based on shaders. There are chapters that cover using the stencil buffer, video textures with DirectShow, picking, timing, 2D drawing, and drawing text efficiently. Each chapter presents the theory behind the technique before walking the reader through the shader and application code that makes each technique possible. Each chapter ends with a short discussion of performance considerations, limitations, and ideas for improvements. After studying a given technique, the reader will understand what the technique is, why it works, and how it works.
The CD includes several tools, as well as all of the application code, shader code, and media needed to implement the techniques. It also includes sample applications and technology papers from nVidia and ATI. As readers understand each technique, they can go to these third party resources to see how other people have approached similar problems. The book and CD give the reader a well rounded view of these exciting rendering tricks and techniques.
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