Mathematics for 3D Game Programming and Computer Graphics,...

Features

• Cover Type: Hard Cover with 551 pages
• Published by: Charles River Media
• Edition: 2nd Edition November 18, 2003
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 1584502770
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-1584502777
• Book Dimensions: 9.3 x 7.6 x 1.4 inches
• Weighs: 2.6 pounds

Product Description
This completely updated second edition illustrates the mathematical concepts that a game programmer would need to develop a professional-quality 3D engine. Although the book is geared toward applications in game development, many of the topics appeal to general interests in 3D graphics. It starts at a fairly basic level in areas such as vector geometry and linear algebra, and then progresses to more advanced topics in 3D game programming such as illumination and visibility determination. Particular attention is given to derivations of key results, ensuring that the reader is not forced to endure gaps in the theory. The book assumes a working knowledge of trigonometry and calculus, but also includes sections that review the important tools used from these disciplines, such as trigonometric identities, differential equations, and Taylor series.

About The Author
Eric Lengyel (Sunnyvale, CA), best-selling author of Mathematics for 3D Game Programming and Computer Graphics, is the Chief Technology Officer for the game engine development studio Terathon Software. He holds an M.S. in Mathematics from Virginia Tech and has written several articles for gamasutra.com and the Game Programming Gems series (Charles River Media).

Reader Reviews
To be honest, while I find this book to be a decent reference, I find it to be pretty inaccessible in terms of sitting down and reading through it in an attempt to learn the concepts. As a non-math major (I'm actually an engineer and software developer) these math concepts are by no means beyond me. But rather than simply being presented with equation after equation, proof after proof, what I find a lot more valuable is more discussion on the usage of these equations. Specifically I'd like to see examples, diagrams, and code, and there is precious little of any of that in this book. In other words, this book is very much like what you expect to find in a very dry upper devision college math text for the consumption of math majors who are used to such things. But for a non math major just trying to make use of these concepts in order to get the job done and make games? eh, not so much. Still, I do think this book is useful as a reference when I want to look up an equation as there are a ton of them crammed into this book, but for me, I just don't find this book to be very good as a learning tool.