| The last several years have seen some exciting advances in the field of real-time graphics. Starting slowly for beginning programmers, this book begins by reviewing recent 3D graphics developments and with an introduction to vectors, matrices, colors, and lighting. Then, it's on to rendering graphics! Learn various vertex and pixel shader techniques, discover how to use video as a texture, and get the scoop on several techniques for picking objects in a scene. Whatever your level of programming expertise, let this book serve as your guide to mastering the possibilities of real-time programming.
If you’re reading this book at home, good—because I have every intention of making this a book that you can use as a reference for a long time. If you’re reading this at the bookstore, then bring it home (they appreciate it if you pay first) because it’s terribly inconvenient to run to the bookstore each time you need to implement one of the cool techniques this book describes. When I taught a programming class, I told them, “I don’t know everything, but I know where to find everything.” Every good programmer has a couple of books that are good to refer to periodically. This is one of those books, but before we get to the good stuff, let’s get some basic introductions out of the way.
Who Is This Book For?
Simply put, this book is for you! If you’re reading this, you picked this book off the shelf because you have an interest in learning some of the more interesting parts of graphics programming. This book covers advanced features in a way that is easy for beginners to grasp. Beginners who start at the beginning and work their way through should have no problem learning as the techniques become more advanced. Experienced users can use this book as a reference, jumping from chapter to chapter as they need to learn or brush up on certain techniques. |
