Game Programming Gems 2

FROM OUR EDITORS

The Barnes & Noble Review
The first volume of Game Programming Gems helped break down the walls of secrecy in the game development industry, where programmers have often been loathe to share their best techniques. Mark DeLoura cajoled some 40 top game developers to participate, and the result was an eye-opener. Now, he's back with even more great ideas, in Game Programming Gems 2.

To begin with, you'll find more than 20 "general programming" techniques: optimizing C++ games, protecting yourself from "DLL Hell," adding a drop-in debug memory manager, stack winding, and a nifty approach to using web cameras, to name a few. Highlights from the book's math section include improving IEEE floating point performance, determining inverse trajectories, and creating smooth C2 quaternion-based flythrough paths.

You'll find a big bundle of attractive AI techniques (influence mapping, strategic assessment, terrain reasoning, and how to manage the tendency of fuzzy logic systems toward combinatorial explosion, to name a few). Graphics display, geometry, and audio are also well represented, with an emphasis on squeezing maximum performance out of the available resources.

We'll never have enough hardware to quench our thirst for speed and reality, but Game Programming Gems 2 is the next best thing. (Bill Camarda)

Bill Camarda is a consultant, writer, and web/multimedia content developer with nearly 20 years' experience in helping technology companies deploy and market advanced software, computing, and networking products and services. His 15 books include Special Edition Using Word 2000 and Upgrading & Fixing Networks For Dummies®, Second Edition.

ANNOTATION

Blazing through the excitement generated by the first volume, Game Programming Gems II is here with an entirely new set of innovative ideas, techniques, and algorithms. Game developers of all levels will find insightful tips and tools from this unique collection.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Blazing through the excitement generated by the first volume, Game Programming Gems II is here with an entirely new set of innovative ideas, techniques, and algorithms. Game developers of all levels will find insightful tips and tools from this unique collection. Written by game programming experts, each contribution provides a hands-on solution to a programming problem, or a creative method for reducing programming time and redundancy. Edited by Mark DeLoura, Editor-In-Chief of Game Developer magazine and a group of top-notch area editors, this collection covers the major topics needed to develop a state-of-the-art game engine and provides all new coverage of audio issues. From animation and artificial intelligence to Z-buffering, lighting calculations, weather effects, curved surfaces, audio tools, multi-player Internet gaming, music and sound effects, all of the major techniques needed to develop a competitive game engine are covered. All of the source code for each algorithm is included and can be used by advanced programmers immediately. For aspiring game programmers, the text for each algorithm explains the algorithm in detail, gives suggestions for beneficial modifications and optimizations, and includes references to related material. KEY FEATURES:
* An all new collection of original tools for game programmers
* New section on Audio tools and techniques
* CD-ROM is packed with portable source code in C & C++; most of the techniques will work in OpenGL and Linux, however, there are some techniques which will only work on Windows/Xbox/DirectX.

SYNOPSIS

Blazing through the excitement generated by the first volume, Game Programming Gems II is here with an entirely new set of innovative ideas, techniques, and algorithms. Game developers of all levels will find insightful tips and tools from this unique collection. Written by game programming experts, each contribution provides a hands-on solution to a programming problem, or a creative method for reducing programming time and redundancy. Edited by Mark DeLoura, Editor-In-Chief of Game Developer magazine and a group of top-notch area editors, this collection covers the major topics needed to develop a state-of-the-art game engine and provides all new coverage of audio issues. From animation and artificial intelligence to Z-buffering, lighting calculations, weather effects, curved surfaces, audio tools, multi-player Internet gaming, music and sound effects, all of the major techniques needed to develop a competitive game engine are covered. All of the source code for each algorithm is included and can be used by advanced programmers immediately. For aspiring game programmers, the text for each algorithm explains the algorithm in detail, gives suggestions for beneficial modifications and optimizations, and includes references to related material.

KEY FEATURES