Review of AppleScript Programming for the Absolute Beginner (Paperback)

I found this book to be well written and easy to use. Like most books these days, it has a few typos in it. I guess that just a sign of the time. Still, there are not many of them. All of the examples were clearly explained and easy to follow. I am about 80 percent of the way through and I have yet to run into any trouble. I recommend this book to anyone interested in a learning AppleScript.

Product Description
AppleScript is a high-level scripting language that comes free on the Mac platform. This handy scripting language adds functionality to the Mac operating system by automating tasks and adding functions to your Mac. If you are new to programming with AppleScript and are looking for a solid introduction, this is the book for you. Developed by computer science professors, books in the for the absolute beginner series teach the principles of programming through simple game creation. AppleScript Programming for the Absolute Beginner provides you with the programming skills that you need and shows you how to put these skills to use in real-world scenarios. Best of all, by the time you finish the book, you will be able to apply the basic principles you've learned to the next programming language you tackle.

About the Author
Jerry Lee Ford, Jr. is an author, educator, and an IT professional with more than 18 years of experience in information technology, including roles as an automation analyst, technical manager, technical support analyst, automation engineer, and security analyst. Jerry has a master's degree in business administration from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia. He is the author of 22 other books and co-author of 2 additional books. His published works include AppleScript Studio Programming for the Absolute Beginner, Microsoft Windows Shell Scripting for the Absolute Beginner, Perl Programming for the Absolute Beginner, Beginning REALbasic, Microsoft Windows Shell Scripting and WSH Administrator's Guide, VBScript Professional Projects, and Microsoft Visual Basic 2005 Express Edition Programming for the Absolute Beginner. He has more than five years of experience as an adjunct instructor teaching networking courses in information technology. Jerry lives in Richmond, Virginia, with his wife, Mary, and their children, William, Alexander,and Molly.

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Review of Focus On 2D in Direct3D (Premier Press Game Development Series) (Paperback)

At first glance this book doesn't look like much.It's fairly small compared to the typical game-programming tome (even with its medium-sized print), and not much less expensive.If you went strictly by the number of words per dollar, you might overlook it.

If you're planning to write a 2D game with the DirectGraphics API, however, this book is exactly what you need.There may not be a lot of words, but they're the right ones.

The first 40% of the book explains how to do everything you could do with 2D interfaces, and a little more.Copying rectangles, copying non-rectangular images, and page-flipping are explained.Added to the mix are rotation and scaling effects that were generally not possible (or at least not fast) with DirectDraw.

The next 40% gets into 3D engine details, explaining just enough to let you take advantage of Z-buffering, anti-aliasing, and lighting effects without needing you to be the Wizard of Polygons.The math review is brief and to the point.

The last 20% is something of a waste.A long chapter is spent learning how to parse a ".x" file that contains a 3D model, something that is largely uninteresting for people whose focus is on 2D (and unnecessary for everyone else).Another covers particle systems, which is interesting but completely out of place in this book.One might suspect the author was padding it out a bit.A section on text rasterization with Direct3D might have been more appropriate.

Overall I got exactly what I was hoping for.The author describes the different approaches clearly, points out areas where you can get into trouble, and for the most part stays focused on the subject at hand.The result is a book that will get you up and running with 2D under Direct3D in a few hours.

Product Description
Focus on 2D in Direct3D teaches you all of the tools and tips you'll need to dive right in and begin creating your own games. If you have some knowledge of C or C++ and have been searching for a guide that will take your 2D programming into the third dimension, then search no more! In this book you'll learn the skills you'll need to move from the 2D API to Direct3D. Written form the point of view of a 2D programmer, Focus on 2D in Direct3D presents the fundamentals of the Direct3D API in an easy-to-use-and-understand format. Geat ready to jump into the world of Direct3D.

What's on the CD-Rom:

-Caligari TrueSpace5 Demo

-JASC Paint Shop Pro 7 Evaluation

-Microsoft DirectX 8.1 SDK

-Book Source Code

From the Publisher
Focus on 2D in Direct3D® teaches you all of the tools and tips you'll need to dive right in and begin creating your own games. If you have some knowledge of C or C++ and have been searching for a guide that will take your 2D programming into the third dimension, then search no more! In this book you'll learn the skills you'll need to move from the 2D API to Direct3D. Written from the point of view of a 2D programmer, Focus on 2D in Direct3D presents the fundamentals of the Direct3D API in an easy-to-use-and-understand format. Get ready to jump into the world of Direct3D!

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