Essential Mathematics for Games and Interactive Applications: A Programmer's Guide (Morgan Kaufmann Series in Interactive 3D Technology) [Hardcover]

James M. Van Verth (Author), Lars M. Bishop (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 155860863X | ISBN-13: 978-1558608634 | Publication Date: April 8, 2004

"Even though I've worked with these systems for years, I found new ways of looking at several topics that make them easier to remember and use. For someone new to 3D programming, it is extremely useful-it gives them a solid background in pretty much every area they need to understand." -Peter Lipson, Toys for Bob, Inc.

Based on the authors' popular tutorials at the Game Developers Conference, Essential Mathematics for Games and Interactive Applications presents the core mathematics necessary for sophisticated 3D graphics and interactive physical simulations. The book begins with linear algebra and matrix manipulation and expands on this foundation to cover such topics as texture filtering, interpolation, animation, and basic game physics. Essential Mathematics focuses on the issues of 3D game development important to programmers and includes optimization guidance throughout.

*Covers concepts in sufficient detail for a programmer to understand the foundations of 3D without feeling overwhelmed by proofs and theory
*Companion CD-ROM with code examples built around a shared code base, including a math library covering all the topics presented in the book, a core vector/matrix math engine, and libraries to support basic 3D rendering and interaction
*Provides guidance for students trying to understand how games are actually developed, including optimization techniques

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Not only is it an excellent introduction for someone who needs to come up-to-speed on the math behind games and graphics, it's a well-organized reference for anyone in the field. Short version: If you program graphics, let alone games, you need this book. Shelve it near your desk, next to your Foley and your Knuth. Highly Recommended." -Rick Wayne from a review in Software Development Magazine

"This excellent volume is unique in that it covers not only the basic techniques of computer graphics and game development, but also provides a thorough and rigorous--yet very readable--treatment of the underlying mathematics. Fledgling graphics and games developers will find it a valuable introduction; experienced developers will find it an invaluable reference. Everything is here, from the detailed numeric issues of IEEE floating point notation, to the correct way to use quaternions and spherical linear interpolation to represent orientation, to the mathematics of collision detection and rigid-body dynamics." -David Luebke, University of Virginia, co-author of Level of Detail for 3D Graphics

"When it comes to software development for games or virtual reality, you cannot escape the mathematics. The best performance comes not from superfast processors and terabytes of memory, but from well-chosen algorithms. With this in mind, the techniques most useful for developing production-quality computer graphics for Hollywood blockbusters are not the best choice for interactive applications. When rendering times are measured in milliseconds rather than hours, you need an entirely different perspective. Essential Mathematics for Games and Interactive Applications provides this perspective. While the mathematics are rigorous and perhaps challenging at times, Van Verth and Bishop provide the context for understanding the algorithms and data structures needed to bring games and VR applications to life. This may not be the only book you will ever need for games and VR software development, but it will certainly provide an excellent framework for developing robust and fast applications." -Ian Ashdown, President, ByHeart Consultants Limited

"With Essential Mathematics for Games and Interactive Applications, Van Verth and Bishop have provided invaluable assistance for professional game developers looking to shore up weaknesses in their mathematical training. Even if you never intend to write a renderer or tune a physics engine, this book provides the mathematical and conceptual grounding needed to understand many of the key concepts in rendering, simulation, and animation." -Dave Weinstein, Red Storm Entertainment

"Geometry, trigonometry, linear algebra, and calculus are all essential tools for 3D graphics. Mathematics courses in these subjects cover too much ground, while at the same time glossing over the bread-and-butter essentials for 3D graphics programmers. In Essential Mathematics for Games and Interactive Applications, Van Verth and Bishop bring just the right level of mathematics out of the trenches of professional game development. This book provides an accessible and solid mathematical foundation for interactive graphics programmers. If you are working in the area of 3D games, this book is a 'must have.'" -Jonathan Cohen, Department of Computer Science, Johns Hopkins University, co-author of Level of Detail for 3D Graphics

Book Description

From the authors' popular courses at Game Developers Conferences

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 676 pages
• Publisher: Morgan Kaufmann (April 8, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 155860863X
• ISBN-13: 978-1558608634
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 7.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,036,828 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best game math books, April 28, 2005

By 

Dave Astle (San Diego, CA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Essential Mathematics for Games and Interactive Applications: A Programmer's Guide (Morgan Kaufmann Series in Interactive 3D Technology) (Hardcover)

If only every topic in game and graphics programming were covered as well as math. Over the past several years, a number of exceptionally good books covering math for game and graphics programming have been released, and I've had the opportunity to review most of them. Although, not surprisingly, there is some overlap between them all, each covers unique material and presents information in an original way so that collectively, the books provide an impressive body of work.

Essential Mathematics stands out as one of the best books in the pack, especially in regards to its coverage of the math behind low-level rendering techniques.

The book is broken into 4 parts. The first part, Core Mathematics, covers vectors and matrices, transformations, and number representation. This part will be useful to anyone doing 3D graphics.

Part II, Rendering, covers topics such as lighting and shading, texturing, projection, and rasterization. This part was of particular interest to me because I've been working on a commercial renderer, but it should also be useful to those who want a better understanding of what graphics engines do under the hood.

Part III, Animation, covers curves (very in depth) and representation of orientations (Euler vs. axis-angle vs. quaternions). Finally, Part IV, Simulation, covers intersection testing and rigid body dynamics. There are also a couple of appendices to help you brush up on trig and calculus, if needed.

The book includes many C++ code samples and demos, including a handy math library and a simple rendering/game engine using OpenGL and GLUT. The authors are to be commended for their writing style as well. It's very easy for a book of this nature to get bogged down in an extremely heavy academic tone, but this book manages to avoid that, making for a remarkably easy read.

I'm glad I don't have to choose just one game math book, but if I did, this would probably be the one I'd pick.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A solid guide to beginner and expert alike, January 13, 2009

By 

Christopher Dannemiller (Santa Monica, CA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Essential Mathematics for Games and Interactive Applications, Second Edition: A Programmer's Guide (Hardcover)

I have read many math books for video games and there are two aspects of this book I really like. The first is the book is encyclopedic and terms of the amount of information that it covers. The second reason that I like this book is that it clearly explains where the equations come from not just what the equations are.

21 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Clear, Comprehensive, and Educational., May 8, 2004

By 

Amit Pitaru (Brooklyn, New York USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Essential Mathematics for Games and Interactive Applications: A Programmer's Guide (Morgan Kaufmann Series in Interactive 3D Technology) (Hardcover)

The strength of this book lies in its author's ability to make complex subjects accessible to programmers of various levels. The book covers all necessary subjects of 3D development and algorithmic motion, while providing primers in the relevant Math and Trigonometry. The writing is clear, and the examples combine notation in Math, Pseudo Code, and Open-GL implementation. I could see various uses for this book; from reference guide to required course reading. It explains the most fundamental subjects of Vectors and Matrices, and later capitalizes on this knowledge towards subjects that every professional in the field should know. To make sure the book is right for you, I suggest reading the Introduction, which portrays the book accurately and proceeds to recommend alternative and additional resources.