Inside Rhinoceros [Paperback]

Ron K.C.(Ron K.C. Cheng) Cheng (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 076685437X | ISBN-13: 978-0766854376 | Publication Date: November 8, 2001 | Edition: 001

Master the ins and outs of building curved surfaces and organic shapes while sharpening your knowledge of the mathematics used in contemporary computer-aided engineering applications. Inside Rhinoceros provides readers with an all-inclusive introduction to 3D computer modeling using the newest release of Rhinoceros- Rhino, Release 2- with special emphasis on understanding NURBS surfaces and boundary-representation methods. Real-world projects and step-by-step Rhino tutorials acquaint novices with key features and functions of the software, which is rapidly gaining acceptance in the corporate market as well as in the classroom. These hands-on exercises provide a direct path to learning how to generate free-form NURBS curves for creating surfaces and solids, construct polygon meshes for coping with other applications, and outputting photo-realistic images and 2D production engineering drawings from 3D objects.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Ron K.C. Cheng leads the Product Design Unit of the Industrial Center of Hong Kong Polytechnic University where he is involved in computer-aided design and the development of computer-based learning materials.Ron is the author of eight Autodesk® Press training guides including books on AutoCAD®, Mechanical Desktop®, and Autodesk Inventor®.

Product Details

• Paperback: 448 pages
• Publisher: OnWord Press; 001 edition (November 8, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 076685437X
• ISBN-13: 978-0766854376
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 7.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #689,394 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Worth getting; not perfect, February 4, 2002

By 

Mark L. Dyson "Spinny" (Deerfield, NY United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Inside Rhinoceros (Paperback)

This book goes a long way to bridging the gap between mechanics-only references (such as the typical user manual) and workflow/theory offerings that try to be software independant. The author presents more information about the underlying mathematics of curve and surface generation than I'm used to seeing in an application-oriented reference, and I wish more authors would follow suit. The portions of the book that could be called simple re-hashing of the user manual still presented the information in a useful workflow-oriented manner which I feel is value added when coupled with the program documentation and included tutorials.

I have two main criticisms, one mechanical and one conceptual.

1. The graphics weren't proofed very well. Many illustrations feature 'selected' shapes which, in the grey scale pattern used, can be seen with great difficulty against the grid -- if they can be seen at all. I consider that simple sloppy editing. I also believe more care should have been taken in placing illustrations closer to the associated text. Modern word processing allows easy linkage to figure numbers and dynamic updates, but did the editor(s) go back and take a good look at where some of the illustrations ended up vis-a-vis the text? Too much page-flipping, in my opinion.

2. The author often instructs the reader to make specific shapes, with precise co-ordinates, but then defers an explanation of why that curve was needed. I believe the tutorials would have more impact if they were less mechanical and more tied to the thought processes of the designer when choosing to make a particular curve as part of a framework. I have no desire to 'shut up and color' and trust the 'whys' will come later; in keeping with the (well-chosen) narrative style of the book the author should have pursued individual design steps to a much deeper level at the time they were introduced.

Despite its flaws I would recommend this book to anyone who uses Rhinoceros. Even the most experienced designer can benefit from insight into how others approach a task. For the beginner I would consider this an especially valuable purchase.

Cheers!
Mark

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Lack of content. More of a refence book., December 19, 2001

By 

"jgan1" (Scottsdale, AZ USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Inside Rhinoceros (Paperback)

This is NOT the book you should buy if you are looking for a concise teaching of Rhino from beginner to advance. It is more of a reference book that explores the tools of Rhino further. It more or less compliments the user guide that comes with the software. Very technical, not the book for any organic modeling tips.

This book mainly covers all the tools inside Rhino, and teaches you what it does. What you do with it, is up to you. You are better off sticking to the tutorials on the Rhino CD, or via their website.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars For beginners only, August 22, 2004

By 

Mac Giolla Phádraig (Galway Bay, Ireland) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Inside Rhinoceros (Paperback)

The best thing about this book is it's colorful cover; the contents disappoint. When compared with a top-tier technical book such as the excellent "AutoCAD Bible", it is poorly organized, it's examples are confusing, and many explanations are downright befuddling. One example: one draws in viewports similar to AutoCAD's. The default layout is the standard Top, Front, Side (left or right), and perspective. The actual drawing entities are either established with the pointing device or entered as X,Y,Z coordinates via the command line. So far, so good. However, using the mouse to add entities to an existing object in 3D space yields unexpected results because Mr. Cheng has neglected to tell you that unless you pick the object using OBJECT SNAP, your entities will be drawn on the viewport's default construction plane which is at the origin. You overcome this by moving the construction plane through space to the location where you want to draw, but this crucial bit of information is inexplicably withheld until page 437!
Most readers will move to a 3D drawing program having at least a passing familiarity with a 2D product, and will want to become productive quickly. If you're on of these, if you are a professional and want to build on your 2D knowledge to create, render and present 3D objects quickly without having to wade through the sort of droll presentations typical of high school drafting classes, then you should look elsewhere.