Rhino Nurbs 3d Modeling [Paperback]

Margaret Becker (Author), Pascal Golay (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1999

Rhino has been building a substantial install base over the past year and is poised to breakout as an extremely popular tool of choice for 3D modelers. New Riders wants to lock up this market quickly by capitalizing on a strategic partnership with the people who wrote the program: McNeel & Associates. Those who buy the program will receive a reference-based book; anyone wanting a tutorial-based book will be encouraged to pick this one up. Is that synergy or what? (And no other books are available yet, either; New Riders will own this market, at least for the time being.) The book takes the end user through the capabilities of this program using a tutorial approach. It moves from basic use of the program to advanced usage issues. Discussion is focused on step-by-step procedures, without long stretches of dry text to plod through. The book is designed to make it easy to learn what the program can really do, and is directed toward the widest range of users.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Rhino NURBS 3D Modeling is an excellent book not only on building models with this popular modeling tool but on computer modeling in general. Many of the techniques described here, such as Boolean operations and trimming surfaces, can be applied to building models in other programs.

Many chapters adeptly demonstrate Rhino's power as a NURBS modeler (Non-Uniform Rational B-Splines). NURBS is a computer modeling paradigm that makes it easy to build curved surfaces and organic shapes. Certain chapters go into detail on building shapes such as a dragonfly (based on a photographic template), a coffeepot with a lid, and a cartoon-style boy character.

The most interesting chapter covers the process of modeling a human face based on a plaster casting, and it offers numerous photos documenting the process of creating the plaster mold from someone's face, filling it to get the cast, and digitizing it into Rhino using a digitizing scribe.

The accompanying CD-ROM contains all the models discussed in the book, plus a quasi-demo version of Rhino that has all features enabled. ("Quasi" because saving things from the program becomes disabled after the 15th time.) Rhino NURBS 3D Modeling works well for new Rhino users and for artists new to computer modeling interested in learning how a dedicated NURBS modeler works. --Mike Caputo

From Library Journal

This is a great package for libraries since the CD-ROM includes a complete demonstration version of Rhino, which can be used 15 times on any individual machine (before being disabled); that is, a library can check it out to as many patrons as that library has, and they can all try it 15 times. The book covers all the computer modeling bases, and the disc includes all models and the software.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Paperback: 383 pages
• Publisher: New Riders Pub (August 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0735709254
• ISBN-13: 978-0735709256
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 7.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,620,264 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Lacks the context to make it truly useful, June 28, 2000

By 

W. Crosbie "Game programmer/Professor" (New Jersey) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Rhino Nurbs 3d Modeling (Paperback)

I really wanted to like this book. I purchased Rhino and worked through the tutorials. I was hoping to gain new insights into using the tool.

I found this book does a good job of showing where the various tools are located and describes how they differ from each other adequately. But you already get a feel for that by using the program and working through tutorials.

What the book is lacking is context, some explnation of why you would want to choose one tool or technique over a different one. While the early chapters show you how to manipulate point objects, polylines and surfaces, it is never really explained why this is useful.

The book would have been stronger if it had started by working with simple models and simple techniques and then built up to advanced modeling in the later chapters. Instead you are stuck wading through a command reference, and you leave the book with little more understanding of the product and techniques of modeling than you had prior to reading it.

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Mixed feelings, September 27, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Rhino Nurbs 3d Modeling (Paperback)

This book can't seem to decide if it is for an advanced user, or a beginner. The first half of the book gives very brief explanations of the major features of the program. An a fairly experienced user, i understand what is written, but i feel that beginners would be confused. The explanations seem to be too simple, as if to not scare new users, but then not enough is written, which will leave new users asking questions. So in this respect, the first half of the book is neither adequate for beginners or pros. The second half of the book are tutorials. The dragon fly tutorial is appropriate for this book, because it is easy to follow, and teaches some essential modeling techniques. The camera tutorial was challenging, and might be too complex to follow for a new user, even if he/she read and understands the first half of the book. The coffee pot tutorial is EXTREMELY complex, and i feel is WAY too advanced for people reading this book. It just seems out of place with most of the book, which seems to assume that you're a novice. So in summary, i have mixed feelings about this book. The explanations of the features are too skimpy/simplistic, which left me unchallenged, but then some of the tutorials went over my head. But i still have to recommend it because it's the only retail book for Rhino available.

26 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not worth it., October 23, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Rhino Nurbs 3d Modeling (Paperback)

"Momma says if you don't have something nice to say, don't say it at all." So, I'm going to try to stick by that old saying and keep this brief.

The tutorials are no more than rehashes of what is in the Rhino manual already. The book does not go into much detail with respect to advance techniques.

For what it's worth - save your money and buy the Rhino Training Manual, or just about anything else.