Java 3D Programming (Paperback)

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Product Description

Guiding programmers through the important design and implementation phases of developing a successful Java 3D application, this reference provides guidance on whether to use Java 3D, user interface design, geometry creation, scene manipulation, or final optimizations. Distilling twelve months of using the Java 3D API for commercial projects, as well as discussions on the Java 3D e-mail list, experienced Java 3D developers will find helpful a resource containing the state-of-the-art in techniques and workarounds, while novice Java 3D developers will gain a insight into Java 3D development, and avoid the confusion and frustration of learning Java 3D techniques and terminology.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Manning Publications; 1st edition (February 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1930110359
• ISBN-13: 978-1930110359
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 7.5 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #498,544 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

36 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Required Reading for 3D Graphics Developers, April 17, 2002

By	Thomas Paul (Plainview, NY USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The Java 3D API from Sun provides an object oriented abstraction around OpenGL and DirectX functions. Sun provides a fairly good introduction to Java 3D in their documentation. However, it can be difficult to find more advanced information on Java 3D as some of the best information can only be found in newsgroups. This book provides the information that anyone working with Java 3D absolutely needs. The author has covered all the bugs, workarounds, pitfalls, design problems etc. that aren't found in the Sun documentation. Starting with the basics of 3D graphics programming, the book moves quickly on to the heart of the Java 3D API, the Scenegraph. The author does a good job of explaining this key class and how to use it to create 3D scenes. The book then moves on to explain creating geometric shapes, defining light sources, creating textures, attaching behavior to objects, interacting with objects, and much more. Each chapter contains code samples highlighting the topics of that chapter. As a novice to Java 3D, I was overwhelmed for a little while but the code samples and the author's excellent explanations of the code kept me from becoming lost. This is definitely a book that should be read in front of the computer while working on the examples. Any experienced Java developer (even if you have no experience in graphics programming) who is interested in developing 3D games or scientific or architectural 3D applications should get this book.

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not completely neccessary, September 23, 2003

By A Customer

Sun's Java 3D Tutorial taught me much more than this book did. It was a nice companion book with some good insights, handy to have but honestly I could have made it just fine without.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not introductory nor reference material , July 20, 2004

By	Onur Karadeli (Istanbul / Turkey) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I bought because it seemed to cover the subjects in more details when Java 3D tutorial could not. However the Java3D tutorial of Sun is much more detailed and instructive when compared to this book. I extensivly needed Geometry Info sturctures info (i.e. building Shape3D s with custom points) however the book gaved the whole topic in a few paragraphs as it does in other topics.

There are no accompanying CD that include code, thus it is again harder to see techniques. The book is amateurishly composed, and the code examples are very difficult to read (no emphasizations, no bold lines, no comment highlightings...)

I recommend this book only if you can afford a book that will not help you much and urgently need a Java3D book.