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Programming Linux Games [ILLUSTRATED] (Paperback)

by Loki Software (Author), John Hall (Author), Loki Software Inc (Author), John R. Hall (Author) "In 1991 a Finnish university student named Linus Torvalds began working on a new operating system in his spare time..." (more)
Key Phrases: mediumraw mode, framebuffer console, framebuffer device, Penguin Warrior, Ogg Vorbis, Heavy Gear (more...)

4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (14 customer reviews)

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Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Complete guide to developing Linux games, written by the Linux gaming experts. Discusses important multimedia toolkits (including a very thorough discussion of the Simple DirectMedia Layer) and teaches the basics of Linux game programming. Readers learn about the state of the Linux gaming world, and how to write and distribute Linux games to the Linux gaming community.

From the Publisher
A great operating system for programmers and system administrators, Linux is also a great gaming platform, and the market is exploding. Linux users want to do everything under Linux—including playing computer games. And the Linux operating system is fast even without a fast processor, which means that even an older machine can be a great Linux gaming machine.

Gaming will continue to drive the adoption of Linux as an operating system. In fact, one game, Quake, has already indirectly contributed to the growth of Linux. Estimates are that over 60 percent of all dedicated Quake servers (for all versions on the Internet) are Linux machines.

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Product Details

Paperback: 415 pages
Publisher: No Starch Press; 1 edition (August 2001)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1886411492
ISBN-13: 978-1886411494
Product Dimensions: 9 x 7.4 x 1.1 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)

Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (14 customer reviews)

Amazon.com Sales Rank: #661,149 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Inside This Book (learn more)

First Sentence:
In 1991 a Finnish university student named Linus Torvalds began working on a new operating system in his spare time. Read the first page

Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
mediumraw mode, framebuffer console, framebuffer device, manpage for more information, update subsystem, int channels, environmental audio, int amt, screen info, streaming buffer, game loop, goto error, int bits, network byte order, video surface, variable foo, video mode, patch utility, int rate, audio subsystem, opponent ship, scripting system, int bytes, file descriptor, alpha blending

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Penguin Warrior, Ogg Vorbis, Heavy Gear, Window System, Returns Pointer, Loki Software, Loki Setup, True Color, General Public License, Soldier of Fortune, Synopsis Closes, Synopsis Creates, Free Software Foundation, Microsoft Flight Simulator, Alien Alley, Call To Power, Red Hat, Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri, Star Trek, Synopsis Attempts, Synopsis Contains, Synopsis Opens, Synopsis Sets, Synopsis Shuts, Function Tcl

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Citations (learn more)

This book cites 4 books:

Linux Application Development (2nd Edition) by Michael K. Johnson in Back Matter
Programming in Emacs Lisp: An Introduction by Robert Chassell in Back Matter
The Book of Zope by Beehive in Back Matter
Zen of Graphics Programming: The Ultimate Guide to Writing Fast PC Graphics by Michael Abrash in Back Matter

3 books cite this book:

The Book of Zope by Beehive in Front Matter
The Linux Cookbook: Tips and Techniques for Everyday Use by Michael Stutz in Back Matter
The Book of VMware: The Complete Guide to VMware Workstation by Brian Ward in Back Matter

Books on Related Topics (learn more)

Red Hat Linux 9 Bible by Christopher Negus

Discusses:

Linux All-in-One Desk Reference For Dummies by Naba Barkakati

Discusses:

Windows Game Programming for Dummies, Second Edition by Andr� LaMothe

Discusses:

Programming Role Playing Games with DirectX w/CD by Jim Adams

Discusses:

What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

	74% buy the item featured on this page: Programming Linux Games 4.0 out of 5 stars (14) $30.36
	13% buy Focus On SDL (The Premier Press Game Development Series) 3.8 out of 5 stars (10) $19.79
	7% buy Linux 3D Graphics Programming 4.6 out of 5 stars (9)
	6% buy Cross-Platform Game Programming (Game Development) 4.5 out of 5 stars (2) $32.97

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Customer Reviews

14 Reviews

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4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
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4.0 out of 5 stars (14 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Easy reading, March 1, 2004

By	W Boudville (Terra, Sol 3) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)

The computer game market is dominated by dedicated game console platforms, like Sony's Playstation and Microsoft's XBox. But the steady rise of linux on fast, cheap hardware and the parallel rise of an open source community leads one to wonder if there are alternatives.

Which leads to this book. It has some of the ambience of the flashback to the 70s or 80s, when programmers in their spare time might gin up a cool game, which would then spread like a virus when word got out. Of course, you can use the book's advice to design a proprietary game. Nobody says you need give it away.

The book's code examples are in C. Not Java, please note. While Java is good for some applications, typically in gaming, performance is always an issue, as measured by latency, for example. The book also does not mention C++. Pity. C++ compilers nowadays are usually as efficient as C compilers. Plus, if you want to code a game of any complexity (over 100 000 lines, say), then C scales badly, unless you use really strict design and coding standards.

Overall, though, the book is well done. Very easy reading if you're experienced. Very little knowledge of graphics is required. The book is more about the back end design. Graphics is pushed out to OpenGL and similar packages.

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12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For Linux and beyond!!!, August 22, 2001

By	"vikingchieftain" (Sarasota, Florida United States) - See all my reviews

I've been waiting for a book like this for a long time. I can't say that I'm into Linux games per say, but I am definitely into cross platform ones and SDL(Simple Direct Media Layer)which is covered in the book is the ticket to getting there. My only previous gripe with SDL was the documentation or lack thereof, which while the documentation is getting better this book does an excellent job of covering SDL from the ground up. If you want to write cross platform games then this book is for you!

If you're new to game programming then get this book too!!! Even if you plan to start out making games on Windows, I suggest reading this book along with Lamothe's as it will help you understand game programming basics without the complexity of Windows' code. The author takes you all the way from initializing the display to a complete game by the end of the book, and even though the game was meant to be for Linux it will compile without too many modifications. Although the game in this book may be rather simple one in today's standards, it does cover all the bases including networking and game scripting, the latter of which I found very helpful. ...

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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book: jsut make sure it is the one you are after, November 20, 2001

By	Bruno A Nitrosso "nitrosso" (Mendoza, Mendoza Argentina) - See all my reviews

First and foremost: make sure this is what you are looking for,
even the best book will disappoint someone who is looking for something else!

If, like myself, you have some knowledge in computer science without being an expert and particularly have no expertise in Game Developping nor in MultiMedia and are yet curious about the topics then definetly go for it.

This book unveils pretty much all aspects game programming: graphics, audio, computer "AI", network gaming, etc.
Unveils, not exhausts: be warned. But this is just great when all you are after is understanding what is this about and decide eventually to dig deeper.

And everything is done with examples building up until you have developped with the author "your" first game : Penguin Warrior!

What would be great is to have a sequel with more advanced topics (3D, Scheme scripting, etc.): be many to buy it and maybe we will someday see it!

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Good beginning walkthrough for game programming
There aren't enough books written about game programming for Linux. Although this book is dated (A lot of API evolution can occur in 4 years), it is probably the best introduction... Read more

Published on December 21, 2005 by Andrew M. Matta

2.0 out of 5 stars Good into to SDL and Game Scripting. Horrible otherwise
The book starts off ok with a good introduction of the various API's and is ok reading up untill chapter 6 "Programming Linux Audio". Read more

Published on August 14, 2004 by P. S. Bunn

3.0 out of 5 stars A good start but needs more detail
Programming Linux Games is an excellent beginning to Linux and cross platform game development.
Its main deficiencies are:
detail on the libraries suggested,
the use... Read more

Published on October 30, 2003 by Alex Thompson

3.0 out of 5 stars decent but could have been much better
I had high expectations from this book, coming as it was from a
company specialized in porting the most complex games to Linux. Read more

Published on March 13, 2003 by Riccardo Audano

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book
I got exactly everything I wanted from the book, had very a simple easy to understand path towards making games for linux, started small and covered all the topics that I was... Read more

Published on December 5, 2002 by Matthew Campbell

3.0 out of 5 stars SDL primer
This book doesn't go very deep into game nor linux system programming. it's SDL primer and some mix of other libraries. Read more

Published on December 4, 2002 by Miloslav Obermajer

3.0 out of 5 stars would be nice
i wish i could review this book... ordered sept 29 and it is now supposed to be sent nov 20- dec 10. still says shipped 2-3 days. dont bother ordering it... Read more

Published on October 22, 2002 by Jason Lohner

5.0 out of 5 stars Very Complete and Easy to Understand
This book is an execellent introduction to Linux game programming. This book decribes everything you need to know to make a high quality 2D game in Linux with easy to understand... Read more

Published on September 12, 2002

5.0 out of 5 stars Meant to be the ultimate resource
Programming Linux Games: Building Multimedia Applications with SDL, Open AL(tm), and Other APIs is a comprehensive, superbly presented, in-depth guide to creating games that Linux... Read more

Published on November 11, 2001 by Midwest Book Review

4.0 out of 5 stars You'll outgrow it quickly
I have some programming experience from the C++ classes I took in college but I am not a pro and I still consider myself a beginner. Read more

Published on October 21, 2001 by The Reviewer

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