Game Programming Gems 2 (Game Programming Gems Series) (Vol 2)

To get a feel for the quality of the gems I looked at the gem on "The Parallel Transport Frame". I'd encountered this problem myself when trying to get VRML extrusions to work properly. VRML extrusions use Frenet frames so fail when the curve has an inflection. I came up with the same solution as the one described in this gem, and I'm sure many others have reinvented this particular wheel. The gem accurately describes the problem and solution and if I'd had it while I was messing with VRML extrusions it would have saved me some trouble.

Recommended.

Good reference and guide
Game Programming Gems 2 is a collection of short articles detailing various aspects of computer game design. Personally, I found the first half of the book to be very helpful while the second half, on rendering and audio techniques, was too brief and lacked the depth to be of much use. However, the first half, covering general game programming technique and mathematics has proved very useful to me in my amateur game programming endavours.

Pick up this book if you are looking to add to your reference collection however, due to the nature of the articles and due to the price, you might find yourself heading to the library to pick up this book. In the end, a solid addition to a programming library.

Note:
I am an amateur game programmer, not a professional
In addition, many of the articles are not relevant only to games.

Good resource.
An excellent resource for the times when you encounter problems you diddnt know existed.

ridiculously amazing book for the game developer
This is an incredible book that covers topics ranging from text parsers to audio engines. It also comes with a cd so I can put the great text parser in my game without typing a line. How sweet is that?

definitely worth the money

Like the first volume, Game Programming Gems 2 features an exceptional collection of articles written by a knowledgeable group of authors, most of whom are well-known and respected in the area they write about. This series (the third volume is already underway, as are related books focusing on AI and design) isn't intended to be a complete guide to all aspects of game development, but rather, a resource you turn to when you need help with a specific problem. As such, the series truly shines, and this volume is a worthy follow up to the first.

The articles, or gems, included in the book cover intermediate to advanced topics in the areas of general programming, mathematics, artificial intelligence, geometry management, graphics display, and audio programming, each edited by an expert in the field. Most of the gems assume that you have a fundamental knowledge of the issues related to the topic, and get to the point quickly. As a result, on average the gems are shorter than the previous volume. Both of these things could be viewed as either positives or negatives, depending on your experience level. Regardless, almost all of the gems are well written and relevant.

Most game programming books these days come with CDs packed full of demos, source code, and other information supplementing the book. Unfortunately, the CD that comes with this book isn't one of those. It does have source code from most of the chapters, but there are very few demos and no extras (unless you count GLUT and the DX8 SDK, which I don't since you can easily get those elsewhere). However, I'd count the CD as only a minor disappointment, since the book itself is so good.

If you're serious about game development, I'd highly recommend adding Gems 2 to your library. You'll definitely find things in it that you can use.