Inside Direct3D [With CDROM]

First off, yes, you can get all of the information presented here in the DirectX SDK docs. By that argument, you can get whatever information you want from the MSDN Library, so why buy any books at all? The reason is that this book gives a better explanation than the SDK docs, and comes with a sample program that actually works. It goes over enough of the api, and gives you a framework that you can actually go through and build a working program with. I do agree with a couple of the other reviews and question the inclusion of DirectPlay and DirectInput. But because they are there doesn't justify giving this book a lower rating. If you can't get the programs to compile then you need to spend some time learning a little more about your compiler. I bought this book so that I could make a D3D port of my openGL code and was able to easily make the transition thanks to this text.

I want to give it 4 stars so i put in 5 to offset my last review of 3. I didn't realize that you can change the current project and compile each chapter separately. And each chapter is different. I thought they were just the game in different stages of development but each chapter DOES have different content in the CD's code (and i have no trouble compiling them in VC6). Like chapter 5 shows a simple octogon with lighting on it.The game is quite complex at the end. This guy and his friends are really smart and the book is pretty well written. It's just very hard and can't be learned overnight. If you are impatient you're going to have a tough time with this. But without this book, well, good luck!

First of all, let me say up front that this book is *far* better than the author's previous Direct3D work, entitled "The Awesome Power of DirectX/Direct3D". Anyone interested in why I would mention this should look at the customer reviews for that title. I just want to make sure no one who gave up on the earlier book is scared off from this one just because the author is the same. Whether the improvement is due to Kovach's having more time to complete this one or because of better editing from the Microsoft press folks I don't know, but suffice it to say that this one stands far above the earlier work.What also makes this book a definite improvement is the fact that it's the first one in the market to deal with Direct3D Immediate Mode. The coverage of Immediate Mode is fairly detailed, although sometimes the author doesn't explain his code snippets in enough depth, leaving the reader to try and figure out what's going on. It's not done to an unforgivable extent, but it can be annoying at times. If you're new to Windows programming in general, or unfamiliar with 3D concepts and basic linear algebra, you'll also need a companion book to really understand some of the discussions, because the goal of this work is to demonstrate how to use Direct3D's API to create interesting programs. It's not that the author ignores beginning users, but his goal is to focus on what Direct3D (and friends) can do for your programs, and 450 pages only gives you so much room to work with. His coverage of Direct3D topics is pretty comprehensive, with texturing, stenciling, T & L issues and others all getting a fair shake. He also includes some interesting software which will allow users to load Quake2 and 3D studio models into your programs. Code for doing so is included on the companion CD.In short, this is a good book for anyone even remotely familiar with Windows programming, DirectX and 3D theory and concepts. When you consider the other Direct3D books on the market, this one looks even better.

Peter has done an amazing job exploring Direct3D. This is without a doubt the best in-depth coverage of the API that I have seen. It is well-written, intersting and easy to read, informative and packed with useful source code. The demonstration game and utilities are icing on the cake. There is virtually no stone left unturned. If you can't write a 3D game using Direct3D IM after reading this book, you are in the wrong line of work. This is a HIGHLY recommended treatment of DirectX/3D and I encourage anyone with even a remote interest to order a copy today!

This great book provided me to realy understand the whole "magic" around the Direct3D Immediate Mode. My mother language isn't english, but this book is very understandable for me. It's very cool how ease Peter explain quite difficult to understand themes. I am happy owner of one force feedback joy and I found it very interesting to programm my own "force feeds", because it's very detailed written in this book as well as other themes. A really recommend this book to any programmer, who want to make quality games with very nice way of learning whole stuff.