Game Design Books

In the spirit of full and open disclosure, I have known Chris Crawford for over twenty years. We are close friends and colleagues. So instead of providing a review, I'd like to comment on some of the things brought up in the other reviews.

In two reviews, it is indicated that the book is not tutorial and doesn't provide specific examples. These are absolutely correct. "Chris Crawford on Interactive Storytelling" is a distillation and documentation of all that Chris has learned and created on interactive storytelling over the last thirteen plus year. He explores areas where none have gone before and he also explores areas where others have been adding insights that are new. There is definitely material here you won't find in any previously written book. However, this is a not a document of a completed journey. A couple of simple stories have been built-as proof of concept for the early working versions of the Erasmatron-but they mostly demonstrated the need for better tools. Interactive storytelling requires a new set of skills and tools. This book is heavy on theory and process, but light on examples because the theory and processes must precede the examples-and we're just getting a handle on the theory and processes. Expect to see examples in Chris' next book, which I expect he'll write once the Erasmatron is out the door and pumping out interactive stories. (I'm guessing here, Chris has never mentioned doing another book, but there will definitely be a need for a book on Erasmatron storybuilding and who better to write it than Chris Crawford and/or Laura Mixon?)

William Ogles comments on Chris' writing style, which is decidedly conversational. His writing style, combined with his strong convictions, often polarizes readers and the attacks against him can be as vicious as the praise is glowing. Chris was a teacher early in his career and lessons learned from those early days drive much of his writing and speaking style. He will present gray area subjects in stark black and white and he writes provocatively. This is his method for making a point and generating thought and discussion.

Indeed, it was his recent article about Women and Gaming in "the Escapist" (an on-line magazine) that provoked the single negative review of this book. The best clue to this is that the reviewer is complaining about Chris' views on women and gaming, yet that subject isn't covered in this book. Also the quotes are from his article, not from the book. Chris' point was that sales of romance novels (especially of the "bodice rippers" genre) and soap opera show that women were the primary customers and that they were immensely popular and that games that appeals to the same needs would be more successful with women than "Doom" clones. It appears to me this is rather obvious-the trick, of course, is figuring out what such games might be. The reviewer's characterization of the above as "blatant gender stereotyping" is a hard trail to follow and suggests that Chris triggered a hot button for the reviewer.

Also, unlike Chris' other book "Chris Crawford on Game Design", this book is not for aspiring "game" designers-it's for aspiring "interactive storytelling" designers (of all ages) or for game designers that want to move into an entirely new and exciting field.

This book opened up a whole new pattern of thinking for me. The information Mr. Crawford conveys in this publication is invaluable to any writer seeking to break into new areas-particularly gaming and other applications utilizing interactive storytelling. Writing for this genre requires a whole different mindset from traditional genres and Mr. Crawford succeeds at moving the reader towards that mindset.

Time and again I see in game reviews how a particular game has "awesome graphics and great gameplay but the story and dialogue" were severely lacking. With Mr. Crawford's extensive experience in the gaming industry, he very capable gives aspiring writers every tool he or she will need to get a very good start in the industry. Throughtout the book, he stresses how important it is for the "artsie" thinkers (the writers & artists) to work together with the "techie" thinkers (the programmers) and I think this is a valuable lesson that many current game producers have yet to learn. Mr. Crawford reminds the entire programming industry that one sector of development cannot succeed without the other. He more than adequately investigates and chronicles how the different development teams can work together and bridge the "communication" gap between the "artsies" and the "techies."

This book, while not exactly a tutorial piece, offers many examples and exercises to move the writer along in thinking like an interactive storyteller. The only real drawback may be the detail Mr. Crawford goes into. While I personally don't have a problem with this, I work with several young people who, while they are very keen on gaming development, probably wouldn't spend an adequate amount of time studying the information contained in the book unless it were required reading in a course.

Personally I feel that any writer who wants to pursue and develop stories for interactive programming should study this book. It's not enough to read it through once, twice or even three times. This is a book which needs to be worked through section by section, until writing for this relatively new genre becomes second nature. This book will have a permanent home in my library; it is very rich in information-hats off to Mr. Crawford for producing a very timely manual.
-Adaera-

One day the games industry will look at Chris Crawford the same way the film industry looks at Joseph Campbell. He sets out the first few steps of a path that could revolutionize gaming - if only it is taken to heart. Some of his ideas are radical, some are controversial, but all are insightful. The only criticism I have of this book is that Crawfords brash and grungy tongue-in-cheek delivery might rub some people the wrong way (although, I personally found it refreshing). And that the book is too short.

In this book, Chris Crawford presents his teachings, thoughts and feelings on Interactive Storytelling, the topic that he has courageously committed the last thirteen years of his life to researching, understanding and developing.

This book struck many chords with me and opened up many avenues of thought, presenting me with inspirational ideas that kept me thinking about Interactive Storytelling for the many months that followed. I own a reasonable collection of books on game development and related academic topics, and I believe this to be the single most important book in my collection. Many of the ideas within are worth the price tag alone.

I whole-heartedly recommend this book to anybody even remotely interested in Interactive Storytelling, and especially designers and developers within the games industry. It simply deserves to be read.

Crawford's take on Interactive Storytelling, that is the maturation of a medium which will become the dominant form on art and entertainment in the 21st century, provides a foundation upon which future efforts will either be based off of or at least reference in intellectual homage. The breakdown of the modes of human thought in the early chapters provides a sturdy, cognitive lense which game designers can use to understand challenge. This book focuses primarily on social reasoning and the challenge which could be derived from that important facet of human experience, so far unexplored in traditional video and computer games.

In late 2005 Mr. Crawford wrote an article for The Escapist, and online publication which is highly recommended to anyone interested in the cutting edge of the interactive medium. The article addressed appealing to the female demographic of possible players from the angle of utilizing social challenge to meet women on a common ground. The problem with this article was that it used a controversial science to make this point, and it was possible to infer a sense of sexism, where women are inherenlty social and therefore drawn to interactive soap operas, while men are inherently spatial and drawn to games similar to hunting. The real point is that social challenge will put games on a whole new playing field which both men and women can appreciate as art and popular entertainment. Thats the lesson taught by "Chris Crawford on Interactive Storytelling", along with some useful approaches to the design problems. Don't let politics stop you from glimpsing a revolution.

Though getting a bit old (2005 copyright in my copy) and some of the programs mentioned have had several new versions, this is still a very nice introduction to digital scrapbooking.

The design itself is a standout: many of the introductory and divider pages and the covers are examples of digital scrapbook pages and all are very well done. Many other scrapbook pages are used as samples throughout the book. Literally the book practices what it preaches. Overall the design is very appealing and pulls you immediately into the spirit of scrapbooking.

The author's approach is well thought out. She begins, unsurprisingly with an introduction. Then moves into the actual basics of digital scrapbooking with a well-done chapter on the history of the craft, getting ready for the digital way and so on.

Murray's style is non-technical and oriented toward the fun of doing and sharing. Very nice style.

Next in order are planning, design, image enhancement, working with words, creating and using embellishments (a super-important and vital chapter for my typical male brain), creating your page, sharing your scrapbook and utility chapters on protecteing your files, suggestions for scrapbook themes and a couple of chapters on resources.

Overall, this is a fun, inspirational easy-to-follow guide to the craft (and in many hands, art) of digital scrapbooking. Well worth it.

Jerry

Book is published in square format, hard to hold to read but book fulfills the stated purpose of focusing on digital scrapbooking. If you have purchased Jasc products such as Paint Shop Pro then the "how-to's" are useful. If you are using different image editing software, the principles are the same but not the details. Book includes mini-interviews with many of the well known & published experts of the scrapbooking world. With reference to various products, book felt a bit commercial. Author clearly is an expert and shares her expertise with novices.

When the baby was born we took about a roll of pictures a day. That was a long time ago, and the pictures were slides. Now I go look at the slides and the glue has come off, the slides are peeling apart and they tend to stick in the projector.

Digital cameras are probably worse. You've got to get the image out of the camera so you can take more pictures. You can keep them in some kind of digital storage, like on your hard drive - until it crashes or you upgrade the computer. Better is to produce a scrapbook that you can print out, pass along to the kids, keep in a file, and look it the pictures together.

Producing a scrapbook is an interesting project in its own right - if nothing else you get to go look at the pictures again. But you really get to put the story together. The result can be quite attractive, especially if you use some of the special papers and other things that are available.

This book is a how-to, a tutorial on putting the scrapbooks together. It is an introductory level book talking about the first plans through final production. The format doesn't lend itself to being a reference book, but by the time you're finished your first scrapbook or two, you probably won't need a reference book.

This book was great for me because I am a beginner, and I needed step-by-step instructions. It was easy to understand- not too wordy. This book is a must-buy for people interested in starting digital scrapbooking.

Once, scrapbooking was a totally low tech hobby. No computers in sight. But Murray tells what massive cheap disks and RAM and scanners, and fast CPUs and high bandwidth have done to create a digital version of the hobby.

You can regard the book as a long exposition of how to use Paint Shop Pro in a domestic context. The example images that she provides are often of family events. She writes in a reassuring, nontechnical manner for you. The key tips she supplies are not really about a sequence of steps in Paint Shop to achieve a desired effect. These are of secondary importance. Instead, she writes about what makes a great image. How you should capture what inspires you or your family. The advice is timeless and could have been given about a traditional scrapbook.

The main qualitative difference now is in how you can publish your scrapbook on the Internet, so others can enjoy your work. One of the main drivers of the hobby's growth.

Not for advanced users, this book explains very thoroughly how and where to begin in the 3D modeling world, with a pencil and paper.
It begins with drawing basic shapes on paper.
A great book to overcome probably the mos difficult part on 3D modeling: "Where do I begin?".

The book has a very simple and clear way to describe what 3D design is about. It takes a simple project and teaches how to design it from scratch using basic design elements and explains how to develop it to a 3D animation film touching on cinematography and aesthetics(though very subtle and superficial).

It is a great source for beginners and people who are not familiar with design and 3D terminology and elements. However even somewhat little experienced designers involved in 3D or graphic design would see that they already know most of the stuff told in the book. It is like "3D & Design for Dummies".

Thanks to those that have rated the book. As the author I've created a website that has an author bio, preview of some chapters and more. Goto designfirstfor3d.com to see more.
-Thanks

Where can we read a bio of the Author? Also, couldn't we review a couple of the pages of the book online so we can make a more informed decision about buying a copy? Thanks!!

This book changes everything. It has changed the way I look at creation, period.
The best investment I've made toward my career. Design it first, then build it.
Now i'm reaching for the pencil or Intuos first. Buy this book if you want to be a better artist or if you want to challenge yourself.

You need to buy this book. DN3D was one of the most original 3d shooters, and there is still quite an active Build community even now, 6 years later.

Also, my level is on the CD. So it's a must have.

While this book is better than the Build documentation (pretty much anything could be), I expected more from the officially authorized level editing guide. The book is rife with errors, and some of the step-by-step instructions were obviously never tested because they don't work. (Try tagliaferri's instructions for creating a swinging door - you'll end up with an inoperable mess.) Plus some information is missing, some is buried in odd places, and there's no index, making it difficult to locate things. It's still an OK book, but it could have been much better.

This book has helped me very much in making my levels. I got Duke 3D back when it came out and I've been using it ever since. This book starts with simple editing techniques and moves on to more advanced editing techniques which is good for beginners.

I've played Duke Nukem 3D since I was 12, and I have been designing levels for it since I was 12 (I'm 18 now). I'm not a computer nerd. I got the book when I was 12 and learned how to design very detailed and creative levels as well as monsters, new artwork, weapons, and even made a few TC's (Total Conversions). If it can teach a 12 year old how to do that, it can teach anybody...

This book is far from perfect. It also is probably best directed towards the journeyman programmer (you don't have to be an expert, but neophytes will have to stretch). All in all, it's an excellent resource for undertstanding, modifying, and using the Build Engine for Duke Nukem. I'm using the Build Engine as a 3D Design tool for a summer computer camp for 8-10 year old kids. It IS a bit clunky and quirky - you've got to understand that the Build Engine was the tool used internally by the 3D Realms folks for designing their games - it is NOT meant to be a production level end user tool. That being said, you can still jump in and design your own levels pretty easily. Just pay attention, ok?

This book has much good information if you know exactly what you are looking for. However, its tone is very dry and academic and lacks a big picture perspective. It glosses over essential information on mechanics and in just 200 pages covers Newtonian and Lagrangian concepts. There are lots of equations, but the examples all use variables, thus making the examples no clearer than the equations they are supposed to be illustrating. There are no numerical examples at all.

Chapter 5, on physics engines, which the author himself says is the heart of the book, is woefully inadequate. He talks about the equations and features he wants to implement, and shows code snippets for the features, but there is one essential component that is missing - block diagrams and accompanying discussions that illustrate how all of these pieces fit together. A crate full of clearly labeled mechanical parts does not an automobile make.

Next we come to one of my areas of interest and one of the main reasons I bought this book in the first place - Chapter 6, "Physics and Shader Programs". The author certainly hits some fascinating topics - ocean waves, skin and bones animation, etc. However, once again the author skips what is between the basic physics equations that comprise these effects and the implementation of these equations and effects in code. The code that he does show is in NVidia's Cg language. So if you don't know Cg, the code is undecipherable. I would have preferred algorithmic pseudocode. Then I could implement the effects in the language of my choice.

The last four chapters of the book take an uptick in quality. These chapters are strictly on numerical methods, and I can't believe they are written by the same author that wrote the first six chapters. There are fairly good discussions and examples on the subjects of linear and mathematical programming, ordinary differential equations, numerical methods, and quaternions, and also how these mathematical methods fit into solving problems in physics. They are not self-contained tutorials, but they are a good summary and review for the physics student who has already had some exposure.

I really can't recommend this book as anything but a reference. Its merits are mainly the tying of mathematical methods to physics and good basic discussions on some topics. But where the rubber meets the road - answering the questions of "How does one go about building a physics engine?" and "How do I implement physics within the confines of a computer game?" I think that this book is a failure. I give it three stars only because the author obviously put a lot of effort into the work, and what he does write is not incorrect.

If you are interested in game physics I recommend "Physics for Game Programmers" by Grant Palmer. It takes an engineer's viewpoint of the subject and features plenty of examples in Java of how to simulate explosions, lasers, and the motion of various classes of vehicles. There is no discussion of game engines, though. A good reference on college level physics can be found in the most recent edition of Schaum's Outline of College Physics.

I always love it when scientists and engineers, and mathematicians come along and review a game programming book. They go "oh! This is just ALL WRONG!!! AHHH!!!"

Please keep in mind this book is for physics simulations for video games. We can't yet simulate the universe on an atomic scale in a PC game and expect a frame rate of more than 1 frame per millenium at this point in time.

I own all all of Dr. Eberly's books and I find them all my most useful books. The only other graphics book I use alot is my Graphics programming by James Foley. The nice thing about Dr. Eberly's book is that the code for most of this is on his website, so if you get stuck on how to implement something looking at the source code can help you further understand the maths and equations. I recommend to buy this if you are willing to put in the effort to understand the maths, but if you have a phd already you might not need it than.

This is a great book on physics simulation, covering most of the mathematical methods and tricks. Some people would complain that's very mathematically intensive, but I don't see another way to do it without being superficial. This book, however, goes very deep in almost every aspect of rigid body simulation, and covers some aspects of non-rigid body simulation as well, which is an emerging trend.

I would suggest only one change to it: there's a chapter on shaders which is pretty much useless - it's very superficial as it doesn't teach shader writing, and doesn't teach hwo to use shaders for physics - I'd suggest that it be changed to include GPGPU methods for physics instead.

Other than that, the book is great, and the only one I've seen that actually covers heavy-duty, real-world simulation and not just silly approximations for special cases.

My interest is physics and physics simulations, not gaming per se...so my observations should be viewed in that light.

The main problem with this book is the treatment is incomplete, superficial, or just wrong (from a physics/math point of view), and the typical programmer/computer scientist is not likely to know it. I am reminded of the great fluid dynamicist von Karmen's definition of an engineer as that person who perpetuates the mistakes made by the previous generation. The REASON a game programmer can get away with this is that he is not testing his results by real experiment...his world is a computer generated simulation with arbitrary approximations to physical laws that the programmer deems to impose.

The other problem is that there are usually a multitude of techniques that one can pick to solve a given mechanics problem...and what would have been really valuable is if the author had shown why a particular method is better (for example, Newton's Laws vs. Lagrange's Equations) when the time comes to code the algorithm. We are not looking for Eberly primarily to teach us physics (but if he makes the attempt, it should be correct!)-that is always going to be the job of physics courses. Instead, he needs to tell us which method is useful for coding and why-this, sadly, he has not done.

As an illustration of what I mean...look at how Petzold in `Programming Windows with C#' discuss the elementary process of using GDI+ to draw a curve. There are two approaches, using rectangular coordinates, or using parametric equations (polar coordinates). Petzold explains WHY the parametric approach is superior from a programming point of view.

Any advanced sophomore or junior physics student will know most of the physics presented here (classical mechanics)...but in addition, they will also know the CORRECT statement of conservation of angular momentum (the author got it wrong) ...AND they will have a deeper understanding, because they will have likely studied something like Marion's Classical Dynamics which is rigorous and physical. Especially egregious is Eberly's twice incorrectly defining an inertial reference frame. In classical mechanics, an inertial reference frame is one in which Newton's laws are valid.

Same comment for the math...The math is maybe sophomore/junior level (except for the Quaternions)...but it is not rigorous nor is it motivated, and sometimes it is wrong. Compare Eberly's terse treatment of the delta function with Marion's motivated and physical discussion. Also, we see things like interchange of limits and integration, without explaining when this is mathematically legal. Then there is the unmotivated vector spaces treatment. Eberly goes to the effort to define a field, but then restricts his definition of a vector space to having real coefficients...Then why bother defining fields if you are not going to use them. We are given the mathematician's definition of the determinant (i.e., the unique, alternating, n-linear function with identity) but this is completely useless from a computational view! If Eberly wants to present some advanced linear algebra, then some tensor analysis would have served the game programmer better, as it is often used in continuum mechanics and fluids, neither of which are discussed by the author. He had a perfect opportunity in the Affine Algebra chapter when he stumbles upon the Levi-Civita tensor, which he then dismisses as unimportant! The Affine Algebra chapter is really bad from both a physics and a geometry view. First, a physicist does not think of a vector as something with direction and magnitude, and a geometer is more inclined to think of them as a derivation. Second, affine spaces are too weak a tool to use to distinuish points from vectors, though we do mod out the origin..this really needs a manifold with vector fields and parallel translation. Third, linear algebra is the study of vector spaces and isomorphism.

There is a chapter on numerical methods, but again incomplete! We should have at least got Numerov's method and some Monte Carlo techniques.

The chapter on shading is ridiculous from a physics point of view. Essentially we have Snell's law, and a cursory reference to Fresnel and that's it...Evidently, the author was not up to discussing some real physics ala Maxwell. Why spend so much time on classical mechanics, and then almost totally dismiss optics with a non-physical discussion? We don't even get Huygens principal. But we do get a wrong definition of polarization of light.Thankfully, he did not try to define helicity.

In summary, this book has two uses:
1) It presents a list of physics and some numerical methods which the game programmer will find useful, and which he will then go ELSEWHERE to actually learn. (I can recommend Landau (of OSU, not Russia) "Computational Physics" and also the CUPS Physics Simulations books for excellent starters.)
2) There is the happy possibility that a budding game programmer, in his pursuit of the knowledge to build a better computer game, will discover the much more interesting game called Physics.

Undoubtedly this is a must-have for people who are serious about developing real-time computer graphics simulations with physically based modeling.

This book can be compared with Coutinho's "Dynamic Simulations of Multibody Systems". I believe the latter covers more materials, but Eberly's is easier to read. The book would be almost sufficient if you also have his previous book "3D Game Engine Design".

I am not sure why the author wrote chapter 4 and 6. I suppose these can be left out. It would have been more compact.

Excellent book which covers various aspects of vision and photography. Unlike other similar texts, this one covers theoretical aspects in detail, the very reason I wanted to buy it. It is a complete but concise, all-in-one reference of the work done in the field of high dynamic range imaging. But it can also be read from the beginning to the end as a sequence of "tutorials".

However, grasping everything requires an above average mathematical background, which may not be where most photographers are coming from.

This book presents a wealth of technical information, ranging from radiometry to color science to image I/O. Consequently, it may not be of interest to people solely looking to do "artistic" tone-mapping, but it is invaluable to anyone implementing HDRI algorithms and software. In some places it reads like a cookbook with recipes for generating HDR images from multiple LDR sources and rendering HDR images for display.

The authors include some of the brightest names in the field and write with clarity an concision. They don't shy away from equations and algorithms, but they seem to hit the right level of detail. For the most part the book reads very well.

This book is meant for developers and researchers working in digital imaging and computational photography. It starts from the very basics and provides a detailed account of HDR generation and tone mapping operators from practical standpoint. The accompanying DVD provides the reader with source codes for tone mapping operators apart from hundreds of HDR images in various formats. One problem is that the DVD does not contain either the multi-exposure images or the code for getting camera response function using different methods.

On the whole, this book is a very good read for any novice to the imaging area and highly recommended for those who work in HDR imaging.

I am a fan of Dr. Reinhard and enjoyed the book quite a bit. This book surveys a number of the current methods for HDR Imaging and HDR compression. I wish it spent more time looking at the characteristics of the anatomy that we're trying to fool. For one thing, I am singularly unimpressed with Gaussian-based methods that cause halos around objects. The center-surround structure within the retina does not indicate a set of Gaussian (or even close!) weights as distance tails off. We use Gaussians because the math is easy, the function is separable, and largely for historic reasons.

Undoubtedly, as the amount of computer power available continues to increase, and as we make better statistical models for edges and detail, we will be able to make a print that is more closely compatible with the "mental sketch" that we hold in our heads that CAN cover a large dynamic range. This is a good first and second step.

This book is exactly what many people had hoped for, a high level book - that explains all the concepts beyond the basics- which can found elsewhere.
If your not already aware - people like Greg Ward and Paul Debevec invented the area of HDR and its early implementations, and their work and that of their colleagues, continues to be at the very leading edge of research in the area.
This is not a light weight glossy coffee table book - it is a factual, informative book that explains the logic and maths of HDR, while remaining really well written. It will become the default text on the subject for some time, and it is a valuable book for anyone serious about computer graphics and photography/imaging.
I could not recommend it more strongly for serious reader -but not a present for your Mum (unless she works at ILM or Pixar) !

The Missing Manuals series has had it's hits and misses. This one is definitely a hit. The first section on of the iMovie portion of the book teaches practical movie making technique, including a 22 shot guide to shooting a wedding. This is what I love about the quality of O'Reilly books. The understand the audience. In this case, amateur movie makers looking to make good movies that won't get them laughed out of the living room. This book has practical insights to get you there.

The manual portions of the book are fine. They provide a step by step walkthrough with screenshots and a menu reference in the appendices.

There is certainly a lot more here for iMovie than iDVD. Of the roughly 500 pages almost 350 are on iMovie. The iDVD section also contains some questionable content, like how to develop on iDVD using the developer's toolkit, which I think is overkill for your overage user.

Small quirks aside, this is a great book. Well worth the money for anybody looking to get the most out of iMovie particularly, and iDVD secondarily.

I've been a fan of iMovie from the first release on Mac OS 9. It made taking home movies fun. The great thing about this book is it goes beyond just a how-to or tips and tricks. A lot of the book is devoted to the dos and don'ts of creating home movies in general. Just as with still photography, the hard work is when your taking the shot, not afterward. The better your movie is at filming, the less work you'll have to do when you get it into iMovie.

The book is packed with a 450+ pages of information. Some examples: how to get your old VHS movies into iMovie, sending movies to your cell phone, creating better looking "title cards", and modifying iDVD itself. If you liked David Pogue's iPhoto 4 Missing Manual and/or GarageBand Missing Manual (both of which I have), this book is a must have.

Anyone who has a Mac should know David Pogue. He's been writing for the Mac community for years. His latest book, iMovie 4 & iDVD, displays all his hallmarks. It is exceedingly well written; it is completely useful and thorough; it is fun to read and funny.

Pogue hits the nail right on the head in the introduction. IMovie 4 and iDVD are simple but not simplistic. Unlike some other Apple programs like AppleWorks or the new OS, you will need this book if you want to make the most of Apple's wonderful new video software. Pogue and his co-author Erica Sadun get you up and burning in no time. Moreover they have created a Missing Manual web site with all the shareware and freeware programs and documentation you'll ever need.

As with his other Missing Manual books, Pogue has done everyone a great favor. Now do yourself a favor and buy this book. You won't regret it.

I was fortunate to attend Macworld in July 2004 in Boston and attend the Mac User conference. Dave Pogue was the seminar leader for the iMovie 4 module.

I previously reviewed Pogue's iMovie 2: The Missing Manual. Now, I had the opportunity to see David Pogue in action and to further learn his Missing Manual secrets in Movie 4 & iDVD: The Missing Manual.

This Missing Manual is divided into five parts:

Part 1, Capturing DV Footage
Part 2, Editing in iMovie
Part 3, Finding Your Audience
Part 4, iDVD 4: The Missing Manual by Erica Sadun
Part 5, Appendixes: A- iMovie 4, Menu by Menu and B- Troubleshooting

My Favorite Page Turners

Page 16 - Figure 1-1: The evolution of the modern camcorder. The photo shows the full-sized VHS camcorder, the 8 mini/Hi-8 camcorder and the modern DV camcorder. This is the type of camcorder you need to work with iMovie.

Page 17 - Figure 1-2: The various sizes of tapes. The miniDV tapes required by most DV camcorder.

Page 20 - Three camcorders not to buy. You should select only Firewire connectors for miniDV camcorders.

Page 23 - Using the FireWire connector. You must have the FireWire connector to use iMovie and other DV software. Figure 1-3: Analog imputes and S-video connector for connecting to a VCR, old 8 mm camcorder.

Page 25 -  Use the camcorder's eyepiece viewfinder instead of LCD panel. This is very useful on bright sunny days and saves your camcorder battery's shooting power.

Page 32 - Special Effects. Avoid using your camcorder's built-in camcorder effects-instead use your iMovie's Special Effects when you do your computer editing.

Page 33- Apple's "Supported camcorders." Review the list on the www.apple.com website for supported camcorders.

Working with Pogue's Missing Manual

I like the Keyboard shortcuts that Pogue mentions in the manual. Using the Command-E, you can switch between the timeline and clip views in iMovie 4.

You have the choice of adding color to black clips (created by dragging a clip rightward in Timeline view). This greatly expands your options for title backgrounds. Also, you can use them for fading to any color other than black or white. When your project requires a gradient fill for the clip, you can create them in Apple Works, Adobe Photoshop Elements.

Pro Reaction

The section of 22 Shots for Wedding Video is worth the price of the book. Pogue showed me how to use the rewind and fast forward that are the missing buttons in the iMovie program. Page 104- Phantom "Save as" Command show you how to create various versions of your saved digital iMovie files.

You need the new parts of the manual before starting your iDVD projects. Pogue lists 17 changes in iMovie4 and ten in iDVD4, making the updated book worth your time and money.

Con Reaction

Page 7 should have been titled: 'Quick Table of Contents' in the book. The manual's white print on gray backgrounds is hard to read and underline. Page 93, figure 4-4, does not have an important sub -headline telling you that are in the edit mode in iMovie.

Final Notes

Movie 4 & iDVD: The Missing Manual is well written and illustrated for you, the Mac Video editor. With the manual you learn the secrets and tips for using iMovie and iDVD. Also, you can use the powerful Quicktime Pro for adding special effects and for your quick editing of your small movies.

iMovie 4 & iDVD: The Missing Manual is a solid primer and resource especially focusing on step-by-step video editing techniques for use on the Macintosh. Chapters address forming seamless transitions and effects, the ins and outs of QuickTime Pro, iDVD secreets, and much more. An absolute "must-have" for getting the most out of iMovie 4 and iDVD software, highly recommended for amateur and professional moviemakers and movie editors working on the Macintosh.

Kaffe's ideas still look timely despite their age. If you don't believe me that they are old look at the hair styles of the models and you get a good feel for the age of the designs. Kaffe teaches you that anything, and I mean absolutely anything, can serve as the inspiration for a great knit design. The basic techniques that he uses, and has perfected, are flawless for this sort of project. Only warning. Do not try to find the yarns he used. Many of them are out of production. You will have to find your own substitutes for them. Having used part of one of his design to make my own project, I found that it took some doing finding replacement yarns but it was well worth the effort. If you want to change the colors from the ones he uses but you are not sure how to go about it and make it all work, follow his solution. Find a great piece of art with colors that please you and make sure you match your yarn colors to the one's in the painting. Works every time!

This is a must-have for any color/pattern knitters. Beautiful designs, easy to follow charts and instructions. Highly recommended.

For knitters out there, it's a wonderful book - I have knit several of Kaffe Fassett designs from his other books and it's nice to have more patterns available of some of the designs that were only pictures in other books. It's also a lovely coffee table book for would be knitters.

Keefe Fassett is a great designer, but this book seems a little outdated
to me. There are very few of his designs that I would attempt to knit but
it is wonderful to see the colors and patterns.

This is truly an inspirational book for knitters who love working with color. There are some breathtaking items contained in these pages and Kaffe Fassett's approach is at once awe inspiring and accessible. That is something few can achieve but he does it. I highly recommend this book. Janice Rosema

When I first decided to teach myself web design, I began with Dreamweaver for Dummies, which only took me so far. Then I tried to work with several other Dreamweaver guides, all of which were too complex for a newbie or too disorderly and unclear. When I finally got to Macromedia Dreamweaver MX 2004 Demystified, I was relieved and elated all at once. Finally a book that made learning CSS style sheets a snap. Perhaps most importantly, it took the time to explain each element of creating a style sheet in detail while other books just gloss over them saying they are self-evident. In general, that's what makes this book great. There is no topic left uncovered.

Now that I've got the skills down, I use Gutman's book as a quick reference guide on a monthly basis.

Even though I started with Dreamweaver 2, I didn't fully understand the program until I read "Inside Dreamweaver 4." This is the MX 2004 version, and it is the best single resource I have found on Dreamweaver. I find all Macromedia Press books excellent, but this one is outstanding.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to eventually get into depth on Dreamweaver. The book is rated as "Intermediate/Advanced" level on the cover, but it's a book a novice to Dreamweaver can easily understand. The book goes well beyond just the very basics of using Dreamweaver however. For example there is a section on the coding syntax for Dreamweaver templates. Overall I found it to be very clear, well-organized and easy to follow, and enjoyable, and I am really glad I bought it.

I found I couldn't get past the enormous amount of errata in this book - had I not known the plan, I would find the directions for CSS and tables to be not only confusing, but wrong. In checking the web site to download the exercise files, I found no section for errata, which really needs to be done.

The book does have useful information about working with ColdFusion, PHP, ASP.NET and building dynamic sites; however, until we lay Netscape 4.7 to rest some day, it does have to be a big consideration in web design and this is where the book falls short - little to no mention of the pitfalls in this browser or how to work around them so that the site you design is going to hold up. I'm unhappy I spent the money on this book as it really falls short as a good reference, much less as a teaching aid.

A better choice for the money would be Garo Green with Lynda Weinman's book, Dreamweaver MX 2004 Hands-On Training.

I normally use the visual quickstart guide for teaching but for unexplicable reasons, the VQS guide wasn't out when I needed to teach so I turned to demystified. I found it very easy to use and greatly appreciated the examples. I even tought myself a topic I've been meaning to learn for a couple of years. This book made it so easy, I'm not sure why I waited so long!

A winner in all ways. This book is for the people who have done the little crafty bits and have not lost interest in favor of a new hobby of the month. It is for those who love the texture and reflectivity of this artform's materials and want to find out more.

The introduction and history section compares well to some of the better books. There is not that much but it is a respectable amount for a book that deals with technique and design.

Every book also has a tools and materials section and this one provides sufficient information for you to proceed without worrying if you are using the right adhesives or the right backing for your work. There is not much that one needs to add. This knowledge will provide a good foundation to build on. Explanations are clear and items pictured clearly.

The more common techniques are covered from beginning to end with, in one case, 17 small pointed images showing you exactly how. There is also a section on sculptural forms which shows you how to mosaic onto things that are not flat. Many other artists' work is also beautifuly presented in this book showing the different applications for the techniques that are covered in that section of the book. Very inspiring! It makes you want to get up and get going!

And when you do get going, there are 12 projects complete with templates and very concise intructions. They are all unique and there is something for everyone.

The contributing artists section would be more useful if there email addresses or web sites. The glossery also contains all of 7 items and the index is only 2 columns on a half a page. This could have been more complete.

This is a very good book for instruction, inspiration and beautiful pictures. An artist of any level would be happy with this purchase. 10 out of 10.

Has all the basics, plus more. Great photos.

I bought 5 mosaic books while learning the technique and this is my favorite. Of the books I have read, this has the most comprehensive guide to the actual process of making a mosaic. There is an extensive section of tools, as well as the best explanation of the direct and especially indirect method that I have seen. Pictures are plentiful too for every step and offer some fabulous examples of what is possible with the art.

Very well done!

This has been the single most inspiring book I've read on mosaic. The instructions are not only clear in their description, but there are photos in the different stages of progress for those of us who are "show me" people. The many photos throughout the book are fabulous and offer a wide variety of ideas and techniques for creating. There are helpful artist's tips included throughout the book too, as well as tools and materials listed for each project.

So far, every mosaic book I have collected has something to offer. This one has a few notable characteristics. The section on tools and equipment is more complete and detailed than other mosaic books I have seen. Beginning mosaic books usually suggest some kind of spatula, a tile nipper, and glass cutter. Quite a few other tools are suggested and described here, as well as what they are for. Although I feel daunted about buying and using so many different tools, it is helpful to know what I can look for if a particular project requires something different.

The projects are fairly simple, but unique. For example, there is a lamp base covered with broken plates and cups, including the cup handles which protrude from the lamp! There is an irregular-shaped plaque, formed by pouring concrete into a polystyrene foam that you design, and then covered with an ancient Roman-simulated design. There is a mirror frame which is jig-sawed into an interesting shape, and this project alone is for me worth the price of the book.
There are projects with very clear instructions for using both the direct and indirect method of applying tesserae.

What I particularly like is that the instructions include how to finish the projects, such as how to put the back on the mirror, what hardware to use, and how to apply it. The other mosaic books I have seen so far only tell how to make the mosaic part, and leave the finishing steps up to you.

Finally, there are many photos of incredible projects (such as an entire facade of a house) made by professional mosaicists, which the beginner would not attempt, but from which beginners and experienced alike can find inspiration.