Video Books

Thank you so much for giving us this book. I am getting what all i want to implement my game from your book. Great work Riemer. Please make your next book completely on performance issues and terrain to get the best framerate.

In this moment this is the best book in XNA. Thank you Mr. Riemer for your webside and this book.

I have followed Riemer's site pretty much as soon as he started publishing articles on XNA and loved all his on line tutorials as they gave a good base for those of us starting out and also enough for us to be getting on with once we got past those first early stages.

I am pleased to say that the book is no different in this achievement, each Recipe has enough detail and information for you to pickup the techniques.

I am also astounded as to how much is in here, from the basic data storage in XNA, on to cameras, game components, dealing with models and then onto the usage of vertices's, HLSL, the list goes on!

Great site, great book.

I wasn't convinced by the "recipe-based" approach before I ordered this book, but I enjoyed the author's online tutorials so thought I would give it a shot. I ended up buying and reading what is, pure and simple the best XNA book currently on the market.

Each "recipe" is direct and to the point with a minimum of fuss. Some are straightforward and can be skimmed over quickly, while others investigate the deepest corners of XNA and shine a light upon them. I've been writing games professionally for six years and there were recipes in this book that made me stop and say, "wow".

I'm not convinced it would be a great purchase for beginners - the direct and succinct writing style may not provide enough detail for those who aren't used to creating basic games already. However, there are a plethora of other XNA books targeted at beginners - this one says, "so you know a little bit about XNA? Now let me show you the good stuff."

If I had to pick up on anything, it would be that the book could have done with more diagrams. Sometimes the only way to actually see the results of a recipe, instead of just understanding it conceptually, is to copy out (or download) the example code. This is a minor quibble, because the explanations are clear and to the point, and more diagrams might have meant fewer recipes, which would have been a far bigger price to pay.

If you were ever interested in any silent film comedies, then you must have this book. Besides profiling the major comedians like Chaplin, Keaton, Lloyd, Langdon, and Laurel and Hardy, this book has large articles on W.C. Fields, Raymond Griffith, Lupino Lane, Colleen Moore, Larry Semon, Mabel Normand and others. One "classic" film from each is discussed in detail. Just about every obscure comedian that ever appeared in their own series or as a supporting player. There are also sections on topics such as different types of comedy, European comedy, etc. There are also plenty of illustrations. This is one reference book that a silent comedy fan will always want to have near.

As in his previous books on Laurel & Hardy, The Marx Brothers and Charlie Chaplin, British author Glenn Mitchell has brought his unique insight and wonderful writing style to this encyclopedia on silent film comedy. This book will delightfully jog the memory of almost anyone who had ever enjoyed a silent fun fest. Everyone is here from legends such as Chaplin, Keaton, Lloyd and Langdon...to the more obscure such as Lloyd Hamilton, John Bunny, and even the Ton of Fun! You too can have a ton of fun within the pages of this bit of must reading for any film comedy fan.

When you are a silent film comedy enthusiast, a book like this one is a must. There are very few reference books on silent film comedy, making this book essential for one's collection. Many books cover information about the stars, but very few cover the rich and varied history of the film studios famous or otherwise, another big plus for this book. Praise to Mr. Mitchell for his meticulous and massive research. The only improvements to this book would be a larger format and filmographies. And now Mr. Mitchell, when will your Keaton encyclopedia be coming out?

British film historian Glenn Mitchell has once again produced a most welcome paperback dealing with silent screen comedy. This time, Mr. Mitchell covers the entire spectre, from Jimmy Adams to Tammany Young, thus succeeding where others in recent years have utterly failed. There are plenty of places where to look up pertinent information on Keaton, Chaplin, Lloyd, etc.; even Charley Chase now has a biography on the market. But where can you read about the careers of Dee Lampton, the fat boy in "A Night in the Show," or George Ovey, of the long-ago "Cub Comedies"? Only in Mr. Mitchell's fine -- and thankfully! -- reasonably priced book. The "A-Z of Silent Film Comedy" is a must-have for any serious film scholar and highly recommended even for the casual fan.

The next best thing to owning the posters. Wonderful colors and presentation. I own every book that Bruce Hershenson has published. They make a great series on the history of movie posters.

Having tried one of Bruce Hershenson's books, I've since bought EVERY one. They're a terrific value and a wonderful way to bring movie history to life -- through excellent-quality reproductions of movie posters.

Very highly recommended! An excellent selection of beautiful rare movie posters, all illustrated in color, very nicely printed on fine paper, and at a surprisingly affordable price!

Rudimental drum solos are very fun at first, especially when you're doing great sight reading them. But it can get very boring.

This is NOT the case with this book!! These solos have many of the rudiments being played over the barline and starting on other weird rhythmic positions. I just got this book last week, and even though I read through it the first day, I am now going back and focusing on 2 solos at a time. (i want to be able to play these really well!)

Great book... very fun... and despite constant recommendations to get Pratt's 14 Modern Contest Solos, I feel I should've had it in my library months ago :)

John Pratt's book is a staple that all serious percussionists should play at some point. Pratt utilizes many rudiments in every solo and incorporates a lot of "over the barline" techniques. Many of my own drum students have performed these solos for solo and ensemble festivals and recitals. This book is a great tool for drummers in the medium to advanced stages. I highly recommend!

This book is great! It contains great peices of music for the snare drummer. It is made to be rudimentaly sound. Meaning the solo's are full of many rudiments. This makes it full of great playback, and full of great learning. The solo's range from diffucult to very diffucult. It is not for the the faint at heart drummer. Hodge Podge(the easiest solo) cannot be played unless you have the ability to play rolls(5/7/9/10/11/13),flams,ruffs,and sixteenth notes with accompyning eight notes. The hardest title is My Friend Norman and Gingersnap. The 6/8 excercies are very diffucult in their own right. This is great solo book for any above average to advanced snare drummer!

This book is so well done...from the linen hardcover, to the perfect representations of Conner's works, to the immaculate printing...even the essays and commentary throughout the book are great! Anyone interested in Bruce Conner...this is the best publication on him and his work so far. Also, anyone interested Assemblage, Collage, American Film, or the Avant-Garde in general...I would highly, highly recommend looking at Bruce Conner's work...this book is the best place for that (...outside of looking at actual work itself...of course...!). In my opinion, Bruce Conner is one of the most important artists of the whole "Beat Generation" era...and I feel that his films are among the very best of all Avant-Garde film. Please see for yourself, and please try to look at his actual work (by that I mean to physically go see some of the Assemblages, Collages, and try to get ahold/go see a few of his films)! The book is great, one of the best I've seen of all art books, but viewing art in books should always be ancillary to viewing art 'in the flesh'.

I can't tell you how many times I've looked at this incredible catalog of the world's greatest living artist!

This beautiful publication makes you feel fortunate to live in an era when hardbound books filled with juicy pictures printed on quality paper stock are still here for the wonder of our minds and hands. For some reason the multifaceted brilliant artist Bruce Conner is not very well known outside rarefied circles of experimental film-o-philes or assemblage art fans, and this book should go a long way to correct such an egregious oversight. The essays are substantive, intelligent, and lure readers into discoveries about the works of this compelling character, and the design of the book is a joy, filled with many cinematic touches and liberally sprinkled with gorgeous color reproductions. Highly recommended.

An even wider audience will be found for Chris Bateman and Richard Boon's 21st Century Game Design, which examines how best to design games and tailor them for specific kinds of audiences. Chapters focus more on the psyche and needs of the player than most programming or game books, discussing both how games can address these desires and how they can appeal to a wider audience outside the hard-core gamer. Any game designer or those seeking to develop and distribute games would do well to examine 21st Century Game Design with its audience-oriented focus.

I suppose it comes as no surprise to anyone to hear that game design has gotten very complex. The power of computers has grown tremendously since the first games like Pong. And with the ability to do more on the computer, and with more competition in the marketplace the need for a higher class of game designer has become clear.

Now game designers have to consider such things as the age, gender, ability, attitude of the player -- many years ago my daughter got hooked on the Roger Rabit game. I told an executive in the Disney game group that they needed some games for young girls. He turned me down with a huff. 'We have Mickey Mouse,' he said. 'Yes,' I told him, 'but you also have Minnie Mouse.' He tuned me out. Now such a manager couldn't afford to ignore such an audience.

This is a book written by professionals on what it will take to suceed in game development in the coming years. These people have 'been there, done that,' pay attention to what they say.

21st Century Game Design's quiet brilliance lies in its logical, sensible treatment of game design in today's market. Things game designers may know on some intuitive level, but often have no conscious access to, no way of articulating, this book illuminates. Chris Bateman's DGD1 audience model allows designers to make more intelligent, informed decisions in the way they design.

Thorough implementation of the principles Bateman describes would help everyone: help publishers understand and support developers, help marketers know who to target, and most importantly of all, help gamers by making games that are made with their playstyles in mind. Not all gamers game alike, so as our industry grows and matures, understanding and identifying the different types of gamers is essential.

Of particular import for growth of our industry is appeal to women and the casual segment, considerations that Bateman shows need not be commensurate with alienating the hardcore segment. You don't need to "water down" a great game to broaden its potential audience; you just need to be aware of your audience and make design choices accordingly.
Bateman shows us that great game design is ultimately subjective; therefore an audience-driven approach to game design is essential to designing games in the 21st century.


For any colleges and universities that have or are developing game design based cirriculum, for all industry professionals: here is an indispensable text.

For years.The fans of Abbott & Costello wanted to find out how their most famous film parody of horror movies"Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein!"came about.A few books have come to light in recent years:"Movie Comedy Teams"by Leonard Maltin,"The Abbott & Costello Book"By Jim Mullholland and:"Abbott & Costello In Hollywood!"by Ron Palumbo & Bob Furnemack.Now..As a companion to These three manuscripts is the paperback edition of the film's script.Film historian Phil Riley has found an early draft of the script that shows us all scenes and dialogue that never appeared in the final release print:"Oh Oh! And Up Pops The Devil","You're not going to leave me with all of this work"."You're not suppose to throw away all of that fat wasite".etc in terms of the film's dialogue.There is one scene that was never used in the film and sadly.It prohibieted Poor Lou from using his improvational skills as a true movie clown.The scene has "Dracula"(Bela Lugosi)using his hyponotic powers to lure poor"Wilber Brown"(Costello)back into the castle for the brain transplaint.Lou keeps trying to run away.But the power of the evil vampire's spell is so strong that he is constantly being pulled back into the castle via the cave entrance.He finds a rock and sits there."Dracula"(Bela) by now is getting madder than hell! And he says to "Wilber"(Lou)"I Said Come Back!"."Wilber Brown"sits on the rock and says"'No! I'm sitting right here and I'm not going back!".Until both Lou and the rock are zipped back into the cave and into the evil clutches of "Dracula"(Bele Lugosi) and "Dr.Sandra Morney"(Lenore Aubert).The book also shows some photos from the film and some wonderful behind the scenes candid pictures from the cast members,the film's director(Charlie Barton),The film's producer(Bob Arthur)and Dialogue Director(Norman Abbott..Bud's newphew)and the members of the Abbott & Costello families.There are also some thoughts about the making of the film from the team's family members and the true story of how this classic parody was conceived and filmed by the book's author:Mr.Riley.For fans of horror movies and for fans of classic comedy movies.This is one book to have in your collection.Bravo Phil! Kevin S.Butler.

This is a great treasure for Abbott and Costello fans as well as Chaney, Lugosi, or Universal fans. The pictures alone are worth the price of the book. The script is still titled "The Brain of Frankenstein" and includes deleted scenes which further add to the story. As someone who has seen the film many times the added info gives new insights as to the characters performances.

Classic horror film stars meet legendery comic duo make for great film and great book. behind the scenes info with rare photographs and insight into the relationships with all protagonist's. Also critic's reviews and posters and billboards from the orginal time of film's release.

I am very grateful to have found the book, "Action! In the Classroom." It has been incredibly valuable to me as I have been preparing to teach (and create) a video production class for our high school. It is thorough, well-written, the illustrations are terrific, and the resources provided on the web are just fantastic. Excellent.

This is a fantastic book! I love it. It has all the information you need to start using video in the classroom. Dan Greenwood also provides his website with a lot of information to download and use in the classroom. Great book!

This book was purchased for a graduate level digital video course designed to teach teachers how to use video in the classroom. The book has a lot of information about taking an idea for a video, and moving it through all the steps to a final product. For any teacher who wants to use video in their classroom there's a lot of ideas to get you started. As for student projects, there are a ton of things too.

I highly recommend this book for any teacher who wants to use student/teacher made video in their classroom.

Wonderful and delightful. A combination of the Wonderful Magic the world of Disney brings us, along with the encouragement and lessons that will lead a child to the begining of love for self and life.

This book combines classic animated feature frames with lines from their movies that will move, touch, inspire, and delight anyone and everyone. Makes a great gift. Deffinetly worth reading and keeping on your coffee table for easy reference.

This book is truly to be a favorite for any Disney fan. Not only is it inspirational, but it is fun at the same time. Seeing all of the Disney characters,and their quotes,brings back many memories. It's amazing how all of the quotes from the Disney characters can really be applied to your own life. I highly reccomend this book for any one. It also makes a great gift for a friend who may be going through a rough time. It definatley will make them smile!

You gotta get the cuban beat

If you are looking to spruce up your playing, this is the book for you. It uses a step by step process to ease you into the most dificult rhythms. It also comes with a cd that gives examples of all the beats in this book which I found very helpful. You can apply the beats learned in this book to any type of music for a much more interesting sound. I would say this book is for moderate to advanced drummers. Get this book, It's worth it.

After 20+ years of playing the drum set I can hear and feel most standard rock and jazz rhythms fairly easily. But the rhythms in this book are so different that I find myself challenged in each exercise---even the simplest ones! This book will really help the drummer who is comfortable with current and past rock and jazz styles, because it is a huge stretch from the 4/4 and 3/4 that most of us spend virtually all of our time playing. More than anything, this book will help your overall sense of time, because its contents are so different from the American rock-pop-jazz genre, that your brain will have to work overtime to master them. It's helpful if you have some Latin traps in your kit, but not necessary to reap the full benefit. Couple this book with Gary Chester's New Breed, and you'll step into a new phase of musical creativity in your drumming career. The included CD is really essential to understanding the groove of these exercises.