Reviews (39)

Great tricks
This book has some great tricks, mostly for me it was more the steps to do the tricks which can be used in other designs. Its a good book to learn about different ways of doing things in photoshop.

PhotoshopCS Down & Dirty Tricks
Although this was written for CS and I've since upgraded to CS2 I still find the book extremely useful for those quick tips that can make a big difference to your image. Additionally "Down & Dirty" speeds up your production of projects as you get to learn about the new features that make Photoshop the number one product in its class.
THE TRUTHfrom someone who knows what they're talking about
Here are some noteworthy tutorials perhaps you may find a use for, even though I did not: DVD mockup, Book mockup, Grudge Effect, Making a Photo Look Old. The best tutorials are by Felix Nelson, because they are original and unique. Scott Kelby's stuff is kitsch. He copykats what graphic designer's are doing today and recreates a cheap knock-off tutorial for this book. Best Buy, American Pie's Logo, etc. Why the hell would I want to make a logo that looks just like American Pie's logo? Or a logo that looks just like EA Sport's logo? How trite. But if that's your thing to steal, mimic, and make crappy versions of the original then go ahead. I used to respect Kelby, mmm not so much anymore. Anything for a buck and reproduce filler garbage for the masses. I pity anybody who uses this for commercial purposes or for anything that the public will see. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Adobe Photoshop    2. Computer Books: General    3. Computer Graphics - General    4. Computer graphics    5. Computers    6. Computers - Desktop Publishing    7. Desktop Publishing - General    8. Microcomputer Graphics    9. Techniques - Equipment    10. Computers / Computer Graphics / General    11. Photoshop   

Reviews (12)

Creating your web master piece
What this book does in basic terms is walk you through the process of website conception to managing your website once it is on line and everything in between. It covers all of the information that you will need to get your site up and running. Some of the the subjects are covered very well like the use of CSS, adding graphics, flash animation, design elements, templates, HTML, Meta tags and the use of graphics. All subjects are covered in ample detail.
Misses the mark.
I am new to web design but am pretty good with computers.I have been producing and editing music for fun for years.This book is dicey at best.There are good points, but overall it is hard to follow and gives a poor explaination of Dreamweaver's features.Hopefully, the author is better in the classroom than she is in this text or I feel sorry for her students.

EASY READ
I love this book!!!Very easy to use and follow, explanations are in english not tech words.I started to create my first website using dreamweaver 8, I read the book it came with, and didn't understand what I was doing.After reading the first two chapters of dreamweaver 8 for dummies, I was starting to create a website like a pro. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer - Internet    2. Computer Books: General    3. Computer Graphics - General    4. Computers    5. Data Processing - General    6. Internet - Web Site Design    7. Computer graphics software    8. Computers / Internet / Web Site Design    9. HTML   

Reviews (1)

This book is nicely laid out!
I have been publishing 2-d and flash games for a bit, and now need to hit DirectX for 3d again (stopped at v8) and need to catch up.There were several things I needed for the new game project starting and it was easy to find all of them right off the bat.I checked first in the index.e.g. I need landscape/terrain generation, .x file loading, and concepts described in pure mathematics (not pseudo code) before showing the actual code. Don't be afraid of matrix math/calculus and get this book.It is a total re-write from the ground up of a previous book.I like this guy. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Books: General    2. Computer Graphics    3. Computer Graphics - Game Programming    4. Computer Programming    5. Computer games    6. Computers    7. DirectX    8. Games / Gamebooks / Crosswords    9. General    10. Programming    11. Video & Electronic - General    12. Computers / General   

Reviews (7)

Perfect
This is exactly what i was looking for, i think this is an amazing book if you want to learn....you have to get it.

needs more depth
after using this book for a while I find it needs to go into more detail on how tools work and common errors.For example the birail and curve editing tool are give about 4 sentencs but are used alot.
Horrible book
Too many steps in this book are vague and don't account for the fact that Maya doesn't always give you the results you are aiming for. The author will explain 2 or 3 steps very well then he seems to give you very little info for the next step, as if rushing through it like "well you should know all this." He assumes too much and in the end I found myself frustrated and lost. I mean if you get the end results but didn't understand the process you did to get there, then did you really learn anything? I go tired of spending 15 minutes staring and 2 pictures and trying to figure out what he did, since he didn't have the brains to tell me in print. Feels like yet another pro trying to teach when he can't remember what its like to be on the level of those he is teaching. If this were a class I'd have to raise my hand every minute and ask him to slow down. Oh, and NO I am not totally new to Maya and I've had very good luck with other books, so its not just some total noob venting. I've tried for weeks now to get into this book, there is just no way to do so as I see it.
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Subjects:  1. Computer Animation    2. Computer Books: General    3. Computer Graphics - Game Programming    4. Computer Graphics - General    5. Computers    6. Computers - Other Applications    7. Computers / Computer Graphics / Design    8. Image processing: computer animation   

Editorial Review

Clint Eccher has designed professional Web sites for seven years and now makes some of his designs available as templates through his own site (A5design.com) and with his new book, Read more

Reviews (25)

Leaves something to be desired
As a Web professional, I'm always interested in reviewing the work of my peers, seeing what I can learn from them. I visited the author's Web site and perused his portfolio since a look inside the book wasn't available here, and I was more than a little disappointed. The integration of his CSS/XHTML is flawed and it just doesn't display the way it should on the major operating system/browser combinations that it should. With this in mind, any advice from the doesn't hold much water for me. I was most interested in this book as a source of inspiration, and have found the Taschen series much more to my liking.

useful book - good "jumping off point"
I was particularly interested in the templates found on the CD-ROM. As others have noted, these designs are created with nested tables. The art is created in Photoshop. Having "picked" at a couple of templates, I'm now seeing where the various images are and how to manipulate them. I wish, however, that the authors had used layers rather than templates. I'm finding that the best way (for me) to utilize these templates is as a basis for a new design by starting with a blank HTML page and replacing the tables and with layers.

Useful and up-to-date content
Web technology evolves so much in these years. This book introduces various kind s of modern web design and development and the essential points during the process. The enriched and useful contents are benifitial to the design and development on any state. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer - Internet    2. Computer Books: Web Programming    3. Computers    4. Design    5. Interactive & Multimedia    6. Internet - Web Site Design    7. Programming Languages - General    8. Programming Languages - HTML    9. Web sites    10. Art / Graphic Arts    11. World Wide Web (WWW)   

Features

• Illustrated

Reviews (3)

Good techniques
This book is filled with too many stories, facts and fictions. There are lots of success stories told about Ajax. Every so called "design pattern" discussion begins with a fictional story. I'm not sure if this is good, but for me it just bloats the book and adds unnecessary readings for my eyes that too easily get tired.
The Best Ajax Book!
If you think you know anything about Ajax, you're wrong. After you read this book you'll realize how little you knew. Michael Mahemoff has a PhD in Computer Science, but it might as well be on Ajax since I've never read a book with so much useful information about it. There are about 8 or 9 Ajax books on the market right now and none of them come close to giving the useful information this one does and that is only after reading the first 150 pages. This book really is the complete tutorial and reference to learning and using Ajax properly.
Analytical look at Ajax implementations
Very nicely done.The author spends time analyzing the problems various Ajax implementations are trying to solve and abstracts the concepts into a "pattern".I appreciated the author's attempt toallocate an "established use" value to each pattern described, which ranges from "widespread usage" to "purely speculative".
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Subjects:  1. Computer - Internet    2. Computer Books: Languages    3. Computers    4. Computers - Languages / Programming    5. Internet - Application Development    6. Internet - Web Site Design    7. Programming - Software Development    8. Programming Languages - CGI, Javascript, Perl, VBScript    9. Ajax (Web site development technology)    10. Ajax, DHTML, JavaScript, Asynchronous JavaScript, XML, patterns, design, usability, user experience    11. Asynchronous transfer mode    12. Computer / Internet    13. Computers / Internet / Application Development    14. Computers / Programming Languages / CGI, JavaScript, Perl, VBScript    15. Internet    16. JavaScript (Computer program language)    17. Web site development   

Reviews (6)

A fine primer, but flawed
If you're looking for a step-by-step-hold-your-hand-guide to ArcView then this is your book. However ...and this is a big However... you'd better learn each lesson thoroughly as you go along, because there is no index. Let me repeat... no index. Oh, sure there's pages and pages of ESRI software license agreement, but no index. That being said, it is a fine reference and a good place to learn the basics.

Best GIS book!
If you want to learn GIS, this is the book for you. It teaches you how to use ArcGis and ArcMap very effectively. I have bought and used this book to learn GIS and by the end (about 3 months) I was very comfortable doing my own GIS analysis, without needing the book in front of me. The examples and tutorials in the book which guide you through the material, are easy to follow but challenge you to learn the material, which is the goal.The assignments at the end of each chapter reinforce what was taught in each chapter very well.They are very applicable and after completing all the assignments I consider myself very capable at using this complex program. I have tried to learn many programs from books and found that, although GIS is probably the most powerful and complex program i've tried to learn, this book teaches you better than any other. It makes it very easy to learn GIS and apply its powers.The CD provided is adequate to learn the program as well.The book also can serve as a reference when doing other GIS work, as key commands and concepts are well organized throughout the book and are easily referenced.I wish all other programs had a book which was this easy to use!
Caveat Emptor
This is a text designed at the third grade level for Bryman/ITT Tech and the like. The Workbook is a picture book of examples, little of which relate to the assignments at the end of every chapter. Note there is neither index nor glossary. The CD's that come with it require validation and are timed to expire after 180 days. ESRI is proud of this book, but without justification. It lacks any sort of professional documentation for the ArcGIS and ArcMap programs and questions to workbench-support@esri.com are ansered by "see the book." They vary the theme a bit, but this is always the reply. But "the book" doesn't have the necessary data to acomplish the assignment.
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Subjects:  1. ArcView    2. ArcView (Computer software)    3. Computer Books: General    4. Computers    5. Computers - Other Applications    6. Data Transmission Systems - General    7. General    8. Geographic information systems    9. Miscellaneous Software    10. Computers / Advanced Applications    11. Geographical information systems (GIS)   

Reviews (2)

great rendering and dynamics for maya7
A great book for beginners of maya7.It is basicaly the "Rendering" and "Dynamics" books of the Learning Maya6 Book Series all in one.There are over 600 pgs of color diagrams and simple text discriptions.It is very clear and covers many very important aspects of image quality.Unfortunately for me, I already have the Learning Maya6 Book series so there is a lot of redundant information.Though there is enough new info to keep me happy.

The best it gets!
These books are a spectacular edition. Alias has been good about teaching in their books, but these books actually have FUN projects! I have enough books that will tell me how to do something (and these are VERY easy to understand) but the only ones that I can actually have fun working with are the ones contained in this new series. Not for the advanced user though. If you want advanced, go for the Maya Tecniques series, not the Learning Maya series. Great books! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Animation    2. Computer Books: General    3. Computer Graphics - Game Programming    4. Computer Graphics - General    5. Computers    6. Computers - Other Applications    7. Non-Classifiable    8. Nonfiction    9. Computer graphics software    10. Computers / Computer Graphics / Design    11. Image processing: computer animation   

Editorial Review

Digital compositing, defined here as "the digitally manipulated combination of at least two source images to produce an integrated result," is a huge field incorporating 2-D and 3-D still and animated artwork. Read more

Reviews (21)

Must Have for compositors and digital artists
This book is a in depth study of the techniques and technologies involved in the art of compositing. Not sooo technical that no one will understand it, but technical enough that it even explains in detail the algorithms and math used for antialiasing, blurs, the transfer operators like multiply, screen overlay., etc... I am a professional cg artist and highly recommend this book.

Just Great
I use Fusion 5 and this book has been of great help understanding not just how the different operators work within Fusion, but also, how a good composite has to be done. The final section shows different real world examples of compositions made for films like Titanic, an invaluable resource if you are a begginer and a point of reference if you have more experience.

Very good book! helped me prepare for my career
This is a great book. I wanted to really get deeper into graphics and film and out of all the many-many books I have bought this is the grand daddy of them all.Ron Brinmann gives you a wonderful understanding of film and graphic language and really helps to prepare you to be equipped
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Subjects:  1. Computer Books And Software    2. Computer Books: General    3. Computer Graphics    4. Computer Graphics - Design    5. Computer Graphics - Game Programming    6. Computers    7. Computers - Desktop Publishing    8. Digital Image Processing    9. Digital techniques    10. Image processing    11. Computer graphics software    12. Computers / Computer Graphics / Design    13. Internet   

Reviews (1)

More for high school kids....but....
The "but" is after reading the first chapter of this book and looking through the contents there are some useful projects. I've been using Publisher since 2000 for a newsletter and brochure for a non-profit group and not much more. But now I can see several new uses for the program and I'll give them a try. Granted it's not a hard program to master the bare essentials but I think this book may open a much wider range of uses for this user. The only bad thing is the steep price for the book itself. I really would like to give the book a 3.75 star rating... ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Books: General    2. Computers    3. Computers - General Information    4. Interactive & Multimedia    5. Computers / Interactive Media    6. Desktop publishing software    7. Multimedia   

Reviews (23)

A very solid basis for game design
I'll start with the bad aspects of the book first. It is very repetitious at times.It also tends to overanalyze some aspects of gaming and game design.That being said. I have no other ill comments about this book.
An Academic who claims to be a designer. . .and then writes a book
Having used this book for a few semesters, I offer you this: Avoid this book, unless you too are an academic who has nothing real to offer the world of video games in terms of game design or actual game production.
INTRODUCTION to Game Design Fundamentals
Rules of Play is an elaborate promotion for SiSSY FiGHT 2000.Though the cover art is cleverly composed of images from Street Fighter II and Super Mario Bros, I had the feelng of being mislead by the end of the book.Everything comes back to SiSSY FiGHT 2000.
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Subjects:  1. Computer Books: General    2. Computer Graphics - Design    3. Computer Graphics - Game Programming    4. Computer games    5. Computers    6. Computers - Games    7. Design    8. Interactive & Multimedia    9. Programming    10. Computers / Computer Graphics / Game Programming    11. General Theory of Computing    12. Multimedia   

Reviews (9)

Game Development praise
Jeannie Novak's book Game Development Essentials is an excellent text covering the scope of today's gaming environment. Everything from story development, marketing, character development and audience demographics is covered in this text. She uses highly appropriate first person narratives from industry professionals and has excellent study guide questions at the conclusion of each chapter. The CD included also has great game demos and trials as well as excellent links to web sites that add enrichment to the reading. I look forward to her other upcoming titles.

Not BAD!
I've been making games for 19 years and I couldn't disagree more with Mark Baldwin's criticisms of this book. Jeannie Novak has written a fresh, all-encompassing book on the subject of game development. The industry is rapidly evolving and this is one of the few texts to keep up with current thinking and present it in a manner that is easy to digest.
Excellent introduction to the industry
This book is a great introduction to the game industry in general. It doesn't delve deeply, but does a flyover of what is becoming an increasing complex medium. It hits the points someone seeking to enter the industry needs to know - everything from features of the companies creating games to current styles of development.
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Subjects:  1. Computer Books: General    2. Computer Graphics - General    3. Computers    4. Computers - General Information    5. Reference - General    6. Art / Graphic Arts    7. Computer Programming    8. Computer games   

Reviews (9)

What they mean by "Art"
I think some readers may be confused by the title, "The Art of Maya."This is not a coffe tale book showing some art made by Maya users.The title is a play on Sun Tzu's book, "The Art of War."That is exactly what this book is, it is a soup to nuts explaination of the "art" of using Maya.
On The Money
My Book arrived in great condition and on time.
Very good overall Maya book
It's a very good book if you knew how to use Maya.
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Subjects:  1. Computer Animation    2. Computer Books: General    3. Computer Graphics - Game Programming    4. Computer Graphics - General    5. Computers    6. Computers - Other Applications    7. Desktop Publishing - General    8. Three-dimensional display systems    9. Computers / Computer Graphics / Design    10. Computing and Information Technology   

Reviews (9)

Interaction Design
The majority of this book is from the thoughts and findings of other authors.Nothing orignal.Books is difficult to read and often does a poor job of explaining topics clearly.Currently using this book as a text book for a class and have to believe there is a better choice out there.

Adequate but not great
I have used this text for a year and half, for three instances of the same course (upper division undergrad).Good: 1. Each chapter is about a week's work, so it fits the schedule nicely; 2. Each chapter has "activities", "summary", and "assignments" which I find very useful when making assignments; 3. Lots of illustrations; 4. Interviews with professionals in the field are added at the end of each chapter -- this adds another dimension to the "textbook" aspects of the book; 5. Cartoons here and there. Could be improved: the quality of some of the illustrations -- some of them are photos that are dark and hard to make out.Some look like they came from the 1950s -- I am not sure how that is possible in a book published in 2002, but that's what it looks like to me.Still, the text is "nicely illustrated".The thing that stops this from being a "great" text is the quality of the writing and presentation of ideas.The writing is too simplistic.A "great" text finds ways to express things in a succinct manner, summarizing key ideas.Instead, this book tends to be wordy in many places, and lacks an effective organization of ideas.Finally, the text is starting to appear "dated", but few textbooks can withstand the breakneck speed of change in this area.That said, no student has complained (to me) about the text (but neither have they praised it).And, I have not been able to find a better text.

Excellent Course Text for HCI students
The breath and depth of this text truly embodies the necessary content for beginning HCI students in an undergraduate and graduate program. I've successfully used this text every semester with my students since its inception. The author's perspective of the discipline accurately reflects an increasing trend in HCI education that places less emphasis on computing and more on designing products to enhance human communication based on the social sciences. It is organized to provide an instructor a way to pick and choose selected chapters or proceed sequentially. Each chapter is multi-dimensional in its approach to provide an array of content that includes both theory and practice. I highly recommend it. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Artificial Intelligence - General    2. Computer Books: General    3. Computers    4. Computers - General Information    5. Human-Computer Interaction    6. Interactive & Multimedia    7. Science/Mathematics    8. Technical Writing    9. Virtual Reality    10. Computer Communications & Networking    11. General Theory of Computing    12. Technology / Technical Writing   

Editorial Review

Suitable for most any programmer who wants to master ASP.NET with an eye toward real-world development, Read more

Features

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Reviews (78)

Programming ASP.NET (3rd edition)
I was reading this book as a sequel to "Programming C#" by Jesse
Great book to get you rolling
I haven't written many asp.net apps in the last 1.5 years having been pulled into other programming projects. I was recently assigned to a new project that is strictly asp.net.
VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!!
Are you a programmer or web developer who wants to build web applications using Microsoft's powerful new ASP.NET 2.0 platform? Well, you're in luck! Authors Jesse Liberty and Dan Hurwitz, have done an outstanding job of writing a 3rd edition of a book that will teach you all you need to know to build professional quality, interactive, robust data-driven web applications.
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Subjects:  1. Computer - Internet    2. Computer Books: Web Programming    3. Computers    4. Internet - Web Site Design    5. ASP.NET, ASP.NET 2.0, ASP, 2.0, web development,HTML,C#,Master pages,personalization,web parts,Web Forms,ADO.NET,data controls,    6. C# (Computer program language)    7. Computer / Internet    8. Computer Communications & Networking    9. Computer Programming    10. Computer design    11. Computers / Internet / Web Site Design    12. Design    13. Microsoft .NET    14. Microsoft Windows    15. Web sites   

Reviews (3)

Not for Novices
An encyclopedia of helpful information but, this will not be helpful to a novice trying to learn the program for the first time.
Very comphrensive book - CDROM has some problems
The Simulations folder on the CDROM included with the book containssome broken links, probably due to a production problem and it is my understanding that this will soon be corrected.
Dreamweaver 8 Bible
I would highly recommend this new release on Dreamweaver 8
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Subjects:  1. Authoring programs    2. Computer - Internet    3. Computer Books: Web Programming    4. Computers    5. Design    6. Internet - Web Site Design    7. Web site development    8. Web sites    9. Computer graphics software    10. Computers / Internet / Web Site Design    11. HTML   

Reviews (9)

Got Mathematica?Buy This Book NOW!
The positive reviews were right on the money, this book is the best!It allowed me to start using Mathematica with ease, compared to the many hours of past frustration while working on optimizations.I fought endlessly, struggling to decipher the software's baroque navigation, cryptic errors, hostility to the user which borders on abuse - but now Mathematica and I are becoming great friends thanks to Heikki Ruskeepaa's wonderful tome.THANK YOU FOR WRITING THIS BOOK!!! Absolutely Great Mathematica Textbook
While it is unlikely that there is a pure Mathematica course anywhere, the textbook for it already exists! Solutions
To solve practical problems in Mathematica the navigator is very usefull. If you want to go deeper,"modeling nature" by Gaylord and Nishidate is a usefull guide. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Applied    2. Data processing    3. Discrete Mathematics    4. General    5. Mathematica (Computer file)    6. Mathematical & Statistical Software    7. Mathematics    8. Science/Mathematics    9. Computers / Educational Software / General   

Subjects:  1. Computer Animation    2. Computer Books: General    3. Computer Graphics - Flash    4. Computers    5. Computers - Desktop Publishing    6. Internet - Web Site Design    7. Computers / Computer Animation    8. Image processing    9. Multimedia   

Reviews (2)

This is the best animation book I have seen!
Over the years I have read and browsed many books on animation. Not only does this book cover the basics it explains them. The figures are easy to follow and convey complex concepts well. A lot of other animation books will cover a basic walk cycle from just the side view. Webster's book covers it from the side and front. I have had this book for a year and it has not made it to my bookshelf yet. I use it constantly for reference.

well presented and accessible
A well presented and accessible review of the basic principles of animation and its organization. By encouraging the readers to ask themselves questions about the various proposed tasks the author helps to move them towards self-reliance. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Computer Animation    2. Computer Books: General    3. Computer Graphics - General    4. Computers    5. Computers - Other Applications    6. Animation    7. Computers / Computer Graphics / General    8. Image processing: computer animation   

Reviews (8)

It's exactly what the title states, "Adaptive Filter THEORY"