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Summary: Already written a review just wanted to point out...
Review: For the person who said, "It's hard to imagine any serious software development being done in C in this day and age." I say,Quake, Quake2, Quake3Arena were all written in ANSI C. I know C/C++/Java as well and at work we still program a lot of applications in C. (Even though I prefer C++) Anyhow still love this book, though be careful on the section about his _RGB16 macro...if your video card is 15-bit based cool, but true 16-bit cards output weird colours with these macros (thats because some cards use 5-6-5 (16-bit) RGB and some 5-5-5 (15bit))
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Summary: Very cool book
Review: I found it to definitely be a good book for C/C++ programmers who want to try their hand at game programming. The key word being PROGRAMMERS. It is definitely not a book for a novice programmer, and you definitely should know how to use a compiler and development studio before cracking this book open. I have found it an easy read, and I have had little difficulty getting the code to run. The info contained within could be used by any developer wishing to create fast, reliable graphics programs, not just for the creation of games. Sure the code isn't Object-Oriented but, if it had to teach you OO design the book would be a lot thicker and would definitely lead the reader off on a tangent. Andre stays on track for the most part. This book does not cover everything, it just covers the basics to get you in the right frame of mind. Consider a book soley about DirectX as a reference companion to this book and most people will be much happier, as many directX commands have lots and lots of options that Andre does not cover.
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Summary: A good beginning
Review: The book is a good beginning to game programming, but it is far from flawless. For example, the first third of the book is almost completely irrelevant to the subject, and the code is often sloppy and poorly tested. Also, the engine and sample programs are in C as opposed to C++. It's hard to imagine any serious software development being done in C in this day and age.
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Summary: This book is not as good as you think
Review: This book is sopposed to have it all. But reading the reports says you must know C or C++. Well that is not cool. I want a book I can read and start programming from no other knowledge.
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Summary: It doesn't get better than this!
Review: Below is a list of the many things the author of "Windows Game Programming for Dummies" does just right: 1. Provides you with a Win32 template. Let's face it, who in their right mind wants to rewrite the same code over and over when it's always the same. 2. Provides you with simple to use functions to initialize DirectX. Is" DD_Init();" simple enough for you? Do you want to modify his functions to fit your application? No problem, the author gives you his source code to do with what you will. That's right, no need to reinvent the wheel. All you might want to do is tweek it a bit to fit what you have in mind. 3. Explains in a very detailed manner, how to use DirectX and how to program using it. Here's the cool bit......I understood what the author was telling me!!!!!!!! 4. For those of you who don't want anything to do with DirectX, you don't have to worry about it. The author gives you "wrapper functions" to completely isolate you from the DirectX API. This means you can program a game using DirectX without having written a single line of DirectX code. AWOSOME! 5. For those of you who want to know what every line of DirectX code is doing and what all the values that are being passed to that function do, the author explains everthing in a simple to understand method. Finally, I assure you, this book will having you writing your own game engine in no time at all. I was a DirectX dummy and had a ship on the screen shooting bullets in three days.
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Summary: Buy this book for an intro to DirectX
Review: This book will teach you the basics of Directx (DirectDraw,DirectInput and DirectSound) and windows programming, in about as simple manner possible. Unfortunetly, it seems Andre was limited in the amount of pages he could write for this book. He did skip over some important things (most graphics primitives and advanced sprite control) and gave you the code to figure them out. I still gave it five stars becuase I doubt there is a better book out there that gives you both the basics of windows programming and DirectX in a readable manner.
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Summary: This book really helps get you started in Game programming
Review: This book is great for programmers who want to get into gamming. It explaines well some of the neuances of how to write games, and will provide you with a basic understanding of win 32 API, enough to make a window anyway, and a basic understanding of direct x. And also This will give great advice on how games work. Some tricks of the trade, and more. This book realy is a definate by for anyone who dosen't know anything about game programming and wants to learn, but you first must have a grasp on how to use C/C++. It is a definate that you know C for this book. If you are looking to learn C/C++ then this is not the book for you.
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Summary: greatest book for beginners in Game Programming
Review: This is the greatest book that has introduced me to Game Programming with C/C++, Win32, and DirectX.
Andre always responds to my emails, and answers all my questions. He is indeed a very cool guy, as mentioned by another reviewer. I am really looking forward to his new book!
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Summary: A Second Look
Review: I wrote a review of this book a month or so ago. Then I had only the text to go by. I thought the book was good then, but not great! After both the Author and the publisher responded to my review and I received the needed CD (the one that came with my book was damage) I re-read the book and the additional text files on the CD. I stand by my original opinion that this book is not for those with little or no C/C++ programming under their belt, i.e. dummies. I do think however that for most programmers and those who want to move to Windows game programming after working in DOS (is that a dirty word?) this is an excellent book. I found the additional text did indeed add most if not all of the missing pieces and the big bonus was the nural net text (I'm still playing with the code!). All-in-all I would rate this book very highly for those who have done some C/C++ programming. I would also like to add that I have never seen an author or a publisher so responsive to a reader. Both Andre' and IDG are great! My one complaint (it's never perfect ?) is that I wish all the text was in the book and not in files on the CD. I understand that their must be page limits but I wonder how much we could learn from Andre' if the book was twice as big? I plead with the publisher, Give use nice large "Windows Game Programming" book from this author! Andre' is one of the best writers of Game and graphics programming text around! Finaly, I think this is a Great Book and a good way to spend your money! Randall Morgan Project Three
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Summary: Great Intro Book but a little light on some subjects.
Review: This is a great book about directx and being able to program games effectively in windows. It gives you all the knowledge you need to make a pretty decent 2D game(without the wrapper functions). My only gripe is that IDG seemed to impose a limit on the number of pages that he could put in a book. True, it wouldn't look good for a dummies book to be 1,200 pages like my friends book VC++ 6 is, but the book says so many times to either refer to the DirectX SDK documentation or the code on the CD. One time that it would of really been nice if this wasn't so is when he was talking about converting bitmaps to game surfaces but just gave a function to do the job. I know LaMothe wanted to write more because I had his book before called Game Programming in 21 days which was over a 1,000 pages but I would still think it is better than under 500. Reading that book though just shows how much easier Windows Game Programming is than DOS.
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