Graphics & Multimedia Books - Page 3

Getting to Know ArcGIS Desktop: The Basics of ArcView, ArcEditor, and ArcInfo Updated for ArcGIS 9 (Getting to Know series)

Tim Ormsby, Eileen Napoleon, Robert Burke

Amazon Price: $46.76 List Price: $59.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Esri Press Amazon Marketplace: 77 new & used starting at $22.00

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Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Graphic Design -> General AAS

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 70 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

A nice, basic GIS primer with ArcGIS software included 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

I teach an introductory GIS course using this book. I like the simple, informative layout and the exercises that are useful, if a little basic. One of the real values of the book is the inclusion of a trial version of ArcGIS 9.2 with a full gamut of extensions (there is a newer book out with 9.3), as well as exercises that go along with the book.

This in itself is very valuable, because it allows my students to use the state of the art software during the course on their personal computers. Unless you have access to ArcGIS from another source, I would highly recommend purchasing the book new, since the trial software is one-time use only.

Editorial Review:

With revised material and new exercises based on ArcGIS version 9, this updated work acquaints geographers and GIS professionals with the principles of GIS as it teaches the mechanics of using ArcGIS software. Conceptual material is followed by scripted software exercises. Necessary GIS skills are presented in a variety of areas--map symbology, data overlay, map projection, and data conversion--as the making of maps and the analysis of geographic data is conceptualized. Spatial modeling exercises using the Model Builder technology of ArcGIS version 9 are also provided. Other topics covered include organizing data, planning a GIS project, creating derived data, and presenting results.

Taking Your iPod touch to the Max (Technology in Action)

Erica Sadun

Amazon Price: $16.49 List Price: $24.99 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Apress Amazon Marketplace: 31 new & used starting at $15.67

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Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Digital Music -> iPods
Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Digital Music -> iTunes

Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 7 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

Fast and fun to read, Taking Your iPod touch to the Max gives you all the tips and techniques you could ever think of to make the most of your Apple iPod touch. Erica Sadun is an expert at hacking devices to discover undocumented tricks, and this book reveals everything and more about the functionality of the iPod Touch. But before that, Sadun will give you the best, most efficient, and fun–to–read introduction to the basics of using the iPod touch that you will ever find.

What you’ll learn

• iPod touch basics
• E–mail using iCal
• Surfing the Web with iPod Touch using Safari
• Expanding the main menu using third–party software
• Using iTunes, games, iBooks, etc.
• Connecting to the TV and ripping DVDs
• Hacking OS X Leopard to run apps on the iPod touch
• Getting contract–free VOIP
• Saving on accessories and what you really need.

Who is this book for?

Anyone who has an iPod touch and wants to get more out of it, learn how to connect to other devices, or tinker with it.

Programming Python

Mark Lutz

List Price: $17.95 By: O'Reilly Amazon Marketplace: 24 new & used starting at $2.95

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 3 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

poorly organized introduction to python 2 out of 5 stars.
35 of 40 people found this review helpful.

I thought this would be similar to Programming Perl, both a good introduction to the language *and* a decent reference. Unfortunately, it does neither task well.

It fails as a reference because 1) it is poorly organized: information on each concept (printing, for example), is scattered throughout the book; 2) the index is atrocious. There is no way to find the key description of any part of the language using the index, and I often find important concepts in the book that are not in the index.

The poor index, combined with the scattered organization, means I'm constantly frustrated when I want to look up some particular element of the language.

As an introduction, the book is OK. I would have liked to see some meatier code examples. As another reviewer mentioned, the examples are more about the syntax of the language than actual applications that you might learn from. This is a style point -- if you learn best from large chunks of example code, this is not the book for you.

Also, key modules (sys and math, for example) are barely mentioned.

--Pat / zippy@cs.brandeis.edu

Editorial Review:

Penelope Torribio's spectacular photographs and witty reflections takes us on a backyard adventure where bugs look stranger than the monsters in the old-time matinee movies. This book is an entertaining combination of fact and fictions pointing towards a future that is dependent on the way we perceive and treat these tiny beings. Penelope's reflections has earned her the title of "The Mark Twain of the Bug World." Her photos are great for all ages and many will enjoy the accompanying CD where Penelope reads her reflections on the bug photos, finishing with three delightful bugs songs from some of her other ecological CDs and books. Visit iamaguardianoftheearth.com for more information.

Learning Flex 3: Getting up to Speed with Rich Internet Applications (Adobe Developer Library)

Alaric Cole

Amazon Price: $26.39 List Price: $39.99 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Adobe Dev Library Amazon Marketplace: 45 new & used starting at $20.00

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 16 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

How soon can you learn Adobe Flex 3? With this book's unique hands-on approach, you will be able to tinker with examples right away, and create your own Rich Internet Applications with Flex within the first few chapters. As you progress, you learn how to build a layout, add interactivity, work with data, and deploy your applications to either the Web or the desktop.

Learning Flex 3 offers step-by-step instructions that are clear and concise, along with tips and tricks that author Alaric Cole has gathered after years of using Flex and teaching it to fellow developers at Yahoo! You'll understand how Flex works, how to use the MXML markup language and work with ActionScript, how to deploy RIAs to the desktop using Adobe AIR, and much more.

Whether you're a beginner, or an experienced web developer coming to Flex from another platform, Learning Flex 3 is the ideal way to learn how to:

• Set up your environment with FlexBuilder and Eclipse
• Create a new Flex project
• Use the different design views in Flex
• Write code with MXML
• Lay out your Flex application
• Embed images and graphics
• Build a user interface
• Add interactivity with ActionScript
• Handle user input
• Move, display, and collect data
• Add custom components with MXML
• Add sound effects, filters, and transitions
• Style your applications with CSS, skins, and themes
• Deploy applications to the Web, or to the desktop using Adobe AIR

Also included are brief explanations of objects, classes, components, properties, methods, types, and other Flex attributes. You will find that Learning Flex 3 is not only the most complete tutorial for Flex, it's also the quickest way to get going with the latest version of this powerful framework.

Creating Characters with Personality: For Film, TV, Animation, Video Games, and Graphic Novels

Tom Bancroft

Amazon Price: $13.57 List Price: $19.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Watson-Guptill Amazon Marketplace: 42 new & used starting at $9.31

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 27 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

excellent resource for anyone wanting to improve character design skills! 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

This book by Tom Bancroft was a very entertaining and helpful read. I am not a professional in the field of animation or illustration, but I am trying to learn how to improve my skills in the area of character design in hopes of moving into this field in the future. This book does an excellent job of covering all the different facets involved in designing and bringing to life a drawing with real personality. It teaches the basic principles needed to convey character types, emotion, and personality with many helpful examples.
The two best "stand-out" features of the book to me are the guest artists who each come from a different field of "cartooning"; whether it be humorous cartooning, tv animation, comic books, or feature film animation, to name a few. It was very interesting and informative to read these professional's take on designing the same character, and to see how each artist approached it. The other "stand-out" feature was the progression of assignments given throughout the book. These really helped me get a feel for what a real assignment could actually be like for a character designer. They were very helpful in allowing me to think through the process of designing each character for the "script" provided in the assignments.
All in all, my hat's off to Tom and company for a wonderful resource for aspiring professionals and hobby artists alike. Definitely a wonderful investment!

Editorial Review:

• Character design is the key in many industries—and they’re all covered in this book

• Practical step-by-step exercises

• Contributors include Glen Keane, Supervising Animator, Disney

From Snow White to Shrek, from Fred Flintstone to SpongeBob Square-Pants, the design of a character conveys personality before a single word of dialogue is spoken. Creating Characters with Personality shows artists how to create a distinctive character, then place that character in context with a script, establish hierarchy, and maximize the impact of pose and expression. Practical exercises help readers put everything together to make their new characters sparkle. Lessons from the author, who designed the dragon Mushu (voiced by Eddie Murphy) in Disney’s Mulan—plus big-name experts in film, TV, video games, and graphic novels—make a complex subject accessible to every artist.

Programming Flex 3: The Comprehensive Guide to Creating Rich Internet Applications with Adobe Flex (Programming)

Chafic Kazoun, Joey Lott

Amazon Price: $34.64 List Price: $54.99 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Adobe Dev Library Amazon Marketplace: 47 new & used starting at $30.39

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Total reviews: 3 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

If you want to try your hand at developing rich Internet applications with Adobe's Flex 3, and already have experience with frameworks such as .NET or Java, this is the ideal book to get you started. Programming Flex 3 gives you a solid understanding of Flex 3's core concepts, and valuable insight into how, why, and when to use specific Flex features. Numerous examples and sample code demonstrate ways to build complete, functional applications for the Web, using the free Flex SDK, and RIAs for the desktop, using Adobe AIR. This book is an excellent companion to Adobe's Flex 3 reference documentation. With this book, you will:

Learn the underlying details of the Flex framework Program with MXML and ActionScript Arrange the layout and deal with UI components Work with media Manage state for applications and components Use transitions and effects Debug your Flex applications Create custom components Embed Flex applications in web browsers Build AIR applications for the desktop

Flex 3 will put you at the forefront of the RIA revolution on both the Web and the desktop. Programming Flex 3 will help you get the most from this amazing and sophisticated technology.

Dreamweaver CS4: The Missing Manual

David McFarland

Amazon Price: $29.69 List Price: $44.99 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Pogue Press Amazon Marketplace: 1 new & used starting at $29.69

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Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Web Development -> Web Design -> Dreamweaver

Editorial Review:

When it comes to building professional websites, Dreamweaver CS4 is capable of doing more than any other web design program -- including previous versions of Dreamweaver. But the software's sophisticated features aren't simple. Dreamweaver CS4: The Missing Manual will help you master this program quickly, so you can bring stunning, interactive websites to life.

Under the expert guidance of bestselling author and teacher David McFarland, you'll learn how to build professional-looking websites quickly and painlessly. McFarland has loaded the book with over 150 pages of hands-on tutorials to help you create database-enabled PHP pages, use Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) for cutting-edge design, add XML-based news feeds, include dynamic effects with JavaScript and AJAX, and more. This witty and objective book offers jargon-free language and clear descriptions that will help you:

• Learn how to control the appearance of your web pages with CSS, from the basics to advanced techniques
• Design dynamic database-driven websites, from blogs to product catalogs, and from shopping carts to newsletter signup forms
• Add interactivity to your website with ready-to-use JavaScript programs from Adobe's Spry Framework
• Effortlessly control the many helper files that power your website and manage thousands of pages
• Examine web-page components and Dreamweaver's capabilities with the book's "live examples"

Perfect for beginners who need step-by-step guidance, and for longtime Dreamweaver designers who need a handy reference to the new version, this thoroughly updated edition of our bestselling Missing Manual is your complete guide to designing, organizing, building, and deploying websites. It's the ultimate atlas for Dreamweaver CS4.

Introducing Character Animation with Blender

Tony Mullen

Amazon Price: $26.39 List Price: $39.99 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Sybex Amazon Marketplace: 47 new & used starting at $19.19

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 32 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Very Fast Response from Tony Mullen 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I just received Introducing Character Animation with Blender. The book seems very well written and well illustrated. I have only made it through part of the first chapter, but if I don't learn character animation, it will be my fault, not the book's. Two amazing things: 1. The book had no CD. Nothing. 2. I fired off an email to Tony Mullen complaining about this fact. Within hours, I got a response, and an attachment containing the files I needed. You should definitely buy a book from an author who cares that much for his customers.

Editorial Review:

Let this in-depth professional book be your guide to Blender, the powerful open-source 3D modeling and animation software that will bring your ideas to life. Using clear step-by-step instruction and pages of real-world examples, expert animator Tony Mullen walks you through the complexities of modeling and animating, with a special focus on characters. From Blender basics to creating facial expressions and emotion to rendering, you’ll jump right into the process and learn valuable techniques that will transform your movies.

Note: CD-ROM/DVD and other supplementary materials are not included as part of eBook file.

After Effects Apprentice (DV Expert Series)

Chris Meyer, Trish Meyer

Amazon Price: $26.37 List Price: $39.95 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Focal Press Amazon Marketplace: 38 new & used starting at $22.20

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Subjects -> Computers & Internet -> Graphic Design -> General
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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 29 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

If you're new to After Effects and want to get up to speed quickly, After Effects Apprentice was created just for you. With 11 core lessons plus a fun final project, you'll quickly get into the program and learn how to tap its potential - whether you want to create motion graphics for a network program, your company's video, or your own independent production.

In this book, you'll get a professional perspective on the most important features a motion graphics artist needs to learn to use this program effectively. You'll learn to creatively edit and combine layers, animate eye-catching titles, replace a screen on a computer monitor, place a studio shot in anew environment, manipulate 3D space, and use effects to generate excitement or enhance the realism of a scene. Easy to follow step-by-step instructions take you through each technique, including projects that encourage you to express it in your own way. You'll learn more than just the tools; you'll learn skills that you can immediately put to work in your own projects.

Topics include how to:
* Animate, layer, and composite images and text.
* Manipulate keyframes to create more refined animations.
* Use masks, mattes, stencils and modes to add depth.
* Manage layers to make them easier to coordinate.
* Add 3D to your animations.
* Use tracking and keying to create special effects.
* Includes new CS3 features; Shape layers, the Puppet tool, Brainstorm, and Per-Character 3D Text.

DVD contains: All exercise source material and projects in AE7 and CS3, video guided tours, and movies of the finished projects.

* Full color presentation of professional workflows
* Core motion graphic techniques in 12 engaging lessons
* Companion DVD features QuickTime movies and lesson media

Adobe Flash CS3 Professional Hands-On Training

Todd Perkins

Amazon Price: $32.99 List Price: $54.99 Usually ships in 24 hours By: Peachpit Press Amazon Marketplace: 68 new & used starting at $26.99

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 20 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Adobe Flash CS3 Professional Hands-On Training is the latest, updated version of the highly acclaimed publication from the leaders in training at lynda.com. In this book, readers will find carefully developed lessons and exercises that teach readers to create interactive Web sites and rich media, with the latest version of the Flash authoring tool. Given the extensive changes to the Flash interface and function, the step-by-step approach is much needed to help present things to a beginner in a very clear, easy-to-follow way. In it, they ll learn how to use the full set of creative drawing, animation, and interactive tools including drawing and color tools, animation basics, symbols and instances, motion, bitmaps, buttons, movie clips, sound, components and forms, and video. Not only that but readers will learn how to use the new powerful integration features with Photoshop and Illustrator and discover new Shape Primitives (expanding your ability to use and manipulate shapes), a new Pen tool that functions like that found in Illustrator, a new ability to convert animations to ActionScript 3, a brand new unified interface matching that of others in the Creative Suite, and much more. Accompanied by a CD-ROM loaded with classroom-proven exercises and QuickTime training videos, this book ensures ensures readers will master the key features of Adobe Flash CS3 in no time. PUBLISHER NOTE: We have received some complaints from readers about the quality of the binding of Adobe Flash CS3 Professional Hands-On Training (ISBN: 0-321-50983-8). We have checked all copies of the inventory in our warehouse and found just a few copies with this problem. If you have received a defective copy of this book we recommend that you return it to the bookstore/reseller from which you purchased it.