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Amazon.co.uk Review
In Computer Animation: Algorithms and Techniques the concepts and formulas used behind the scenes and under the hood of contemporary animation software are clearly explained for the programmer and the technical director. What many digital animators fail to realise is that someone needs to make the software that's used to bring images to life. Without the tools, the ideas can never be materialised.
Hardbound, liberally illustrated, and with an eight-page colour gallery, there are six chapters and three appendices. The book starts with an overview of animation and works through some technical background information, and then delves into interpolation and basic techniques for representing 3-D motion and space on a 2-D display. Later chapters walk through advanced algorithms (kinematics, rigid body simulation, constraints) and then a discussion of ways to represent natural phenomena. There's also a focus on modelling and animating articulated figures. It's important to note that these chapters are not about which buttons to push in a given software package, but rather about the use and explanation of formulas for representing a specific simulation.
Perhaps the best feature of the book is the information and samples available on a companion Web site. Rather than include a CD which raises the cost of the book and whose information can grow stale, the reader can find sample animations and ready to use code snippets, as well as links to other relevant Web sites.
There are any number of books available on computer-animation software packages, but precious few on how they do what they do. Computer Animation: Algorithms and Techniques is an invaluable resource, a textbook for anyone interested in computer animation programming or for anyone who simply wants to get under the hood of their favourite animation application. --Mike Caputo --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Review
"There is no serious competition for my course. Parent is by far the best text out there. A new edition would be great. If not, then please keep the first one in print!"--Christian Darken, Naval Postgraduate School
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9 reviews
17 of 18 people found the following review helpful
Good book on the math and algorithms of computer animation
25 Feb 2006
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
This book is not about how to accomplish animation using prepackaged software nor is it about art design for animation. Instead, it is aimed at computer science students who wish to write programs that perform animation and want to understand the algorithmic and mathematical issues behind that task.
Chapter one is a broad history of computer animation, and it would be misleading to think that this is a typical chapter in this book. Chapter 2 is a broad overview of computer graphics topics. It mentions quaternions, transformation matrices, the rendering pipeline, and I think it is meant to be a quick review more than an instructive chapter. If you are not already familiar with the material in chapter 2 this book will be over your head.
Chapters 3 through 6 are the meat of the book for those interested in computer animation algorithms. Chapter 3 presents low level details on interpolation and not only shows the math but also shows code fragments in C on how to accomplish some of the tasks mentioned. Chapter four presents more advanced algorithms such as camera control, kinematic modeling, rigid body simulation, flocking behavior, and collision detection. Again in this chapter mathematics of the algorithms is presented along side of C code to accomplish the tasks.
Chapter 5 changes topics from the discussion of object motion and the underlying physics to the topic of natural phenomena. The author does a good job of laying out clearly the basics of the mathematics behind these effects. However, he does seem to gloss over details more than he did in previous chapters. The same is true of Chapter 6 on the modeling and animation of articulated figures. The basics are all there, but there just wasn't enough detail to satisfy me.
As for the companion website, it is working at the time I am writing this review. However, the problem I have with books that have companion sites in place of an accompanying CD is that over time these websites are usually neglected and at worst, disconnected. However, an accompanying CD is always shipped with a new book.
Overall, this book is the best compromise I've found between accessible and comprehensive on this subject, and I would recommend it to anyone thinking about writing their own computer animation code.
Chapter one is a broad history of computer animation, and it would be misleading to think that this is a typical chapter in this book. Chapter 2 is a broad overview of computer graphics topics. It mentions quaternions, transformation matrices, the rendering pipeline, and I think it is meant to be a quick review more than an instructive chapter. If you are not already familiar with the material in chapter 2 this book will be over your head.
Chapters 3 through 6 are the meat of the book for those interested in computer animation algorithms. Chapter 3 presents low level details on interpolation and not only shows the math but also shows code fragments in C on how to accomplish some of the tasks mentioned. Chapter four presents more advanced algorithms such as camera control, kinematic modeling, rigid body simulation, flocking behavior, and collision detection. Again in this chapter mathematics of the algorithms is presented along side of C code to accomplish the tasks.
Chapter 5 changes topics from the discussion of object motion and the underlying physics to the topic of natural phenomena. The author does a good job of laying out clearly the basics of the mathematics behind these effects. However, he does seem to gloss over details more than he did in previous chapters. The same is true of Chapter 6 on the modeling and animation of articulated figures. The basics are all there, but there just wasn't enough detail to satisfy me.
As for the companion website, it is working at the time I am writing this review. However, the problem I have with books that have companion sites in place of an accompanying CD is that over time these websites are usually neglected and at worst, disconnected. However, an accompanying CD is always shipped with a new book.
Overall, this book is the best compromise I've found between accessible and comprehensive on this subject, and I would recommend it to anyone thinking about writing their own computer animation code.
8 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Deft Introduction to Animation
29 Sep 2004
Format:Hardcover
I'll tip my hand--I'm also a student of the author.
That said, there are some objectively excellent qualities to this book. For starters, the book is undeniably thorough. It includes a brief history of the genre of computer animation (a welcome touch) and a chapter on background information usually covered in any introductory graphics course.
The math used in the book is considerable, and some students will probably find themselves overwhelmed with calculus and linear algebra. (If so, graphics may not be the field for you!) As a courtesy, Dr Parent included appendices with background mathematics and physics which will help fill in the gaps and calm some of the more distraught readers. Code is also provided inline as an assist to the student, which may clarify some of the math involved. (A trifling complaint is that the code is not object-oriented.)
Readers who do not have a math background needn't worry if they are not planning on implementing any of the algorithms described in the book. The math is provided as necessary for implementation purposes. Students who do plan on implementing the algorithms would do well to have taken a numerical methods course; some knowledge of linear algebra and calculus is necessary as well.
On the whole, this book is an excellent introduction to many animation techniques and algorithms. Many of them are complex and will require a lot of effort to understand and implement, so students should be prepared to spend a bit of time going through it. They'll be happy to find that the book is laid out well and very readable.
And references are provided at the end of every chapter--there's plenty of material for students who are looking for more detailed information about any of the topics.
That said, there are some objectively excellent qualities to this book. For starters, the book is undeniably thorough. It includes a brief history of the genre of computer animation (a welcome touch) and a chapter on background information usually covered in any introductory graphics course.
The math used in the book is considerable, and some students will probably find themselves overwhelmed with calculus and linear algebra. (If so, graphics may not be the field for you!) As a courtesy, Dr Parent included appendices with background mathematics and physics which will help fill in the gaps and calm some of the more distraught readers. Code is also provided inline as an assist to the student, which may clarify some of the math involved. (A trifling complaint is that the code is not object-oriented.)
Readers who do not have a math background needn't worry if they are not planning on implementing any of the algorithms described in the book. The math is provided as necessary for implementation purposes. Students who do plan on implementing the algorithms would do well to have taken a numerical methods course; some knowledge of linear algebra and calculus is necessary as well.
On the whole, this book is an excellent introduction to many animation techniques and algorithms. Many of them are complex and will require a lot of effort to understand and implement, so students should be prepared to spend a bit of time going through it. They'll be happy to find that the book is laid out well and very readable.
And references are provided at the end of every chapter--there's plenty of material for students who are looking for more detailed information about any of the topics.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Complete and Clear
20 Nov 2010
Format:Hardcover
Prof. Parent's textbook is complete in that it covers every major component of animation and with a clear writing style. The mathematics is there, supporting references and illustrations are there, and supplementary info is included in several well-thoughtout appendices. As other reviewers have pointed out, this is a serious work for students who want to see the math and theory behind the principles. It is not an introductory textbook on this subject. A student should come to it with a background in calculus and linear algebra, for starters. A bit of elementary physics wouldn't hurt either. Although there are no exercises (I don't know what content I would sacrifice to make room for them), a clever instructor should have no trouble coming up with case studies. I have used this textbook as a resource for my own work, including Mathematics for Computer Graphics Applications and 3D Modeling, Animation, and Rendering: An Illustrated Lexicon, Color Edition.
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