Andrew Glassner's Notebook: Recreational Computer Graphics (The Morgan Kaufmann Series in Computer Graphics)

Andrew Glassner's computer graphics career combines renowned technical expertise with an exceptional ability to convey what he knows to professionals and hobbyists in many different fields. Reproducing and expanding almost all of his columns from IEEE Computer Graphics & Applications over the past three years, Andrew Glassner's Notebook is an eclectic, provocative, and broadly relevant book sure to entertain and inform you, regardless of the nature of your interest in graphics or the extent of your knowledge. The 4-color illustrations alone, some not previously published, will empower your skills and interest in the graphics world.

Inside, you'll gain lasting insights into the principles of computer graphics-not instruction in program-specific techniques but a deep and broad understanding of how to approach the visual world in terms of geometry, patterns, and relationships. And the story doesn't end there. To help you put this understanding to work, Glassner grounds these principles in dozens of detailed examples drawn from a wide variety of fields, ranging from traditional modeling and rendering, to more exotic subjects like tiling, Moire patterns, and more. Broad in scope yet rich in specifics, Andrew Glassner's Notebook delivers stimulating challenges and even greater rewards.

* Collects three years' worth of insights and expands this original work with an all-new introductory chapter, corrections, updates, and clarifications.
* Filled with hundreds of full-color images.
* Carries traditional computer graphics techniques and applications into new territory, covering topics drawn from science, the arts, and other fields.
* Provides detailed information on building beautiful and unusual physical models.
* Illustrates the realities of the research process, illustrating some of the dead ends encountered in the search for a good solution to a problem.
* Lets you avoid most math and clearly explains what little is required.

Andrew Glassner's contributions to computer graphics span 20 years. His work at Microsoft Research, Xerox PARC, the IBM Watson Research Labs, Bell Communications Research, and the Delft University of Technology has produced numerous technical articles on rendering theory and practice, animation, modeling, and new media. He currently creates new computer graphics tools at Microsoft Research. Among his recent work is Chicken Crossing, a 3D animated short film that has been shown internationally at film festivals and on television, and Dead Air, an interactive game for play over the Internet. Dr. Glassner is the author of the two volume bible, Principles of Digital Image Synthesis and 3D Computer Graphics: A Handbook for Artists and Designers. He has also edited An Introduction to Ray Tracing, and created the Graphics Gems series for programmers.