HN Books @HNBooksMonth

If one is choosing C++ then performance is probably a part of the requirements equation.

These books discuss performant (and sometimes complex) C++ code - in the domain of computer graphics.

http://www.amazon.com/Physically-Based-Rendering-Second-Edit...

http://www.amazon.com/Real-Time-Collision-Detection-Interact...

About how to use the new threading standard: https://www.manning.com/books/c-plus-plus-concurrency-in-act...

If you're interested in this topic, you may want to check out the "Physically Based Rendering" book[1]. It's basically a college text book (and priced accordingly) but it walks through the steps to build a fully functional (and fairly performant) ray tracing engine in C++. As a bonus, the code is BSD licensed, and up on github[2].

It's been great to go through it so far; I'm re-writing the renderer in a different language to help with the learning, I can't recommend it enough.

[1]http://www.amazon.com/Physically-Based-Rendering-Second-Impl... [2] https://github.com/mmp/pbrt-v2

You can take it up with these guys.

http://www.amazon.com/Physically-Based-Rendering-Second-Edit...

⬐ programmer_dude

Yes, I have seen that. This is why asked what those words meant. The words "physically" and "based" as they are used here do not fit my understanding of the English grammar. I am not a native English speaker. I just want to know why is this sequence of words meaningful?

⬐ SamReidHughes

"Physically based" rolls off the tongue more easily, and the adverb "physically" is modifying the verb "based", and then "physically-based" or "physically based" combines into an adjective or sometimes an adverb.

⬐ losvedir

I'm a native English speaker, but have no experience with rendering or this topic.

To my ears, "Physically Based Rendering" does sound a little stilted. I don't immediately have an intuitive grasp of what it means based on words alone.

It doesn't sound like it means "physics based rendering", which would mean "a rendering process that uses physics at its core."

Rather, the attachment I have to the word "physically" is more along the lines of "metaphorical vs. physical" (i.e. "concrete", "real", "observable"). So along those lines, my natural understanding of "Physically based" rendering would be a process not based on abstract mathematical principles, but one that tries to take the physical properties of objects into account. So, maybe to render a rock you'd think about what it's made of, if moss grows on it, etc.

(I don't know if that's actually what PBR means, just that's what it sounds like to me as a native speaker.)

I suggest taking a look at Physically Based Rendering [1]. It goes through an advanced rendering system in a literate coding style. That is, the physical explanations are interspersed with the code of an open source renderer [2]. I'm not sure how it compares with this Disney renderer, but it should go a long way towards demystifying how these things work.

1. http://www.amazon.com/Physically-Based-Rendering-Second-Edit...

2. http://www.pbrt.org/

⬐ berkut

PBRT's an excellent book if you want to play with / build / understand raytracing renderers.

Some of the knowledge is not-quite state of the art any more, but everything's still relevant. And there's a third edition coming soon.

If you're interested in ray/path tracing or photorealistic rendering at all I would seriously recommend Physically Based Rendering[1]. It's probably one of the most satisfying book purchases I've made. The authors go through every aspect of implementing a quality path tracer: image sampling, surface shading models, statistics and integration methods, intersection testing and acceleration and more. It's an absolute treasure trove of information. (Be prepared to do a lot of math.)

[1] http://www.amazon.com/Physically-Based-Rendering-Second-Impl...

Here are few examples of great 1000+ pages books with lots of code. Though reading them is much more effort than reading a self-help book: http://www.amazon.com/Programming-Environment-Addison-Wesley... http://www.amazon.com/TCP-IP-Illustrated-Implementation-Vol/... http://www.amazon.com/Physically-Based-Rendering-Second-Edit...

⬐ michaelwww

O'Reilly, C# 5.0 In A Nutshell http://shop.oreilly.com/product/0636920023951.do

"Physically based rendering" have a second newer edition: http://www.amazon.com/Physically-Based-Rendering-Second-Edit...

⬐ jnadro

"Real-Time Rendering" also has a newer edition: http://www.amazon.com/Real-Time-Rendering-Third-Tomas-Akenin...

Also, if people are looking for an even bigger list of graphics books the Real-Time rendering blog has a comprehensive list:

http://www.realtimerendering.com/books.html