Ok I have just finished my C++ class and we ended after just finishing classes and the next topic in the book is object oriented programming and pointers but we aren''t going to learn that, classes was the last topic. I want to continue my education over the summer and so forth so my question is whats a good book to pick up where my class left off. I am purchasing "Tricks of the Windows Game Programming Gurus" because my ultimate goal is to program games for fun and hopefully as a career. Anyone else have any other good book suggestions that I should/need to get?

Well to start learning some of the general programming side of things you can look at c++ for dummies.It explains things pretty well.Learn c++ in 21 days is very good too.I even hear they have a free copy somewhere on the web.I wish I knew that before I paid 29.99 for it.Let''s see you have a very good book as far as game programming goes.Windows Game Programming for dummies might be helpful but I hear that the author of WPFD, LaMothe made both books and that he borrowed off of one to make a lot of the content for the other.So basically you''re doing fine with the book that you have as far as games go.

The road to hell is paved in good intentions

Well, a good book in OOP in C++ is SAMS "Object-Oriented Programming in C++" by Robert Lafore (3rd Edition).

You have to walk before you can run. Just a suggestion: learn C++ first, then move onto elements of game programming. Trying to do both in parallel will ultimately lead to frustration IMO.

Ok so apparently there is a lot that I will be missing from going from what I have now as far as education to trying to program games. So what should I pick up in the terms of books and resources and such to teach me what I need to know before I can start programming games?

quote: Original post by wbwa
So what should I pick up in the terms of books and resources and such to teach me what I need to know before I can start programming games?

If you want to learn C++ as fast as possible, try Accelerated C++ (Koenig & Moo). This will teach you the core language features as well as the standard library. You may also want The C++ Programming Language, 3rd Ed. as a reference.

Beyond that, you can start working on your mathematics, graphics API(s), Win32, DirectX, etc. And for those you may have to learn synchronously.

If you want to program games and program them good (e.g. optimize them for speed), then you are going to have to learn how to implement: trees, sorting, storing, linked lists, queues, finite state machines, etc...

In order to do that your going to need to either take a Data Structures class, or read a good book on the subject. I recommend the former, just because data structures is such a hard subject and your probably going to need help with many of the subjects. Then again, that''s what we are here for.






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