Reader reviews

Excellent from start to finish. No filler, no padding.

I was looking for something that would bridge the gap between tutorials and proper reference material, and this does that well. The chapters on windows desktop are the strongest — the examples are stripped down but complete, and I could follow along without constant guessing. The exercises at the end of each chapter are worth doing — they caught a few misconceptions I did not know I had. If you have the prerequisites, this is an easy recommendation. I will be keeping it on my desk rather than the shelf.

Finally, a book that treats javascript with the care it deserves.

I read this over a couple of weekends alongside a small side project, which turned out to be the ideal way to approach it. I particularly liked the way the author builds up from simple cases before introducing the harder material. There is a section near the end that ties several earlier ideas together in a way I had not seen before. I have already recommended it to two colleagues and will recommend it to more.

The clearest explanation of programming I have come across.

A colleague recommended this and I can see why. It does something that few technical books manage: it respects the reader's time. I found myself making notes in the margins, which is always a good sign. It is denser than the page count suggests, and I found myself slowing down around the middle. One of those books that pays for itself within the first few chapters. Highly recommended.

Good value. Not perfect, but I would buy another book from this author.

This is the third book I have read on javascript this year, and it is comfortably the best of them. The chapters on javascript are the strongest — the examples are stripped down but complete, and I could follow along without constant guessing. It is denser than the page count suggests, and I found myself slowing down around the middle. Worth picking up if you already have the basics. Set realistic expectations and you will get a lot out of it.

Better than I expected. Rare to find a technical book this well judged.

I was looking for something that would bridge the gap between tutorials and proper reference material, and this does that well. There is a section near the end that ties several earlier ideas together in a way I had not seen before. The author avoids over-explaining, which keeps the pace up but means you need to pay attention. This is the book I wish had existed when I started working with kinematics.

Finally, a book that treats physics simulation with the care it deserves.

I have been working with physics simulation for a few years now and I still found plenty here that was new to me. I particularly liked the way the author builds up from simple cases before introducing the harder material. A few of the examples could be more realistic, but the underlying points come across clearly. The balance between theory and practice is well judged; neither side dominates. An easy five stars from me. I look forward to whatever the author writes next.