Re: [pygame] I'm loving wills book :)

[Gabriel Hasbun <gastomaster@xxxxxxxxx>]

Wow this sounds like THE book. Very interesting, looking forward to help in any way.

Nathan Whitehead <nwhitehe@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:

On Thu, Apr 3, 2008 at 12:16 AM, Lamonte(Scheols/Demonic)
wrote:
> The only pygame book availible to man?
> http://www.apress.com/book/view/9781590598726

Hi, might as well introduce myself.

I'm Nathan Whitehead, just got my computer science phd. My main
research is in security models and certified software, but I also love
love love messing about with computer games and python.

Currently I'm working on a book on python game programming tentatively titled:
**Adventures in Game Programming : Using Python and Pygame to create
innovative games quickly**

It's based on a class I taught last summer where bright high school
kids (many with no programming experience) used macbook pros, pygame,
and various controllers including gamepads and wiimotes to create
small games. It was an absolute blast, so this summer I'm writing up
what we did and expanding it so other people can have the same fun we
did.

Right now I'm working on adding wiimote support to pygame, in
collaboration with Luke Paireepinart, Michael Laforest, and Gary
Bishop. The goal is a nice addition to pygame that fits the existing
interfaces, is stable and as bug-free as possible, and works on all
major platforms with the least amount of hassle. If you know anyone
else that I should talk to, or if you are interested in working on
this as well, please let me know (email nwhitehe@xxxxxxxxx).

The book is designed for people with some programming experience but
who are perhaps not python masters. So there's not a review of "what
is a loop", but there is a short section on defining classes and
inheritance (needed for sprites). A sampling of chapter titles:

* Sprites (static image sprites, animations, timing and speed issues,
player sprites, keeping track of sprites)
* Case Study: Zefferia (the story, Zefflonian invasion, bosses)
* Rhythm: Feel the Beat (rhythm game mechanics, recording timing
tracks, processing player input, scoring combos)
* Case Study: Dance or Die!
* Wave the Wiimote (connecting to wiimote, interpreting buttons,
accelerometers and gravity, angles)
* Track the Wiimote (using the Wiimote IR sensors, target practice,
rotation and distance to the screen)
* Artificial Intelligence (triggered behavior, finite state machines,
pathfinding)

If you are interested in helping out with testing code, proofreading
chapters, or just giving me advice, please email me at
nwhitehe@xxxxxxxxxx It will be a while until the finished book is
out, but the code should be done in the next couple months and will be
freely available under an open source license.

Cheers,
--
Nathan Whitehead

between 0000-00-00 and 9999-99-99