Getting started with programming

Hi all,

I'm a math major looking to get into real-time 3D graphics (I'd like to actually put all this theoretical knowledge to use). I want to start with C++ (I have already had a fair bit of experience with the concepts of programming, but in much more 'cushioned' environments such as Matlab, python, etc.) since it's clear that's what the commercial apps use.

So my question is:

What books (I really prefer books to online tutorials) would you guys suggest for the following topics:

- C++
- Windows programming (to the extent needed for a basic 3D game)
- Direct3D
- DirectX (everything else but the graphics -- like input, sound, networking)
- Basic game physics
- Any game/graphics specific math

I'm pretty comfortable with calculus (single and multivariable) and linear algebra. I'm also going to be taking differential equations (physics?), number theory (doubt this will be useful?), and graph theory (maybe for network code?).

My goal is to get a basic 3D renderer with networking, sound, collision detection, etc to be able to make a small deathmatch game.

Money is not an issue in getting books, nor is the difficulty of the task ahead. I *really* want to learn how to do this.

Thanks all,
prime_singularity
 
C++ Primer is a rather good book on the topic, which was used as the text book in this course, check out the lecture notes as well.
It focuses quite a bit on STL which might, or might not, be what you want to use for a game engine, but should be useful none the less.

If you want to really delve deep into C++ you could also get C++ Programming Language by Bjarne Stroustrup, which can also make for a handy reference. But it might not be the best book to start learning C++ by.

Afterwards you might want to go through C programming language as well, since a good knowledge of C is never wasted (if you work with C++).

I don't think you'll need to delve deep into windows programming, since, afaik, DirectX should be the only interface you need for what you want.

Never read any books on DirectX, so can't help you there, but I'm sure there are plenty others here who can recommend books on that.

Good luck!
 
hi prime_singularity,

I have the exact opposite problem, I have taught myself C, C++, and Lua, but I have no formal maths education

What books would you suggest for learning linear Algebra etc etc

the problem i have now, is i don't think in Mathematical expressions, I think in C++
 
ms visual studio xpress (ie: free)
http://www.microsoft.com/exPress/

I switched to this recently from Code:Blocks IDE.

I rag on Microsoft a lot, but their development tools are very nice to work with.

as an example, whilst debugging in Visual Studio 2010 it's great to be able to put your cursor over a vector of pointers, and have it show you the contents of each pointer and how many pointers it holds in a nice drop down menu even if they are instantiated at runtime.
 
Effective C++ is an excellent book for anyone hoping to one day get into industry & work on production C++ code..

If you plan on getting into games (Rendering & Graphics) then I'd advise learning shader programming & modern rendering techniques.. Also try and get as much experience as possible working with target platforms so like XNA or iPhone development can help..
 
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