Theory of Fun for Game Design, 2nd EditionNow in full color, the 10th anniversary edition of this classic book takes you deep into the influences that underlie modern video games, and examines the elements they share with traditional games such as checkers. At the heart of his exploration, veteran game designer Raph Koster takes a close look at the concept of fun and why it's the most vital element in any game.
Why do some games become boring quickly, while others remain fun for years? How do games serve as fundamental and powerful learning tools? Whether you're a game developer, dedicated gamer, or curious observer, this illustrated, fully updated edition helps you understand what drives this major cultural force, and inspires you to take it further. ...
iPad: The Missing Manual, 6th EditionSuper-fast processors, streamlined Internet access, and free productivity and entertainment apps make Apple's new iPads the hottest tablets around. But to get the most from them, you need an owner's manual up to the task. That's where this bestselling guide comes in. You'll quickly learn how to import, create, and play back media; shop wirelessly; sync content across devices; keep in touch over the Internet; and even take care of business. ...
You Don't Know JS: Scope & ClosuresNo matter how much experience you have with JavaScript, odds are you don't fully understand the language. This concise yet in-depth guide takes you inside scope and closures, two core concepts you need to know to become a more efficient and effective JavaScript programmer. You'll learn how and why they work, and how an understanding of closures can be a powerful part of your development skillset.
Like other books in the "You Don't Know JS" series, Scope and Closures dives into trickier parts of the language that many JavaScript programmers simply avoid. Armed with this knowledge, you can achieve true JavaScript mastery. ...
Mobile Design Pattern Gallery, 2nd EditionWhen you're under pressure to produce a well-designed, easy-to-navigate mobile app, there's no time to reinvent the wheel—and no need to. This handy reference provides more than 90 mobile app design patterns, illustrated by 1,000 screenshots from current Android, iOS, and Windows Phone apps.
Much has changed since this book's first edition. Mobile OSes have become increasingly different, driving their own design conventions and patterns, and many designers have embraced mobile-centric thinking. ...
Designing Multi-Device ExperiencesWelcome to our multi-device world, a world where a user's experience with one application can span many devices—a smartphone, a tablet, a computer, the TV, and beyond. This practical book demonstrates the variety of ways devices relate to each other, combining to create powerful ensembles that deliver superior, integrated experiences to your users. ...
Getting Started with Bluetooth Low EnergyWith Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), smart devices are about to become even smarter. This practical guide demonstrates how this exciting wireless technology helps developers build mobile apps that share data with external hardware, and how hardware engineers can gain easy and reliable access to mobile operating systems.
This book provides a solid, high-level overview of how devices use BLE to communicate with each other. You'll learn useful low-cost tools for developing and testing BLE-enabled mobile apps and embedded firmware and get examples using various development platforms—including iOS and Android for app developers and embedded platforms for product designers and hardware engineers. ...
Responsive Theming for DrupalIf you want your Drupal website to work well on smartphones, tablets, and desktops, this practical guide shows you how to incorporate Responsive Web Design (RWD) with specific Drupal 7 themes. You'll learn how to create attractive, easy-to-navigate layouts for everything from tiny phone screens to 30-inch desktop monitors—all with the same codebase.
Ideal for experienced Drupal developers, this book takes you through RWD basics and shows you how to build sites based on Aurora, Zen, and Omega - three popular base themes created by Drupal contributors. Whether you're creating a new site with RWD or adapting an existing one, you'll learn how to become a better, more efficient Drupal themer. ...
Learning Web App DevelopmentGrasp the fundamentals of web application development by building a simple database-backed app from scratch, using HTML, JavaScript, and other open source tools. Through hands-on tutorials, this practical guide shows inexperienced web app developers how to create a user interface, write a server, build client-server communication, and use a cloud-based service to deploy the application.
Each chapter includes practice problems, full examples, and mental models of the development workflow. Ideal for a college-level course, this book helps you get started with web app development by providing you with a solid grounding in the process. ...
Speaking JavaScriptLike it or not, JavaScript is everywhere these days—from browser to server to mobile—and now you, too, need to learn the language or dive deeper than you have. This concise book guides you into and through JavaScript, written by a veteran programmer who once found himself in the same position.
Speaking JavaScript helps you approach the language with four standalone sections. First, a quick-start guide teaches you just enough of the language to help you be productive right away. More experienced JavaScript programmers will find a complete and easy-to-read reference that covers each language feature in depth. ...
Network Security Through Data AnalysisTraditional intrusion detection and logfile analysis are no longer enough to protect today's complex networks. In this practical guide, security researcher Michael Collins shows you several techniques and tools for collecting and analyzing network traffic datasets. You'll understand how your network is used, and what actions are necessary to protect and improve it.
Divided into three sections, this book examines the process of collecting and organizing data, various tools for analysis, and several different analytic scenarios and techniques. It's ideal for network administrators and operational security analysts familiar with scripting. ...