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| Part One: Working with Windows |
- 1. Visual Basics
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This chapter covers Visual Basic graphics fundamentals such as
coordinate systems, handling Paint events, graphical controls,
creating scrolled windows, and basic colors.
- 2. Using the API
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This chapter explains how to use the Windows API in
Visual Basic programs. It also describes many API functions that are
useful in graphics programs.
- 3. Advanced Color
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Chapter 3 describes more advanced color topics including different
color models, device-independent and device-dependent bitmaps,
and color palettes. The more bitmap-oriented parts book later
assume you are using higher color modes such as 24-bit color.
This chapter describes color palettes for completeness.
- 4. Advanced Text
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Chapter 4 covers advanced text operations such as finding text metrics
to learn exactly how big a font is, and how to use the CreateFont API
function to build stretched, compressed, and
rotated text.
- 5. Printing
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This chapter explains how to use the Printer object to produce
high-resolution printouts. It explains how to print, display a print
preview, handle multi-page documents, and scale objects to fit
the printer nicely. It also includes code that lets you easily
print a form much as PrintForm does, only in high resolution.
| Part Two: Image Processing |
- 6. Point Processes
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This chapter explains image processing techniques including that
manipulate an image one pixel at a time. These methods include image
averaging,
adjusting an image's brightness, contrast, or color balance, and
compositing.
- 7. Area Processes
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Chapter covers image processing techniques thaht manipulate areas
in an image. These methods include spatial filtering to smooth,
sharpen, or
emboss an image.
This chapter also describe
rotation and
shape-disorting
image transformations.
- 8. Bitmap Animation
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Chapter 8 explains the fundamentals of bitmap animation. It shows how
to use several different methods for presenting images quickly
enough to create smooth animation.
- 9. Advanced Animation
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Chapter 9 tackles more advanced animation topics. It describes
different ways you can control an animation such as scripting,
simulation, and sprites. It also describes specialized animation
techniques such as tweening and
morphing.
| Part Four: Two-Dimensional Graphics |
- 10. Fractals and Tilings
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As its title implies, this chapter describes fractals and tilings
including
random trees,
animated
snowflakes,
Hilbert curves,
gaskets,
the chaos game,
the Mandelbrot set (image 1,
image 2,
image 3), and
Julia sets (image 1,
image 2,
image 3).
Using these programs you can build intricate images with remarkably little code.
- 11. Drawing Curves
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Chapter 11 shows how you can draw several useful kinds of curves.
It explains how to draw parametric curves such as
Bowditch curves and
cycloids. It also shows
how to fit a curve to data using Hermite, least squares, and
Bezier curves.
- 12. Two-Dimensional Transformations
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This chapter explains a simple way to represent two-dimensional
transformations that allow you to perform important operations such
as scaling, translating, and rotating objects in a uniform way.
Chapter 12 also describes
shape-distorting transformations.
| Part Five: Three-Dimensional Graphics |
- 13. Three-Dimensional Transformations
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This chapter extends the two-dimensional transformations described
in Chapter 12 into three dimensions. It explains how to display
simple
three-dimensional objects.
- 14. Surfaces
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Chapter 14 explains several different ways to generate and display
surfaces including
fractal surfaces,
parametric surfaces, and
surfaces of transformation.
By adding a little color, you can make surprisingly realistic
landscapes.
- 15. Hidden Surface Removal
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Three-dimensional images are easier to understand if hidden
surfaces are not displayed. Chapter 15 shows how to remove hidden
surfaces from both
simple and
complex three-dimensional scenes.
- 16. Shading Models
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Shading models add extra realism to three-dimensional images.
This chapter builds a complex shading model to produce
more realistic pictures.
It also explains the
Gouraud and
Phong
methods for smooth shading.
- 17. Ray Tracing
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Ray tracing allows a program to draw reflective and transparent
objects. Chapter 17 develops an advanced ray tracing system
to display fascinating images.
This chapter covers:
| Part Six: Beyond Three Dimensions |
- 18. Higher-Dimensional Transformations
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Chapter 18 extends the transformations described in Chapters 12 and 13
into higher dimensions. This allows a program to display
four-dimensional objects,
and even objects of higher dimensions. This chapter explains how to
use animation to make higher-dimensional images understandable.
- 19. Mathematical Tools
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This chapter describes some useful mathematical formulas that
calculate geometric values such as the distance between two points,
between a point and a line, between two lines, and between a
point and a plane. Chapter 19 reviews matrix and vector operations,
and shows how to derive the locations of the vertices in the
Platonic solids (tetrahedron, cube, octahedron, dodecahedron,
and icosahedron).
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