Learning Windows 8 Game Development. Windows 8 brings touchscreens to the tablet and PC. This book will show you how to develop games for both by following clear, hands-on examples. Takes your C++ skills into exciting areas of 3D development

Michael Quandt

With the recent success of a lot of smaller games, game development is quickly becoming a great field to get in to. Mobile and PC games are on the rise, and having a way to create a game for all types of devices without rewriting everything is a huge benefit for the new Windows 8 operating system. In this book, you will learn how to use cutting-edge technologies like DirectX and tools that will make creating a game easy. This book also allows you to make money by selling your games to the world.Learning Windows 8 Game Development teaches you how to create exciting games for tablets and PC on the Windows 8 platform. Make a game, learn the techniques, and use them to make the games you want to play. Learn about graphics, multiplayer options, how to use the Proximity + Socket APIs to add local multiplayer, how to sell the game outright, and In-App Purchases.Learning Windows 8 Game Development guides you from the start of your journey all the way to developing games for Windows by showing you how to develop a game from scratch and sell it in the store.With Learning Windows 8 Game Development, you will learn how to write the code required to set everything up, get some graphics on screen, and then jump into the fun part of adding gameplay to turn a graphics sample into a proper game. From there, you'll look at how to add awesome features to your game like networking, motion controls, and even take advantage of new Windows 8 features like live tiles and sharing to make your players want to challenge their friends and keep playing.This book wraps up by covering the only way a good game can finish development: by shipping the game on the Windows Store. You'll look at the things to remember to make certification painless and some great tips on how to market and sell your game to the public.

Backbase 4 RIA Development. Create Enterprise-grade Rich Internet Applications using the Backbase client framework

Ghica van Emde, Sergey Ilinsky, Ghica van Emde Boas

Backbase is a very powerful and complex JavaScript library, with many user interface components to help make web development easier. It allows the development of Rich Internet Applications (RIA) that run within all major browsers but its powers and complexity mean that the choice of component can be overwhelming. Understanding when and how to use the right component might not always be straightforward. This book makes that easier.This is a practical book that teaches you how to use the Backbase Client Framework effectively, with a complete overview and many examples. A core developer of the framework puts the technologies used into a wider perspective of existing web standards and a seasoned software architect explains why XML-based UI definition produces better web applications.The transparent use of AJAX technologies, for example to submit forms, or to retrieve updates for data grids, can be taken for granted with the Backbase framework. Packed with examples, the book shows you how to get the most from the library of UI components, and then extend the library with its own custom language. With this book in hand, it is easy to enable AJAX within your web application. You will be able to use the Backbase framework effectively, from basic applications to complex, custom-defined UI components.This book contains a complete overview of all the UI libraries available within the Backbase framework and shows examples for each element described.The Backbase framework offers an innovative Tag Definition Language (TDL), which allows developers to create new UI components that can be used as XML elements, in the same way as using the built-in GUI library. Using TDL brings considerable development advantages, and this book explains how.Significant attention is also given to architectural aspects of designing a web-application, showing sample applications using a model-view-controller approach.

WordPress for Education. Create interactive and engaging e-learning websites with WordPress book and

Adam D. Scott, Adam Scott

WordPress is typically known as a platform for blogging. However, the versatility and simplicity of WordPress makes it the perfect solution for the needs of professional educators. WordPress for Education guides readers through the practical applications of WordPress in a classroom setting. Readers will gain an understanding of the WordPress platform and how it can be used to create powerful classroom websites.WordPress for Education guides educators through the process of setting up a typical class website, creating student blogs, and using WordPress to power a learning management system. WordPress for Education provides clear and practical examples for using WordPress within the classroom. It will empower educators to create useful and engaging e-learning websites.Through the examples given in the book, you will gain an understanding of how to use WordPress to build an engaging and easy to update e-learning website. You will also learn about a variety of WordPress plugins that extend its abilities and usefulness in an educational environment, such as creating student blogs, keeping track of classroom events, managing coursework, and developing a classroom social network.

Learning ArcGIS Pro 2. A beginner's guide to creating 2D and 3D maps and editing geospatial data with ArcGIS Pro - Second Edition

Tripp Corbin

Armed with powerful tools to visualize, maintain, and analyze data, ArcGIS Pro 2 is Esri's newest desktop geographic information system (GIS) application that uses the modern ribbon interface and a 64-bit processor to make using GIS faster and more efficient. This second edition of Learning ArcGIS Pro will show you how you can use this powerful desktop GIS application to create maps, perform spatial analysis, and maintain data.The book begins by showing you how to install ArcGIS and listing the software and hardware prerequisites. You’ll then understand the concept of named user licensing and learn how to navigate the new ribbon interface to leverage the power of ArcGIS Pro for managing geospatial data. Once you’ve got to grips with the new interface, you’ll build your first GIS project and understand how to use the different project resources available. The book shows you how to create 2D and 3D maps by adding layers and setting and managing the symbology and labeling. You’ll also discover how to use the analysis tool to visualize geospatial data. In later chapters, you’ll be introduced to Arcade, the new lightweight expression language for ArcGIS, and then advance to creating complex labels using Arcade expressions. Finally, you'll use Python scripts to automate and standardize tasks and models in ArcGIS Pro.By the end of this ArcGIS Pro book, you’ll have developed the core skills needed for using ArcGIS Pro 2.x competently.

Agile Technical Practices Distilled. A learning journey in technical practices and principles of software design

Pedro M. Santos, Marco Consolaro, Alessandro Di Gioia

The number of popular technical practices has grown exponentially in the last few years. Learning the common fundamental software development practices can help you become a better programmer. This book uses the term Agile as a wide umbrella and covers Agile principles and practices, as well as most methodologies associated with it. You’ll begin by discovering how driver-navigator, chess clock, and other techniques used in the pair programming approach introduce discipline while writing code. You’ll then learn to safely change the design of your code using refactoring. While learning these techniques, you’ll also explore various best practices to write efficient tests. The concluding chapters of the book delve deep into the SOLID principles - the five design principles that you can use to make your software more understandable, flexible and maintainable. By the end of the book, you will have discovered new ideas for improving your software design skills, the relationship within your team, and the way your business works.

Python GUI Programming - A Complete Reference Guide. Develop responsive and powerful GUI applications with PyQt and Tkinter

Alan D. Moore, B. M. Harwani

A responsive graphical user interface (GUI) helps you interact with your application, improves user experience, and enhances the efficiency of your applications. With Python, you’ll have access to elaborate GUI frameworks that you can use to build interactive GUIs that stand apart from the rest.This Learning Path begins by introducing you to Tkinter and PyQt, before guiding you through the application development process. As you expand your GUI by adding more widgets, you'll work with networks, databases, and graphical libraries that enhance its functionality. You'll also learn how to connect to external databases and network resources, test your code, and maximize performance using asynchronous programming. In later chapters, you'll understand how to use the cross-platform features of Tkinter and Qt5 to maintain compatibility across platforms. You’ll be able to mimic the platform-native look and feel, and build executables for deployment across popular computing platforms.By the end of this Learning Path, you'll have the skills and confidence to design and build high-end GUI applications that can solve real-world problems.This Learning Path includes content from the following Packt products:Python GUI Programming with Tkinter by Alan D. MooreQt5 Python GUI Programming Cookbook by B. M. Harwani

Learning RHEL Networking. Gain Linux administration skills by learning new networking concepts in Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7

Andrew Mallett, Adam Miller

Moodle 1.9 Top Extensions Cookbook. Over 60 simple and incredibly effective recipes for harnessing the power of the best Moodle modules to create effective online learning sites

Michael De Raadt, Moodle Trust

Moodle is growing at a seemingly unstoppable rate. One of the key reasons for its popularity lies in its potential to extend with modules, thus making the site easier to administer, add new features, and completely change the way it looks. This book finds you the best Moodle modules, teaches you how to install them, and helps you to master their configuration.There are hundreds of Moodle modules available. Find out which you can trust and how to put them to work. This practical book gives you hands-on experience on using and managing Moodle modules, thus making your learning website feature-rich. It covers many features and techniques in order to allow you to organize your ideas to improve teaching using Moodle as a virtual learning platformThis book begins with simple activities such as adding and installing modules. Then, it moves to a very interesting topic about the integration of multimedia into Moodle, covering major multimedia elements such as images, audio, and video.Social networking applications like Twitter and Facebook are embedded in the Moodle course in order to invent stories, create group works, and create social team interactions with the virtual classroom. But the book doesn't end there, you will also see how to use Moodle to accept and assess coursework submissions, discuss work with students, and deliver quizzes, tests, and videos.The book ends with a chapter full of simple challenges such as adding educational games. This book is written to help you find modules that will be useful to you and your students, and to show examples of how these modules can be setup and used in teaching.