Who this book is for
If you are reading this book, it is pretty obvious that you are interested in game development. You have either heard of OpenGL or perhaps even used it, and you want to learn more. Finally, you are already a programmer in some computer language or you want to be.
Does this sound like you? Read on!
This book assumes that you have some familiarity with computer programming in the C++ computer language. If you have programmed in some other language, such as C#, Java, JavaScript, or PHP, then you are pretty familiar with the constructs of the C++ language. Nevertheless, if have never programmed in C++ then you may need to brush up on your skills. You can try Microsoft Visual C++ Windows Applications by Example, also published by Packt Publishing. If you feel comfortable with programming in general, but have not coded in C++, you can look at the free online C++ tutorials at http://www.cplusplus.com/doc/tutorial/.
We don't assume that you have any knowledge of OpenGL—that is what this book is going to give you. We start by explaining the basic concepts of OpenGL and move through more advanced concepts by example. As you learn, you will also code, providing you with the opportunity to put what you have learned into practice. This book won't make you an OpenGL expert overnight, but it will give you the foundation to understand and use OpenGL. At the end of this book, we will give you some pointers to other resources that will allow you to learn even more about OpenGL.
We also don't assume that you have any experience developing games. This book is rather unique in that it provides you with a primer to learn OpenGL and a primer to learn game development. There are many books out there that teach OpenGL, but most do so within a more academic or theoretical framework. We felt that it was better to teach you OpenGL while you were using it to create an actual game. Actually, you will code two games: one in 2D, and one in 3D. Two for the price of one!
