C4D R8 HANDBOOK has been delivered

[JoelOtron]

I found the R7 book to read more like a digest of disjointed articles. There was good info to be gleaned form it but it wasnt as great as I hoped it would be. I'll check out the R8 handbook though--hopefully I can find it in a bookstore and can sit with it awhile first.

Arndt's R7 book was much much better I think and took you form A to Z in a logical fashion. Perhaps he will work on a new edition.

[DiNKArt]

I got the book about a week ago and have found it to be a great help. It has really helped me out in my process to understand rig setups. It makes the r7 book by koenigsmarck look like crap. A lot of questions I have about c4d are being answered as I read through. Go buy it.

[cookepuss]

Mine just came in this morning. It seems to be selling well too. Amazon only has 1 left in stock.

I have really mixed feelings about this book though.

The book is great for the newbie, but merely good for everybody else. The character animation sections are really the highlight of this edition. I think that people will really enjoy it, especially those frustrated with the mime example.

On the downside, I feel that it could've benefited from at least another 100-150 pages. Obviously, the book isn't meant to duplicate the manuals, but topics such as XPresso & some of the non-rigging aspects of MOCCA could've been expanded upon further.

Additionally, other XL modules such as Thinking Particles, PyroCluster, & Net Render are ignored outright. For a book that's being targeted toward "Beginner to Advanced" users this seems to be a major oversight. It doesn't even cover the intricacies of SLA, citing a "canned texture" look. Bad. Bad. Bad. There's a time and a place for everything. Including a chapter on SLA seemed like a no brainer. Alas, it was not meant to be.

Like H. Ikeda, I also feel that putting color versions of the images on the CD really isn't a substitute for a color insert. They're not an absolute necessity, but they're sorely missed.

Another thing. This book is a quick read. In part this is due to Adam's excellent writing, but it's also due to the organization. Anybody who's used C4D for at least a month can probably breeze through the first 150 pages in about an hour. (Thank the large font type for that too.) I already managed to read it cover to cover.

How would I rate it? That depends on what type of user you are.

Newbie owners of XL.... 4.5 out of 5
Lots to love. It's fun & breezy. For newbies, this is almost a like a condensed version of the manuals.

Newbie owners of Studio.... 4 out of 5
The lack of a BodyPaint chapter hurts this book for Studio newbies. The book is still great though.

Intermediate owners of XL.... 3.5 out of 5
No coverage of Thinking Particles, Pyrocluster, or Net Render. SLA is given about 1-2 pages of consideration. Some topics deserved more space too. Buy this book for the great character animation sections.

Intermediate owners of Studio.... 3 out of 5
Again, the lack of Bodypaint coverage shaves a point off of this rating. Still, it's worth buying for the character animation stuff.

Advanced owners of XL or Studio.... 2 out of 5
Aside from the examination of the new character animation tools, advanced users have very little to gain from this book. Even then, if you're an advanced user you might have some insights & tips of your own to offer with regards to animation. This book is just missing too much for the power user to benefit. At $50, it's hard to justify buying this book. Advanced users might be better off with the extremely well written C4D manuals instead.


After a certain amount of experience, this book won't get much use. Every C4D user should have it, but not every C4D user will need it. I like it and will proudly keep it in my book case, but I don't think I'll get much use out of it.

[A.v.K.]

I just wanted to share the information that I already wrote a V8 beginners book and a totally new "Pro" book for 8.1. Both were published by Addison Wesley here in Europe some weeks ago, but no american/english publisher seemed to be interested this time. Both books are 4c and cover all modules and new functions.

Cheers,
Arndt

[brammelo]

Hi Arndt,

Do you mean your book will not be made available in English? Please tell me this is not true.

(I'd hate to brush up my German - yes, I am lazy. But then again, I already have to know 3 languages).

Cheers,
BaRa

[A.v.K.]

Jeah, I am sorry, but the "Pro" book will only be translated to italien this time.
The american publisher blamed the bad overall market situation for this. It seems that a translation of an already existing book is much more expensive for the publisher than looking for a new author.

[brammelo]

That's bad news. I always felt that your books were providing high-end users with useful tips and insights. Guess I'll have to dust my German.

Cheers,
BaRa

[slouchcorp]

man thats bad news.. i had a look at amazon germany, typed in cinema and was ustounded by the amount of books they have compared to english cinema books.

Some one realy need to let them know that there are a lot of people wanting this type of training material...

oh well.

Mike.

[AdamT]

Too bad. Arndt's XL7 book was great. Maybe if Adam's book does well another publisher will reconsider translating Arndt's new book.

[A.v.K.]

Thanks Adam.
I hoped so, too, but I doubt it. There is less than a year between product cycles already and a translation will take it's time. This leaves too less time for selling enough books to justify the translation costs. I guess that's one of the reasons why just a fraction of the already available books are translated.

[tjnyc]

Arndt,

This is off the top of my head, but have you thought about translating and selling it for internet distribution via pdf? I have to agree that there is a real lack of books or 3rd party training materials in english for C4D. Maybe, the C4D people can get 3DBuzz to create some C4D VTMs.

[A.v.K.]

I already thought about that, but the contracts between publishers and authors are quite strikt. The publisher holds all rights on the book after the author signed. Even when the publisher doesn't find any other interested publishers for translations the author doesn't have the right to translate and publish it by himself.
One solution would be to write and publish via Books on Demand or similar services, but then all the advertising and marketing has to be done by the author, not to mention that he has to pay for the print and layout in advance.
I hope the market soon recovers from the economical breakdown and we can see an english "Pro" book about V9 in the future ;-)
Till then I am sure that Adam's book is no bad choice.

[H. Ikeda]

Hi A.v.K.,
I have your CINEMA 4D 8 in German, but I just saw it (can't say 'read' it, I learned German at university though...). I didn't know the pro version but expected it. I'm sorry to hear little possibility on translating to english.

Well, but, what do you think about rewriting it directly in English? I think hopefully some people here would check english words as final proofreading.

[A.v.K.]

Hi Hiroshi san,
that's exactly my problem. Even if I would translate it, I wouldn't be allowed to publish it. All of this has to be done by the publisher as they own all rights.
Unfortunately that's how that business works.

[MJV]

Originally posted by A.v.K.
Thanks Adam.
I hoped so, too, but I doubt it. There is less than a year between product cycles already and a translation will take it's time. This leaves too less time for selling enough books to justify the translation costs. I guess that's one of the reasons why just a fraction of the already available books are translated.

Having done some translation, I think it would be nearly as easy to write a new book from scratch as translate an existing book.

[A.v.K.]

That could be true. The same thing comes to my mind when translating user documentations for my plugins or web pages. Often I end up by writing a new text instead of translating the german one.

[Iggy]

I cut my Cinema teeth on Arndt's C4D v7 book, and it's still my main reference. I was looking forward to 8. Sorry to hear that it won't be coming.

Just to let ya'll know, you can get Adam's v8 book new on half.com for $35 including shipping. I ordered mine yesterday. I think amazon has it for closer to $50.

[Thalaxis]

Originally posted by A.v.K.
Jeah, I am sorry, but the "Pro" book will only be translated to italien this time.
The american publisher blamed the bad overall market situation for this. It seems that a translation of an already existing book is much more expensive for the publisher than looking for a new author.

That's a bummer. When you first mentioned it, I was all ready to
go an order it. :/

[Thalaxis]

Originally posted by Iggy
Just to let ya'll know, you can get Adam's v8 book new on half.com for $35 including shipping. I ordered mine yesterday. I think amazon has it for closer to $50.

I ordered it for $37 via one of the resellers on Amazon
Marketplace... but it sold out before it shipped.

I guess that means that it's selling pretty well, which is a good
sign.

Maybe as Cinema gains in popularity books about it will be easier
to sell to publishers.

[cookepuss]

Like Iggy, I too was looking forward to an English edition of Arndt's r8 pro book. I just thought that his last one was so tightly focused. Too bad. :shrug:

Anybody else wish Wiley Publishing would come out with a Cinema4D "Bible"? As if the manuals weren't big enough. :p

[AdamT]

Hey Arndt, do you have an e-mail address for your publisher? I think we should let them know that we want a translation!

[retrovision]

Barnes n Noble are selling it for $39.

I actually live in Australia and i saved myself 20AUD by ordering the book form Barnes n Noble(USA), rather than purchasing it from a bookstore here.

Anyway, i can't wait for the book to arrive. I've taken the next step after mastering a couple of 2D design apps and have decided to take the plunge into 3D. At the moment, I'm what you call a 3D n00b, therefore this book should be helpful :)

[A.v.K.]

Hey Adam,
you can surf to http://www.peachpit.com
They should have a contact email address on their frontpage.
I guess it could also have be a problem (in their eyes) that my V7 "Pro" book just got some average score at Amazon from readers, that expected a workshop that covers the whole application. My "Pro" books only focus on the new functions the actual version offers as IMHO most reader are already familiar with the basic functions. For less exercised readers I have a separate book, but that one wasn't translated.

[AdamT]

Originally posted by A.v.K.
Hey Adam,
you can surf to http://www.peachpit.com
They should have a contact email address on their frontpage.
I guess it could also have be a problem (in their eyes) that my V7 "Pro" book just got some average score at Amazon from readers, that expected a workshop that covers the whole application. My "Pro" books only focus on the new functions the actual version offers as IMHO most reader are already familiar with the basic functions. For less exercised readers I have a separate book, but that one wasn't translated.
Well I'm putting in my request then. I guess the XL7 book wasn't too popular with pirates looking for a manual. :)

[A.v.K.]

Originally posted by AdamT
Well I'm putting in my request then. I guess the XL7 book wasn't too popular with pirates looking for a manual. :)
That's what I am thinking, too :scream:

[smoke]

Arndt I'd just like to say thank you, your 7XL book helped me learn C4D much easier then the manual. I was looking forward to an 8.0 book from you and unfortunately I don't know German (I only speak English and bad English). Hopefully the publisher will come around.

[A.v.K.]

Thank you smoke.

[H. Ikeda]

Hi Arndt,
So what do you think about writing a new English book on R8, which is supposed to be:
- written by several authors including you, for example, you & some CGTalkers
- covers contents for beginning to advanced users
(Hopefully some CGTalkers write parts for beginning to intermediate users)
Then publishers might think this is another book and will be very popular, aren't they?

[A.v.K.]

I think Rui "Mac" Batista wanted to do something like that. He is at it quite some time by now, so he should be about finished with it. It's up to him to come forward with this.
Of course if some of you are interested in writing tutorials for a book I would join them.

[SilverDragon]

@A.v.K.

Hi Arndt ! Habe mir gerade Dein "CINEMA 4D 8.1 . Ein Workshop für Profis" zugelegt - gefällt mir sehr gut ! "CINEMA 4D 8 . ready for take off" hatte ich mir zuvor schon zugelegt. Meiner Meinung
nach sind beide die Referenz für C4D.
Werde Deine kommenden Werke im Auge behalten ! :buttrock:

@all

Incidently I bought Arndts new book some days ago. It's
great ! Additionally I bought his "CINEMA 4D 8 . ready for take
off" some time ago and I can only recommend his books to all
of you who are at least able to understand german a little bit.

[A.v.K.]

Hi SilverDragon,
I am glad you like my books :thumbsup:
If you have a couple of minutes of spare time it would be great if you could rate my books at amazon.de. This will help others planing to buy a C4D book a lot (and it will help me, too ).:scream:

[SilverDragon]

@A.v.K

Ok - and what will I get for free for doing that ??? :p

Don't worry, you will get your vote ! ;)

[A.v.K.]

I hope at least some of the workshops and tipps in my books are a fair reward for this :D
And don't forget the special offer of Translucent Pro for my readers!

[Thalaxis]

Originally posted by A.v.K.
I hope at least some of the workshops and tipps in my books are a fair reward for this :D
And don't forget the special offer of Translucent Pro for my readers!

Well, if you manage to get an English version out there, I'll review
it on Amazon.com for you (rather than Amazon.de, I mean). :)

[A.v.K.]

That's fair enough:wip:

[Thalaxis]

I'm not saying that to be harsh or anything, you understand. I'm
only saying that out of genuine interest in being able to READ
your books.

:beer:

Well, you're German, so: :beer: :beer: :beer:

[A.v.K.]

Of course, I know:thumbsup:
Please understand that I really cannot do anything to speed things up or to make foreign publisher change their minds:shrug:

[Thalaxis]

I know. I'm not holding the lack of an English translation against
you, but it's disappointing to see books for Cinema4D coming out
of the woodwork... in German. There are zillions of books on
Maya and MAX, and a plethora of books on LightWave on the
shelves... but there are more books for Eiffel and JPython than
there are for Cinema4D. :annoyed:

[A.v.K.]

Yeah, I know. I have no idea why english/american publishers are not seeing this. C4D is a healthy and growing product, that's for sure. Let's hope that they change their minds in the future or some more english/american writers step forward to support the C4D community.

[Thalaxis]

It's probably marketing. Maya and MAX have more marketing bux
behind them... and if you take one look at DorkyWood's pitiful
summer lineups for the past couple of years... well, enough said.

So far the only standouts this summer for me have been "Finding
Nemo" because it was so much fun, and "The Matrix ReBloated"
because it was so dull.

[A.v.K.]

Yeah, Matrix2 was a disappointment for me, too, along with T3. Nice effects, but from my points of view too less story.
Finding Nemo hasn't started here yet, but I am sure it's great fun. The trailers look promising. I also saw a teaser of their next movie "The Incredibles" with that aged super hero. Can't wait to see more:applause:

[Thalaxis]

T3? Hm... I seem to remember something involving some leather-
clad chick and a high-tech gun. Was that it? Or am I confusing it
with the other 934,000 B-movies out there?

The Incredibles sounds it will be a lot of fun, I'm excited about
that also.

[MJV]

Originally posted by A.v.K.
Yeah, I know. I have no idea why english/american publishers are not seeing this. C4D is a healthy and growing product, that's for sure. Let's hope that they change their minds in the future or some more english/american writers step forward to support the C4D community.

First of all, I assume writing a book and getting it published is no small task. Secondly, judging from the vocal online community of Cinema users I'm familiar with, it looks like it would be pretty hard to sell more than about 10 or 15 books, and then before you know it the next version of Cinema comes out and people want a new book. I honestly can't imagine how you could make any money in this market. If I thought there was some real cash to be had, I'd consider writing a book. But I just can't imagine it being a financially worthwhile endeavor.

[Thalaxis]

After hearing what Dan Ablan wrote, I'd say you're right; even if
the book flies off the shelves, the author apparently gets so little
from each sale that it's still nearly impossible to make a profit of
any kind.

Considering the textbook-inflated pricing that these books get,
that really makes no sense.

That's probably helping DVD-based training trend, especially since
you can actually publish those yourself nowadays, and cut out the
middlemonkeys that consume 95% of the revenue.

[thorn3d]

I casually looked into writing a book back in the v6-7 days... after speaking to a couple of people that had been published, it appeared to me that the money simply wasn't worth the time nor the effort.

I suppose it can be a nice secondary/hobby-type income, but I had no desire to spend 30+ hours/week for 2-4 months writing and taking screenshots for the sums of money I was quoted. Writing articles for Keyframe Magazine was stressful enough and took me a complete weekend; can't imagine having to come up with 400 pages ;).

thorn

[JIII]

hmmm you could probibly self publish Its really pretty economical these days but it just might be too expensive with all of the pictures involved.

[Erik Heyninck]

Me too I have problems with German. On the other hand: English is only my third language, and I still have to accept that nearly all books, apps and even sites are in English. Cinema is basically a German app, so it is normal that most books and references are in German.

I know the quality of Arndt's books (I have his book on 7), and I do would like to do a real effort to read the German version.
The only problem would be that the really specific words on puters, 3D and C4D are beyond any basic knowledge of the language.
I'm shure that if there were some kind of pdf with a translation of these specific words many more people with a basic knowledge of German would be able to read, and thus buy the books. Perhaps an idea?

And how could the German publisher (which is basically an American publisher) be opposed against a pdf version in English added to his book if that would see that the books sells many more copies without having any printing cost?
Just an idea...

[thorn3d]

They'd probably be opposed to it because people could easily distribute the PDF over the web. Further, people that can read German AND English might just download the english version off Kazaa instead of purchasing the German book.

thorn

[H. Ikeda]

Originally posted by Erik Heyninck
The only problem would be that the really specific words on puters, 3D and C4D are beyond any basic knowledge of the language.
I'm sure that if there were some kind of pdf with a translation of these specific words many more people with a basic knowledge of German would be able to read, and thus buy the books. Perhaps an idea?

A translation table could be useful.
But I think 3D terminology is rather easy to read such as Objekte/Object.
Other casual words seem to be difficult to read with their poly-morphism in German. :scream:

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