2 comments about Algorithmic Architecture.

1. This book starts by explaining the nature of algorithmic architecture. Next to the interesting theories and viewpoints it gives short MEL-scripts. These scripts are the code behind the amazing algorithmic shapes and spaces. I found these MEL scripts very useful and by studying the scripts this book will give you the key to create your own algorithm. I was able to make simple scripts myself, but these nice examples really improved my skills and gave me new ideas of how to use MEL (within maya).



2. This is a very interesting book on the use of algorithms to come up with interesting solutions to architectural design problems. It is a sort of cross between artificial intelligence, computer science, computer graphics, and, of course, architecture that uses the language of algorithm implementation to get its point across of all of these disciplines intersecting. The first three chapters are introductory in nature and focus on the philosophy of combining the various disciplines. The fourth chapter is where the author gets down to business and begins to discuss specific algorithms. Boolean operations, stochastic search, fractals, cellular automata, and morphing are all shown in algorithmic form and discussed within the context of solving architectural design problems. For each algorithm the author gives code, explanations, and examples. Chapters five and six provide illustrations of types of architectural design that use algorithms. Chapter five presents three projects: a parasite structure, a morphed high-rise, and a Boolean concert hall. Chapter six shows how intricate structures can emerge from simple algorithms. Three projects are presented in this chapter too: a repetitive pattern for a house of worship, a stochastic-based residential high-rise, and a library. Chapter seven acts as a kind of summary of ideas presented in the book. I am involved in computer graphic programming, not architecture, and I still found lots of ideas in this very fascinating and well-illustrated book. This would be interesting reading for people involved in the design of virtual worlds too.

4 comments about Your Green Home: A Guide to Planning a Healthy, Environmentally Friendly New Home (Mother Earth News Wiser Living Series).

1. I thought this was a good primer on the subject and got several helpful tips. While I already knew a lot of the material, nevertheless It inspired me to make some changes in my own home.
   
   I was also inspired by The House That Faux Built which showed how to give your home a facelift without ripping things out (and filling the landfills) It showed me how to paint and plaster over cabinets, tiles and floors for a complete update. the 2 books together made a big difference.



2. I am an interior designer and work for an architectural firm. Because of the information I have learned thru my education and professional experience, I found very little new information in this book. If you have no knowledge of green building practices, this book would be beneficial.



3. This book was a overview/introduction to building a green home. Should be a must read for builders and anyone planning on building a new home. Not all strategies will work for every situation, but there's lots here that would apply for any situation or budget.



4. The text is well-written and can appeal to a wide audience. It's simple enough to understand for those without a great deal of knowledge in sustainable design, yet interesting and usefull enough for the professional who's more trained in sustainability. The text covers sustainable homes in a logical order, first stressing the foundation concepts like siting, orientation, passive solar, and building envelope efficiency, BEFORE moving on to less critical (but more popular) topics such as green materials.
   
   I am a professor of Environmental Design and am currently building a passive solar, zero-energy home, and if I were to write a text that comprises the whole of the process and goals in sustainable home building, the format and breadth of topics would be similar to this book.
   
   One negative of the book is the absence of color images to illustrate some points. The simple line drawings get the point across, but photos might have a better impact - especailly in sections discussing more advanced systems such as renewable energy systems or rainwater catchment systems.

3 comments about Practical Stress Analysis with Finite Elements.

1. I had to get this book for a course I was sitting. It was really helpful. I had a look at some similar books and they were full of equations etc. This book was a great help as it gives practical tips and explains the FE process clearly and how to avoid making mistakes. I would really reccomend it for beginners.



2. On initial review the book appears to be an excellent overview of the Finite Element Analysis method for solving complex engineering problems in a reasonably simplified manner. I have only read one chapter so far, and scanned the rest, but would say that the book appears to be a very practical and results-oriented treatise, geared toward working profesional engineers who need practical applications rather than extensive theory. For my purposes, I believe it was a wise purchase.



3. I have to do a lot of finite element modelling as part of my Ph.D. studies so I was searching for a book that took me from the basics and helped me to build models relevant to my research. I went through many other books before recently finding this one. All the other books I tried didn't actually tell you how to build a FEA model they just showed a load of maths and equations. After reading the other books I was still unable to do the most basic analysis required for my research.
   
   There are a lot of very bad FEA books out there, however, this book is the exception! There is loads of information given and most of my questions were answered either in the main text or in the case study examples. The book starts out by giving an introduction to FEA, what it is and why is useful etc. The second chapter is a summary of stress analysis and is very useful. I found myself referring back to it several times as I read through the rest of the book and my software help manual.
   The third chapter is where this book really comes into its own: a method for helping you pick each facet of your model is given. It's really practical, problem solving stuff, which really helped me out. After going through the method suggested I could easily build basic models of my research problem.
   
   The rest of the chapters cover aspects of the FEA process in detail, such as element types and choices, material models - what they do and when to use them, boundary conditions and loads - which are the best to use in particular situations, how to set up the solution and how to fix the model if it breaks down.
   
   The final chapter contains nine case studies/examples which go through various types of analysis in detail. They range from fairly basic beam models right up to non-linear type analysis using contact etc. These case studies are absolutely excellent!
   
   Without question this is the best book on FEA currently available!

1 comments about Detail in Process: Detail in Process (AsBuilt).

1. This is the second book in the new AsBuilt series. Its like the In Detail series with beautifully presented images and drawings, but because all the projects (many different building types) are built in North America, most of the drawings have units of measurement and terminology currently used in the USA, and include materials available for construction in the United States. There are also more kinds of drawings, models and renderings than the typical formats usually found in books about details, which gives the series a dynamic, contemporary quality. Highly recommended.

3 comments about Residential Design Using Revit Architecture 2008.

1. although i have used revit before, this book taught me things i did not klnow how to do with revit.



2. Residential Design was my fourth text book on Revit Architecture 2008 and I found it to be the most practical for common sense hands-on learning. SDC publications and Daniel Stine authorship have combined for a winner. I look forward to beginning the "Commercial Design" text they have produced also.
   Thanks, Hub7d



3. This book provides a common sense approach to designing a house from the ground up.
   This is the 3rd book that I've tried. I was so frustrated, now I'm on my way to really understanding Revit. Bob

3 comments about Stone House: A Guide to Self-Building With Slipforms.

1. The illustrations inside the book leaves much to be desired. The book is a "Self Guide" to construction; this makes it mandatory to have exceptional pictures, illustrations, and drawings! Sadly, to say notwithstanding, the book-cover the interior is disappointing.



2. Tomm Stanley has written an excellent book that is both instructional and entertaining. He has the experience and forethought to prove that he isn't some hippie with unproven thoughts/ideas, but he also writes in a very warm and personable way that keeps his book from being a dry, tasteless "how to" construction book. He is frank with his mistakes, offers proven and tested solutions openly, and explains things scientifically enough to satisfy this reviewer (I'm an engineer).
   
   My only slight complaint is that many of the photos are terrible quality and you must go to the book's website to view the higher quality versions. This isn't too bad, but I worry that someday the website will move/discontinue and I'll be left with a book poorly illustrated.



3. It's easy to build it yourself with slipforms - especially if you also have in hand Tomm Stanley's Stone House, covering slipforming methods, sources for materials, stonelaying techniques, and more. Tomm Stanley and his partner know their stuff: he built his own home from slipforms and his construction photos can even be seen on-line in color - most included with this book, in black and white.

No comments about Introducing AutoCAD2009 and AutoCADLT 2009.

2 comments about Tropical Interiors.

1. Wonderful book on contemporary tropical design. Just looking at the pictures transports me to another place! I've even incorporated some of the simple design ideas into my own home. From the simple & serene to the eclectic, you won't be disappointed.



2. In short, this book has exceptional photos and displays wonderful furniture and design of natural materials. It's amazing to see how these materials can be formed into such beautiful and practical pieces of furniture. It's functional art!

4 comments about Small Houses: Contemporary Residential Architecture.

1. A good book with some nice case studies. Not a bad addition to my reference library. I'm giving it 3 stars only because a good 1/4 of the featured homes are not that great and seemed out of place in this book.



2. This book has some good material to get the creative juices going. It is a nice collection of interesting designs that give a pretty good sampling of what innovative contemporary residences can look like. I would have liked to see more technical information and details.



3. These are houses for very rich people who never have to worry about the resale value of their house. The first chapter was very interesting, a brief review of housing history. I enjoyed seeing the workman's cottage with the unheard-of luxury of a plumbed bath - set flush to the kitchen floor and kept covered when not in use. I wonder how many people forgot and fell into it the middle of the night?
   
   This book will be of no help at all if your interest in building a small house is motivated by economy or a desire to minimize the adverse environment impact of the construction. That said, there are a few really good ideas and some astonishingly lovely houses. The Irish "boat house" would be a great place to watch a storm come in, with its glass wall. But I'm not sure why it needs a kitchen and a bath. And the chalet/cabin with a whole-wall "shutter" to cover its large glass picture window is clever. I liked the straw mats hanging as a sunshade off the broad eaves of the clay house in West Africa - it made the house look as if it belonged there, and made the space between the wall and the shade into more useful space.
   
   But the tiny tiny cube house on top of the elevator shaft was just plain weird.
   
   Kind of fun, not very practical.



4. The introductory chapter, a brief history of architect-designed small houses (large expensive houses usually get this treatment), was the best part for me, as the author is very knowledgeable. Here he describes the groundskeepers' homes on large estates, and the later workers' cottages built by large companies, that started this category. The rest, however, is the standard thou-shalt-covet-thy-neighbor's-house pictures of very recent, attention-grabbing, expensive, glass-crazy fashion statements.

4 comments about Architectural Graphic Standards for Residential Construction: The Architect's and Builder's Guide to Design, Planning, and Construction Details (Ramsey/Sleeper Architectural Graphic Standards Series).

1. This book is an excellent reference book for use in designing, planning, and building a new house or remodeling an existing one. Whenever I plan on doing something on the house, I double check with this reference before finishing my designs and plans. It's a must own book for serious do-it-yourselfers.



2. Although these editions change little, this review is based upon AGS 10th Ed. & AGSRC 2003.
   
   
   Negative:
   This is bascially a regurgitation of the more complete Architectural Graphics Standards, distilled to a "residential" focus but appears as volumous because some details have been photo-enlarged (in poor-average quality). Few, if any new residential details/information has been provided.
   
   Positive:
   Those ONLY interested in residential construction and NOT requiring a full brace of ALL details will find this quite a good value - compare its price to Architectural Graphics Standards.
   
   Recommendation:
   Anyone in construction should have one, but not both of these books as a prime resource. The content does improve every year, although some years it's like watching grass grow.
   
   Challenge:
   IF there are numerous portions of the Residential version that are unique and new to it, exclusive of passages in the larger AGS version - I would really appreciate a review that contains how to locate these passages, as I've spent enough time trying to find them. If enough of these exist, it would give thought of updating this resource once in awhile.



3. Experienced readers will benefit from its brief summaries and drawings covering the broadest range of topics imaginable. Some economizing is evident in the paper and printing quality, some of the drawings look 50 years old, but there is lots of reference information, like span tables, solar position data, etc. Probably not the last word on every topic, but still worth consulting.



4. Following in the terrific legacy of the benchmark Architectural Graphic Standards book, this edition clearly makes building for residences an easier task. I've found innumerable details that I've used in my residential practice on a daily basis, details not found in other reference books. Of particular help are the pages that give an overview of how parts of a house interconnect with each other, such as foundation-to-framing. Also, there is a wealth of info on HVAC, new window technology and other things I've found very, very helpful.