Learn how AI experts create intelligent game objects and characters with this first volume in the AI Game Programming Wisdom series. This unique collection of articles gives programmers and developers access to the insights and wisdom of over thirty AI pros. Each article delves deep into key AI game programming issues and provides insightful new ideas and techniques that can be easily integrated into your own games. Everything from general AI architectures, rule based systems, level-of-detail AI, scripting language issues, to expert systems, fuzzy logic, neural networks, and genetic algorithms are thoroughly covered. If you’re a game programmer (AI/logic, front-end, user interface, tools, graphics, etc.) this comprehensive resource will help you take your skills and knowledge to the next level.

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The authors use a refreshing and novel ‘workbook’ writing style which gives the book a very practical and easy to use feel. It includes methodologies for the development of hybrid information systems, covers neural networks, case based reasoning and genetic algorithms as well as expert systems. Numerous pointers to web based resources and current research are also included. The content of the book has been successfully used by undergraduates around the world. It is aimed at undergraduates and a strong maths background is not required.

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The conference proceedings of the International Conference on Systems, Computing Sciences and Software Engineering include a set of rigorously reviewed world-class manuscripts addressing and detailing state-of-the-art research projects in the areas of Computer Science, Software Engineering, Computer Engineering, and Systems Engineering and Sciences.

The International Conference on Systems, Computing Sciences and Software Engineering (SCSS 2005) was part of the International Joint Conferences on Computer, Information and Systems Sciences and Engineering (CISSE 2005).

CISSE 2005, the World’s first Engineering/Computing and Systems Research E-Conference was the first high-caliber Research Conference in the world to be completely conducted online in real-time via the internet.

CISSE received 255 research paper submissions and the final program included 140 accepted papers, from more than 45 countries. The whole concept and format of CISSE 2005 was very
exciting and ground-breaking. The powerpoint presentations, final paper manuscripts and time schedule for live presentations over the web had been available for 3 weeks prior to the start of the conference for all registrants, so they could pick and choose the presentations they want to attend and think about questions that they might want to ask. The live audio presentations were also recorded and are part of the permanent CISSE archive, which includes all power point presentations, papers and recorded presentations.

All aspects of the conference were managed on-line; not only the reviewing, submissions and registration processes; but also the actual conference. Conference participants - authors, presenters and attendees - only needed an internet connection and sound available on their computers in order to be able to contribute and participate in this international ground-breaking conference. The on-line structure of this high-quality event allowed academic professionals and industry participants to contribute work and attend world-class technical presentations based on rigorously refereed submissions, live, without the need for investing significant travel funds or time out of the office. Suffice to say that CISSE received submissions from more than 50 countries, for whose researchers, this opportunity presented a much more affordable, dynamic and well-planned event to attend and submit their work to, versus a classic, on-the-ground conference.

The CISSE conference audio room provided superb audio even over low speed internet connections, the ability to display PowerPoint presentations, and cross-platform compatibility (the conferencing software runs on Windows, Mac, and any other operating system that supports Java). In addition, the conferencing system allowed for an unlimited number of participants, which in turn granted CISSE the opportunity to allow all participants to attend all presentations, as opposed to limiting the number of available seats for each session.

The implemented conferencing technology, starting with the submission & review system and ending with the online conferencing capability, allowed CISSE to conduct a very high quality, fulfilling event for all participants.

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This self-contained volume surveys three decades of modern robot control theory and at the same time describes how the work of Suguru Arimoto shaped and influenced its development. Twelve survey articles written by leading experts in the field, who have also been closely associated with Suguru Arimoto at various stages in his career, treat the subject cohesively and in depth. This volume will provide an important reference for graduate students and researchers,as well as for mathematicians, engineers and scientists whose work involves concepts and the language of robot control theory.

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This second edition of Evolving Connectionist Systems presents generic computational models and techniques that can be used for the development of evolving, adaptive modelling systems, as well as new trends including computational neuro-genetic modelling and quantum information processing related to evolving systems. New applications, such as autonomous robots, adaptive artificial life systems and adaptive decision support systems are also covered.

The models and techniques used are connectionist-based and, where possible, existing connectionist models have been used and extended. Divided into four parts the book opens with evolving processes in nature; looks at methods and techniques that can be used in evolving connectionist systems; then covers various applications in bioinformatics and brain studies; finishing with applications for intelligent machines.

Aimed at all those interested in developing adaptive models and systems to solve challenging real world problems in computer science and engineering.

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IT service management (ITSM) is the group of processes and functions that oil the wheels of the IT machine. Without ITSM, every IT project and system would deteriorate over time until failure. ITIL is the recognized best-practice standard for ITSM, and has been around since the late 1980s, with ITIL version 3 published just recently. However, many of today’s IT problems have been around for just as long - so in order to manage IT effectively, organizations must go beyond the ITIL framework.

Rob Addy provides IT service managers and professionals with practical guidance on delivering and managing IT services in an effective and efficient manner by extending the ITIL approach to deliver proactive and pragmatic IT service management. His book is a candid look at the relative merits of currently accepted wisdom regarding the provision of IT services, using the principles of the IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL) guidance series. It describes IT service management processes related to service delivery and service support (as well as other non-ITIL areas), their objectives, shortcomings, and how these issues can be addressed in real-life situations. In addition, it delivers a workable definition of what exactly an â€~IT service’ is and how it can be defined and used in practice. Overall, he gives an unbiased view of the discipline, its objectives, major processes, and their benefits and shortcomings.

Managing and mitigating IT risk is critical to the survival of every business. Success is an optional extra! Proactive IT service management can be thought of as risk management for IT: Can you afford to ignore it?

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Grid Computing requires the use of software that can divide and farm out pieces of a program to as many as several thousand computers. This book explores processes and techniques needed to create a successful Grid infrastructure. Leading researchers in Europe and the US look at the development of specialist tools and environments which will encourage the convergence of the parallel programming, distributed computing and data management communities. Specific topics covered include: - An overview of structural and behavioural properties of Computer Grid applications - Discussion of alternative programming techniques - Case studies displaying the potential of Computer Grids in solving real problems This book is unique in its outline of the needs of Computational Grids both in integration of high-end resources using OGSA/Globus, and the loose integration of Peer-2-Peer/Entropia/United Devices. Readers will gain an insight on the limitations of existing approaches as well as the standardisation activities currently taking place.

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In order to build a successful, Java-based application it is important to have a clear understanding of the principles underlying the various financial models. Those models guide the application designer in choosing the most appropriate Java data structures and implementation strategy. This book describes the principles of model building in financial engineering and explains those models as designs and working implementations for Java-based applications.

Throughout the book a series of packaged classes are developed to address a wide range of financial applications. Java methods are designed and implemented based on the most widely used models in financial engineering and investment practice. The classes and methods are explained and designed in a way which allows the financial engineer complete flexibility. The classes can be used as off-the-shelf working solutions or the innovative developer can re-arrange and modify methods to create new products

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Metrics are paramount in every engineering discipline. Software engineering, however, is not considered a classical engineering activity for several reasons. In general, if a software system is seen to deliver the required functionality, only few people if any care about the internals. Moreover, defining, understanding and applying software metrics often looks like an overly complex activity, recommended only to ‘trained professionals’.

Lanza and Marinescu demystify the design metrics used to assess the size, quality and complexity of object-oriented software systems. Based on statistical information from many industrial projects and generally accepted semantics they deduce many single and combined threshold values. They show in detail how to identify collaboration and classification disharmony patterns in code, how to visualize their results using the freely available CodeCrawler visualization tool, and how to devise possible remedies.

The combination of theoretically sound results and practically tested procedures and solution paths makes this book an ideal companion for professional software architects, developers and quality engineers. The pattern-oriented description of disharmonies offers easy access to detecting shortcomings and applying solution strategies.

“This well-written book is an important piece of work that takes the seemingly forgotten art of object-oriented metrics to the next level in terms of relevance and usefulness.� Richard C. Gronback, Chief Scientist, Borland Software Corporation.

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The competitiveness of organizations facing globalization, information and communication technologies relies on strategic issues such as reuse of knowledge from past experiences to make higher quality decisions, deployment of innovative, fast methodological approaches for solving problems and building systems. Real-life systems are often multidisciplinary; their development commands a uniform way of object modeling in order to close the loop of various interactions crossing multiple domains.

An innovative methodology, built on UML version 2 and MDA (Model Driven Architecture), is proposed to explain how to design large-scale systems and make software reuse a reality, how logical models can be built progressively and transformed into business assets, how real time and database systems can be integrated smoothly along a single development stream. First, the metalanguage of UML is introduced as a lesson of rigorous and meta system development. That helps developers to acquire a deep understanding of meta elements of UML, rules that govern connections. Second, thirteen UML diagrams are studied in details with short examples. Third, fundamental modeling concepts are mapped into UML objects and represented with diagrams that are the visual parts of any CASE tool.

Two advanced research topics beyond UML are exposed to complement the arsenal of development tools. A state-event network (SEN), a new diagram based on Petri net, supports dynamical studies and refines UML behavioral diagrams before implementation. The “image attribute method� is a combinatorial technique deployed to study dynamic behavior of safety-critical systems; it takes internal state variables of an object, makes images of surrounding objects interacting with this central object to explain its complex behavior and thus, automate the design of algorithms.

One part of Real-Time Object Uniform Design Methodology with UML is targeted to be used as a basic textbook in Computer Science for teaching object modeling, fundamental concepts learning and system designing with thirteen UML diagrams. Another part is devoted to advanced research topics, samples and case studies. They are must readings for any system developer or any graduate student in any discipline that needs materials and thoughts for future developments, the power of object modeling packed along a serious development methodology.

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Software product lines represent perhaps the most exciting paradigm shift in software development since the advent of high-level programming languages. Nowhere else in software engineering have we seen such breathtaking improvements in cost, quality, time to market, and developer productivity, often registering in the order-of-magnitude range. While the underlying concepts are straightforward enough – building a family of related products or systems by planned and careful reuse of a base of generalized software development assets – the devil can be in the details, as successful product line practice can involve organizational change, business process change, and technology change.

The authors ideally combine academic research results with industrial real-world experiences, thus presenting a broad view on product line engineering so that both managers and technical specialists will benefit from reading it. After presenting a common framework for the description of the industrial case studies, they capture the wealth of knowledge that eight companies have gathered during the introduction of the software product line engineering approach in their daily practice. After reading this book, you will understand all the relevant aspects, regarding business, architecture, process, and organizational issues, of applying software product line engineering. If you consider using a product line approach in your organization, or if you want to improve your current practices you will find a rich set of useful information at your fingertips – from practitioners to practitioners.

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Computer software reliability has never been more important. Today, computers are employed in areas as diverse as air traffic control, nuclear reactors, aircraft, real-time military, industrial process control, security system control, biometric scan-systems, automotive, mechanical and safety control, and hospital patient monitoring systems. Many of these applications require critical functionality as software applications increase in size and complexity.

System Software Reliability is an introduction to software reliability engineering as well as a detailed survey of the state-of-the-art techniques, methodologies and tools used to assess the reliability of software and combined software-hardware systems. The most recent research results in the field are reported and future directions in the subject are signposted.

This comprehensive text will be of interest to:
graduate students as an introduction to software reliability engineering and a textbook for graduate courses;
software and reliability engineers as a comprehensive and up-to-date survey of the field; and,
researchers and lecturers in universities and research institutions as a one-volume reference.

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Get cutting-edge SQL Server 2000 management techniques for installation, automation, data manipulation, replication, and much more. This expert resource provides full details on system architecture, file storage, security, and troubleshooting and explains how to integrate Windows 2000 components, including the MMC and ActiveDirectory.

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If you like learning by example, then this straightforward book makes it easy to learn SAS programming. In an instructive and conversational tone, author Ron Cody clearly explains each programming technique and then illustrates it with one or more real-life examples, followed by a detailed description of how the program works. The text is divided into four major sections: Getting Started; DATA Step Processing; Presenting and Summarizing Your Data; and Advanced Topics. Subjects addressed include: Reading data from external sources Learning details of DATA step programming Subsetting and combining SAS data sets Understanding SAS functions and working with arrays Creating reports with PROC REPORT and PROC TABULATE Learning to use the SAS Output Delivery System Getting started with the SAS macro language Introducing PROC SQL You can test your knowledge and hone your skills by solving the problems at the end of each chapter. (Solutions to odd-numbered problems are located at the back of this book. Solutions to all problems are available to instructors by visiting the book’s companion Web site for details.) This book is intended for beginners and intermediate users. Readers should know how to enter and submit a SAS program from their operating system. Includes a free CD-ROM with the example code, data sets, and solutions to odd-numbered problems.

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Building maintainable and extensible web applications requires significant design and planning before even a single line of code can be written. But when you leverage development frameworks, you can overcome the many challenges of web-based development. This book maps out the Jakarta Struts framework, to help you solve everyday web application development problems.

This book concentrates on using Struts to develop the core architecture of a web application, and using other Jakarta projects to create a fully open source web application. Included are Object-RelationalBridge, Lucene, Velocity, and ANT.

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Building web applications that are maintainable and extensible requires a significant amount of design and planning before even a single line of code can be written. However, by leveraging development frameworks, many of the challenges of web-based development can be overcome. This book acts as a roadmap to demonstrate how to use the Jakarta Struts framework to solve everyday web application development programs.

Although Struts is rapidly becoming a de facto standard for Java web applications, it can only provide for part of your application Therefore, this book concentrates not only on how to use Struts to develop the core architecture of a web application, but also on how to use other Jakarta projects to create a fully open source web application. It uses Object-RelationalBridge to provide the O/R mapping for the data layer; Lucene to provide a search engine; Velocity to provide a template language for the user interface; and ANT is used to time be build process together.

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Pro SQL Server 2005 Service Broker, by Klaus Aschenbrenner, an international expert on Service Broker, explains why Microsoft introduced Service Broker and describes its big advantages over prior message technologies.

Rich with practical examples, this is the most complete and incisive book on this important new technology, an invaluable resource for all serious database and web developers. Focused on best practices, it explains in detail how Service Broker supports and enhances database and web applications. This book not only covers Service Broker fundamentals, but also addresses current crucial topics like SOA (Service-Oriented Architecture) and SODA (Service-Oriented Data Architecture).

http://rapidshare.com/files/63505918/srvcbrok.rar

Microsoft Speech Server is becoming increasingly popular. There are three primary components developers wanting to develop speech applications need to be familiar with: the Speech SDK, Telephony, and ASP.NET server controls. Each of these can be used independently, but in many cases, all three need to be used to build truly compelling applications.

Pro Microsoft Speech Server 2007 walks intermediate to advanced developers through the basics of speech and telephony technology. It then addresses Microsoft’s specific implementations and what it can do for most companies. From there, the specific components are discussed individually in depth. You’ll create an application from scratch, building upon an existing web site, but adding brand new functionality as well. All of the issues associated with setup, security and administration, development, debugging, and deployment are included in the walkthroughs.

http://rapidshare.com/files/63489969/promicspec.rar