Practical Maya Programming with Python

I can't really say anything that hasn't already been said by the other glowing reviews, but they are indeed well-deserved. The depth and breadth of topics covered is impressive, if not a bit daunting at first. I've only read through it to get an idea of the content covered, and now I find myself following along and learning a ton. PyMEL is without a doubt the way that Python should have been implemented into Maya to begin with. Python is indeed my favorite (and only) language that I "program" with (I'm originally an animator, trying to transition to becoming a tech-artist). You will NOT find a better book on programming specifically inside of Maya with Python (Maya Programming for Games and Film is good, but is more geared towards beginners). Even if you're not a Maya user, a LARGE portion of the concepts in the book can theoretically be software-agnostic. I'm finding it very difficult to be nit-picky about this book.I eagerly await a second edition, where Mr. Galanakis goes into even deeper topics. If you're trying to level up in your technical skills, accept no substitute.

I'm fairly early into my journey with this book and I can already say it is worth every penny. There's a lot here still way above my head, but the information is presented in a very clear and logical format, and more importantly, the book is transformative. It's a deep dive, but Rob keeps the waters clear. Some knowledge of Maya and Python is expected, so there isn't a lot of hand-holding, but that's not really a problem. It's a better use of the book to get right down to business - and you can easily find supplementary introductions to both Maya and Python online or here on Amazon.Overall, this book is highly recommended. I like the Rob's writing style and his knowledge and experience are invaluable. Required reading for anyone even thinking about learning PyMEL.

It would have been useful information when the book first came out.But the code doesn't work because it's been upgraded.For example PySide no longer exist because it's now PySide2 and some components have been moved to different namespace.I wouldn't deal with this mess.

The content in this book is fantastic and it is a great resource for working with Python and Maya. However, the e-book lacks a table of contents that works with the Kindle app. In Kindle the table of contents contains two items: 'Cover' and 'Practical Maya Programming with Python' and they both link to the cover.The book has a very detailed table of contents starting on page 3 and contains links to the various topics but I feel it needs to be integrated into Kindle's table of contents.I hate to give such a great book a bad review but I am tired of downloading e-books that have not been properly formatted.

An extremely well thought out and informative book, a must have for any tech artist or anyone who wants to improve their Maya workflow. This is definitely one of the best resources I've come across for scripting in any 3d package

Good book with some good ideas

Great book, not only about pymel & api but also about python

good book

I am very happy with my purchase! It arrived fast and the book was in super good packed! Thanks a lot!

fast shipping, excellent quality

For example, classes (or types) are discussed more or less thoroughly in chapter 7. Well before that, in chapter 5, the fully object-oriented Qt-framework is introduced. Because of that the author avoids classes where he can and uses complicate "un-pythonesque" substitute-solutions like defining definitions within other definitions, which cross-reference each other. As such the readability and clarity of several code demonstrations suffer and the examples hardly represent a reallife user case. The author even aknowledges that ("In production code, however, I'd almost always use classes.") and actually advices to seek out other tutorials!I often felt like i have to jump back and forth to actually understand what was meant or what i have to do. Chapter 6 for example refers to chapter 9 for installation information and here the age of the book becomes apparent. If you don't want to go through the hassle of compiling a library for maya python (not a trivial task for every technical artist), chapter 6 is basically useless. Yet the book states fullheartly "It is relatively easy to install PyZMQ." I guess i'm just stupid.All in all a lot of good information, but as of now, i'm working on Maya 2017 and a lot changed since the version 2014 the book is refering to. The Qt-examples all need a rewrite, as Maya 2017 builds on Qt5 instead of Qt4. So i wouldn't recommend this book for beginners at scripting, but rather people who already have a good idea of what they are doing.

Es PyMEL, no toca casi los demás lenguajes. Una pena, porque PyMEL no le gusta a mucha gente y no es muy común

I bought this book for two reasons. One: Rob Galanakis is, as has been said, a badass when it comes to this type of instruction. 2: Rob Galanakis is a badass at this type of instruction.Seriously though, Rob has been doing this for years and has some of the most respected information in the industry and I have personally learnt a lot from the web based examples and information he has given away freely. If he has put his knowledge and experience in a book, then any aspiring Maya TD would do well to have this in their arsenal. Only one chapter in and loving it. Clear and concise, just as a TD should be.