This book is written by a gamer, for a gamer to guide just about anything with Source SDK giving a firm grasp of all the tools it has to offer using stepbystep explanations. If you’re a keen gamer who wants a bit more out of your favorite game and create your own modifications (mods) and levels with the Source engine, this book is great for you. No programming and Source SDK experience is required.

This book is aimed at developers and technical testers who are looking for a quick way to take their SoapUI skills and understanding to the next level. Even if you are new to SoapUI but have basic Java skills and a reasonable grasp of RESTFul and Soap web services, then you should have no problem making use of this book.

If you have already undertaken some simple projects with the Raspberry Pi and are looking to enter the exciting work of hardware interaction, then this book is ideal for you.

If you are a developer who is experienced with Cocos2d and Objective-C, and want to take your game development skills to the next level, this book is going to help you achieve your goal.

This book is for everybody who would like to learn modern Java web development based on PrimeFaces and is looking for a quick introduction to this matter. Prerequisites for this book are basic JSF, jQuery, and CSS skills.

The book is best suited for existing Android or Java programmers who want to adapt their skills to make exciting Android games. The book is also for determined readers who might have no Android, game programming or even Java experience, but a reasonable understanding of object oriented programming knowledge is assumed.

This book is for system engineers and administrators who have a fundamental understanding of information management systems and infrastructure. It helps if you've already played around with Chef; however, this book covers all the important topics you will need to know. If you don't want to dig through a whole book before you can get started, this book is for you, as it features a set of independent recipes you can try out immediately.

This book is for Windows administrators seeking to automate the management tasks of Windows servers and clients. Prior experience in Windows administration and a basic knowledge of Linux and Puppet will help you create wonders.

If you are a C# developer who wants to develop Android apps and enhance your existing skill set, then this book is ideal for you. Good working knowledge of C#, .NET, and object-oriented software development is assumed.

If you are a web developer with some experience in the development of single page applications and want to enter the world of mobile applications, then this technology and book are ideal for you. No previous experience in the C++ or Java languages is required.

If you are an application developer who wishes to enhance your skills for the GIS domain with ArcGIS, then this book is for you. Previous experience with ArcGIS is not required.

This book is intended for readers who are familiar with the Arduino platform and want to learn more about creating wearable projects. No previous experience in wearables is expected, although a basic knowledge of Arduino will help.

Over 50 hands-on recipes to help you build exhilarating games using the robust GameMaker system About This Book Design and develop game elements that can be used alone or stacked to enhance your gaming experience Explore extensions that can unlock GameMaker: Studio’s true potential to create complex games A recipe-based, easy-to-follow guide to take your GameMaker skills to the next level Who This Book Is For This book is intended for GameMaker: Studio enthusiasts who are looking to add more substance and improve their content. If know your way around the program and have some basic GML skills but want to take them further, then this book is for you. What You Will Learn Set up player control schemes of various types, such as touch controls and a gamepad Create your own physics sandbox Get accustomed to advanced player movement Implement music and 3D sound in your games Utilize GameMaker’s GUI layers to create exciting games Generate adjustable game settings and save systems Add depth to your game with lighting and special effects In Detail GameMaker: Studio started off as a tool capable of creating simple games using a drag-and-drop interface. Since then, it has grown to become a powerful instrument to make release-ready games for PC, Mac, mobile devices, and even current-gen consoles. GameMaker is designed to allow its users to develop games without having to learn any of the complex programming languages such as C++ or Java. It also allows redistribution across multiple platforms. This book teaches you to harness GameMaker: Studio’s full potential and take your game development to new heights. It begins by covering the basics and lays a solid foundation for advanced GameMaker concepts. Moving on, it covers topics such as controls, physics, and advanced movement, employing a strategic approach to the learning curve. The book concludes by providing insights into complex concepts such as the GUI, menus, save system, lighting, particles, and VFX. By the end of the book, you will be able to design games using GameMaker: Studio and implement the same techniques in other games you intend to design. Style and approach A problem-solving guide that teaches you the construction of game elements and mechanics to be integrated in games for rapid prototyping. Each overall topic includes several individual recipes taught through step-by-step instructions, and in-depth follow-up with examples.

Build and optimize efficient messaging applications with ease About This Book Learn to administer, configure, and manage RabbitMQ instances Discover ways to secure and troubleshoot RabbitMQ instances This book is fully up-to-date with all the latest changes to version 3.5 Who This Book Is For If you are a developer or system administrator with a basic knowledge of messaging who wants to learn RabbitMQ, or if you want to further enhance your knowledge in working with the message broker, then this book is ideal for you. To fully understand some examples in the book, a basic knowledge of the Java programming language is required. What You Will Learn Apply messaging patterns using the message broker Administer RabbitMQ using the command line, management Web console, or management REST services Create a cluster of scalable, and highly-available, RabbitMQ instances Use RabbitMQ with the Spring Framework, MuleESB, WSO2, and Oracle databases Deploy RabbitMQ using Puppet, Vagrant, or Docker Fine-tune the performance of RabbitMQ Monitor RabbitMQ using Nagios, Munin, or Monit Secure, troubleshoot, and extend RabbitMQ In Detail RabbitMQ is Open Source Message Queuing software based on the Advanced Message Queue Protocol Standard written in the Erlang Language. RabbitMQ is an ideal candidate for large-scale projects ranging from e-commerce and finance to Big Data and social networking because of its ease of use and high performance. Managing RabbitMQ in such a dynamic environment can be a challenging task that requires a good understanding not only of how to work properly with the message broker but also of its best practices and pitfalls. Learning RabbitMQ starts with a concise de*ion of messaging solutions and patterns, then moves on to concrete practical scenarios for publishing and subscribing to the broker along with basic administration. This knowledge is further expanded by exploring how to establish clustering and high availability at the level of the message broker and how to integrate RabbitMQ with a number of technologies such as Spring, and enterprise service bus solutions such as MuleESB and WSO2. We will look at advanced topics such as performance tuning, secure messaging, and the internals of RabbitMQ. Finally we will work through case-studies so that we can see RabbitMQ in action and, if something goes wrong, we'll learn to resolve it in the Troubleshooting section. Style and approach Each chapter of the book is an easy-to-follow guide that expands and builds on the knowledge already gained in previous chapters. Throughout the course of the book, a sample system called the CSN (Corporate Social Network) is used to illustrate the core principles described. At the end of each chapter, there is a Q&A session that covers practical questions that may arise in practice when working with RabbitMQ.

Over 80 step-by-step recipes to get you up to speed with building your own wxPython applications About This Book This book empowers you to create rich cross-platform graphical user interfaces using Python It helps you develop applications that can be deployed on Windows, OSX, and Linux The recipes in the book involve real-world applications, giving you a first-hand experience of the practical scenarios Who This Book Is For For those who are familiar with programming in Python and want to start building applications with graphical user interfaces, this book will get you up and running quickly. A basic understanding of the Python programming language and object-oriented concepts are all that is needed. What You Will Learn Create full featured user interfaces Design and develop custom controls Deploy and distribute wxPython applications to Windows, Macintosh OS X, Linux, and other UNIX-like environments Handle and respond to application events Manage and display data using grids Interact with web services from your GUI Use Paint events to draw custom displays Support the display of user interfaces in multiple languages In Detail wxPython is a GUI toolkit for the Python programming language built on top of the cross-platform wxWidgets GUI libraries. wxPython provides a powerful set of tools that allow you to quickly and efficiently building applications that can run on a variety of different platforms. Since wxWidgets provides a wrapper around each platform’s native GUI toolkit, the applications built with wxPython will have a native look and feel wherever they are deployed. This book will provide you with the skills to build highly functional and native looking user interfaces for Python applications on multiple operating system environments. By working through the recipes, you will gain insights into and exposure to creating applications using wxPython. With a wide range of topics covered in the book, there are recipes to get the most basic of beginners started in GUI programming as well as tips to help experienced users get more out of their applications. The recipes will take you from the most basic application constructs all the way through to the deployment of complete applications. Style and approach This book is a collection of step-by-step recipes that introduce the various components and concepts of wxPython in a conversational and easy-to-follow way. Each recipe contains coded examples along with detailed explanations about the key points of each topic. Each topic is designed to introduce and show you how to use a single feature from the wxPython library.

Get to grips with object-oriented programming in Swift to efficiently build powerful real-world applicationsAbout This BookLeverage the most efficient object-oriented design patterns in your Swift applicationsWrite robust, safer, and better code using the blueprints that generate objectsBuild a platform with object-oriented code by using real-world elements and represent them in your appWho This Book Is ForIf you are an iOS developer who has a basic idea of object-oriented programming and want to incorporate its concepts with Swift to optimize your application's code and create reusable and easily to understand building blocks, then this book is for you. This is a very useful resource for developers who want to shift from Objective C, C#, Java, Python, JavaScript, or other object-oriented languages to SwiftWhat You Will LearnBuild solid, stable, and reliable applications using SwiftWork with encapsulation, abstraction, and polymorphism using Swift 2.0Customize constructors and destructors based on your needsDevelop Swift 2.0 with classes, instances, properties, and methodsTake advantage of generic code to maximize code reuse and generalize behaviorsUse state of inheritance, specialization, and the possibility to overload membersWrite high quality object-oriented code to build apps for iOS or Mac OS XIn DetailObject-Oriented Programming (OOP) is a programming paradigm based on the concept of objects; these are data structures that contain data in the form of fields, often known as attributes and code. Objects are everywhere, and so it is very important to recognize elements, known as objects, from real-world situations and know how they can easily be translated into object-oriented code.Object-Oriented Programming with Swift is an easy-to-follow guide packed full of hands-on examples of solutions to common problems encountered with object-oriented code in Swift. It starts by helping you to recognize objects using real-life scenarios and demonstrates how working with them makes it simpler to write code that is easy to understand and reuse.You will learn to protect and hide data with the data encapsulation features of Swift. Then, you will explore how to maximize code reuse by writing code capable of working with objects of different types. After that, you'll discover the power of parametric polymorphism and will combine generic code with inheritance and multiple inheritance. Later, you move on to refactoring your existing code and organizing your source for easy maintenance and extensions.By the end of the book, you will be able to create better, stronger, and more reusable code, which will help you build better applications.Style and approachThis simple guide is packed with practical examples of solutions to common problems. Each chapter includes exercises and the possibility for you to test your progress by answering questions.

Create complex websites quickly and easily using the building blocks of Drupal 8, the most powerful version of Drupal yetAbout This BookBuild complete, complex websites with no prior knowledge of web development entirely using the intuitive Drupal user interfaceFollow a practical case study chapter-by-chapter to construct a complete website as you progressEnsure your sites are modern, responsive and mobile-friendly through utilizing the full features available in Drupal 8Who This Book Is ForIf you want to learn to use Drupal 8 for the first time, or you are transitioning over from a previous version of Drupal, this is the book for you. No knowledge of PHP, MySQL, or HTML is assumed or requiredWhat You Will LearnSet up a local “stack” development environment and install your first Drupal 8 siteFind out what is available in Drupal 8 coreDefine content types and taxonomies—and find out when you should do soUse the powerful Views moduleGet hands-on with image and media handlingExtend Drupal using custom community modulesDevelop the look and feel of your website using Drupal themesManage site users and permissionsIn DetailDrupal 8 sets a new standard for ease of use, while offering countless new ways to tailor and deploy your content to the Web. Drupal 8 allows user to easily customize data structures, listings, and pages, and take advantage of new capabilities for displaying data on mobile devices, building APIs, and adapting to multilingual needs.The book takes you step by step through building a Drupal 8 website. Start with the basics, such as setting up a local “stack” development environment and installing your first Drupal 8 site, then move on to image and media handling, and extending Drupal modules. Push your knowledge by getting to grips with the modular nature of Drupal, and learning to extend it by adding new functionalities to create your new modules. By the end of the book, you will be able to develop and manage a modern and responsive website using Drupal.Style and approachThis is an absolute beginners’ guide, providing step-by-step instructions to help you learn Drupal 8 from scratch.

Learn the fundamentals of vRealize Automation to accelerate the delivery of your IT servicesAbout This BookLearn to install the vRealize Automation product in a distributed architecture using a load balancerPlan backup and recovery strategies for every vRealize automation componentUse vRealize Automation to manage applications and improve operational efficiency using this simple and intuitive guideWho This Book Is ForThis book is for anyone who wants to start their journey with vRealize Automation. It is your one-stop instruction guide to installing and configuring a distributed setup using NSX load balancer. Regardless of whether or not you have used vRealize Automation before, following the steps provided in each chapter will get you started with the product.What You Will LearnUnderstand the basic building blocks of vRealize Automation before embarking on the journey of installationFamiliarize yourself with the requirements and steps that need to be performed during the first phase of the distributed installationCarry out a functional validation of the first phase of installation before completing the installationBuild a blueprint for vSphere endpoint, an essential step for a successful deployment of a service catalogCreate, configure, and deploy tenants, endpoints, blueprints, and the service catalogGet to grips with the failover process for all components in vRealize AutomationLearn to configure the NSX loadbalancer for vRealize Orchestrator for high availabilityLeverage ASD to develop XaaS (Anything as a Service) in vRealize Automation to deliver valuable competenceIn DetailWith the growing interest in Software Defined Data Centers (SDDC), vRealize Automation offers data center users an organized service catalog and governance for administrators. This way, end users gain autonomy while the IT department stays in control, making sure security and compliance requirements are met. Learning what each component does and how they dovetail with each other will bolster your understanding of vRealize Automation.The book starts off with an introduction to the distributed architecture that has been tested and installed in large scale deployments. Implementing and configuring distributed architecture with custom certificates is unarguably a demanding task, and it will be covered next. After this, we will progress with the installation. A vRealize Automation blueprint can be prepared in multiple ways; we will focus solely on vSphere endpoint blueprint. After this, we will discuss the high availability configuration via NSX loadbalancer for vRealize Orchestrator. Finally, we end with Advanced Service Designer, which provides service architects with the ability to create advanced services and publish them as catalog items.Style and approachThis book takes a step-by-step approach, is explained in a conversational and easy-to-follow style, and includes ample screenshots . Each topic is explained sequentially through planning, preparing, installing, configuring, and validating of all vRealize Automation’s components.

Learn the art of regression analysis with PythonAbout This BookBecome competent at implementing regression analysis in PythonSolve some of the complex data science problems related to predicting outcomesGet to grips with various types of regression for effective data analysisWho This Book Is ForThe book targets Python developers, with a basic understanding of data science, statistics, and math, who want to learn how to do regression analysis on a dataset. It is beneficial if you have some knowledge of statistics and data science.What You Will LearnFormat a dataset for regression and evaluate its performanceApply multiple linear regression to real-world problemsLearn to classify training pointsCreate an observation matrix, using different techniques of data analysis and cleaningApply several techniques to decrease (and eventually fix) any overfitting problemLearn to scale linear models to a big dataset and deal with incremental dataIn DetailRegression is the process of learning relationships between inputs and continuous outputs from example data, which enables predictions for novel inputs. There are many kinds of regression algorithms, and the aim of this book is to explain which is the right one to use for each set of problems and how to prepare real-world data for it. With this book you will learn to define a simple regression problem and evaluate its performance. The book will help you understand how to properly parse a dataset, clean it, and create an output matrix optimally built for regression. You will begin with a simple regression algorithm to solve some data science problems and then progress to more complex algorithms. The book will enable you to use regression models to predict outcomes and take critical business decisions. Through the book, you will gain knowledge to use Python for building fast better linear models and to apply the results in Python or in any computer language you prefer.Style and approach This is a practical tutorial-based book. You will be given an example problem and then supplied with the relevant code and how to walk through it. The details are provided in a step by step manner, followed by a thorough explanation of the math underlying the solution. This approach will help you leverage your own data using the same techniques.

Over 100 effective recipes to help you design, implement, and manage the software-defined and massively scalable Ceph storage systemAbout This BookImplement a Ceph cluster successfully and gain deep insights into its best practicesHarness the abilities of experienced storage administrators and architects, and run your own software-defined storage systemThis comprehensive, step-by-step guide will show you how to build and manage Ceph storage in production environmentWho This Book Is ForThis book is aimed at storage and cloud system engineers, system administrators, and technical architects who are interested in building software-defined storage solutions to power their cloud and virtual infrastructure. If you have basic knowledge of GNU/Linux and storage systems, with no experience of software defined storage solutions and Ceph, but eager to learn this book is for you.What You Will LearnUnderstand, install, configure, and manage the Ceph storage systemGet to grips with performance tuning and benchmarking, and gain practical tips to run Ceph in productionIntegrate Ceph with OpenStack Cinder, Glance, and nova componentsDeep dive into Ceph object storage, including s3, swift, and keystone integrationBuild a Dropbox-like file sync and share service and Ceph federated gateway setupGain hands-on experience with Calamari and VSM for cluster monitoringFamiliarize yourself with Ceph operations such as maintenance, monitoring, and troubleshootingUnderstand advanced topics including erasure coding, CRUSH map, cache pool, and system maintenanceIn DetailCeph is a unified, distributed storage system designed for excellent performance, reliability, and scalability. This cutting-edge technology has been transforming the storage industry, and is evolving rapidly as a leader in software-defined storage space, extending full support to cloud platforms such as Openstack and Cloudstack, including virtualization platforms. It is the most popular storage backend for Openstack, public, and private clouds, so is the first choice for a storage solution. Ceph is backed by RedHat and is developed by a thriving open source community of individual developers as well as several companies across the globe.This book takes you from a basic knowledge of Ceph to an expert understanding of the most advanced features, walking you through building up a production-grade Ceph storage cluster and helping you develop all the skills you need to plan, deploy, and effectively manage your Ceph cluster. Beginning with the basics, you’ll create a Ceph cluster, followed by block, object, and file storage provisioning. Next, you’ll get a step-by-step tutorial on integrating it with OpenStack and building a Dropbox-like object storage solution. We’ll also take a look at federated architecture and CephFS, and you’ll dive into Calamari and VSM for monitoring the Ceph environment. You’ll develop expert knowledge on troubleshooting and benchmarking your Ceph storage cluster. Finally, you’ll get to grips with the best practices to operate Ceph in a production environment.Style and approach This step-by-step guide is filled with practical tutorials, making complex scenarios easy to understand.

Discover exciting and fun projects by building brilliant applications for the Apple WatchAbout This BookExplore the opportunities opened up to developers by Apple’s latest device: the Apple WatchBe a crackerjack at developing software across a broad range of watch app categoriesFrom an eminent author, master all stages of development, from the first stage through to a completed projectWho This Book Is ForIf you have some basic knowledge of programming in Swift and are looking for the best way to get started with Apple Watch development, this book is just the right one for you!What You Will LearnUnderstand the concept of the Apple Watch as an autonomous device as well as it being paired with the iPhoneGet your app up and runningDesign exciting, inspiring, and attractive layouts for your appsMake your user interface more engaging using images and animationEnable your Watch and iPhone apps to transport and share dataLeverage the feature-rich set of WatchKit technologies provided by AppleConnect your apps to the InternetSubmit your app to the App StoreIn DetailWith Apple’s eagerly anticipated entry into the wearable arena, the field is wide open for a new era of app development. The Apple Watch is one of the most important technologies of our time.This easy-to-understand book takes beginners on a delightful journey of discovering the features available to the developer, right up to the completion of medium-level projects ready for App Store submission. It provides the fastest way to develop real-world apps for the Apple Watch by teaching you the concepts of Watch UI, visual haptic and audio, message and data exchange between watch and phone, Web communication, and finally Visual, haptic as well as audio feedback for users.By the end of this book, you will have developed at least four fully functioning apps for deployment on watchOS 2.Style and approachThis is a step-by-step guide to developing apps for the Apple Watch with the help of screenshots and fully coded working examples.