When? These are the proceedings of Finite Geometries, the Fourth Isle of Thorns Conference, which took place from Sunday 16 to Friday 21 July, 2000. It was organised by the editors of this volume. The Third Conference in 1990 was published as Advances in Finite Geometries and Designs by Oxford University Press and the Second Conference in 1980 was published as Finite Geometries and Designs by Cambridge University Press. The main speakers were A. R. Calderbank, P. J. Cameron, C. E. Praeger, B. Schmidt, H. Van Maldeghem. There were 64 participants and 42 contributions, all listed at the end of the volume. Conference web site http://www. maths. susx. ac. uk/Staff/JWPH/ Why? This collection of 21 articles describes the latest research and current state of the art in the following inter-linked areas: • combinatorial structures in finite projective and affine spaces, also known as Galois geometries, in which combinatorial objects such as blocking sets, spreads and partial spreads, ovoids, arcs and caps, as well as curves and hypersurfaces, are all of interest; • geometric and algebraic coding theory; • finite groups and incidence geometries, as in polar spaces, gener­ alized polygons and diagram geometries; • algebraic and geometric design theory, in particular designs which have interesting symmetric properties and difference sets, which play an important role, because of their close connections to both Galois geometry and coding theory.

This book is the second edition of the third and last volume of a treatise on projective spaces over a finite field, also known as Galois geometries. This volume completes the trilogy comprised of plane case (first volume) and three dimensions (second volume). This revised edition includes much updating and new material. It is a mostly self-contained study of classical varieties over a finite field, related incidence structures and particular point sets in finite n-dimensional projective spaces. General Galois Geometries is suitable for PhD students and researchers in combinatorics and geometry. The separate chapters can be used for courses at postgraduate level.

This book is the second edition of the third and last volume of a treatise on projective spaces over a finite field, also known as Galois geometries. This volume completes the trilogy comprised of plane case (first volume) and three dimensions (second volume). This revised edition includes much updating and new material. It is a mostly self-contained study of classical varieties over a finite field, related incidence structures and particular point sets in finite n-dimensional projective spaces. General Galois Geometries is suitable for PhD students and researchers in combinatorics and geometry. The separate chapters can be used for courses at postgraduate level.

This book is the second edition of the third and last volume of a treatise on projective spaces over a finite field, also known as Galois geometries. This volume completes the trilogy comprised of plane case (first volume) and three dimensions (second volume). This revised edition includes much updating and new material. It is a mostly self-contained study of classical varieties over a finite field, related incidence structures and particular point sets in finite n-dimensional projective spaces. General Galois Geometries is suitable for PhD students and researchers in combinatorics and geometry. The separate chapters can be used for courses at postgraduate level.

When? These are the proceedings of Finite Geometries, the Fourth Isle of Thorns Conference, which took place from Sunday 16 to Friday 21 July, 2000. It was organised by the editors of this volume. The Third Conference in 1990 was published as Advances in Finite Geometries and Designs by Oxford University Press and the Second Conference in 1980 was published as Finite Geometries and Designs by Cambridge University Press. The main speakers were A. R. Calderbank, P. J. Cameron, C. E. Praeger, B. Schmidt, H. Van Maldeghem. There were 64 participants and 42 contributions, all listed at the end of the volume. Conference web site http://www. maths. susx. ac. uk/Staff/JWPH/ Why? This collection of 21 articles describes the latest research and current state of the art in the following inter-linked areas: • combinatorial structures in finite projective and affine spaces, also known as Galois geometries, in which combinatorial objects such as blocking sets, spreads and partial spreads, ovoids, arcs and caps, as well as curves and hypersurfaces, are all of interest; • geometric and algebraic coding theory; • finite groups and incidence geometries, as in polar spaces, gener­ alized polygons and diagram geometries; • algebraic and geometric design theory, in particular designs which have interesting symmetric properties and difference sets, which play an important role, because of their close connections to both Galois geometry and coding theory.

When? These are the proceedings of Finite Geometries, the Fourth Isle of Thorns Conference, which took place from Sunday 16 to Friday 21 July, 2000. It was organised by the editors of this volume. The Third Conference in 1990 was published as Advances in Finite Geometries and Designs by Oxford University Press and the Second Conference in 1980 was published as Finite Geometries and Designs by Cambridge University Press. The main speakers were A. R. Calderbank, P. J. Cameron, C. E. Praeger, B. Schmidt, H. Van Maldeghem. There were 64 participants and 42 contributions, all listed at the end of the volume. Conference web site http://www. maths. susx. ac. uk/Staff/JWPH/ Why? This collection of 21 articles describes the latest research and current state of the art in the following inter-linked areas: • combinatorial structures in finite projective and affine spaces, also known as Galois geometries, in which combinatorial objects such as blocking sets, spreads and partial spreads, ovoids, arcs and caps, as well as curves and hypersurfaces, are all of interest; • geometric and algebraic coding theory; • finite groups and incidence geometries, as in polar spaces, gener­ alized polygons and diagram geometries; • algebraic and geometric design theory, in particular designs which have interesting symmetric properties and difference sets, which play an important role, because of their close connections to both Galois geometry and coding theory.

This book is the second edition of the third and last volume of a treatise on projective spaces over a finite field, also known as Galois geometries. This volume completes the trilogy comprised of plane case (first volume) and three dimensions (second volume). This revised edition includes much updating and new material. It is a mostly self-contained study of classical varieties over a finite field, related incidence structures and particular point sets in finite n-dimensional projective spaces. General Galois Geometries is suitable for PhD students and researchers in combinatorics and geometry. The separate chapters can be used for courses at postgraduate level.

This book is the second edition of the third and last volume of a treatise on projective spaces over a finite field, also known as Galois geometries. This volume completes the trilogy comprised of plane case (first volume) and three dimensions (second volume). This revised edition includes much updating and new material. It is a mostly self-contained study of classical varieties over a finite field, related incidence structures and particular point sets in finite n-dimensional projective spaces. General Galois Geometries is suitable for PhD students and researchers in combinatorics and geometry. The separate chapters can be used for courses at postgraduate level.

This book is the second edition of the third and last volume of a treatise on projective spaces over a finite field, also known as Galois geometries. This volume completes the trilogy comprised of plane case (first volume) and three dimensions (second volume). This revised edition includes much updating and new material. It is a mostly self-contained study of classical varieties over a finite field, related incidence structures and particular point sets in finite n-dimensional projective spaces. General Galois Geometries is suitable for PhD students and researchers in combinatorics and geometry. The separate chapters can be used for courses at postgraduate level.

When? These are the proceedings of Finite Geometries, the Fourth Isle of Thorns Conference, which took place from Sunday 16 to Friday 21 July, 2000. It was organised by the editors of this volume. The Third Conference in 1990 was published as Advances in Finite Geometries and Designs by Oxford University Press and the Second Conference in 1980 was published as Finite Geometries and Designs by Cambridge University Press. The main speakers were A. R. Calderbank, P. J. Cameron, C. E. Praeger, B. Schmidt, H. Van Maldeghem. There were 64 participants and 42 contributions, all listed at the end of the volume. Conference web site http://www. maths. susx. ac. uk/Staff/JWPH/ Why? This collection of 21 articles describes the latest research and current state of the art in the following inter-linked areas: • combinatorial structures in finite projective and affine spaces, also known as Galois geometries, in which combinatorial objects such as blocking sets, spreads and partial spreads, ovoids, arcs and caps, as well as curves and hypersurfaces, are all of interest; • geometric and algebraic coding theory; • finite groups and incidence geometries, as in polar spaces, gener­ alized polygons and diagram geometries; • algebraic and geometric design theory, in particular designs which have interesting symmetric properties and difference sets, which play an important role, because of their close connections to both Galois geometry and coding theory.