Opengl Programming Guide
OpenGL Programming Guide
(Addison-Wesley Publishing Company)
Chapter 1 Introduction to OpenGL
Chapter Objectives After reading this chapter, you’ll be able to do the following: Appreciate in general terms what OpenGL does Identify different levels of rendering complexity Understand the basic structure of an OpenGL program Recognize OpenGL command syntax Identify the sequence of operations of the OpenGL rendering pipeline Understand in general terms how to animate graphics in an OpenGL program This chapter introduces OpenGL. It has the following major sections: "What Is OpenGL?" explains what OpenGL is, what it does and doesn’t do, and how it works. "A Smidgen of OpenGL Code" presents a small OpenGL program and briefly discusses it. This section also defines a few basic computer-graphics terms. "OpenGL Command Syntax" explains some of the conventions and notations used by OpenGL commands. "OpenGL as a State Machine" describes the use of state variables in OpenGL and the commands for querying, enabling, and disabling states. "OpenGL Rendering Pipeline" shows a typical sequence of operations for processing geometric and image data. "OpenGL-Related Libraries" describes sets of OpenGL-related routines, including an auxiliary library specifically written for this book to simplify programming examples. "Animation" explains in general terms how to create pictures on the screen that move.
What Is OpenGL?
OpenGL is a software interface to graphics hardware. This interface consists of about 150 distinct commands that you use to specify the objects and operations needed to produce interactive three-dimensional applications. OpenGL is designed as a streamlined, hardware-independent interface to be implemented on many different hardware platforms. To achieve these qualities, no commands for performing windowing tasks or obtaining user input are included in OpenGL; instead, you must work through whatever windowing system controls the particular hardware you’re using.
(Addison-Wesley Publishing Company)
Chapter 1 Introduction to OpenGL
Chapter Objectives After reading this chapter, you’ll be able to do the following: Appreciate in general terms what OpenGL does Identify different levels of rendering complexity Understand the basic structure of an OpenGL program Recognize OpenGL command syntax Identify the sequence of operations of the OpenGL rendering pipeline Understand in general terms how to animate graphics in an OpenGL program This chapter introduces OpenGL. It has the following major sections: "What Is OpenGL?" explains what OpenGL is, what it does and doesn’t do, and how it works. "A Smidgen of OpenGL Code" presents a small OpenGL program and briefly discusses it. This section also defines a few basic computer-graphics terms. "OpenGL Command Syntax" explains some of the conventions and notations used by OpenGL commands. "OpenGL as a State Machine" describes the use of state variables in OpenGL and the commands for querying, enabling, and disabling states. "OpenGL Rendering Pipeline" shows a typical sequence of operations for processing geometric and image data. "OpenGL-Related Libraries" describes sets of OpenGL-related routines, including an auxiliary library specifically written for this book to simplify programming examples. "Animation" explains in general terms how to create pictures on the screen that move.
What Is OpenGL?
OpenGL is a software interface to graphics hardware. This interface consists of about 150 distinct commands that you use to specify the objects and operations needed to produce interactive three-dimensional applications. OpenGL is designed as a streamlined, hardware-independent interface to be implemented on many different hardware platforms. To achieve these qualities, no commands for performing windowing tasks or obtaining user input are included in OpenGL; instead, you must work through whatever windowing system controls the particular hardware you’re using.