Computer Graphics Programming Prelim Reviewer

Computer Graphics

Describes the use of computers to create and manipulate images

Modeling

Deals with the mathematical specification of shape and appearance properties in a way that can be stored on the computer

Rendering

Deals with the creation of shaded images from 3D computer models

Animation

A technique to create an illusion of motion through a sequence of images

Raster

Is an array of pixels displayed on a screen, arranged in a grid with two dimensions

Pixels

Specifies colors using triples of floating-point numbers between - and 1, which represent the amount of red, green, and blui light existing in a color

Resolution

Is the number of pixels in the raster

Precision

Is the number of bits used for each pixel

Buffer

A part of a computer’s memory that serves as temporary storage for data while being moved from one location to another

Framebuffer

Pixel data is stored in a region of this memory. It can contain multiple buffers that store different types of data for each pixel

Color Buffer

It stores RGB values

Depth Buffer

Stores distances from points on scene objects to the virtual camera. It determines whether the object’s points are in front of or behind other objects

Stencil Buffer

Which may be used to store values used in generating advanced effects, such as shadows, reflections, or portal rendering

Animations

Consists of a sequence of images quickly displayed

Frame

Each of the images that is displayed

Frame Rate

The speed or rate at which these images appear. It is measured in framers per second (FPS)

Shaders

Programs run by GPUs. These are used to perform many different computations required in the rendering process

Application Programming Interface

Defines a set of commands, functions, and protocols that can be used in interacting iwth an external system such as the GPU

DirectX API and HIgh-Level Shading Language (HLSL)

Used on Microsoft platforms, including the Xbox game console

Metal API and Metal Shading Language

Runs on modern Mac computers, iPhones, and iPads

OpenGL (Open Graphics Library) API and OpenGL Shading Language (GLSL)

A cross-platform library, OpenGL is the most widely adopted graphics API

Graphics Pipeline

Is an abstract model used to describe a sequence of steps needed in rendering a three-dimensional scene. It enables a computation task to be split into subtasks thus increasing overall efficiency

Application

Initializing the window where rendered graphics will be displayed sending data to the GPU

Geometry Processing

Determining the position of each vertex of the geometric shapes to be rendered, implemented by a program known as vertex shader

Rasterization

Determining which pixels correspond to the geometric shapes to be rendered

Pixel Processing

Determining the color of each pixel in the rendered image, involving a program called a fragment shader

Stage 1: Application

Primarily involves processes that run on the CPU

Stage 2: Geometry Processing

The shape of a geometric object is defined by a mesh, a collection of points that are grouped into lines or triangles

Stage 3: Rasterization

Once the vertext shader has