Gouraud Shading + 3D Modelling? (Summary of Responses)

[Ephraim Silverberg]

The following is the summary of responses that I received regarding my
inquiry concerning achieving real-time gouraud shading and 3d modelling on
a Sun.  My comments are interspersed throughout the article in brace
brackets.  I have attempted to put the summary in digest format in order
to make the moderator's (and readers') life easier.

Ephraim
ephraim at heart.technion.ac.il

> From: gfr%wolfgang at gateway.mitre.org (Glenn Roberts)

Have you checked out "Movie BYU"?  This package, available from the
computer science department at Brigham Young University (sorry I don't
have a point of contact), is designed for 3-D graphics display and
supports shading.  I think it is distributed at relatively low cost (MITRE
has a site agreement).  I have a copy but haven't had a chance to play
with it.

{ We do indeed have the Movie package; however, it was designed for slow
graphics terminals (such as tektronix) and the Sun driver cannot provide
the needed real-time capabilities for dynamic modelling. BYU has indicated
that they would like to upgrade the package for faster terminals in the
future.  The contact used to be "movcanan at byuvax.bitnet", but they
indicated that this address would be changed at the end of Nov. '88 -- new
address is unknown.  ephraim }

- glenn roberts, MITRE Corporation, McLean VA 22102 (703) 883-6820
  gfr%wolfgang at gateway.mitre.org

> From: Jim Hudgens <hudgens at ray.met.fsu.edu>

We use an attached processor and control it with Sunview.  The processor's
is made by Star Technologies, and is called a Graphicon G1700.  While this
is a rather expensive option, it is also rather fast, on the order of
thousands of polygons per second.  Without some form of graphics'
processor, I think you may be quite disappointed in the speed of
rendering, regardless of the package used.

> From: John F. Fowler <jffowler at icarus.cns.syr.EDU>

Make sure to look at the PHIGS+ implementation from Template Graphics
Software.  It is better than SUNPhigs and they also have user interface
tools.   TGS' PHIGS+ was also chosen and endorsed as the #1 Phigs for
Silicon Graphics (which is better hardware for this stuff anyway).

USA (619) 457-5359.

SUNCore is indeed dead.  SUN is freezing it and expects over the next
couple of years to move away from it.

John Fowler
Syracuse University
Computing and Network Services         Internet: jffowler at icarus.cns.syr.edu
Machinery Hall                         Bitnet:   oprjff at suvm
Syracuse,  NY  13244-1260  USA         AT&T:     (315) 443-2861