Final Review, Fall 10
CS 445: Computer Graphics

The midterm will be held Wednesday, Dec 15, 2-5pm, 2010.

Review class notes, online notes, labs, and relevant sections in textbook. The exam will be closed book.

Topics

• Topics from first half of the semester. See midterm topics.

• Controls for Navigation through a scene.

  • Fly through: u, v, n
  • Tumble, track, dolly
  • Setting up the LookAt matrix.

• Shading in OpenGL

  • Defining and enabling lights 0 through 7: setting position (world vs eye), ambient, diffuse, specular
  • Defining and enabling materials: ambient, diffuse, specular, shine, emmissive
  • Phong Light model at vertices.
  • Computing and setting normals.
  • Shading Models: Flat Shading, Gouraud Shading, vs Phong Shading

• Programmable Shader Concepts

  • What is a vertex shader vs what is a fragment shader.
  • Where do vertex and fragment shaders fit in the OpenGL graphics pipeline.
  • Advanges of using shaders over the fixed pipeline. E.g. why can't the OpenGL fixed pipeline implement bump mapping or the Phong Lighting Model? Why are spotlights problematic in the fixed pipeline?
  • What is bump mapping and why is it used.

• Blending and transparency with the alpha component.

  • How does it work?
  • Why is it difficult to do transparency correctly?
  • How does the "discard()" function work in a programmable shader and why is it not possible to get the same effect in fixed pipeline.

• How does one implement a color ramp (e.g. for a DEM)

• Textures

  • Frame buffer(s).
  • Texels
  • Coordinate systems: texture (s,t), parameterized (u,v), world (x,y,z), screen (x_s, y_s).
  • Texture coordinates in OpenGL
  • Texture parameters: wrap type - repeat vs clamp
  • Texture environment modes: decal vs modulate
  • Texture projection modes: GL_EYE_LINEAR, GL_SPHERE_MAP, GL_OBJECT_LINEAR
  • Generating textures: procedural vs image
  • Bump mapping.
  • Mipmapping - multum in parvo (many things in a small place)

• Dynamical Systems: Physically Based Modeling

  • Six degrees of freedom: v and p.
  • First order differential equation representing a particle motion.
  • Solution using Euler's equation.
  • Resulting equations and solutions for constant motion (f=0), gravity, and springs.