Executive
Summary
The images that we are bombarded with from
television, the movies, and now, our computers,
are all testaments to the power of 3D graphics.
Whether we are faced with the computer generated
image of Woody, the main character in the motion
picture Toy Story, or fighting for our lives
against the forces of the Empire in the computer
game Rebel Assault, we have come to desire
greater reality from our computer’s
graphics. We want to feel a part of the virtual
worlds created on our computer screens. The
recent explosion in home computing has put more
power on the desktop than a supercomputer
provided only a decade ago. The images coming out
of Hollywood have made users aware of the
possibilities within the reach of their own
machines. With a wealth of new innovation in 3D
graphics accelerators for the PC, the ability to
provide compelling, virtual worlds that can be
maneuvered in real time, is now within the grasp
of companies like Diamond Multimedia. And
it’s going to be affordable for the average
home and corporate PC user. Computer games,
multimedia titles, and business applications,
will all eventually be 3D enabled. 3D graphics
will simplify the use of computers, make
navigation across the internet easier, and
provide unparalleled entertainment experiences on
the PC.
The silicon that can make this all possible is
now coming to market. 3D graphics subsystems are
designed to handle the computationally intensive
tasks of manipulating fully rendered, 3D objects
in real time. They have been designed to
accelerate in hardware 3D images that bring a
scene to life by creating effects such as texture
that is almost touchable, atmosphere that is
almost breathable, and light that is almost
blinding in its brilliance, or subtle in its
nuance. The goal of 3D accelerators is to bring
true interactivity to multimedia.
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Introduction
The world is not flat. Neither is it monochrome.
Neither is it smooth. It’s a colorful place;
dry in parts, wet in others. It has its rough
patches and it has its smooth spots. It is a
feast for the senses. Computers have often tried
to emulate the experience of the real world by
creating a facsimile of it on their screens. With
recent advances in technology, 3D has passed out
of the hands of science fiction writers and
jumped on to the desktop screen. The computer
user of today is ready for a visual experience on
the desktop that matches the wizardry of
Hollywood special effects motion pictures.Computers
are not the most intuitive machines to operate .
The computer display is a small portal on a much
larger world of information. The only visual
communication that exists between man and
machine, fits into the small space of this
window. A GUI crams all the
information it can into the space, but it is
restricted by the width and height of the screen.
3D is not restricted by the area of the screen
because, it has depth. Adding a third dimension
to graphics increases the volume of information
at the fingertips of the computer user. 3D is
easier to maneuver around then 2D GUI screens. It
mirrors the real world.
It’s a rare person who needs a flat map
to navigate through their own home. By adding
depth to graphics, we create a world model that
can be explored in the same intuitive way as the
real world. So, 3D is not just about how lifelike
computer graphics may appear, but it is also a
more effective way for users to make the most of
their computers.
The price for real time 3D on the PC has to be
paid in hardware. Real time 3D is computationally
intensive and although the Pentium has proven to
be a very fast processor, there is a still a need
for a graphics co-processor. It is possible to do
3D graphics processing using the host processor
only, that is run in software-only mode, but this
limits the amount of realism that can be placed
in any scene. Hardware acceleration means
applications can offload 3D functions to a
co-processor and increase the complexity and
level of detail in any scene, as well as the
speed.
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