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TUTORIALS
Performance OpenGL:
Platform Independent Techniques
Implicit Modelling
Augmented Reality Interfaces
An introduction to colour in computer graphics
Seeing in 3D
Next-generation virtual worlds with VRML, X3D and
MPEG4
RenderMan for Artists and Designers
Performance
OpenGL: Platform Independent Techniques
Presenter: Dave Shreiner (SGI)
Length: Half day
One of OpenGL's virtues
is that it is powerful enough for the novice graphics programmer
to be successful in developing applications, yet it's powerful
and flexible enough for the most demanding interactive graphics
applications. Performance OpenGL closely analyzes the OpenGL rendering
pipeline, discussing each stage and its affect on rendering performance.
Additionally, the tutorial illustrates a number of "good
habits" that an OpenGL programmer should develop when developing
code with an eye towards performance.
Implicit Modelling
Presenters: Alexander Pasko (Hosei University), Brian Wyvill (University
of Calgary)
Length: Half day
Models based on traditional
paradigms such as polygons or parametric patches, require very
large data volumes to capture a reasonable degree of complexity.
In contrast, this course presents the state-of-the-art in the
area of implicit modeling. This methodology contains numerous
advantages over traditional approaches, the area is gaining in
importance with a wide range of applications from commercial animation
to computer aided design and computer games. Methods for designing,
storing, manipulating and rendering these models will be presented,
along with practical applications and future directions for research.
The course will cover implicit modelling techniques both from
the point of view of skeleton modelling and the function representation
(FRep). Two practical systems will be presented: the BlobTree
and Hyperfun along with descriptions of the various problem areas
and solutions. Algorithms for modelling, rendering and animation
will be presented along with many practical examples.
Augmented Reality Interfaces
Presenter: Mark Billinghurst (HITLabNZ, University of Canterbury)
Length: Half day
As computers become
more and more invisible, Augmented Reality (the overlaying of
virtual images on the real world) is becoming an increasingly
important application area for computer graphics and user interface
design. This tutorial will provide a detailed introduction to
Augmented Reality techniques and research directions. It will
also provide an overview of the open-source software tools needed
to build AR applications, and show some hands-on demonstrations.
Although AR techniques are well know in the Virtual Reality community,
there have been few opportunities for the broader community to
gain an introduction to the field. This tutorial helps meet that
need. It is particularly designed to provide a cutting edge introduction
to research on Augmented Reality, so that attendees will leave
knowing which are the key unexplored areas for AR research, and
some of the skills to explore those areas.
An introduction to colour in computer graphics
Presenter: Graeme Gill (Colorbus)
Length: Half day
Workers in computer
graphics deal with colour every day, but few really understand
the principals on which colour in graphics systems are based,
or how to deal with colour when communicating with others outside
their particular field, be it CGI, film, video, photography, art
or printing.
This course will attempt
to lay a foundation for understanding how human beings perceive
colour, how this has been standardized as a common means to measure
and quantify colour, and how this modern understanding of colour
has been used to create tools and standards to allow the communication
of colour accurately between many disciplines and media.
This course should
be valuable to those looking for an introduction to colour in
computer graphics, as well as those who are looking to expand
their knowledge of colour with a broader view of the field, and
would like to be in a better position to deal with the colour
issues that arise in sending the results of their work into the
world.
Seeing in 3D
Presenter: Geoff Wyvill (University of Otago)
Length: Full day
Stand a cube on its
corner. What is the shape of a horizontal cross-section taken
at half the height of this object? About 4% of us can reason about
3D space well enough to answer this question easily and with confidence.
Most of us enter a state of panic when confronted by 3D problems.
Yet it is possible to train yourself to think and visualize in
3D. We take you through a series of exercises over one day that
will start you thinking in 3D. Once you have the basic principles
you can develop the skill independently.
Next-generation virtual worlds with VRML,
X3D and MPEG4
Presenters: Viveka Weiley (Karmanaut),
Chris Thorne (Systemic), Damian Hills
(Assimilate) Miriam English (Independent Virtual Reality Artist)
Length: Full day
Web3D has come along
way since VRML2 was standardised in 1997. New tools, techniques,
and richer standards are emerging. A plethora of proprietary formats
exist, alongside improved open standards. The arrival of MPEG4
set-top boxes with VRML as the 3D layer promises a new delivery
platform for realtime 3D virtual worlds.
The first half of
this course will provide an overview of the current state of Web3D
including proprietary technologies as well as open standards,
and an introduction to VRML97, which is the international standard
for Web3D and the basis for the 3D layer of MPEG4. We will then
cover integration of VRML with other Web3D technologies such as
Java3D and Shockwave3D.
The second half of
the course will cover the latest tools for VRML content creation,
and go beyond VRML97 to the extensions outlined in Amendment 1
such as NURBS and GeoVRML. The afternoon will cover the new VRML-compatible
XML standard known as X3D. Finally, we will cover cross-platform
authoring and delivery of VRML content to platforms such as Windows,
Mac and Linux PCs, games consoles, handheld devices, and MPEG4-capable
devices.
RenderMan for Artists and Designers
Presenter: Malcolm Kesson (Savannah College of Art and Design)
Length: Full day
Traditionally it has
been difficult for artists and designers to make creative use
of Pixar's RenderMan technology. It often seems that without a
background in computer science the learning curve to getting started
with RenderMan, especially in relation to exploring the shading
language, is too steep. Rarely are there opportunities for artists
and designers to be given a basic hands-on introduction to RenderMan,
its Shading Language or, for example, its use with Maya. The purpose
of this tutorial is to provide just such an opportunity. The content
of the tutorial is drawn from 6 years of experience of teaching
RenderMan to undergraduate and graduate students of art.
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