Interactive Computer Graphics Overview

The phrase computer graphics was created by William Fetter in 1960 and work in this field officially started when Ivan Sutherland in 1963 showed the computers potential to be used for interactive drawings. However 3 major barriers were discovered that made the computer graphics potential slow to develop.  

1. The high cost of computing at that time meant that only very few universities and industrial companies could afford to spend so much on these machines for research purposes only
2. nobody really understood in-depth the requirements that were needed for an effective computer graphics system
3. the complexity of system software and application software was massively underestimated

 However over the years the prices of computer soft and hardware dropped significantly and in contrast the quality of the software and hardware rose by quite a large margin. The Operating systems continued to improve enabling ours and the computers ability to cope and interact with the software. There were great advancements in the mathematical algorithms needed for generating pictures more so for the generation of 3D objects, so that creating something as simple as a line on a computer was no longer a near impossible task. 

In Note

An algorithm is a definite list of well-defined instructions for completing a task; that given an initial, state will proceed through a well-defined series of successive states, eventually terminating in an end-state. Algorithms originated as a means of recording procedures for solving mathematical problems such as finding the common divisor of two numbers or multiplying two numbers. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Algorithm) 

The progress of computer graphics was so but by the 1970’s it had become an accepted and powerful new form of tool used by engineers, scientists, designers and artists alike. Today the focus has shifted from the hardware, to the software. As high performance PC parts are readily available to the public via many different companies, so the further improvement of algorithms to create more sophisticated software has become more prevalent.

Cartesian Co-ordinate System

3D software packages use the Cartesian Co-ordinate System to create the illusion of working in a 3d environment on a 2D surface i.e. your computer screen, all 3D bases like games programs use this system to locate any point anywhere at any time. 

French scientist and philosopher Rene Descartes was the one who invented the Cartesian Co-ordinate System in 1637, he created this system in order to merge algebra and Euclidean geometry.

The CCS (Cartesian Co-ordinate System) when it was invented originally consisted of only the X axis (width) and the Y axis (length) and the place where these axis meet called the Origin, the two axis run purpendicular to eachother and exstend indefinatly in both the minus and the positive directions enabling us to find any one point anywhere on a 2 Dimentional area. This makes the 2 Dimensional CC System.

In the 19th century a 3rd Axis known as Z or Depth was added this axis goes down through the x,y origin at a right angle with the addition of the Z axis this created the possibility to be able to find any point anywhere in a 3 Dimensional volume.