dhs@iddic.UUCP (David H. Straayer) (08/15/85)
The Graphical Kernel System, GKS, was adopted by the American National Standards Institute as X3.124-1985 on June 24,1985. GKS is a software interface to graphics. A "binding" of GKS to the Fortran Language is included as X3.124.1-1985. Other bindings of GKS to C, Pascal, and ADA are in process. On July 15, 1985, GKS was adopted by the International Standards Organization, ISO, as International Standard 7942. GKS is in the process of becoming a national standard in the United Kingdom, France, Japan, F.R. Germany, the Netherlands, and the USSR(!). GKS is a standard for two-dimensional graphics only. An ISO work item has been approved to extend GKS to three dimensional functionality. In February of 1985 GKS-3D was registered as a Draft Proposed International Standard. One round of "DP" balloting has been completed, another will be held in November. GKS-3D is scheduled to become a Draft International Standard next June (1986). I (Dave Straayer) serve as "Rapporteur", or chairman, of the GKS-3D project, and am also a member of ANSC X3H3.5 (the corresponding ANSI committee). The Computer Graphics Metafile, CGM (formerly VDM) has had its second DP ballot. This is a proposal for a standard "picture file", and it is compatible with the GKS proposal. The Computer Graphics Interface, CGI (formerly VDI) has been approved as an ISO work item. It is compatible with GKS, and serves to standardize a lower level of graphics. My view of CGI is that it is GKS without the normalization transform (hence it does not need floating point), plus BitBlt raster and other low level functions used to implement higher level GKS functions. Finally, the Programmers Hierarchical Interactive Graphics System, PHIGS, has been approved as an ISO work item. PHIGS is also due to be circulated for public review in the US under ANSI procedures this fall or winter. PHIGS is a superset of GKS functions, providing the segment subroutine and segment editing functions missing from GKS. The current PHIGS draft describes a system which is not compatible with GKS. This is (in my opinion) the single most important technical issue which will have to be sorted out in the next year or so. I will post a notice when I get information about how to order the official GKS from ANSI. Earlier drafts have had wide circulation, including a special issue of ACM SIGGRAPH's COMPUTER GRAPHICS Quarterly. I don't recommend trying to get a hold of working drafts of standards until they are formally released for public comment, unless you are willing to work on the committees. Working on the project is the only way to get a handle on how many changes should be expected before adoption, and even then it can be risky guessing! There are several vendors around willing to sell you implementations of GKS (including my employer!). Good luck with GKS and other standards. Dave Straayer