lrm5110@tahoma.UUCP (Larry R. Masden) (02/09/89)
We are looking for information regarding "standard" graphics libraries (e.g., PHIGS, GKS) which are available for Apollo, Masscomp, and Sun workstations as well as the more powerful PC-compatibles. Is anything out there which supports window manipulation of some sort, rapid screen/memory bitmap oper- ations, viewing options such as zoom and pan, and multiple hardcopy options such as bitmap file dumps and automated POSTSCRIPT file creation? What we currently work on is implemented in Apollo GMR and GPR; we'd like to make it more portable. Has anybody used such a thing and liked it? -- Larry Masden Voice: (206) 237-2564 Boeing Commercial Airplanes UUCP: ..!uw-beaver!ssc-vax!shuksan!tahoma!lrm5110 P.O. Box 3707, M/S 66-22 Seattle, WA 98124-2207
jch@apollo.COM (Jan Hardenbergh) (02/15/89)
> From: lrm5110@tahoma.UUCP (Larry R. Masden) > Subject: Portable graphics systems > Message-ID: <284@tahoma.UUCP> > We are looking for information regarding "standard" graphics > libraries (e.g., PHIGS, GKS) which are available for Apollo, > Masscomp, and Sun workstations as well as the more powerful > PC-compatibles. Is anything out there which supports window > manipulation of some sort, rapid screen/memory bitmap oper- > ations, viewing options such as zoom and pan, and multiple > hardcopy options such as bitmap file dumps and automated > POSTSCRIPT file creation? Not as a standard. But it is possible to use Apollo's Domain/PHIGS and still use GPR or X to access the bitmap. While these interactions are device dependent and not usually documented fully there is usually a way to get what you want accomplished. My advice would be to define why PHIGS alone will not meet your needs and try to inlfuence PHIGS vendors while they are in the early stages of supporting PHIGS. Zooming and panning can be done easily in PHIGS by changing the viewing matrices or the workstation viewport. Apollo's PHIGS (and other vendors') supports CGM output workstation types which will create a CGM file for hardcopy plotting. The bitmap file dumps would be up to you to use X or GPR. > What we currently work on is > implemented in Apollo GMR and GPR; we'd like to make it more > portable. Has anybody used such a thing and liked it? We are encouraging customers to use Domain/PHIGS output for 3d (and 2d) floating point (i.e. REAL) graphics and a real X based UI for input. To make this combination work, Domain/PHIGS supports program initiated pick as an extension call so that the application can do a pick on an OUTPUT-ONLY PHIGS workstation in an X window. As this implies, we can start up PHIGS output in an application created X window. Domain/PHIGS supports the complete PHIGS input model (valuator, string, choice, stroke, pick and locator logical devices) for applications that choose PHIGS as thier portability vehicle. PEX now officially stands for PHIGS extension to X. The API (application interface) is PHIGS. So applications that you write now using PHIGS & X will run on PEX. The only differences you might encounter would be for opening workstations, window management interactions (resize, expose) and locating the CSS (central structure store) in the server or in the client. There may be a few other minor additions but in essence your PHIGS programs should run unmolested. There is a sample PEX implementation being funded by twelve companies under the auspices of the MIT X consortium. That will not be released by MIT for about two years. > Larry Masden Voice: (206) 237-2564 -Jan Hardenbergh Apollo Computer jch@apollo.com 330 Billerica Road {mit-eddie,attunix}!apollo!jch Chelmsford, MA 01824