OpenGL® SuperBible, Third Edition

Chapter 2. Using OpenGL

by Richard S. Wright, Jr.

WHAT YOU'LL LEARN IN THIS CHAPTER:

• Where OpenGL came from and where it's going

• Which headers need to be included in your project

• How to use GLUT with OpenGL to create a window and draw in it

• How to set colors using RGB (red, green, blue) components

• How viewports and viewing volumes affect image dimensions

• How to perform a simple animation using double buffering

• How the OpenGL state machine works

• How to check for OpenGL errors

• How to make use of OpenGL extensions

What Is OpenGL?

OpenGL is strictly defined as “a software interface to graphics hardware.” In essence, it is a 3D graphics and modeling library that is highly portable and very fast. Using OpenGL, you can create elegant and beautiful 3D graphics with ...