Practical Algorithms for 3D Computer Graphics, 2nd Edition

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Introduction

Computer grap h ics embraces a broad spectrum of topics including such things

as image processing, photo editing, a myriad of ty pes of computer games and of

course special effects for the movies and TV. Even a word processor or presen-

tation package could be said to fall into the category of a graphics program.

Three-dimensional computer graph ics (3DCG), the topic covered in this book,

began as a separate discipline in the early 1980s where those few fortunate in-

dividuals who had access to computing hardware costing tens or hundreds of

thousands of dollars began to experiment with the wondrous science of pro-

ducing, through mathematics alone, pictures that in many cases could not be

distinguished from a photograph. The “Voyager”