CPSC 424
Fundamentals of Computer Graphics

   Fall, 2013.

   Instructor:  David J. Eck.

   Monday, Wednesday, Friday, 3:00--3:55 PM.
   Room Napier 202.
   
   Lab: Tuesday, 10:20--11:45 AM.
   Room Gulick 208.

About CS 424

Computer graphics is simply the art and science of producing and manipulating images on a computer. It is one of the most visible and exciting aspects of computer science.

Computer graphics is a very large and growing field, and this course can only survey some of the important ideas. The course concentrates on three-dimensional graphics, where images are produced by constructing a virtual 3D world that is then projected onto a 2D image. However, we will begin the course with a couple weeks of 2D graphics. We will cover a variety of ways of doing graphics by computer, including:

• Advanced 2D graphics in Java, using the Graphics2D class.
• Web graphics with JavaScript and the HTML <canvas> element.
• Basic, old-fashioned OpenGL. OpenGL is an API for 3D graphics programming that can be used with various programming languages and computer platforms. We will start with the original version of OpenGL, which is deprecated or removed in the most recent releases.
• Blender, a program that lets you do 3D modeling and animation without programming.
• 3D Web graphics with WebGL and the JavaScript library three.js.
• Modern OpenGL using "shaders," which are programs that run on the computer's graphics hardware to perform low-level graphics computations.

There is no textbook for this course. Instead, notes will be posted on the course website.

Computer Labs

This course has a required lab component that meets every Tuesday. There will also be a few labs during the regular Friday class period. Most of the labs will involve programming, but there will be several labs in the middle of the semester on the Blender 3D modeling and animation program. The work for each lab will be due at the beginning of the following lab period.

Term Project

The course requires a term project, which is due at the end of the semester. The project includes one of: a ten-to-fifteen page research paper on some topic in computer graphics; a significant graphics programming project; a Blender modeling and animation project; or an exploration of some graphics technology along with a shorter explanatory paper or web page. In addition to the project itself, you are required to do a 20-minute presentation on your work. Presentations will take place during the last week of classes.

You will select a topic for your project by November 1. I would like to avoid having two people do the same topic, so you will need to consult with me and get approval for your project before November 1.

More information on the term project, including some suggestions for possible topics, will be available later in the term.

Tests and Grading

There will be three tests in this course. The first two will be given in class on Monday, September 30 and on Monday, November 4. The third test will be given during the scheduled final exam period (7:00 PM on Tuesday, December 10); however, it will be a one-hour test rather than a three-hour final exam.

Your grade for the course will be determined as followed:

         First Test:    15%
         Second Test:   15%
         Third Test:    15%
         Term Project:  20%
         Labs:          35%

Attendance Policy

Attendance is required. But the attendance policy is not enforced except by admonishment, dirty looks, and possibly public shaming.

Disability Statement from the CTL

Disability Accommodations: If you are a student with a disability for which you may need accommodations, you should self-identify and register for services with the Coordinator of Disability Services at the Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL), and provide documentation of your disability. Disability related accommodations and services generally will not be provided until the registration and documentation process is complete. The guidelines for documenting disabilities can be found at the following website: http://www.hws.edu/disabilities

Please direct questions about this process or Disability Services at HWS to David Silver, Coordinator of Disability Services, at silver@hws.edu or 315-781-3351.

Office Hours, Email, WWW

My office is room 313 in Lansing Hall. My office phone extension is 3398. I am on campus most days, and you are welcome to come in anytime you can find me there. I will announce office hours as soon as my schedule is determined, but note that your office visits are not restricted to my regular office hours.

My email address is eck@hws.edu.

The Web page for this course can be found at http://math.hws.edu/eck/cpsc424/index_f13.html.

Tentative Schedule