3DLABS Oxygen VX1-1600SW - Manual (Page 40)

Glossary
3Dlabs Oxygen VX1-1600SW User's Guide 30
Terms and Definitions
AGP
Advanced Graphics Port. A dedicated graphics bus that transfers data at significantly higher speeds than the
PCI bus.
Alpha Blending
This means to create transparent objects by allowing for the blending of pixels to simulate the transparency
characteristics of an object. With alpha information, an object can be designed from being totally transparent
to opaque.
Alpha Buffer
A portion of the frame buffer used to define the transparency value of a pixel in the frame buffer. This data
can be used to blend the frame buffer pixel with the pixel to be drawn to create a composite pixel.
Anti-Aliasing
A technique employed to remove any jagged edges from an object to appear smooth. This is accomplished by
gradually modifying the hue and saturation of pixels.
API
Application Programming Interface. The API translates the instructions from the application program into
device commands that are specific to the screen’s display controller, the graphics board.
Atmospheric Effects
The effect derived from adding one or more layers around an object.
Bilinear Sampling
The process whereby texture mapping is done through filtering.
Bit Depth
Bit depth is another way of expressing the numbers of colors available. A color bit depth of 8 is equivalent to
256 colors, a bit depth of 16 (15 bit of color plus a 1 bit overlay) yields 32768 colors, and a bit depth of 32
(24 bit RGB plus 8 bit of overlays) equals 16.7 million colors. The latter is often referred to as true color.
Clipping
Removal of elements or sections not contained within the active viewing area.
CPU (Central Processing Unit)
The part within a PC that executes programs in main memory.
DAC
Digital to Analog Converter.
Depth Cueing
A technique used to give the illusion of depth. With depth cueing, the part of an object that is farther away is
displayed with a lower intensity to give the effect of depth.
Digital Flat Panel Display
A digital, flat-panel display uses a digital (instead of analog) cable connection to transfer data to the display
screen. This can eliminate some display artifacts. Flat panel displays occupy less desk space than conventional
monitors.