3DLABS Oxygen RPM - Manual (Page 28)

Terms and Definitions
20 3Dlabs Oxygen RPM User’s Guide
Gouraud Shading: This method of shading, more complex than flat shading,
shows subtle color changes across an object. Gouraud Shading is accomplished by
incrementally changing pixel color values smoothly from one vertex to another
across the polygon.
Graphics Accelerator Card: A graphics accelerator performs 3D functions in
the hardware, thereby relieving the CPU of repetitive, complex and intensive calls.
This results in enhanced performance and speed.
IRQ: Interrupt ReQuest lines are hardware connections that can transmit inter-
rupt signals from hardware subsystems to the CPU to trigger certain procedures.
MCAD: Mechanical Computer Aided Design.
MIP-Mapping (for texture processing): MIP-mapping (multim in parvo – many
things in a small place) is a method of texture mapping where multiple texture
maps are used to more accurately map the texture onto objects or surfaces of
objects of different distances from the view point. Each MIP-map is a lower
(approximately half) resolution version of another MIP-map.
MMX: Multi Media eXtension, a set of 57 instructions, to be added to the x86
processor, to accelerate signal processing operations for multimedia.
Multiple Resolution Support: The ability to support multiple resolutions on the
screen.
OpenGL: The industry standard library of advanced 3D graphics functions devel-
oped by Silicon Graphics, Inc.
PCI: Peripheral Component Interconnect.
Perspective Correction: A function that allows an object to maintain its 3D tex-
tural features as it moves away from the viewer, into the background.
Pipelining: A basic hardware tool for accelerating processes by performing multi-
ple operations in a multi-stage pipeline simultaneously.
Pixel: The smallest addressable element of a cathode ray tube display. More sim-
ply put, the individual dots that make up the screen image.
Pixel Depth: The total number of bits per pixel (in all buffers combined), which is
112 bits per pixel for the Oxygen GMX.
Point Sampling: The basic method of adding texture to an object. Point sampling
does not include any filtering of textures.