Twenty years ago, graphics was a specialty field within computer science, of interest only to developers of video games (at the low end) and powerful CAD/CAM packages (at the high end). But with the release of the Apple Macintosh and then Microsoft Windows, graphical user interfaces became common for computers at all levels. And the widespread availability of microcomputers and workstations with sufficient processing power has brought formerly high-end drafting, painting, simulation, and animation capabiilities within the reach of home and small-business users. The field of computer graphics has become mainstream, and an essential part of the training of a computer scientist.
This course will cover a wide range of topics within computer graphics, from both a mathematical and a practical point of view. Students are expected to be comfortable programming in the C or C++ language, and to have completed a course in linear algebra and matrics (although we'll review those topics briefly).