Syllabus

Administrivia

Time: MW at 2:30pm-3:50pm Place: CMU 230 Instructor: Zoran Popovic (zoran@cs) TA's:

Josh Barr (stemcel@cs)
Chris Gonterman (gontech@cs)
Daniel Otero (oterod@cs)

Email:

The course mailing list is cse457@cs, and will be created automatically from the list of registered students.
The instructor and TA's can be reached all together at cse457-staff@cs.
You may also contact any of the staff members directly.

Prerequisites:

CSE 303
Data structures (CSE 326)
A good working knowledge of C and C++ programming
Linear algebra
Some mathematical sophistication
(No prior knowledge of graphics is assumed.)

Reader:

A Reader document describes all the reading material for the class.

Required text:

Edward Angel, Interactive Computer Graphics: A top-down approach with OpenGL, Fourth Edition. Addison Wesley, 2005.

Supplemental texts:

Foley, van Dam, Feiner, Hughes. Computer Graphics Principles and Practice, Second Edition in C. Addison Wesley, 1996.
Shirley et al, Fundamentals of Computer Graphics, Second Edition. AK Peters, 2005. [Errata]
Andrew S. Glassner. An Introduction to Ray Tracing. Academic Press, 1989.
Alan Watt, 3D Computer Graphics, Third Edition, Addison-Wesley, 2000. [Errata]
Woo, Neider, Davis, and Schreiner. OpenGL Programming Guide, Third Edition. Addison-Wesley, 1999.

Copies of the supplemental texts are in the graphics instructional lab. Please, please do not remove these books from the lab under any circumstances.

Topics:

Displays
Image processing
Color
Graphics programming
Affine transformations
Hierarchies
Projection
Hidden surfaces
Shading
Ray tracing
Texture mapping
Curves
Particle systems
Surfaces
Animation
Perception

Grading:

The breakdown is subject to change as a whole and adjustments on a per-student basis in exceptional cases. This is the general breakdown we'll be using:

Projects: 60%

Homeworks: 20%

Final Exam: 20%

Projects will be done in teams of two with room for extra credit as described in the next section. Homeworks are to be completed individually. Though you may discuss the problems with others, your answers must be your own. There is no midterm. The final is closed book.

Projects:

CSE 457 is taught using the graphics instructional lab consisting of roughly 15 Windows XP workstations. The lab is located in Sieg 327. There will be four projects. You'll work or in teams of two for the projects. You are encouraged to change partners for each project -- each time you work with someone you have not worked with before in the class, you will receive a bell's worth of extra credit. Each project will require you to extend some skeleton project with new features to create a working graphics application.

Project #1: Impressionist:: An interactive impressionistic paint system, similar in spirit to Paul Haeberli's The Impressionist.
Project #2: Modeler:: A viewer in which to construct a hierarchical articulated model using OpenGL.
Project #3: Trace:: A program to create photorealistic raytraced images, complete computation of shadows, reflections, and transparent effects.
Project #4: Animator:: An extension of project #2 which includes animation curves on geometry. Create a 3D animation of your articulated model!

You will have approximately two weeks for each project. Projects will be graded during in-person sessions with one of the TAs on the day that the project is due. During the grading session, a TA will run the project to make sure that it conforms to the guidelines. The TA will then quiz individual members of the team to determine how well they understand the structure of the code, the design trade-offs, and the implemented algorithms. One grade will be assigned for all members of the team for the project's implementation. Separate grades will be recorded for each team member's "knowledge of the project." Beyond the required extensions to the base project, you are encouraged to attempt bells and whistles, which translate into extra credit points. Click here for more information on project grading. In addition, for each project both team members will be required to create an artifact, a final polished example (e.g., an image or model) demonstrating your application, hopefully of some artistic merit. Extra credit will be given for the nicest artifacts, as determined by class vote.

Project and Homework Turn-in & Late Policy:

Written homework assignments are due at the beginning of lecture on the due date. Projects are due by midnight on the due date. Late assignments are marked down at a rate of 33% per day (not per lecture), meaning that if you fail to turn in an assignment on time it is worth 66% for the first 24 hours after the deadline, 33% for the next 24 hours, and it is worth nothing after that. In addition, no extra credit for bells and whistles will be awarded for any late assignment Exceptions will be given only in extreme circumstances and only in advance.

design by Ian Li, Spring '08 maintenance by Daniel Otero (contact info on personnel page)	CSE 457 Introduction to Computer Graphics Spring Quarter 2008
	Last modified: Thursday, 12-Jun-2008 01:39:42 PDT