Using A GUI Shell to Focus Computer Graphics on Algorithms

Many computer graphics systems, such as the X Windows System, require a steep learning curve and extensive coding before even a single pixel can be activated on the screen. In a single quarter computer graphics class this places an extensive burden on the student who may have to generate a significant block of code that has little or nothing to do with the fundamentals of computer graphics algorithms. At the Milwaukee School of Engineering (MSOE) we have shifted the focus of our junior level computer graphics course for computer engineers from developing a complete application to one that focuses on the basic algorithms of computer graphics. This has been accomplished by supplying the students with a Motif based graphical user interface (GUI) shell which takes care of all of the implementation details, except for the drawing primitives necessary to redraw the screen and maintenance of the user data. This allows the student to develop applications of simple drawing and clipping algorithms while only suffering minimal interference from the overhead of a typical graphics package. This also simplifies compartmentalization of assignments into manageable one or two week units requiring at most a few hundred lines of student code. The results of using this in MSOE's CS321 will be presented.