COSC342 - Visual Computing

Please note: This paper has moved to Blackboard. Lecture notes, Assignment details, etc. will be available there. Please check your emails for announcments and get in contact with stefanie.zollmann(at)otago.ac.nz if you have no access to blackboard.

Please note: Lectures will be Tuesdays 1pm and Thursdays 1pm each week . There is a glitch with the timetabling that currently displays the wrong weeks in evision.

2017 notes are available.

Course Information

COSC342 - Visual Computing examines how images are generated from computer models. We look at some of the underlying mathematical principles, then examine two main image rendering methods - ray-tracing and OpenGL. Ray-tracing provides techniques for realisting lighting and shadows, but can be too computationally intensive for real-time graphics. OpenGL uses the shader pipeline supported by GPUs to provide fast rendering.

COSC342 has two requisite papers - COSC242 - Algorithms and Data Structures and MATH160 - Mathematics 1. Essentially you need good programming skills, including an understanding of C or C++ and object-oriented programming, and to know the basics of vectors and matrices. In essence, COSC342 is about modelling image formation using mathematics, then translating those models into computer programs.