Based on the sources provided, here is a detailed explana on of the basic concepts,

applica ons, hardware, and so ware in computer graphics.

Basic Concepts of Computer Graphics
Computer graphics is the discipline concerned with producing pictures or images using a
computer. It involves various processes including modelling, crea on, manipula on, storage
of geometric objects, rendering, conver ng a scene to an image, transforma ons,
rasterisa on, shading, illumina on, and anima on. Computer graphics methods are now
rou nely used in diverse areas such as science, engineering, medicine, business, industry,
government, art, entertainment, adver sing, educa on, and training.
Key basic concepts include:
 Pixels and the Frame Buffer: Virtually all modern graphics systems are raster based.
The image displayed on the output device is an array—the raster—of picture
elements, or pixels. Pixels are collec vely stored in a part of memory called the
frame buffer. The frame buffer is considered the core element of a graphics system.
The number of pixels in the frame buffer determines the image's resolu on. The
frame buffer's depth or precision (number of bits per pixel) determines proper es
like the number of colours that can be represented. Full-colour systems have 24 (or
more) bits per pixel and are also called true-colour systems or RGB-colour systems
because bits are assigned to red, green, and blue. High dynamic range (HDR) systems
use 12 or more bits for each colour component. Frame buffers have evolved from
integer formats to using floa ng point to support HDR colours more easily. The
OpenGL frame buffer can include stencil, depth, back, and front buffers.
 Rasteriza on (Scan Conversion): This is the conversion of geometric en es (like
lines, circles, and polygons specified by applica on programs) into pixel-intensity
values for storage in the frame buffer. It's a major task of the display processor.
 Geometric Primi ves: These are the basic geometric components used to construct
pictures. They are also referred to as output primi ves. Examples include points,
straight line segments, circles, conic sec ons, quadric surfaces, spline curves and
surfaces, polygon colour areas, and character strings. Each output primi ve has
associated a ributes, such as line width and line colour. Objects are o en defined by
specifying the posi ons in space of these geometric primi ves, such as points, lines,
and polygons. A set of loca ons or ver ces is o en sufficient to define or approximate
most objects.
 Synthe c-Camera Model: This paradigm is the conceptual founda on for modern
three-dimensional computer graphics. It views the crea on of a computer-generated
image as being similar to forming an image using an op cal system, like a pinhole
camera. This model involves objects and a viewer (camera). A key principle is the
independence of the object specifica ons and camera parameters. The image is
 formed on a conceptual "film plane". Techniques like clipping are also part of this
model. This approach allows users to work directly in the domain of their problems,
relying on the system to handle details like projec on automa cally. OpenGL is
designed around this model.
Applica ons of Computer Graphics
Computer graphics is used in virtually every area where visual informa on is important. The
applica ons are many and varied, and can be broadly categorised into major areas:
 Computer-Aided Design (CAD): A major use of computer graphics is in design
processes, par cularly for engineering and architectural systems, as well as almost all
other products. Methods are used in the design of buildings, automobiles, aircra ,
spacecra , computers, and tex les. Objects may ini ally be displayed in a wireframe
outline form. CAD systems provide an interface for users to build synthe c models.
 Presenta on Graphics: Used to produce illustra ons for reports or to generate
slides/transparencies for projectors. Commonly used to summarise financial,
sta s cal, mathema cal, scien fic, and economic data. Typical examples include bar
charts, line graphs, surface graphs, and pie charts. Time charts and task network
layouts are used in project management.
 Computer Art: Widely used in both fine art and commercial art applica ons. Ar sts
u lise various computer methods, including special-purpose hardware, paint
packages, custom so ware, symbolic mathema cs packages, CAD packages, desktop
publishing so ware, and anima on packages.
 Entertainment: Includes games, movies, and anima ons. Feature-length movies
made en rely by computer have been successful. Examples like "Jurassic Park" and
"Toy Story" are men oned.
 Educa on and Training: Computer graphics is used in educa on and training,
including visual simula ons and flight simulators.
 Visualiza on: Used to display complex data rela onships and create graphical
representa ons of scien fic and engineering phenomena. This area includes scien fic
visualiza on, as well as applica ons in business, industry, and government.
 Image Processing: Concerned with techniques for interpre ng images and enhancing
pictures, including applica ons like producing computer art. Applica ons span
medicine, geology, meteorology, satellite photography, archaeology, and
photography.
 Graphical User Interfaces (GUIs): It is common now for so ware packages to provide
a graphical interface. A major component is a window manager allowing mul ple
window areas. Interfaces display menus and icons for fast selec on of op ons. Icons
are graphical symbols designed to represent processing op ons. Advantages include
taking up less screen space and poten ally quicker understanding. Popular GUIs
include X Windows, Windows, Macintosh, OpenLook, and Mo f. They are used in a
 wide variety of so ware applica ons like word processing, spreadsheets, and
databases. Specialized interac ve dialogues are designed for specific graphics
applica ons like engineering design.
 Modeling and Simula ons: Computer graphics is used for modelling and simula ng
systems under various condi ons. This involves crea ng graphical or geometric
models using geometric en es. Models can be structured as symbol hierarchies.
Simula ons can serve as instruc onal tools or a basis for decision-making.
 Adver sing: Computer graphics is used in adver sing.
 Medicine: Applica ons include image processing and medical content crea on.
 Manufacturing: Computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) is related to CAD.
 Virtual Reality: Virtual-reality systems are used in design applica ons and other
areas.
Graphics Hardware
A computer graphics system has all the components of a general-purpose computer system,
but with specialisa on for graphics.
Here is a block diagram illustra ng the major elements of a graphics system:

Fig. Elements of Graphics Systems

The major components include:
 Input Devices: These provide input to the system. Common devices include
Keyboards, Mouse, Trackball and Spaceball, Joys cks, Data Glove, Digi zers, Image
Scanners, Touch Panels, Light Pens, and Voice Systems. They provide posi onal
informa on and signals via bu ons. Devices can be viewed as physical devices or
logical devices; logical devices are characterised by their high-level interface,
independent of physical type. Input can be described in terms of a measure process
(what the device returns) and a device trigger (user signal).
 Central Processing Unit (CPU): The general-purpose processor in the system. Early
systems relied heavily on the CPU for graphics tasks.
 Graphics Processing Unit (GPU): A special-purpose processor custom-tailored to
carry out specific graphics func ons. The GPU frees the CPU from graphics chores. It
is typically located on the motherboard or a graphics card. The frame buffer is
accessed through the GPU. Modern GPUs contain the en re graphics pipeline within
a single chip.
 Memory: Includes the system memory and poten ally a separate display-processor
memory area. The frame buffer is part of the memory system.
 Frame Buffer: Stores the pixel informa on that makes up the image displayed on the
output device. Accessed through the GPU.
 Output Devices: Devices that present the graphics output. These include video
display devices and hard-copy devices.
 Video Display Devices (Monitors): Present the image visually.
o Raster-Scan Displays: The predominant type today, based on television
technology. They use a frame buffer to store pixel intensity informa on.
Pictures are painted by retrieving this informa on as an electron beam sweeps
across scan lines. Examples include Color CRT Monitors. Display resolu on and
colour capabili es vary based on the system. Screen coordinates o en
originate at the lower-le corner (0,0), though some personal computers use
the upper le .
o Random-Scan Displays (Vector Displays): Older systems that construct pictures
by drawing lines between specified endpoints. Picture informa on is stored as
a set of line-drawing instruc ons. Also called vector refresh systems.
o Flat-Panel Displays: Include Plasma panels (gas-discharge displays) and LCDs
(Liquid Crystal Displays). Plasma panels were tradi onally monochroma c but
now can display colour and greyscale.
o Three-Dimensional Viewing Devices: Include Stereoscopic and Virtual-Reality
Systems. Some monitors use techniques like a varifocal mirror.
  Hard-Copy Devices: Produce physical copies of images.
o Printers: Methods include dot matrix, laser, ink jet, electrosta c, and
electrothermal.
o Plo ers: Methods include pen plo ng and combina on printer-plo er
devices. Pen plo ers are suitable for large diagrams like blueprints and are
available in desktop and large rollfeed sizes.
o Devices for producing 35-mm slides, overhead transparencies, and film output.
Graphics systems o en employ pipeline architectures to efficiently process the large sets of
ver ces and pixels required for image genera on. The graphics pipeline involves steps like
vertex processing, clipping and primi ve assembly, rasteriza on, and fragment processing.
Graphics So ware
Graphics so ware can be divided into two main classifica ons:
 General Programming Packages: These provide an extensive set of graphics
func ons that can be used within a high-level programming language like C or
FORTRAN. They include basic func ons for genera ng picture components, se ng
colour/intensity, selec ng views, and applying transforma ons. Examples include GL
(Graphics Library) on Silicon Graphics equipment, PHIGS, PHIGS+, GKS, 3D GKS, and
OpenGL.
o API (Applica on Programming Interface): The interface between an
applica on program and a graphics system is specified through an API, which is
a set of func ons residing in a graphics library. The applica on programmer
interacts only with the API, being shielded from the underlying hardware and
so ware implementa on details. The API func ons should align with the
conceptual model used to specify images. OpenGL is a widely accepted
graphics API.
o So ware Standards: A primary goal of graphics so ware standards is
portability. Standards ensure that packages can be moved easily between
different hardware systems and applica ons without extensive rewri ng.
Examples of standards include PHIGS, GKS, CGI, and CGM.
 PHIGS (Programmers Hierarchical Interac ve Graphics System): Defines
standard func ons and data structures for manipula ng and displaying
3D graphical objects. It supports a hierarchical structure store and is
aimed at highly interac ve applica ons. PHIGS and GL integrate
modeling and graphics func ons.
 GKS (Graphics Kernel System): An interna onal standard primarily for
two-dimensional graphics, though a 3D extension (3D GKS) exists.
  CGI (Computer Graphics Interface): A standard for device interface
methods, ac ng as a low-level interface between GKS and the hardware.
 CGM (Computer Graphics Metafile): Specifies standards for archiving
and transpor ng pictures. It's used to transfer graphics segments
between computer systems.
 OpenGL: A widely accepted API that is powerful and supported on most
pla orms. It is designed around a pipeline architecture and supports
programmable shaders. DirectX is another API, dominant in the game
world due to op miza on for Windows pla orms, but less portable than
OpenGL.
o Worksta ons (in PHIGS/GKS): In these systems, the term "worksta on" is used
to iden fy combina ons of graphics hardware and so ware used for input or
output. A PHIGS worksta on can refer to a single output device, a single input
device, a combina on of devices, a file, or a window.
 Special-Purpose Applica ons Packages: These packages are designed for
nonprogrammers, allowing users to generate displays without needing to understand
the underlying graphics opera ons. The interface allows users to interact in terms
relevant to their specific applica on. Examples include ar st's pain ng programs,
business graphics packages, medical systems, CAD systems, drawing programs,
graphing packages, and visualiza on programs.
 Graphics Func ons Categories: Func ons in graphics programming packages can
generally be divided into categories like output primi ves, a ributes, geometric and
modeling transforma ons, viewing transforma ons, structure opera ons, input
func ons, and control opera ons. OpenGL API has similar categories including
primi ve, a ribute, viewing, transforma on, input, control, and query func ons.
 Visible-Surface Detec on Methods: Algorithms used to iden fy which parts of a 3D
scene are visible from a chosen viewing posi on. These are also some mes called
hidden-surface elimina on methods. Various methods exist, including depth-buffer,
scan-line, and depth-sor ng algorithms.
 Modeling Rou nes: Provide means for defining and rearranging model
representa ons, o en in terms of symbol hierarchies, which are then processed by
graphics rou nes for display.
In summary, computer graphics involves genera ng and manipula ng visual informa on
using computers. This is achieved through a combina on of specialised hardware
components like GPUs and frame buffers, interac ng with various input and output devices,
and supported by diverse so ware ranging from low-level programming APIs and standards
to high-level applica ons designed for specific tasks. The underlying processes o en follow
a pipeline architecture and conceptual models like the synthe c camera model.