Download - Sydgraph presentation 2004
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Vislab, Open-Source and Emerging Technologies
Vislab: What's been happening and where are we heading
Open-Source: The state of play in graphicsHow one can help the other
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Vislab
Founded in 1991 by Bernard Pailthorpe. Employed Ben Simons, Chris Willing, others.
Extremely successful for over 10 years.However, changes in computing require a
change in structure: less service-oriented, more research.
Bernard leaves to go to UQ. Masa takes over as director.
Ben goes to CORE in Toronto, Steve “takes over” Ben's role.
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Vislab moves to Madsen building
Vislab v2.0
Now more research oriented, includes clusters and super-computing in its mandate
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Clusters
We now have access to facilities of AC3Barossa: 155 dual-Xeon nodes
Others (64 processor SGI, NEC Vector computer)
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Clusters
We have our own clusters22 processor Intel cluster, Gigabit backbone.
Currently OpenMosix, will convert to MPI12 node SGI cluster using old O2 machines
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Access-Grid
Access-Grid is a network collaboration tool.OpenSource success: 1st all-Linux AG, DPPT
for OpenOffice, Firewire cameras.Chris has now left, but work will continue.
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Access-Grid
But full potential is not being realised
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Chromium
Clustering for OpenGL
GL-App
Processor
Processor
Processor
Projector
Projector
ProjectorTile
Processor
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Chromium
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Chromium
Other SPUs possible
GL-App
SoftwareGL Renderer
SoftwareGL Renderer
TileProcessor
Image'Stitcher'
VideoEncoder
Network
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Blender
Open-Source modeller, animation framework and renderer:
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Blender
Interesting for a number of reasons...Completely OpenGL based (see Chromium),
including the general-purpose widget toolkit.Contains game-engine.
PowerPoint style presentations?Python scripting framework, including access to
GUI system. Write plugins, shaders, etc. in python.
Not perfect (UI could use some work) but capable of good stuff already ...
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Blender
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Open-Source Software Rendering
Chromium isn't the only sort of graphics clustering we're interested in.
Clusters widely used in film industry, but are frame-based. We want to parallelise below the frame level. So we need to do it ourselves.
Open-Source allows us to do this in ways proprietary software doesn't.
So what type of rendering do we want to provide?
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Raytracing / Global Illumination
Basic raytracing/GI engines two-a-penny.Best of breed at the moment is Yafray:
Does threaded/SMP rendering.Forking rendering fixed, MPI implemented!
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Renderman
Some “free” ones available, but not all are free-enough for our needs.
Of interest are Pixie (most of PRMan-11), and Aqsis. Either could probably be modified to use MPI.
Lucille: MPI capable already (author works with AC3). But too young for the time-being.
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Interconnection and Interaction
We need a bridge between 3D applications, 2D applications, render-cluster and Access-Grid.
We would like 2-way interaction: Realtime collaboration on 3D data.
Verse2D and 3D exchange of dataLow-latency and lightweightPython bindings already existMajor initiative now funded.
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The big picture
AG/Internet
MJpeg
GL AppChromium Renderers
Linux Cluster
VerseServer
[Render]
Gimp Verse
Blender
Verse
Video (Vic)
Audio (Rat)
Asterix/Bayonne
VOIP
POTS
User
Verse
Rest of world
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Other Stuff of Interest
Gimp just hit 2.0Now has full Windows supportModified version ('Cinepaint') widely used in film
industry for post-production workAsterix and Bayonne
VOIP enabled PABX system. Bridge between AG and POTS.
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It's not all roses of course
Usability: Already a problem elsewhere. But users are the best people to put back in here.
Culture: Do artists “get-it”? Students seem to want to focus on products rather than skills.
Is FOSS being pushed out of Graphics field? Blender creator thinks so.
But this is needed: Graphics tools are expensive.
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Comments, Questions, Discussion