PIX: an object-oriented network graphics environment

This paper describes PIX, a system to enhance X with PHIGS’ three dimensional graphics capability. Our goal is to provide the user with the conveniences and features of PHIGS—which is a draft international standard for three dimensional computer graphics programming—in a network oriented, hardware-independent environment. To ensure portability of our system, we have designed and implemented PIX under the X Window System, a network-transparent windowing system developed at MIT. Some of PIX’s important and unique features are: an object-oriented data structure design, a net work-oriented system architecture, separable server processes to take advantage of a dedicated 3D graphics hardware. In particular, simulations with the 3DP, a three Dimensional Processor developed at Computer Motion Inc., have indicated promising potential for PIX to evolve into a high performance graphics system.