History of Computer Graphics

The field of computer graphics has developed alongside the development of the digital
computer. In 1959, MIT's Lincoln Labs TX-2 computer gave birth to the field of
interactive computer graphics. By the mid 1960's major corporations, such as TRW,
Lockheed, General Electric and Sperry Rand, had already started research and
development in computer graphics. IBM's 2250 graphics terminal was the first
commercially available graphics computer.

In 1969, the Association of Computing Machinery (ACM) initiated a Special Interest

Group on Graphics and Interactive Techniques (SIGGRAPH) to promote the generation
and dissemination of information on computer graphics and interactive techniques.
SIGGRAPH interests include simulation and modeling, computer generated art, digital
motion analysis, text editing and composition, cartography and mapping, computer aided
design, and computer graphics software and hardware.

During the 1970s, personal computers became more powerful, and were more capable of
drawing complex shapes and designs.

In the late 1980s, 3D computer graphics, such as 3D models, became possible with the
SGI computers and graphical user interfaces (GUI). GUI presented data (input and
output) and information with symbols, icons and images, rather than text. The SGI
computers were used to create some of the first fully computer-generated short films at
Pixar. Today, Apple's Macintosh system remains one of the most popular choices for
computer graphics in graphic design studios and businesses.

In the 1990�s, 3D image renderings became the main advances in the computer graphics
industry and it stimulated cinematic graphics applications. VGA and SVGA standards
were introduced and since then, personal computers could easily display photo-realistic
images and movies.

Since then, computer graphics have become more realistic, due to more advanced
computers, 3D techniques, and better 3D modeling software and applications. With the
rising popularity of games, multimedia, and animation, 3D graphics have become more
popular.

In 1996, one of the first fully 3D games, Quake, was released. In 1995, Toy Story, the
first full-length computer-generated animation film, was released. In 2001, powerful
computer hardware graphics GeForce series by NVIDIA's was released. In 2003 ID
Software graphics engine was released in Doom3 game.

Computer Graphics are widely used today. From graphics presentations to virtual reality
worlds and entertainment, computer graphics have a far reaching impact of our everyday
lives.
Fig.1 3D Model of a City