TY - CPAPER AU - Gregory J Ward AB -

Global illumination researchers tend to think in terms of mesh density and sampling frequency, and their software reflects this in its user interface. Advanced rendering systems are rife with long command lines and parameters for tuning the sample densities, thresholds and other algorithm-specific variables, and the novice user is quickly lost in a sea of possibilities. This paper details a successful effort of making one such global illumination system usable by people who understand their problems, even if they do not understand the methods needed to solve them, through an assisted oracle approach. A single program is introduced to map a small set of intuitive control variables to the rendering commands and parameter settings needed to produce the desired output in a reasonable time. This new executive program then serves as the basis for a graphical user interface that is both friendly in its appearance and reliable in its performance. Finally, we conclude with some future directions for improving this interface.

BT - 6th Eurographics Workshop on Rendering C1 -

Lighting Systems Group

C2 - LBL-37860 CN - LBL-37860 CY - Dublin, Ireland DA - 06/1995 LA - eng N2 -

Global illumination researchers tend to think in terms of mesh density and sampling frequency, and their software reflects this in its user interface. Advanced rendering systems are rife with long command lines and parameters for tuning the sample densities, thresholds and other algorithm-specific variables, and the novice user is quickly lost in a sea of possibilities. This paper details a successful effort of making one such global illumination system usable by people who understand their problems, even if they do not understand the methods needed to solve them, through an assisted oracle approach. A single program is introduced to map a small set of intuitive control variables to the rendering commands and parameter settings needed to produce the desired output in a reasonable time. This new executive program then serves as the basis for a graphical user interface that is both friendly in its appearance and reliable in its performance. Finally, we conclude with some future directions for improving this interface.

PP - Dublin, Ireland PY - 1995 T2 - 6th Eurographics Workshop on Rendering T3 - 6th Eurographics Workshop on Rendering TI - Making Global Illumination User Friendly ER -