getting openGL

I’ve tried in the past to get openGL for programming practice, but have had trouble understanding the requirements.

The problem is I’m pretty much just starting programming. I’m just about done getting my math up to speed and soon I’m going to focus more on learning programming. But I do know a little C++ and would like some practice outside of the borland compiler. If I could use C++ to draw lines and or shapes it would at least give me some practice. Getting nothing but text returned from your program gets old pretty fast.

But I’m very new to programming and don’t understand a lot of the terms such as “libraries” and “api’s” etc. I read a library is a collection of files but I’m not sure exactly what they’re fore and how they work.

Anyways, I want to practice openGL and maybe get a book on OpenGL programming. But I really have difficulty understanding.

I checked my vidoe card and it has “OpenGL” listed on one of the menu tabs, so clearly OpenGL is installed on my card, but where exactly do I go to use it? Isn’t there some sort of IDE somewhere? I heard you have to install certain libraries or something. Can someone explain what it is I have to do? And please, I’m completely new to this so don’t assume I know anything.

I’ve been using game maker to write some programs, but the language it uses is a pain in the neck not having references or pointers. Also you can create only one type of predefined object, you can’t define your own. Besides the language affords me no practice with a real computer language.

Regardless, my knowledge of math is much higher then my programming skill, and I’ve been able to do quite a bit with it. But I could do so much more if it used C++ instead.

Hi Mikau,

For OpenGL coding questions, you want to start in the beginner’s forum. This is the end-user forum.

The first thing you want to do is get the most recent drivers for your card. What kind of card do you have? ATI? NVIDIA? Go to their website and navigate to the drivers section and download the latest one. Drivers ship as executable anymore, so installing them is simply a matter of running the setup program after the download (be sure to uninstall the previous version before doing so).

You’re using a Borland IDE? I think you should have everything you need to get started in terms of libraries, dlls, and include files.

Browse this site for information, and don’t hesitate to ask questions. There are many many demos and code snippets to be found here.

The math will come in very handy, and so will the C++ :slight_smile:

Good luck!

I dowloaded the latest video driver. Now what?

http://www.opengl.org/discussion_boards/cgi_directory/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=2;t=019003

I posted here because the previous inquiry was unsuccesfull. Everyone kepts using terms I didn’t know and I couldn’t get a straight answer. :frowning:

"Q. What do I need to install?

A.If OpenGL is not working for you correctly and your PC or laptop does have an OpenGL-savvy graphics card, all you should need to do is install the latest OpenGL driver from your graphics card manufacturer. Simply go to your graphics card manufacturer’s website and download and install their latest OpenGL driver. If you cannot find the driver, send an email to the technical support department of the card manufacturer. If you are still having trouble, check the OpenGL Hardware, Software, & Gaming Message Board."

Clearly OpenGL is installed on my graphics card, but how do I use it? Isn’t there some sort of ide or something? Don’t I need to download a library of files or something? (not sure what that means but thats what I recall hearing).

The problem is I don’t know enough about what I’m dealing with to ask the questions properly, or to understand the answers.