Perfly(3pf)
Perfly - IRIS Performer scene viewer
As shipped in IRIX 6.5. First release of IRIX 6.5.
NAME Perfly - IRIS Performer scene viewer SYNOPSIS perfly [ options ] file ... DESCRIPTION Perfly is one of the sample programs distributed with the IRIS Performer high-performance graphics library. Perfly is a powerful way to see graphics data: it's very fast, reads many different graphics file formats, and has interesting options for examining geometric data. Take a Test Drive If you are new to IRIS Performer, the best way to start learning about it is to go for a test drive. The Performer-based sample application perfly is installed in the /usr/sbin directory. To start perfly, all that you need to do is type "perfly" followed by a list of files that you want to see. For example: perfly esprit.flt There are quite a few models in the /usr/share/Performer/data and /usr/share/data/models directories that you may wish to explore. The formats supported by IRIS Performer are listed toward the end of this reference page. perfly will by default start up with a trackball motion model. Type "man pfiXformer" for details on how to use the motion models: drive, fly, and trackball. Perfly is largely self-documenting. Run perfly with the command line option "-help" and a full list of features will be printed. Type "?" while running perfly to print a list of keyboard command sequences to the shell window. Perfly is used by many IRIS Performer demos to view large databases, including the standard IRIS Performer Town demo. With the IRIS Performer 2.1 release, the town is shipped in the new fast loading IRIS Performer binary format (pfb). You can run the town with /usr/share/Performer/data/town/RUNTOWN.sh. InfiniteReality Demos With perfly, you can see many of the new features offered with the InfiniteReality hardware. Dynamic Video Resolution (DVR): The Infinite Reality offers the ability to dynamically resize the output region of the framebuffer which can be used for load management. On a per-frame basis, current load can be evaluated and the output drawing area reduced to reduce load. The video hardware will scale up the output drawing area to match the full targeted size, with bilinear interpolation. This operation can be controlled manually by the application or in an parameterized automatic mode. Perfly can demonstrate these modes. % perfly -V 1,640,408 # start up in manual DVR mode with initial size as 640x480 # up/down arrow keys will allow you to adjust output region size. % perfly -V 2 # start up with automatic DVR Note that when DVR is enabled, the current output size of the video channel is displayed in the statistics status line (click the stats button in the GUI). Additionally, there will be an M or A displayed with the size to indicate Manual or Automatic DVR. For best results, AUTO DVR should be used in combination with the InfiniteReality graphics pipeline statistics. Graphics Pipeline Statistics: InfiniteReality offers graphics pipeline statistics for measuring load within the graphics pipeline. These statistics are not yet on by default in IRIS Performer because only one application may successfully use them at a time in the initial IRIX 6.2 InfiniteReality release. However, graphics pipeline statistics are both much more accurate than timing measurements made on the CPU and are also less invasive. To turn these statistics on in perfly, click on the "Pipe" option in the statistics radio button in the GUI. The (GP=XXmsecs) in the status line indicates the graphics pipeline timing measurement. Other statistics modes (such as "Dft" for the full timing graph and "Gfx" for detailed drawing statistics" may than be selected and the pipeline statistics will stay enabled. Selection of "Fill" statistics or turning the statistics off will disable the graphics pipeline statistics. For more information, see the pfStats and pfFrameStats reference pages. Clip-Mapping for very large textures: IRIS Performer and InfiniteReality together provide Clip- mapping for automatic viewing and paging of very large textures. For a demo, run % perfly hl.ct. The 'g' key toggles color-coded gridification of all clip textures in the scene. There is another program called clipfly that has many more clip texture related enhancements; see the clipfly man page for more information. Perfly command line options Perfly supports a plethora of command line options. These options and the arguments accepted by each, are listed here: -A <string> -welcome text -a <string> -overlay text -b r,g,b[,a] -Earth/Sky clear color -c <numChannels> -Number of channels -C a,b,c,... -Pipes for channels (L-to-R) -d -Drive -D -Lock down draw process -e <h,p,r> -Initial view angles -E <string> -Earth sky mode tag -> tag clear clear -> regular clear sky -> sky only skygrnd -> sky and ground skyclear -> sky and clear -f -Fly -F <path> -Set file path -g <format> -GUI format 0 -> GUI OFF 1 -> GUI_VERTICAL 2 -> GUI_HORIZONTAL -G -Use GANGDRAW with Multipipe -h -Print command list -i <count> -Set file loading repeat count -I <count> -Exit after printing stats for count frames -j <font_type> -Set font type 0 -> PFDOBJFNT_TEXTURED 1 -> PFDOBJFNT_OUTLINED 2 -> PFDOBJFNT_FILLED 3 -> PFDOBJFNT_EXTRUDED -J <font_name> -Set Font to Named Font -k r,g,b[,a] -Scribed-style draw color -K <count> -Combine billboards up to size count -l <style> -Set lighting enable 0 -> lighting off 1 -> lighting eye 2 -> lighting sky -l <x,y,z,r,g,b> -Add a light source to the scene -L -Free then Lock down processes (requires root ID) -m <mode> -Multiprocessing mode -1 -> PFMP_DEFAULT 0 -> PFMP_APPCULLDRAW 2 -> PFMP_APP_CULLDRAW 4 -> PFMP_APPCULL_DRAW 6 -> PFMP_APP_CULL_DRAW -M <mode> -Multipipe mode 0 -> single pipe mode 1 -> multipipe mode 2 -> hyperpipe mode -n <notify> -Debug level -N -Assign non-degrading priorities to Performer processes -o <mode>,<value> -Set builder mode (default value is OFF) -O <mode>,<value> -Set builder mode (default value is ON) See the pfdBldrMode reference page for more information. 0 -> PFDBLDR_MESH_ENABLE 1 -> PFDBLDR_MESH_SHOW_TSTRIPS 2 -> PFDBLDR_MESH_INDEXED 3 -> PFDBLDR_MESH_MAX_TRIS 4 -> PFDBLDR_MESH_RETESSELLATE 5 -> PFDBLDR_MESH_LOCAL_LIGHTING 10 -> PFDBLDR_AUTO_COLORS 0 -> PFDBLDR_COLORS_PRESERVE + leave colors alone 1 -> PFDBLDR_COLORS_MISSING - make missing colors 2 -> PFDBLDR_COLORS_GENERATE - make all colors 3 -> PFDBLDR_COLORS_DISCARD - toss existing colors 11 -> PFDBLDR_AUTO_NORMALS 0 -> PFDBLDR_NORMALS_PRESERVE - leave normals alone 1 -> PFDBLDR_NORMALS_MISSING + make missing normals 2 -> PFDBLDR_NORMALS_GENERATE - make all normals 3 -> PFDBLDR_NORMALS_DISCARD - toss existing normals 12 -> PFDBLDR_AUTO_TEXTURE 0 -> PFDBLDR_TEXTURE_PRESERVE + leave texture coord alone 1 -> PFDBLDR_TEXTURE_MISSING - make missing texture coord 2 -> PFDBLDR_TEXTURE_GENERATE - make all texture coord 3 -> PFDBLDR_TEXTURE_DISCARD - toss existing texture coord 13 -> PFDBLDR_AUTO_ORIENT 0 -> PFDBLDR_ORIENT_PRESERVE - leave normal and order alone 1 -> PFDBLDR_ORIENT_NORMALS - make normal match vertex order 2 -> PFDBLDR_ORIENT_VERTICES + make vertex order match normal 15 -> PFDBLDR_AUTO_DISABLE_TCOORDS_BY_STATE 0 - dont remove tcoords if no texture specified 1 - remove tcoords if no texture specified 16 -> PFDBLDR_AUTO_DISABLE_NCOORDS_BY_STATE 0 - dont remove ncoords if no material specified 1 - remove ncoords if no material specified 17 -> PFDBLDR_AUTO_LIGHTING_STATE_BY_NCOORDS 0 - dont automatically set lighting enable based on presence of ncoords 1 - automatically set lighting enable based on presence of ncoords 18 -> PFDBLDR_AUTO_LIGHTING_STATE_BY_MATERIALS 0 - dont automatically set lighting enable based on presence of material 1 - automatically set lighting enable based on presence of material 19 -> PFDBLDR_AUTO_TEXTURE_STATE_BY_TEXTURES 0 - dont automatically set texture enable based on presence of tcoords 1 - automatically set texture enable based on presence of tcoords 20 -> PFDBLDR_AUTO_TEXTURE_STATE_BY_TCOORDS 0 - dont automatically set texture enable based on presence of texture 1 - automatically set texture enable based on presence of texture 30 -> PFDBLDR_BREAKUP 31 -> PFDBLDR_BREAKUP_SIZE 32 -> PFDBLDR_BREAKUP_BRANCH 33 -> PFDBLDR_BREAKUP_STRIP_LENGTH 34 -> PFDBLDR_SHARE_MASK 35 -> PFDBLDR_ATTACH_NODE_NAMES 36 -> PFDBLDR_DESTROY_DATA_UPON_BUILD 37 -> PFDBLDR_PF12_STATE_COMPATIBLE 38 -> PFDBLDR_BUILD_LIMIT -maximum number of tris/strip -p <x,y,z> -Initial view position -P <phase> -Phase 0 -> PFPHASE_FLOAT 1 -> PFPHASE_LOCK 2 -> PFPHASE_FREE_RUN 3 -> PFPHASE_LIMIT -q <optimize> -Optimize Scene GStates into single Scene pfGeoState -Q <optimize> -Flatten tree and remove empty nodes 0 -> Off 1 -> On -r <frameRate> -Target frame rate in Hertz -R <mode> -Retessellate input geometry 0 -> Off 1 -> On -s <LODscale> -Set LOD scale factor -S <mode> -Show triangle strips via color coding 0 -> Off 1 -> On -t <0xVisual_id> -Specify GLX Visual ID has Hex Integer(OpenGL Only) -T <0/1> -Indicated whether or GL display lists should be used. On InfiniteReality GL display lists will be stored in the grahpics pipeline for optimal performance. This option is ON by default. See the pfGeoSet reference page for more information. -u -Inflate input files -v <format> -Convert data to use GL vertex arrays. See the pfGeoSet reference page for more information. 0 -> Off 1 -> PFGS_PA_C4UBN3ST2FV3F - all attrs packed in arrays 2 -> PFGS_PA_C4UBN3ST2F - all attrs but verts packed in arrays -V <DVRmode> - specify mode for dynamic reslotion <mode,xsize,ysize> - Set DVR mode and initial size. modes: See the pfPipeVideoChannel reference page for more information. 0 -> PFPVC_DVR_OFF 1 -> PFPVC_DVR_MANUAL 2 -> PFPVC_DVR_AUTOMATIC -w <file>.out -Write scene in ASCII -w <file.ext> -Write scene in .ext format -W <Size> -Window size -W <xSize,ySize> -Window size -x -Toggle use of GLX with asynch X input handling -X <radius> -Explode input files -y ext,mode,value -Set loader mode for file extension ext to value -Y ext,alias -Substitute file extension alias for file extension ext -z near,far -Set near/far clip ranges -Z -Don't initially free CPUs before lock Perfly keyboard options Perfly supports several keyboard options. These are functions that can be invoked during simulation by typing the indicated key while the cursor is in the perfly window. Key Function ----- -------------- ESC Exit program ? Print help SPACE Stop moving F1KEY Toggle graphical user interface (GUI) b Toggle backface mode c Toggle collision detection C Change culling mode f Decrease the target frame rate F Increase the target frame rate g Toggle stats and stats graph G Print stats graph contents to stderr k Cycle through DVR modes (off,manual,auto) l Cycle through lighting modes (off, eye, sun) p Change frame phase r Reset positions s Toggle diagnostics display S Print stats graph contents to stderr t Toggle texturing on/off w Toggle draw mode between solid/wire W Cycle draw mode between all styles x Snapshot RGB screen image to file X Snapshot RGBA screen image to file z Show culling frustum Supported Database Formats Perfly, like all IRIS Performer applications, is able to directly load 3D data in a large selection of popular formats and draw that data at high speed. All of the following file formats are understood by Perfly: 3ds AutoDesk 3DStudio binary data bin Minor SGI format used by powerflip bpoly Side Effects Software PRISMS binary byu Brigham Young University CAD/FEA data dwb Coryphaeus Software Designer's Workbench dxf AutoDesk AutoCAD ASCII format flt11 MultiGen public domain Flight v11 format flt14 MultiGen OpenFlight v14 format gds McDonnell-Douglas GDS things data gfo Minor SGI format (radiosity output) im Minor SGI format (IRIS Performer example) irtp AAI/Graphicon Interactive Real-Time PHIGS iv SGI OpenInventor / Silicon Studio Keystone lsa Lightscape Technologies radiosity (ASCII) lsb Lightscape Technologies radiosity (binary) m University of Washington mesh data medit Medit Productions medit modeling tool nff Eric Haines' ray tracing test data format obj Wavefront Technologies data format phd Minor SGI format (polyhedra) pfa IRIS Performer ASCII database format pfb IRIS Performer fast loading BINARY database format (see the /usr/share/Performer/src/lib/libpfdb/libpfpfb/README for more information) poly Side Effects Software PRISMS ASCII data pts University of Washington point data ptu Minor SGI format (IRIS Performer example) sgf US NAVY standard graphics format sgo Minor SGI format spf US NAVY simple polygon format sponge Sierpinski sponge 3D fractal generator star Yale University compact star chart data stla 3D Structures Stereolithography (ASCII) stlb 3D Structures Stereolithography (binary) sv Format of John Kichury's i3dm modeler tri University of Minnesota Geometry Center data unc University of North Carolina data While most loaders do in fact "load" data from files, scene graphs can also be generated procedurally. The sponge loader is an example of such automatic generation; it builds a model of the Menger (Sierpinski) sponge, without requiring an input file. To see the sponge run perfly specify the number of recursions (0, 1, 2, ...) as the filename. For example perfly 2.sponge NOTES When using DVR, perfly should always be run in full screen mode (do not use the -W option). Also, when DVR and the graphical user-interface are both enabled, the GUI must be redrawn whenever there is a video channel resize, or whenever the mouse is in the GUI. This is very expensive and a drop in framerate will be incurred. Only one application at a time may be using DVR. If a second application starts up and attempts to use DVR while the first is still executing, the second may terminate. See the pfPipeVideoChannel reference page for more information. Only one copy of perfly should be runing with graphics pipeline statistics ("Pipe") selected at a time. If multiple copies of perfly are running, de-select pipe stats in one before turning it on in another. Learning More Once you've seen IRIS Performer in action, you will want to learn more about it. The IRIS Performer Programming Guide and the IRIS Performer Release Notes are the primary sources of information, but the a number of information sources are available to give you a good start in your learning process. The origin of this quest is the Performer man page. Just type "man performer" and just about everything you might want to know will be there or in one of the on-line resources listed there. SEE ALSO performer, clipfly, pfconv