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Strip

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A strip is a sequence of triangles in which adjacent triangles share an edge. Strips are more efficient than un-indexed lists of triangles, but usually equally fast or slower than indexed triangle lists. The primary reason to use strips is to reduce the amount of data needed to create a series of triangles. The number of vertices stored in memory is reduced from 3N to N + 2, where N is the number of triangles to be drawn. This allows for less use of disk space, as well as making them faster to load into RAM.

There are two types of strips:

  • Triangle strips: A triangle strip is a sequence of triangles in which adjacent triangles share an edge. The first triangle in the strip is defined by three vertices, and each subsequent triangle is defined by a single additional vertex. This means that a triangle strip of N triangles can be drawn with 2 + N vertices.
  • Quad strips: A quad strip is a sequence of quads in which adjacent quads share an edge. The first quad in the strip is defined by four vertices, and each subsequent quad is defined by a single additional vertex. This means that a quad strip of N quads can be drawn with 3 + N vertices.

Here are some of the benefits of using strips in computer graphics:

  • They are more memory-efficient than un-indexed lists of triangles.
  • They are faster to load into RAM.
  • They can be used to render complex objects more efficiently.

Here are some of the drawbacks of using strips in computer graphics:

  • They can be more difficult to implement than un-indexed lists of triangles.
  • They can be more difficult to debug.
  • They can be less efficient for rendering simple objects.

Overall, strips are a useful tool for rendering complex objects in computer graphics. They can be used to reduce the amount of data needed to create a series of triangles, and they can be faster to load into RAM. However, they can be more difficult to implement and debug than un-indexed lists of triangles.

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Updated 03 Apr 2024
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