3Dlabs enables first QuickDraw 3D accelerators for Macintosh; 3Dlabs' GLINT chip enables real-time acceleration for Apple's 3D standard; two board vendors announce GLINT-based products for the Macintosh.SAN JOSE San Jose, city, United States San Jose (sănəzā`, săn hōzā`), city (1990 pop. 782,248), seat of Santa Clara co., W central Calif.; founded 1777, inc. 1850. , Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 8, 1995--3Dlabs Tuesday announced that leading Macintosh(R) graphics board vendors -- YARC YARC You're Absolutely Right, Commander (military slang) Systems Corp., and Mentor Software Inc. -- have developed the first QuickDraw(TM) 3D graphics accelerators and have standardized their 3D solutions on the GLINT(R) 300SX 3D processor chip. The boards both accelerate 2D QuickDraw operations on the Macintosh and provide real-time 3D performance. QuickDraw 3D is the new 3D graphics standard from Apple(R) Computer Inc. and these new GLINT-based boards provide complete hardware acceleration In computing, hardware acceleration is the use of hardware to perform some function faster than is possible in software running on the normal (general purpose) CPU. Examples of hardware acceleration include blitting acceleration functionality in graphics processing units (GPUs) and of all QuickDraw 3D programming calls and functions. The GLINT-based Macintosh boards are expected to be available in the third quarter of 1995 concurrent with QuickDraw 3D's release date. The GLINT-based Macintosh accelerators on the market will include PCI (1) (Payment Card Industry) See PCI DSS. (2) (Peripheral Component Interconnect) The most widely used I/O bus (peripheral bus). boards for the new PCI-based Power Macintosh See Power Mac. (computer) Power Macintosh - Apple Computer's personal computer based on the PowerPC, introduced on 1994-03-14. Existing 680x0 code (both applications and device drivers) run on Power Macintosh systems without modification via a Motorola 68LC040 emulator. (TM) computers, and PDS (1) (Processor Direct Slot) A single expansion slot on certain, early Macintosh models that was used to connect high-speed peripherals as well as additional CPUs. Providing a channel directly to the CPU, the PDS coexisted with NuBus slots on some models. (Processor Direct Slot See PDS. (hardware) Processor Direct Slot - (PDS) Apple Computer's name for a local bus connection. Most Macintoshes have only one PDS connector. Different Apple computers have different PDS specifications. ) boards for existing NuBus(TM) Power Macintosh systems. With support for both bus architectures, all Power Macintosh users will be able to use GLINT-based 3D QuickDraw 3D accelerators. 3Dlabs is working closely with Apple to ensure that GLINT provides real-time acceleration of QuickDraw 3D-savvy applications. 3Dlabs is also providing its targeted expertise to Apple to ensure that QuickDraw 3D takes full advantage of advanced 3D rendering silicon such as GLINT. Quotes "We have been working hard to ensure that 3D solutions based on GLINT are now available on the Macintosh platform," said Neil Trevett Neil Trevett is currently Vice President of Embedded Content at NVIDIA. He is responsible for enabling and encouraging compelling applications on non-PC platforms, including cell phones and automobiles. Prior to joining NVIDIA, Mr. , vice president of marketing for 3Dlabs. "GLINT-based boards will be available to accelerate 3D graphics on the entire Power Macintosh line when QuickDraw 3D becomes available later this year. "With this announcement, end-users will know they will have a wide choice of 3D accelerator boards for the Macintosh, using the industry-standard GLINT architecture. Our Macintosh board partners are showing tremendous focus and innovation in bringing GLINT to the Apple platform." "Screamer screamer, common name for gregarious, aquatic birds comprising three species in the family Anhimidae. Although they are related to the ducks and geese, they do not resemble them in outward appearance. (TM) is a hardware-accelerated drawing engine and display card which uses the GLINT 300SX to provide acceleration for QuickDraw and QuickDraw 3D," said Thierry Doyen, president of YARC Systems. "YARC's experience in graphics hardware for the Macintosh, coupled with 3Dlabs' GLINT silicon and 3D expertise makes Screamer an unbeatable QuickDraw 3D accelerator. YARC has an excellent relationship with 3Dlabs and we look forward to working together to further strengthen our partnership." "The PlaneSight 3D(TM) accelerated graphics board is designed to accelerate QuickDraw 3D on Power Mac 6100, 7100, and 8100 models," said David Amis, president of Mentor Software Inc. "The combination of a GLINT 300SX 3D accelerator chip and the high speed PDS design bring workstation-class performance to more than a million Power Macintoshes." GLINT Information To support advanced multimedia authoring, animation, CAD and visualization applications, the GLINT family of 3D processors provides 100% of the QuickDraw 3D rendering operations in silicon -- including 32-bit color support, Gouraud shading In 3D graphics, a technique developed by Henri Gouraud in the early 1970s that computes a shaded surface based on the color and illumination at the corners of every triangle. Gouraud shading is the simplest rendering method and is computed faster than Phong shading. and depth buffering. GLINT also supports advanced functionality such as texture-mapping, anti-aliasing and alpha blending at rendering speeds of up to 300,000 polygons per second. The GLINT is currently the only chip shipping with QuickDraw 3D drivers -- providing highly optimized QuickDraw 3D performance integrated seamlessly into the Macintosh environment. Company Information 3Dlabs is a worldwide OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) The rebranding of equipment and selling it. The term initially referred to the company that made the products (the "original" manufacturer), but eventually became widely used to refer to the organization that buys the products and supplier of chips, enabling software and technology for 3D graphics. The company's products enable board and system manufacturers to integrate 3D capabilities into their products for such applications as CAD, multimedia, authoring, simulation, virtual reality, interactive TV and video games. Currently, over 40 companies have incorporated GLINT into their 3D products and GLINT is recognized as the industry-standard accelerator architecture for high performance 3D graphics on the PC. 3Dlabs provides GLINT-optimized drivers for many industry leading graphics APIs, allowing a growing number of applications to achieve 3D interactivity on low cost platforms. 3Dlabs Inc., headquartered in San Jose, was founded in April 1994, and is privately owned. -0- Note to Editors: 3Dlabs is a trademark, and GLINT is a registered trademark of 3Dlabs Inc. Ltd. Apple and Macintosh are registered trademarks and QuickDraw is a trademark of Apple Computer Inc. Screamer is a trademark of YARC Systems Corp. All other trademarks are acknowledged. CONTACT: 3Dlabs Inc. Neil Trevett, 408/436-3456 E-mail: neil.trevett@3dlabs.com or Horizon Public Relations public relations, activities and policies used to create public interest in a person, idea, product, institution, or business establishment. By its nature, public relations is devoted to serving particular interests by presenting them to the public in the most Jonathan Hirshon, 408/982-2555 E-mail: jh@horizonpr.com |
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