How do I learn openGL?

[Giscardo]

What do I need to learn openGL? Do I need to purchase or download an OpenGL SDK of some sort? Are there any good tutorials online? Is OpenGL functional or object oriented (or something else). What else do i need to know?

 

[rbV5]

Start here OpenGL.org

 

[br0wn]

Do you know C and C++?
If you do, you are good to go (just read the manual page).

OpenGL is the graphics library, and you will use
other language (like C or C++) for the data structures
and algorithms.

 

[Megapol]

tell us which development envoronment you use, and then we will be able to direct you to the library files/tutorials.

 

[Giscardo]

Well all the development i've done has been under linux, mainly using Java. I am learning C++ right now tho, and we used C in class for about a week. So I suppose I'd be learning/developing in linux (i use Sun's JDK, and the free gcc compilers).

 

[Argo]

Hmm, can't tell anything about unix, but in windows you d/l OpenGL SDK. I suggest you get glut library as well, since it's pretty helpful for novice GL programmers.

 

[br0wn]

For linux, basically you will use Mesa (I think it is
included in your linux distribution).

Click here to learn more
about Mesa.

BTW, GLUT is OpenGL Utility Toolkit which is built
on top of OpenGL (you can use Mesa + GLUT also).
It is usually used to build GUIs (another good UI software is
GLUI).

Basically, you use GLUT/GLUI to build the interface (buttons,
windows, sliders),
and use OpenGL/Mesa for the graphics core (3d modelings like
objects, lighting, ...).