DEFINITION:
Vector Graphics (also called,BUT HARDLY EVER!,geometric modeling or object-oriented graphics) is the use of geometrical primitives such as POINTS,LINES, CURVES, and POLYGONS, which are all based upon mathematical equations to represent IMAGES in COMPUTERS. It is used by contrast to the term RASTER IMAGES, which is the representation of images as a collection of PIXELS(dots).
HISTORY:
The early days of computing in the 1950s and into the 1980s, a different type of display, the vector graphics system, was used. In these systems the electron beam of the CRT display monitor was steered directly to trace out the shapes required, line segment by line segment, with the rest of the screen remaining black. This process was repeated many times a second to achieve a flicker-free or near flicker-free picture. These systems allowed very high-resolution line art and moving images to be displayed without the (for that time) unthinkably huge amounts of memory that an equivalent-resolution raster system would have needed. These vector-based monitors were also known as X-Y displays!
The first uses vector graphic displays was the US SAGE air defense system. Vector graphics systems were only retired from U.S. en route air traffic control in 1999, and are likely still in use in military and specialized systems.Vector graphics systems include Digital's GT40 [1]. There was a home gaming system that used vector graphics called VECTREX various arcade games like Asteroids and Space Wars, still classics I might add!
Vector graphics is mainly used today in the context of two-dimensional computer graphics. It is one of several modes an artist can use to create an image on a raster display. Other modes include text, multimedia and 3d rendering. Virtually all modern 3D rendering is done using extensions of 2D vector graphics techniques.
We uses vector graphics here at signoutfitters.com in a variety of ways, for yard signs, bumpers stickers, magnetic car signs, etc. We prefer that our clients send us vector art but we will accept raster/bitmaps images and convert them to vector art for a small fee. We prefer vector art because it is completely scalable and the files are small. So for now I will play Asteroids on my super advanced X BOX 360 and think about the god ole' days when I was pumping many a quarters into the arcade machine.
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