SPECopc Updates Viewperf and Viewsets; Adds New Viewset for Mechanical CAD

NEW ORLEANS, La., July 26, 2000 - SPEC/GPC's OpenGL Performance Characterization (SPECopc) project group has revised its SPECviewperf 3D graphics benchmark, updated viewsets for application-based performance testing, and added a new viewset representing medium-level mechanical CAD applications. Initial performance results are available on this site.

SPECviewperf has been updated to version 6.1.2 to accommodate changes in the viewsets that include larger model and window sizes, multiple textures, new walkthroughs, and new test weightings based on input from application software vendors. Display requirements have been increased to a minimum of 1280x1024 pixels, 24-bit true color or greater, and (except for flat panel displays) a refresh rate of 75-Hz or higher. As a result of the changes, results reported under Viewperf 6.1.2 cannot be accurately compared with previously reported Viewperf results.

The new MCAD viewset (medMCAD-01) models the graphics performance of a range of medium-scale, immediate-mode applications such as Parametric Technology Corp.'s Pro/ENGINEER™ and SolidWorks™ from SolidWorks Corp. It incorporates a shaded model containing 349,000 triangles and a wireframe model with 120,000 lines.

"Benchmarks and test files have to change with graphics technology," says Bill Licea-Kane of 3Dlabs, the SPECopc chair. "We updated SPECviewperf and its viewsets to help ensure that there's enough headroom to meet the benchmarking demands of current and future graphics systems. The new viewset is the first that represents the functionality and operations of medium-level mechanical CAD applications."

SPECviewperf measures the 3D rendering performance of systems running under the OpenGL application programming interface (API). Viewsets are the test files that run under SPECviewperf. Developed for the SPECopc group by independent software vendors (ISVs), viewsets represent the same mix of graphics rendering and manipulation found in actual applications, or in the case of the new MCAD viewset, in a class of applications.

SPECopc is a project group of the Graphics Performance Characterization (GPC) Group, which in turn is part of the Standard Performance Evaluation Corp. (SPEC). SPEC is a non-profit corporation formed to establish, maintain and endorse a standardized set of relevant benchmarks that can be applied to the newest generation of high-performance computers. SPEC's membership includes computer hardware and software vendors, and leading universities and research facilities worldwide.

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