Re: Plug for CSG

[etc., etc.]

>
> CSG make it easy to express virtual things the way people think
> real things...
>

[etc., etc.]

I think CSG is good for modeling.
So... write a *modeler* which use CSG for its user interface.
CSG *can* also be compact, but doesn't have to be.
Just try to model something organic for instance.
Say an egg, or s muman, or terrain.
Quite easy to do with an IndexedFaceSet or NurbsCurve...
Even your gear example, for a realistic gear with notched teeth and
fillets around a reinforced bearing surface, a CSG format.

However, CSG is *la> y* for rendering.
So...store and render using surfaces (like VRML), but
MODEL HOWEVER IT BEST SUITS YOU, even with CSG!
This is, I believe, what all major modeling/CAD packages that
support CSG do.

These issues are addressed in Foley, van Dam, Feiner, Hughes,
"Computer Graphics Principles and Practice".

Conclusion:

This is not something which should be put in VRML, since VRML
is a geometry description, not a modeler or modeling tool
Enough

Tim.