[vtkusers] New quadric clustering algorithm

[Will Schroeder]

Hi Folks-

Thanks to Amy Henderson at Kitware we now have a new decimation algorithm
implemented in the class vtkQuadricClustering. (This is the algorithm presented
by Peter Lindstrom in his July 2000 Siggraph paper, "Out-of-Core 
Simplification of Large
Polygonal Models.")

This algorithm has several nice features including high-speed, use of the 
quadric error measure,
and the ability to handle gigantic polygonal meshes. For example. the 
filter has some extra
machinery to allow the user to process pieces of the mesh in an "append 
mode," i.e. a piece
at a time until the whole mesh is processed. (The only limitation is a 
memory limitation on the
size of the output mesh, which is a function of the size of the spatial 
subdivision used to perform
the clustering.)

The comments in the .h file briefly describe the operation of the filter if 
you'd like to learn more.

Will
------------------------------------
William J. Schroeder, Ph.D.
Kitware, Inc.
VTK-Based Visualization Solutions
469 Clifton Corporate Parkway
Clifton Park, NY 12065 USA
will.schroeder at kitware.com
http://www.kitware.com
1-518-371-3971 x102