As part of their practicums in the INF2705 course, students have to illuminate different objects, such as a sphere, procedures that some of them are now performing online using VirtualGL software.

The few people who are currently allowed access to the Lassonde Buildings may have perhaps seen a curious phenomenon when passing by the glass wall of the L-4712 computer lab. From time to time, the computer screens might light up, as if someone were taking control of them. And that’s pretty much exactly what's happening!

Students in the INF2705–Computer Graphics course connect to these machines to do their practicums online and, more specifically, use the graphics cards at this lab’s workstations. A procedure made possible by the presence at each station of “VirtualGL,” a software program that was luckily installed on the lab’s computers just a few months ago for testing.

“Not all our students are big videogame enthusiasts,” says a smiling Benoît Ozell, Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Engineering and Software Engineering and co-director of the course. “Some of them didn’t have access to a graphics card powerful enough to do their practicums, but thanks to VirtualGL, and to support from Department of Computer Engineering and Software Engineering technicians, this is no longer the case.”

The free software had not been used until now, Professor Ozell acknowledges, but is proving very useful during the COVID-19 pandemic. By remotely accessing Polytechnique's computers, students can perform complex calculations on the graphics cards and then simply display the results online.

Students in course INF2705 learn how to create computer-generated images, display 3D animations and create virtual scenes. These concepts are highly valued in the videogaming and health industries, explains Professor Ozell. “They're actually used in all engineering disciplines that feature computer-generated objects, as well as in those that use virtual reality and augmented reality.”

The VirtualGL tool, combined with the use of teaching platforms such as Via, now enables Professor Ozell to envision a future where his course could be taught remotely on occasion—“for instance, when you wake up to a 30-centimetre snowfall,” he jokes.

In the meantime, Professor Ozell says he’s totally ready for a possible future remote computer graphics semester!
 

Benoît Ozell, Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Engineering and Software Engineering.

Find out more

Information on course INF2705 – Computer Graphics (In French)
Expertise of Professor Benoît Ozell
Website of the Department of Computer Engineering and Software Engineering (In French)