The encyclopedia · Software & IT · Strategic decision · 1992–2006
SGI opened its 3D API as OpenGL and it became the industry standard
SGI turned its proprietary IRIS GL into the cross-platform OpenGL spec, and any vendor could implement it; it became the 3D API standard.
Silicon Graphics (SGI) · Khronos Group
the move
In the 1980s each vendor had its own 3D API, so game and CAD developers had to rewrite for each graphics card.
SGI took its proprietary IRIS GL and released it as OpenGL, an open specification any vendor could license and implement.
A neutral Architecture Review Board oversaw it, so the standard stayed cross-platform and not tied to one company.
why it works
- Cross-platform licensing removed the reason to stay with one vendor's API.
- A neutral review board kept the standard from being captured by any player.
- It freed game and CAD developers to write once for many graphics cards.
- It first scaled on professional workstations, giving it a strong institutional base.
what transfers
Open your proprietary API to a neutral standard and every vendor adopts it, which is worth more than exclusivity.
what came after
OpenGL remained the industry's 3D API for over two decades, was followed in the low-level role by Khronos' Vulkan, and its licensing model shaped how open graphics standards are governed.
references
- OpenGL — The Industry's Foundation for High Performance Graphics
- About Khronos and open interoperability standards
- Climbing Longs Peak: The Steep Road to the Future of OpenGL
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