State of the Art OpenGL

and Qt
Dr. Roland Krause
Integrated Computer Solutions
 Abstract
OpenGL is a powerful, low level graphics toolkit with a steep learning curve that
allows access to accelerated GPU hardware. Using OpenGL developers achieve
high-fidelity, animated graphics ubiquitous in games, screen productions and
scientific software. Due to OpenGL’s native C-language API large scale,
professional software development endeavors wanting to utilize the advantages of
direct and accelerated graphics quickly become expensive and hard to maintain.
This presentation gives a comprehensive overview of the many aspects of
OpenGL development where Qt provides advanced interfaces that let the
developer focus on the tasks at hand instead of dealing with repetitive and error-
prone, platform dependent issues. From handling of Window related tasks,
providing type-safe data-structures for Vertex Array Objects to managing Shader
Programs, dealing with Textures, Frame Buffer Objects all the way to support for
Debugging and Profiling of OpenGL Applications we show solutions to the most
common issues any OpenGL program has to address.
We are able to demonstrate why Qt is the best C++ framework for development of
modern OpenGL based graphics applications.
 Modern OpenGL with Qt
● OpenGL is an Application Programming Interface (API) for
Rendering Graphics in 2D and 3D
○ Widely used in CAD, Virtual Reality, Scientific Visualization, Information
Visualization, Flight Simulation, and Video Games.
○ Over 500 commands in Version 4.3
○ Managed by the non-profit technology consortium Khronos Group.
● Designed as a Streamlined, Hardware Independent
Interface
○ To be efficient usually implemented on graphics hardware (GPU)
○ Independent of Operating System or Windowing System, Cross-platform
○ No functions for windowing tasks, managing state, user input, 3D models
or reading image files

That’s where Qt comes into play!

 Steps to Render a Scene with OpenGL
1. Create OpenGL Context and Window
2. Create and Manage the OpenGL Scene
○ Create Geometry
■ Store Geometry in Vertex Buffer Objects (VBOs)
○ Define, Compile and Link Shaders into a Shader
Program
○ Configure the Rendering Pipeline
○ Set Attribute Arrays, Uniforms, Textures, etc…
3. Render the Scene using OpenGL Primitives
 Create OpenGL Context and Window
● Since Qt 5 the class QWindow represents a
window in the underlying windowing system
○ In Qt 4, QWidget had both Window and Widget
functionality
○ In Qt 5, QWindow is part of the gui module, QWidget is
in a separate and now optional module (widgets)
○ Applications will typically use QWidget or QQuickView
to create user interfaces
● It is possible to render directly to a
QWindow with a QOpenGLContext
● QWindow can be embedded in a QWidget

5
 Qt’s OpenGL Support - QWindow
● Provides OpenGL and OpenGL ES Integration
○ QWindow supports rendering using (Desktop) OpenGL
and OpenGL ES, depending on platform support
● Derive class from QWindow
○ In Constructor set QWindow's surface type:
void QWindow::setSurfaceType(SurfaceType
surfaceType)
○ Choose Format Attributes using QSurfaceFormat
■ OpenGL version and profile, sample buffer size,
depth buffer size, etc..
○ Create a QOpenGLContext to manage the native
OpenGL context
6
 Qt’s OpenGL Support - QWindow
● Create by calling QWindow::create()
● Implement a set of necessary functions
○ By convention: initializeGL(), updateGL(), resizeGL()
○ Needed to initialize and render OpenGL content
● Embed QWindow in a widget using QWidget::
createWindowContainer(...)
returns a QWidget with the QWindow embedded inside it
● Additionally Qt has QOpenGLPaintDevice
○ Enables use of OpenGL accelerated QPainter
rendering

7
 OpenGL Context
● State machine that stores all data related to
the OpenGL rendering state
○ Most OpenGL functions set or retrieve some state
○ Creating a window and an OpenGL context is not part
of the OpenGL specification
● QOpenGLContext represents a native
OpenGL context
○ Enables OpenGL rendering on a QSurface.
○ Context allow to share resources with other contexts
with setShareContext()

8
 QOpenGLContext
To create:
● Create a QSurfaceFormat object
○ Set desired OpenGL version and profile
● Create the QOpenGLContext
○ Set the context format using the QSurfaceFormat
object
● Finally call QOpenGLContext::create()
○ Use return value or isValid() to check if the context was
successfully initialized
● Before using any OpenGL QOpenGLContext
must be made current against a surface
○ QOpenGLContext::makeCurrent(QSurface*)
9
 QOpenGLContext
● When OpenGL rendering is done
○ Call swapBuffers() to swap the front and back buffers
of the surface at the end of the update function
○ Newly rendered content becomes visible
○ QOpenGLContext requires to call makeCurrent() again
before starting rendering a new frame, after calling
swapBuffers()
● Use QOpenGLContext::format() to retrieve info
on the context
○ Returns a QSurfaceFormat
○ OpenGL version, profile, etc...

10
 Qt’s OpenGL Support
● QOpenGLFunctions are convenience classes
● Simplify writing of OpenGL code
● Hide complexities of extension handling
● Hide differences between OpenGL ES 2 and
desktop OpenGL
○ Allow the use of OpenGL ES 2 functions on Desktop
OpenGL
○ No need to manually resolve OpenGL function pointers
○ Allowing cross-platform development of applications
targeting mobile or embedded devices

11
 QAbstractOpenGLFunctions
● Family of classes that expose all functions for
a given OpenGL version and profile
○ OpenGL implementations on different platforms are
able to link to a variable number of OpenGL functions
depending upon the OpenGL ABI on that platform
○ On many platforms most functions must be resolved at
runtime, Options are:
■ Work with raw function pointers:
QOpenGLContext::getProcAddress()
■ Use QOpenGLFunctions and only expose those
functions common to OpenGL ES 2 and desktop
OpenGL
12
 QAbstractOpenGLFunctions (cont.)
● Provides better support for newer versions of
OpenGL (especially 3.0 and higher)
● Ease development of desktop applications
relying on modern, desktop-only OpenGL
features
● QOpenGLFunctions_X_Y_PROFILE
○ Core and Compatibility Profiles
○ Expose every core OpenGL function by way of a
corresponding member function
○ Class for every valid combination of OpenGL version
and profile following the naming convention:
QOpenGLFunctions_<MAJOR VERSION>_<MINOR VERSION>[_PROFILE]
13
Using QOpenGLFunctions_X_Y_PROFILE
● Ensure QOpenGLContext is current before
using it
● Call
QOpenGLFunctions_X_Y_PROFILE::initializeOpenGLFunctions()
once before using it to resolve function
pointers

14
 Qt’s OpenGL Support
● Classes that wrap native OpenGL Resources
○ QOpenGLBuffer, QOpenGLFramebufferObject
QOpenGLShaderProgram, OpenGLTexture,
QOpenGLVertexArrayObject
● Qt GUI Module Contains
○ QMatrix4x4, QVector4D and QQuaternion
○ Support common mathematical operations for 3D
graphics
● Miscellaneous
○ Debugging, QOpenGLDebugLogger
○ Timing, QOpenGLTimeMonitor, QOpenGLTimerQuery

15
 Qt 5 and OpenGL Classes
QOpenGLContext QOpenGLDebugLogger
QOpenGLContextGroup QOpenGLDebugMessage
QOpenGLVersionProfile QOpenGLTimeMonitor
QOpenGLFunctions* QOpenGLTimerQuery
QOpenGLVertexArrayObject QOpenGLPaintDevice
QOpenGLBuffer QOpenGLTexture (Qt 5.3)
QOpenGLShader QOpenGLWidget(Qt 5.4)
QOpenGLShaderProgram QOpenGLWindow(Qt 5.4)
QOpenGLFrameBufferObject
QOpenGLFrameBufferObjectFormat

16
 What is a Shader?
● Small program that runs on the GPU
● Ran as part of the OpenGL pipeline
● Programmable
● Coded in GLSL (OpenGL Shading Language)
● Makes rendering infinitely flexible

17
Simplified Pipeline

18
 Shaders
● Two kinds of shaders:
○ Shaders that deal with Vertices, i.E:
Vertex, Tessellation and Geometry shaders determine
where on the screen a primitive is.
○ Fragment Shader uses that information to determine
what color that fragment will be.
● Must have a version identifier at top of file
● Must have a main() function
● Each shader is compiled, then they are linked
together to make a shader program
● Input/output interfaces must match, and are
checked at link time
19
 Shader Basics
● Vertex Shader
○ Executed once for every vertex
○ Input: Content of Vertex Buffer Arrays and Uniforms
○ Output: Vertex position
● Fragment Shader
○ Executed once for every fragment
○ Input: Result of Rasterization after Vertex Shader
○ Output: Candidate pixel color (aka Fragment)

20
 Prepare Shaders
● Preparing Shaders
○ Compile vertex shader
○ Compile fragment shader
○ Configure attribute locations before linking
○ Link both shaders into a shader program
● Preparing shaders with Qt vs pure OpenGL
○ Much less code
○ Less error prone

21
Example: Use Qt to Create Shader Program
void OpenGLUtilities::createShaderProgram() {
const GLubyte * _v=glGetString(GL_SHADING_LANGUAGE_VERSION);
QByteArray _vstr; _vstr.append(_v[0]); _vstr.append(_v[2]); _vstr.append(_v[3]);
int _vnumber=_vstr.toInt();
QByteArray version = "#version " + _vstr;
bool isOpenGLES=(QOpenGLContext::openGLModuleType() == QOpenGLContext::LibGLES);
if (_vnumber < 300) {
version = isOpenGLES ? "#version 100" : "#version 120";
}
version += "\n";
QFile vtFile(":/vertex.vsh"); vtFile.open((QIODevice::ReadOnly | QIODevice::Text));
QFile fsFile (":/fragment.fsh"); fsFile.open((QIODevice::ReadOnly | QIODevice::Text));
if (!m_shaderProgram.addShaderFromSourceCode(QOpenGLShader::Vertex,version+vtFile.readAll())){
qDebug() << "Error in vertex shader:" << m_shaderProgram.log(); exit(1);
}
if (!m_shaderProgram.addShaderFromSourceCode(QOpenGLShader::Fragment,version+fsFile.readAll()))
{
qDebug() << "Error in fragment shader:" << m_shaderProgram.log(); exit(1);
}
if (_vnumber < 300) {
m_shaderProgram.bindAttributeLocation("vertexPosition", 0);
m_shaderProgram.bindAttributeLocation("vertexNormal", 1);
}
if ( !m_shaderProgram.link() ) {
qDebug() << "Error linking shader program:" << m_shaderProgram.log(); exit(1);
}
}
 Creating a VBO
● Create buffer object
● Bind the buffer, making it the active buffer
● Copy the data to the buffer
// Triangle vertices
float vertices[] = {
-1.0f, -1.0f, 0.0f,
1.0f, -1.0f, 0.0f,
0.0f, 0.6f, 0.0f
};
// Create a static buffer for vertex data
m_vertexBuffer.create();
// Set usage pattern to Static Draw, (the data won't change)
m_vertexBuffer.setUsagePattern( QOpenGLBuffer::StaticDraw );
// Bind the buffer to the current OpenGL context
m_vertexBuffer.bind();
// Copy the data to the buffer
m_vertexBuffer.allocate( vertices, 3 * 3 * sizeof( float ) );

23
 Vertex Attributes
● We have the data (in VBOs)
● We have the shaders compiled
● How do we map the data to the shader
attributes?
After compiling shaders before linking:

m_shaderProgram.bindAttributeLocation("vertexPosition", 0);

This assigns the attribute vertexPosition the

first location (0)

24
 Vertex Attribute Arrays
● VBO data is mapped to shader attribute
locations
m_shaderProgram.bind();
m_vertexBuffer.bind();
int vertexLocation = m_shaderProgram.attributeLocation("vertexPosition");
m_shaderProgram.setAttributeBuffer(
vertexLocation, // layout location
GL_FLOAT, // data's type
0, // Offset to data in buffer
3); // number of components (3 for x,y,z)

○ Bind the shader program

○ Bind the VBO containing the attribute data
○ Enable the desired vertex attribute array location
○ Set the attribute buffer to desired attribute location, set
number of components and stride
○ Supports VBOs with interleaved data
25
 Defining Uniform Values in Qt
● Yep, It is that simple! OpenGLShaderProgram
has a myriad ways to do it, e.g.: m_shaderProgram.
bind();
// Get the location of uniform value "uni" in the shader.
int uniLocation = m_shaderProgram.uniformLocation("uni");
// Then update the value m_shaderProgram.
setUniformValue(uniLocation,uniValue);
// Or in one step m_shaderProgram.setUniformValue
("uni",0.8f,0.5f,0.5f);

● If the value changes during an animation this

code would go in the updateGL function
● If it is static it could go into initializeGL after the
shader program has been linked and bound
26
 Deprecated OpenGL Matrix Stack
● OpenGL Desktop version < 3 used to have
“built in” matrix stacks and related functionality
for dealing with transformations and
projections
○ glRotate*, glTranslate*, glScale*
○ glMatrixMode(), glPushMatrix(), glPopMatrix()
○ glLoadIdentity()
○ glFrustum(), gluPerspective(...), gluLookAt(..)
● All of these are now deprecated and
should/can no longer be used

27
 Matrices, Qt to the Rescue
● Fortunately, it is very easy to achieve the
same functionality with more flexibility using Qt
● There are functions to:
○ Create or set a matrix to the identity matrix
■ Identity matrix is a diagonal matrix with all elements
being 1. When multiplied with a vector the result will
be the same vector.
○ Translate, Scale, Rotate
○ Create a (view) matrix representing a “camera”
○ Create perspective or orthographic projection matrix
● And then one can use QStack, QVector, QList
and gain ultimate flexibility
28
 QMatrix4x4
● Contains convenient functions for handling
Model, View, and Projection Matrices
○ QMatrix4x4::translate()
○ QMatrix4x4::scale()
○ QMatrix4x4::rotate()
○ QMatrix4x4::lookAt()
○ QMatrix4x4::perspective()
○ QMatrix4x4::ortho()

29
 QOpenGLTexture
● Qt- 5.2 introduces QOpenGLTexture to encapsulate an
OpenGL texture object
○ Makes it easy to work with OpenGL textures
○ Simplifies dealing with dependencies upon the capabilities of an OpenGL
implementation
● Typical usage pattern for QOpenGLTexture is
○ Instantiate the object specifying the texture target type
○ Set properties that affect storage requirements e.g. storage format,
dimensions
○ Allocate server-side storage
○ Optionally upload pixel data
○ Optionally set any additional properties e.g. filtering and border options
○ Render with texture or render to texture
○ In the common case of simply using a QImage as the source of texture
pixel data most of the above steps are performed automatically.
30
 Qt Support for FBO
● Qt simplifies the process with:
○ QOpenGLFramebufferObject class
▪ Represents OpenGL FBO
▪ By default creates 2D texture for rendering target
▪ Function to return the OpenGL texture id
● Can be used for texture rendering
▪ Function to return rendered scene as a QImage
○ QOpenGLFramebufferObjectFormat()
▪ Specify format and attachments of FBO

31
 Qt and OpenGL Extensions
● A list of all OpenGL extensions supported by the current
context can be retrieved with a call to
QSet<QByteArray> QOpenGLContext::​extensions() const
The context or a sharing context must be current.
● Resolve the entry points if the extension introduces a new
API: QOpenGLContext::getProcAddress().
● QtOpenGLExtensions module contains a class for every
OpenGL extension in the Khronos registry that introduces
new API.

32
 OpenGL Debugging with Qt
● OpenGL programming can be error prone
○ Black screen syndrom. There is no indication what is going on?
○ To be sure that no errors are being returned from OpenGL
implementation check glGetError after every API call
○ OpenGL errors stack up so need to use this in a loop.
○ Additional information e.g. performance issues, warnings about using
deprecated APIs are not reported through the ordinary OpenGL error
reporting mechanisms
● QOpenGLDebugLogger enables logging of OpenGL
debugging messages
○ Provides access to the OpenGL debug log if OpenGL implementation
supports it (by exposing the GL_KHR_debug extension)
○ Messages from the OpenGL server will either be logged in an internal
OpenGL log or passed in "real-time", i.e. as they're generated from
OpenGL, to listeners

33
 OpenGL Debugging with Qt
● Creating an OpenGL Debug Context
○ OpenGL implementations are allowed not to create any debug output at
all, unless the OpenGL context is a debug context
○ Set QSurfaceFormat::DebugContext format option on the
QSurfaceFormat used to create the QOpenGLContext object:
format.setOption(QSurfaceFormat::DebugContext);
● Creating and Initializing a QOpenGLDebugLogger
○ QOpenGLDebugLogger is a simple QObject-derived class
○ Create an instance and initialize it before usage by calling
initialize() with a current OpenGL context:
QOpenGLContext *ctx = QOpenGLContext::currentContext();
QOpenGLDebugLogger *logger = new QOpenGLDebugLogger(this);
logger->initialize();

○ Note that GL_KHR_debug extension must be available in the context in

order to access the messages logged by OpenGL
○ You can check the presence of this extension by calling:
ctx->hasExtension(QByteArrayLiteral("GL_KHR_debug")) 34
 Qt OpenGL Debug Messages
● Reading the Internal OpenGL Debug Log
○ Messages stored in the internal log of debug messages can be retrieved
by using the loggedMessages() function
QList<QOpenGLDebugMessage> messages = logger->loggedMessages();
foreach (const QOpenGLDebugMessage &message, messages)
qDebug() << message;
○ Internal log has limited size; Older messages will get discarded to make
room for new incoming messages
● Real-time logging of messages
○ Receive a stream of debug messages from the OpenGL server as they
are generated by the implementation
○ Connect a slot to the messageLogged() signal, and start logging by
calling startLogging():
connect(logger, &QOpenGLDebugLogger::messageLogged, receiver,
&LogHandler::handleLoggedMessage);
logger->startLogging();
● Similarly, logging can be disabled at any time by calling the stopLogging()
function.
35
 QOpenGLTimeMonitor
● Measure GPU execution time of OpenGL calls
● Use to profile an application’s rendering
performance
● Timed results in nanoseconds
● Create and set number of samples that will be
taken, e.g:

m_timeMonitor = new QOpenGLTimeMonitor(this);

m_timeMonitor->setSampleCount(3);
if (!m_timeMonitor->create())
...Handle error

36
 QOpenGLTimeMonitor
● QOpenGLTimeMonitor::recordSample() to
record interval
m_timeMonitor->recordSample();
glClear( GL_COLOR_BUFFER_BIT );
m_timeMonitor->recordSample();
glDrawArrays( GL_TRIANGLES, 0, 3 );
m_timeMonitor->recordSample();

37
 QOpenGLTimeMonitor
● Call waitForSamples() or waitForIntervals()
to retrieve samples or intervals
(in nanoseconds)
QVector<GLuint64> samples = m_timeMonitor->waitForSamples();
QVector<GLuint64> intervals = m_timeMonitor->waitForIntervals();

o These functions block until values are ready

o Call isResultAvailable() to prevent blocking
● Reset to use again
m_timeMonitor->reset();

38
 Conclusion
● Qt has many classes that make working with
OpenGL much more efficient.
● Cross platform capabilities of Qt enhance the
portability of OpenGL applications greatly.
● Developer efficiency translates directly to
maintenance costs and time to market.
● Ideal for scientific applications, visualization
and even some games.