Rendering SVG with OpenGL (and OpenGL ES)

Question

I am currently investigating the possibility of rendering vector graphics from an SVG file using OpenGL and OpenGL ES. I intend to target Windows and Android. My ideal solution

Answer 1

It needs to be said that rendering SVG or OpenVG with OpenGL or OpenGL ES is fundamentally a bad idea. There are reasons the OpenVG implementations are all so slow and largely abandoned. The process of tessellating paths (the foundation of all SVG/OpenVG rendering) into triangle lists as required by OpenGL is fundamentally slow and inefficient. It basically requires inserting a sort/search algorithm into the 3D rendering pipeline, which cripples performance. There is also the problem that a dynamic memory allocation scheme is required because the size of the data set is unknown since SVG places no limits on the complexity of the path geometry. A really poor design.

SVG and OpenVG were created by developers who had little understanding of how modern 3D graphics hardware engines actually work (triangle lists). They were created to be an open alternative to Adobe Flash, which also has the same flawed architecture that has made Flash reviled in the industry for unpredictable performance.

My advice is to rethink your design and use OpenGL triangle lists directly. You may have to write more code, but your app will perform about a thousand times better and you can more easily debug your code than someone elses.