[ODE] Switching from Drawstuff to My own graphics engine

[Steve Baker]

Robert Rose wrote:

>> I've read that you should have a seperate ticker for your 
>> physics
>> engine (from the graphics one) and that the physics ticker should be 
>> faster.
>> Is this true, and why?
> 
> 
> I've never heard that before, but I suppose it might make sense 
> depending upon your application.  Dynamics calculations are often times 
> a lot more intensive than the rest of the items that occur in your 
> render loop, so it might make sense to only run the dynamics every 3rd 
> frame or so...

I'd expect quite the reverse. Running the physics at a couple of hundred hertz
with the graphics running at 60Hz.

However, one thing that's good about running physics at it's own rate
is that it can be updated with a nice constant update rate - irrespective
of how heavily loaded the graphics might be.

Also, for games, you often demand repeatability in your physics - where
you could pretty much care nothing for graphics repeatability.  Consider
also that for networked games, you may want to move the physics off to
the game server...which certainly means that graphics and physics will be
decoupled.

---------------------------- Steve Baker -------------------------
HomeEmail: <sjbaker1 at airmail.net>    WorkEmail: <sjbaker at link.com>
HomePage : http://www.sjbaker.org
Projects : http://plib.sf.net    http://tuxaqfh.sf.net
            http://tuxkart.sf.net http://prettypoly.sf.net
-----BEGIN GEEK CODE BLOCK-----
GCS d-- s:+ a+ C++++$ UL+++$ P--- L++++$ E--- W+++ N o+ K? w--- !O M-
V-- PS++ PE- Y-- PGP-- t+ 5 X R+++ tv b++ DI++ D G+ e++ h--(-) r+++ y++++
-----END GEEK CODE BLOCK-----