“Online” or “net” resources are becoming more and more important to the overall exchange of technical information in today’s world, and while certainly not (yet) at the point where such resources can be seen as completely replacing print media, information available via the World-Wide Web can be a valuable resource for those studying any technical field. However, the nature of web-based resources is such that one must be cautious regarding the accuracy and completeness of certain sources, and there is in any event no guarantee that a source that is available online today will remain so in the future. The following sites, however, represent a selection of those which, in the author’s opinion, both provide signficant and accurate information in this field, and which are likely to continue to be reliable sources in the future. In many cases, information obtained from these was invaluable in the writing of this text, and in making certain that the information presented here was as current as possible.
Standards Organizations and Similar Groups
Digital Display Working Group (DDWG) – a consortium of seven companies, which developed and published the Digital Visial Interface (DVI) specification. The DVI 1.0 specification may be downloaded from this site.
http://www.ddwg.org
Digital Video Broadcasting Project – a consortium of industry and government organizations working on developing digital television standards for worldwide use.
http://www.dvb.org
Electronic Industries Association (EIA) – Site includes links to information on obtaining EIA standards documents, and the EIA standards process, along with links to other EIA member organizations such as the CEA.
http://www.eia.org
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) – Official site of the IEEE, with links to the IEEE Standards Association (IEEE-SA), the current distribution source for IEEE standards.
http://www.ieee.org
International Color Consortium – information and specifications regarding ICC profiles, etc.
http://www.color.org
sRGB official website – Provides technical information on the sRGB specification and its applications, along with links to other color standards and related organizations. Hosted by Hewlett-Packard Co.
http://www.srgb.com
The Society for Information Display – The leading professional organization for those working in the field of electronic displays and related technologies.
http://www.sid.org
Standard Panels Working Group – a group of computer and display manufacturers working on standards for LCD panels. Site hosted by DisplaySearch. SPWG 1.0 and 2.0 specifications may be downloaded from the site.
http://www.displaysearch.com/SPWG
1394 Trade Association – The industry group responsible for promoting the IEEE-1394 serial digital interface. Note: the 1394 standard itself is not available from this site, as it is an IEEE standard. However, there are several “white papers” and other sources of technical information at this site.
http://www.1394ta.org
Universal Serial Bus (USB) official website – A site established by the USB promoters to distribute news and information regarding the Universal Serial Bus. The USB specification may be downloaded from this site.
http://www.usb.org
The Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) – a group of over 120 companies in the computer, display, and graphics hardware industries, working on display interface and related standards. Note: some standards are available from this site, although on-line access to the complete set of VESA standards and other documents is limited to VESA members.
http://www.vesa.org
Other Recommended On-Line Resources
Charles Poynton’s “Frequently Asked Questions…” papers on gamma and color. Very complete, concise, and readable explanations of many of the most commonly asked questions regarding various aspects of image generation and presentation on electronic displays, by a leading consultant in the field.
http://www.inforamp.net/~poynton/GammaFAQ.html
http://www.inforamp.net/~poynton/ColorFAQ.html
On-line technical memos by Dr. Alvy Ray Smith, a longtime leader in the field of computer graphics. Of particular interest here is the memo entitled “A Pixel is NOT a Little Square.,” which provides an excellent explanation of the nature of pixels and image sampling in general, in both two and three dimensions.
http://alvyray.com/Memos/default.htm
OpticsNotes.com – An online resource providing information in the field of optics and photonics.
http://www.opticsnotes.com
