Two major changes in the latest version of GLM include GLSL 4.10 packing functions and == and != operators for all types.

OpenCOLLADA released a major update a few days ago on the Windows side. OpenCOLLADA now supports Max/Maya 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 x86 and x64. Download is available today on the OpenCOLLADA website.

Rightware will be participating in the upcoming Mobile World Congress to present the world’s first stereoscopic 3D home screen replacement for Android. This unique and innovative product is running on Kanzi UI Solution, and is targeted for mobile device manufacturers, operators and application developers to enable the best innovation and differentiation capabilities in today’s devices.

A little fun for Monday morning, Scott Downe has created a WebGL page that is only 88 characters in size. He challenges any one to create a smaller page. Although the WebGL page is blank, it makes for an interesting challenge in optimization, and reminds me of the day when programming, every byte counted.

AMD just released two new FirePro GPUs. The FirePro 2270 using only 15W at full load fully supports OpenGL 4.1. Designed for professional use in CAD workstations and rendering systems, the budget-end FirePro 2270 card has a low-profile design, passive cooler, and is intended to replace the actively-cooled FirePro 2250.

The OpenCL University Kit is a set of materials for teaching a full semester course in OpenCL programming. Each lecture includes instructor notes and speaker notes, plus code examples for lectures 2, 3, and 13. A sample application is provided for lecture 9. A number of educational institutions now offer courses in OpenCL programming to help prepare developers for the new era of heterogeneous computing.

Sonic Solutions recently announced the availability of the MainConcept OpenCL H.264/AVC encoder SDK, optimized for ATI FirePro professional graphics and AMD Radeon graphics. Widely recognized as the world leader in codec development, MainConcept’s new SDK dramatically improves H.264/AVC HD video encoding times by efficiently harnessing the OpenCL standard.

Jon Peddie research just released their latest issue of TechWatch. This months sees a comprehensive review of the recent Khronos Group release of OpenSL ES, OpenMAX AL and OpenMAX AL for Digital TVs.

AMD recently renamed their OpenCL Stream SDK to AMD Accelerated Parallel Processing (APP). APP is a set of advanced hardware and software technologies that enable AMD graphics processing cores (GPU), working in concert with the system’s x86 cores (CPU), to accelerate many applications beyond just graphics. This update also offers support for AMD E-Series and C-Series platforms (AMD Fusion APUs).

DMP is proud to announce two all new OpenGL ES programming training courses. OpenGL ES programming training I and II will run March 10-11 and March 17-18 2011. Complete details are available online for the Training I and Training II courses in english, and in Japanese.

4pixels announces the first release of the CTK Workbench. The CTK Workbench is a powerful rapid prototyping environment. All kernels supported by the CTK can easily be connected to data sources and data viewers. New kernels can be created by entering the OpenCL source code and defining inputs and outputs. Images, video streams, binary data and audio streams are supported. All results are visible in real time.

AMD announced wide-ranging support of OpenGL 4.1 for Microsoft Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP and Linux across select ATI FirePro”, ATI FireGL” and AMD Radeon” graphics cards. The new functionality is made possible with the release of the latest professional and consumer graphics drivers, ATI FirePro” and ATI FireGL” unified driver 8.801, and AMD Catalyst” 10.12, available on the AMD website.

AMD has released the FirePro v8.801 driver with full compatibility with OpenGL 4.1 on Windows and Linux. The unified driver is available for the entire current FirePro workstation graphics line (V3800, V4800, V5800, V7800, V8800 and V9800).

The Belgian scientist Johan Gielis discovered a mathematical formula to describe many shapes existing in nature. This formula is called the “Super Formula”. To demonstrate GPGPU and to show that it can be used for many purposes including simply having some fun, we developed the “SuperShaper”. A tool that uses OpenCL to create very high-detail 3D models using the Super Formula.

MATLAB announces the first release of OpenCL Toolbox. It is a simple interface that encapsulates clBuffer and clKernel as MATLAB class objects. It allows one to easily create device buffers, set device memory, compile and call kernel functions. MATLAB® is a high-level language and interactive environment that enables you to perform computationally intensive tasks faster than with traditional programming languages such as C, C++, and Fortran.