Re: [ggt-devel] API oddities

[Patrick H. <pa...@13...>]

So what's the consensus on this?  If I'm going to change the API, I'd 
like to do what people want.

Regarding the suggestion to rename one of the gmtl::cross() overloads to 
gmtl::makeCross(), should it go in Generate.h?

  -Patrick

Allen Bierbaum wrote:
> Ben Scott wrote:
> 
>> He means the prenormalization length.
>>
>> I agree with Kevin's comments. :)
> 
> 
> I agreed with Kevin's comments, but then I thought some more and now I 
> am not sure.
> 
> I do understand why we return the pre normalized length out the backend. 
>  Doing this can help in some algorithms.  (I think dist from point to 
> plane may be able to use this, but I don't remember).
> 
> But thinking about it why can't the user just do this:
> 
> float len = lengthSqr(vec);
> if (not isEqual(len, 1.0, epsilon))
>    len = Math::sqr(len);
> vec /= len;
> 
> This can be easily written in any algorithm that wants to take advantage 
> of the performance gain.
> 
> I am not insisting on doing it this way or anything, but it seems that 
> making the API more complex for something that "might" be useful but can 
> easily be done by the user really doesn't fit with our ideas.
> 
> (Also when you take into account that the method where we return the 
> float from normalize() actually introduces another temporary for the 
> return value it isn't even as optimal as the hand coded one above).
> 
> Thats what I am thinking right now at least... give me another couple 
> minutes and I will have completely changed my mind and think we should 
> just use templates, python, or some other crazy crap for all of it. :)
> 
> -Allen
> 
>>
>> cheers,
>> -ben
>>
>> Justin Hare wrote:
>>
>>>> normalizeAndGetLength( vec );  // reads well, and shows the special opt
>>>> normalize( vec );            // standard method, ret vec out back
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Wouldn't the length of the vector after normalization always be the 
>>> same?
>>> Or do you mean to return the pre-normalization length?



-- 
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