OpenGL 1.1 Tutorial with FreeGLUT

A comprehensive, hands-on tutorial for learning OpenGL 1.1 (fixed-function pipeline) using FreeGLUT. Each chapter includes detailed explanations and working code examples that you can compile and run.

Why OpenGL 1.1?

While OpenGL 1.1 is considered legacy, it provides:

• An excellent foundation for understanding 3D graphics concepts
• Immediate results without complex shader programming
• Cross-platform compatibility with minimal dependencies
• A gentle learning curve for graphics programming beginners

Prerequisites

Before starting, you'll need:

• Basic C programming knowledge
• A C compiler (GCC, Clang, or MSVC)
• OpenGL development headers
• FreeGLUT library

Repository Structure

Each chapter is contained in its own directory with:

• README.md - Chapter content and explanations
• Source code files (.c and .h)
• Makefile - Build instructions for Linux/macOS
• CMakeLists.txt - Cross-platform build configuration

Chapters

1. What You're Getting Into - Introduction to fixed-function vs. modern OpenGL
2. Environment Setup - Installing dependencies and verifying your toolchain
3. Project Skeleton - Basic project structure and build systems
4. GLUT 101: Window + Main Loop - Creating windows and handling the main loop
5. Drawing in Immediate Mode - First rendering with glBegin/glEnd
6. Coordinate Systems & the Matrix Stacks - Understanding transformations
7. Depth, Culling, and Viewport - Making 3D graphics work correctly
8. Lighting and Materials - Classic Phong lighting model
9. Textures in 1.1 - Loading and applying textures
10. State You'll Use a Lot - Blending, fog, and other common states
11. Display Lists - Optimizing static geometry
12. Vertex Arrays - Better performance than immediate mode
13. Input & Interaction with GLUT - Keyboard, mouse, and camera controls
14. Text & UI Bits - Drawing text and 2D overlays
15. Common Pitfalls - Debugging common issues
16. Performance Tips for 1.1 - Optimization techniques
17. Debugging & Introspection - Tools and techniques for debugging
18. Cross-Platform Notes - Platform-specific considerations
19. Packaging a Demo - Building distributable applications
20. Exercises & Mini-Projects - Practice projects
21. Where to Go Next - Transitioning to modern OpenGL
22. 🎮 Final Project: Cosmic Defender - Complete 3D space shooter game!

The Final Project

Chapter 22 is a complete, playable 3D space shooter that demonstrates every technique from the tutorial:

• 3D rendering with lighting and materials
• Player movement and camera controls
• Enemy AI with pathfinding
• Projectile physics and collision detection
• Particle effects for explosions
• HUD with health, score, and game states
• Wave-based difficulty progression

Build and play:

cd chapter_22
make
./game

This is your capstone project—a real game built with OpenGL 1.1!

Quick Start

Linux/macOS

Install dependencies:

# Ubuntu/Debian
sudo apt-get install build-essential libglu1-mesa-dev freeglut3-dev

# Fedora/RHEL
sudo dnf install gcc make mesa-libGLU-devel freeglut-devel

# macOS (note: OpenGL is deprecated but still works)
brew install freeglut

Build and run a chapter:

cd chapter_02_environment_setup
make
./demo

Windows

Install MinGW-w64 or use MSVC, then install FreeGLUT. Each chapter includes detailed build instructions.

Alternatively, use CMake for cross-platform builds:

cd chapter_XX
mkdir build && cd build
cmake ..
cmake --build .

Learning Path

• Beginners: Follow chapters 1-7 in order
• Intermediate: Chapters 8-14 build on the basics
• Advanced: Chapters 15-21 cover optimization and best practices
• Final Project: Chapter 22 - Build a complete game!

Contributing

Found a bug or want to improve an example? Pull requests are welcome!

License

This tutorial and all example code are released into the public domain (or MIT License where public domain is not applicable).

Acknowledgments

This tutorial is designed to teach OpenGL 1.1 concepts that remain relevant for understanding modern graphics programming, even though the API itself is considered legacy.

Note for WSL users

I wrote all of these in wsl2, using XWinrc and the following config that I run from my windows desktop:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<XLaunch
    WindowMode="MultiWindow"
    ClientMode="NoClient"
    LocalClient="False"
    Display="0"
    LocalProgram="xcalc"
    RemoteProgram="xterm"
    RemotePassword=""
    PrivateKey=""
    RemoteHost=""
    RemoteUser=""
    XDMCPHost=""
    XDMCPBroadcast="False"
    XDMCPIndirect="False"
    Clipboard="True"
    ClipboardPrimary="True"
    ExtraParams=""
    Wgl="True"
    DisableAC="True"
    XDMCPTerminate="False"
/>

Then, in my .bashrc, I added:

export DISPLAY=$(ip route list default | awk '{print $3}'):0

Some have recommended export LIBGL_ALWAYS_INDIRECT=1, but I would highly advise against it - I cannot get things to run with a decent framerate if I enable this setting.