In computer graphics, Mesa is an open source software implementation of OpenGL, licensed under the MIT License. It seeks to implement OpenGL 1.4. The current version is 6.2.1. Computer graphics (CG) is the field of visual computing, where one utilizes computers both to generate visual images synthetically and to integrate or alter visual and spatial information sampled from the real world. ... Open source refers to projects that are open to the public and which draw on other projects that are freely available to the general public. ... OpenGL (Open Graphics Library) is a specification defining a cross-language cross-platform API for writing applications that produce 3D computer graphics (and 2D computer graphics as well). ... The MIT License, originated at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is a license for the use of certain types of computer software. ...
Mesa is particularly used with the Direct Rendering Infrastructure to provide open source support for OpenGL in the X Window System since XFree86 v4.3. In computing, the Direct Rendering Infrastructure (DRI) is an interface to safely allow the X Window System direct access to the video hardware for both 2D and 3D computer graphics rendering. ... In computing, the X Window System (commonly X11 or X) is a windowing system for bitmap displays. ... XFree86 is a free and Open Source windowing system for bitmap displays implementation. ...
As the name OpenGL is a trademark, Mesa claims only to be a "very similar" interface. The Bass Red Triangle, was the first trademark registered in Britain in 1876. ...
Mesa was initially developed by Brian Paul in August 1993.
OpenGL is an immediate mode graphics programming API originally developed by SGI based on their previous proprietary Iris GL, and became in industry standard several years ago.
Mesa is a free implementation of the OpenGL API, designed and written by Brian Paul, with contributions from many others.
Mesa support is not yet done (as of Mesa 2.6), but is in preparation.
Mesa 3D is an open source graphics library, initially developed by Brian Paul in August 1993, that provides a generic OpenGL implementation for rendering three-dimensional graphics on multiple platforms.
Though Mesa is not an officially licensed OpenGL implementation, the structure, syntax and semantics of the API is that of OpenGL.