--- name: "SoSeparator" section: "3" platform: "linux" package: "coin" version: "1:4.0.10-1" release: "Arch Linux 2026-11-01" platforms: ["linux"] url: "https://new.carta.tech/SoSeparator" --- # SoSeparator(3) The SoSeparator class is a state-preserving group node. ## NAME SoSeparator - The **SoSeparator** class is a state-preserving group node. ## SYNOPSIS \#include \ Inherits **SoGroup**. Inherited by **SoAnnotation**, **SoGeoSeparator**, **SoLocateHighlight**, **SoSelection**, and **SoShadowGroup**. ### Public Types enum **CacheEnabled** { **OFF**, **ON**, **AUTO** }\ Public Types inherited from **SoNode** enum **NodeType** { **INVENTOR** = 0x0000, **VRML1** = 0x0001, **VRML2** = 0x0002, **INVENTOR\_1** = 0x0004, **INVENTOR\_2\_0** = 0x0008, **INVENTOR\_2\_1** = 0x0010, **INVENTOR\_2\_5** = 0x0020, **INVENTOR\_2\_6** = 0x0040, **COIN\_1\_0** = 0x0080, **COIN\_2\_0** = 0x0100, **EXTENSION** = 0x0200, **COIN\_2\_2** = 0x0400, **COIN\_2\_3** = 0x0800, **COIN\_2\_4** = 0x1000, **INVENTOR\_5\_0** = 0x2000, **COIN\_2\_5** = 0x4000, **COIN\_3\_0** = 0x8000, **INVENTOR\_6\_0** = 0x10000, **COIN\_4\_0** = 0x20000 }\ ### Public Member Functions virtual **SoType** **getTypeId** (void) const\ **SoSeparator** (void)\ **SoSeparator** (const int nchildren)\ virtual void **doAction** (**SoAction** \*action)\ virtual void **GLRender** (**SoGLRenderAction** \*action)\ virtual void **GLRenderBelowPath** (**SoGLRenderAction** \*action)\ virtual void **GLRenderInPath** (**SoGLRenderAction** \*action)\ virtual void **GLRenderOffPath** (**SoGLRenderAction** \*action)\ virtual void **callback** (**SoCallbackAction** \*action)\ virtual void **getBoundingBox** (**SoGetBoundingBoxAction** \*action)\ virtual void **getMatrix** (**SoGetMatrixAction** \*action)\ virtual void **handleEvent** (**SoHandleEventAction** \*action)\ virtual void **rayPick** (**SoRayPickAction** \*action)\ virtual void **search** (**SoSearchAction** \*action)\ virtual void **getPrimitiveCount** (**SoGetPrimitiveCountAction** \*action)\ virtual void **audioRender** (**SoAudioRenderAction** \*action)\ virtual void **notify** (**SoNotList** \*nl)\ virtual SbBool **affectsState** (void) const\ Public Member Functions inherited from **SoGroup** **SoGroup** (void)\ **SoGroup** (int nchildren)\ virtual void **addChild** (**SoNode** \*node)\ virtual void **insertChild** (**SoNode** \*child, int newchildindex)\ virtual **SoNode** \* **getChild** (int index) const\ virtual int **findChild** (const **SoNode** \*node) const\ virtual int **getNumChildren** (void) const\ virtual void **removeChild** (int childindex)\ virtual void **removeChild** (**SoNode** \*child)\ virtual void **removeAllChildren** (void)\ virtual void **replaceChild** (int index, **SoNode** \*newchild)\ virtual void **replaceChild** (**SoNode** \*oldchild, **SoNode** \*newchild)\ virtual void **pick** (**SoPickAction** \*action)\ virtual void **write** (**SoWriteAction** \*action)\ virtual **SoChildList** \* **getChildren** (void) const\ virtual void **addWriteReference** (**SoOutput** \*out, SbBool isfromfield=FALSE)\ Public Member Functions inherited from **SoNode** void **setOverride** (const SbBool state)\ SbBool **isOverride** (void) const\ void **setNodeType** (const **NodeType** type)\ **NodeType** **getNodeType** (void) const\ virtual **SoNode** \* **copy** (SbBool copyconnections=FALSE) const\ virtual void **grabEventsSetup** (void)\ virtual void **grabEventsCleanup** (void)\ virtual void **startNotify** (void)\ SbUniqueId **getNodeId** (void) const\ virtual void **writeInstance** (**SoOutput** \*out)\ virtual **SoNode** \* **addToCopyDict** (void) const\ virtual **SoFieldContainer** \* **copyThroughConnection** (void) const\ Public Member Functions inherited from **SoFieldContainer** void **setToDefaults** (void)\ SbBool **hasDefaultValues** (void) const\ SbBool **fieldsAreEqual** (const **SoFieldContainer** \*container) const\ void **copyFieldValues** (const **SoFieldContainer** \*container, SbBool copyconnections=FALSE)\ SbBool **set** (const char \*const fielddata)\ void **get** (**SbString** &fielddata)\ virtual int **getFields** (**SoFieldList** &l) const\ virtual int **getAllFields** (**SoFieldList** &l) const\ virtual **SoField** \* **getField** (const **SbName** &name) const\ virtual **SoField** \* **getEventIn** (const **SbName** &name) const\ virtual **SoField** \* **getEventOut** (const **SbName** &name) const\ SbBool **getFieldName** (const **SoField** \*const field, **SbName** &name) const\ SbBool **enableNotify** (const SbBool flag)\ SbBool **isNotifyEnabled** (void) const\ SbBool **set** (const char \*fielddata, **SoInput** \*input)\ void **get** (**SbString** &fielddata, **SoOutput** \*out)\ virtual SbBool **validateNewFieldValue** (**SoField** \*field, void \*newval)\ SbBool **getIsBuiltIn** (void) const\ virtual void **getFieldsMemorySize** (size\_t &managed, size\_t &unmanaged) const\ void **setUserData** (void \*userdata) const\ void \* **getUserData** (void) const\ Public Member Functions inherited from **SoBase** void **ref** (void) const\ void **unref** (void) const\ void **unrefNoDelete** (void) const\ int32\_t **getRefCount** (void) const\ void **touch** (void)\ SbBool **isOfType** (**SoType** type) const\ Returns TRUE if the type of this object is either of the same type or inherited from *type*. virtual **SbName** **getName** (void) const\ virtual void **setName** (const **SbName** &newname)\ void **addAuditor** (void \*const auditor, const **SoNotRec::Type** type)\ void **removeAuditor** (void \*const auditor, const **SoNotRec::Type** type)\ const **SoAuditorList** & **getAuditors** (void) const\ SbBool **shouldWrite** (void)\ void **assertAlive** (void) const\ ### Static Public Member Functions static **SoType** **getClassTypeId** (void)\ static void **initClass** (void)\ Sets up initialization for data common to all instances of this class, like submitting necessary information to the Coin type system. static void **setNumRenderCaches** (const int howmany)\ static int **getNumRenderCaches** (void)\ Static Public Member Functions inherited from **SoGroup** static **SoType** **getClassTypeId** (void)\ static void **initClass** (void)\ Sets up initialization for data common to all instances of this class, like submitting necessary information to the Coin type system. Static Public Member Functions inherited from **SoNode** static uint32\_t **getCompatibilityTypes** (const **SoType** &nodetype)\ static **SoType** **getClassTypeId** (void)\ static **SoNode** \* **getByName** (const **SbName** &name)\ static int **getByName** (const **SbName** &name, **SoNodeList** &l)\ static void **initClass** (void)\ Sets up initialization for data common to all instances of this class, like submitting necessary information to the Coin type system. static void **initClasses** (void)\ static SbUniqueId **getNextNodeId** (void)\ static int **getActionMethodIndex** (const **SoType** type)\ static void **getBoundingBoxS** (**SoAction** \*action, **SoNode** \*node)\ static void **GLRenderS** (**SoAction** \*action, **SoNode** \*node)\ static void **callbackS** (**SoAction** \*action, **SoNode** \*node)\ static void **getMatrixS** (**SoAction** \*action, **SoNode** \*node)\ static void **handleEventS** (**SoAction** \*action, **SoNode** \*node)\ static void **pickS** (**SoAction** \*action, **SoNode** \*node)\ static void **rayPickS** (**SoAction** \*action, **SoNode** \*node)\ static void **searchS** (**SoAction** \*action, **SoNode** \*node)\ static void **writeS** (**SoAction** \*action, **SoNode** \*node)\ static void **audioRenderS** (**SoAction** \*action, **SoNode** \*node)\ static void **getPrimitiveCountS** (**SoAction** \*action, **SoNode** \*node)\ Static Public Member Functions inherited from **SoFieldContainer** static void **initClass** (void)\ Sets up initialization for data common to all instances of this class, like submitting necessary information to the Coin type system. static **SoType** **getClassTypeId** (void)\ This static method returns the **SoType** object associated with objects of this class. static void **cleanupClass** (void)\ static void **initCopyDict** (void)\ static void **addCopy** (const **SoFieldContainer** \*orig, const **SoFieldContainer** \*copy)\ static **SoFieldContainer** \* **checkCopy** (const **SoFieldContainer** \*orig)\ static **SoFieldContainer** \* **findCopy** (const **SoFieldContainer** \*orig, const SbBool copyconnections)\ static void **copyDone** (void)\ Static Public Member Functions inherited from **SoBase** static void **initClass** (void)\ Sets up initialization for data common to all instances of this class, like submitting necessary information to the Coin type system. static **SoType** **getClassTypeId** (void)\ This static method returns the **SoType** object associated with objects of this class. static void **addName** (**SoBase** \*const base, const char \*const name)\ static void **removeName** (**SoBase** \*const base, const char \*const name)\ static void **incrementCurrentWriteCounter** (void)\ static void **decrementCurrentWriteCounter** (void)\ static **SoBase** \* **getNamedBase** (const **SbName** &name, **SoType** type)\ static int **getNamedBases** (const **SbName** &name, **SoBaseList** &baselist, **SoType** type)\ static SbBool **read** (**SoInput** \*input, **SoBase** \*&base, **SoType** expectedtype)\ static void **setInstancePrefix** (const **SbString** &c)\ static void **setTraceRefs** (SbBool trace)\ static SbBool **getTraceRefs** (void)\ static SbBool **connectRoute** (**SoInput** \*input, const **SbName** &fromnodename, const **SbName** &fromfieldname, const **SbName** &tonodename, const **SbName** &tofieldname)\ static SbBool **readRoute** (**SoInput** \*input)\ ### Public Attributes **SoSFEnum** **renderCaching**\ **SoSFEnum** **boundingBoxCaching**\ **SoSFEnum** **renderCulling**\ **SoSFEnum** **pickCulling**\ ### Protected Member Functions virtual const **SoFieldData** \* **getFieldData** (void) const\ virtual **~SoSeparator** ()\ virtual SbBool **cullTest** (**SoState** \*state)\ virtual SbBool **cullTest** (**SoGLRenderAction** \*action, int &cullresults)\ virtual SbBool **readInstance** (**SoInput** \*in, unsigned short flags)\ Protected Member Functions inherited from **SoGroup** virtual **~SoGroup** ()\ virtual SbBool **readChildren** (**SoInput** \*in)\ virtual void **copyContents** (const **SoFieldContainer** \*from, SbBool copyconnections)\ virtual **SoNotRec** **createNotRec** (void)\ void **setOperation** (const **SoNotRec::OperationType** opType=SoNotRec::UNSPECIFIED, const **SoNode** \*cc=NULL, const **SoNode** \*pc=NULL, const int ci=-1)\ Protected Member Functions inherited from **SoNode** **SoNode** (void)\ virtual **~SoNode** ()\ Protected Member Functions inherited from **SoFieldContainer** **SoFieldContainer** (void)\ virtual **~SoFieldContainer** ()\ Protected Member Functions inherited from **SoBase** **SoBase** (void)\ virtual **~SoBase** ()\ virtual void **destroy** (void)\ SbBool **hasMultipleWriteRefs** (void) const\ SbBool **writeHeader** (**SoOutput** \*out, SbBool isgroup, SbBool isengine) const\ void **writeFooter** (**SoOutput** \*out) const\ virtual const char \* **getFileFormatName** (void) const\ ### Static Protected Member Functions static const **SoFieldData** \*\* **getFieldDataPtr** (void)\ Static Protected Member Functions inherited from **SoGroup** static const **SoFieldData** \*\* **getFieldDataPtr** (void)\ Static Protected Member Functions inherited from **SoNode** static const **SoFieldData** \*\* **getFieldDataPtr** (void)\ static void **setNextActionMethodIndex** (int index)\ static int **getNextActionMethodIndex** (void)\ static void **incNextActionMethodIndex** (void)\ static void **setCompatibilityTypes** (const **SoType** &nodetype, const uint32\_t bitmask)\ Static Protected Member Functions inherited from **SoBase** static uint32\_t **getCurrentWriteCounter** (void)\ static void **staticDataLock** (void)\ static void **staticDataUnlock** (void)\ ### Additional Inherited Members Protected Types inherited from **SoBase** enum **BaseFlags** { **IS\_ENGINE** = 0x01, **IS\_GROUP** = 0x02 }\ Protected Attributes inherited from **SoGroup** **SoChildList** \* **children**\ Protected Attributes inherited from **SoNode** SbUniqueId **uniqueId**\ Protected Attributes inherited from **SoFieldContainer** SbBool **isBuiltIn**\ Static Protected Attributes inherited from **SoNode** static SbUniqueId **nextUniqueId** = 1\ static int **nextActionMethodIndex** = 0\ ## Detailed Description The **SoSeparator** class is a state-preserving group node. Subgraphs parented by **SoSeparator** nodes will not affect the state, as they push and pop the traversal state before and after traversal of its children. **SoSeparator** nodes also provides options for traversal optimization through the use of caching. **FILE FORMAT/DEFAULTS:** ``` Separator { renderCaching AUTO boundingBoxCaching AUTO renderCulling AUTO pickCulling AUTO } ``` **See also** **SoTransformSeparator** ## Member Enumeration Documentation ### enum SoSeparator::CacheEnabled Enumeration of flags for the fields deciding which optimizations to do in **SoSeparator** nodes. There are two types of settings available: caching policies or culling policies. See documentation of fields. **Enumerator** - ***OFF*** No caching. - ***ON*** Always try to cache state. - ***AUTO*** Use heuristics to try to figure out the optimal caching policy. ## Constructor & Destructor Documentation ### SoSeparator::SoSeparator (void ) Default constructor. ### SoSeparator::SoSeparator (const int nchildren) Constructor. The argument should be the approximate number of children which is expected to be inserted below this node. The number need not be exact, as it is only used as a hint for better memory resource allocation. ### SoSeparator::~SoSeparator () \[protected\], \[virtual\] Destructor. Frees resources used to implement caches. ## Member Function Documentation ### SoType SoSeparator::getClassTypeId (void ) \[static\] This static method returns the **SoType** object associated with objects of this class. ### SoType SoSeparator::getTypeId (void ) const \[virtual\] Returns the type identification of an object derived from a class inheriting **SoBase**. This is used for runtime type checking and "downward" casting. Reimplemented from **SoGroup**. Reimplemented in **SoAnnotation**, **SoExtSelection**, **SoGeoSeparator**, **SoLocateHighlight**, **SoSelection**, **SoShadowGroup**, and **SoWWWAnchor**. ### const SoFieldData \*\* SoSeparator::getFieldDataPtr (void ) \[static\], \[protected\] *This API member is considered internal to the library, as it is not likely to be of interest to the application programmer.*\ Returns the **SoFieldData** class which holds information about fields in this node. ### const SoFieldData \* SoSeparator::getFieldData (void ) const \[protected\], \[virtual\] Returns a pointer to the class-wide field data storage object for this instance. If no fields are present, returns NULL. Reimplemented from **SoGroup**. Reimplemented in **SoAnnotation**, **SoExtSelection**, **SoGeoSeparator**, **SoLocateHighlight**, **SoSelection**, **SoShadowGroup**, and **SoWWWAnchor**. ### void SoSeparator::doAction (SoAction \* action) \[virtual\] This function performs the typical operation of a node for any action. Reimplemented from **SoGroup**. ### void SoSeparator::GLRender (SoGLRenderAction \* action) \[virtual\] Action method for the **SoGLRenderAction**. This is called during rendering traversals. Nodes influencing the rendering state in any way or want to throw geometry primitives at OpenGL override this method. Reimplemented from **SoGroup**. Reimplemented in **SoAnnotation**. ### void SoSeparator::GLRenderBelowPath (SoGLRenderAction \* action) \[virtual\] SGI Open Inventor v2.1 obsoleted support for **SoGLRenderAction::addMethod()**. Instead, **GLRender()** might be called directly, and to optimize traversal, the **SoSeparator** node calls GLRenderBelowPath whenever the path code is BELOW\_PATH or NO\_PATH (path code is guaranteed not to change). To be compatible with SGI's Inventor (and thereby also TGS') we have chosen to follow their implementation in this respect. **SoSeparator::GLRenderBelowPath()** does not traverse its children using **SoChildList::traverse()**, but calls **GLRenderBelowPath()** directly for all its children. Reimplemented from **SoNode**. Reimplemented in **SoAnnotation**, **SoExtSelection**, **SoGeoSeparator**, **SoLocateHighlight**, and **SoShadowGroup**. ### void SoSeparator::GLRenderInPath (SoGLRenderAction \* action) \[virtual\] Implements the SoAction::IN\_PATH traversal method for the rendering action. Reimplemented from **SoNode**. Reimplemented in **SoAnnotation**, **SoGeoSeparator**, **SoLocateHighlight**, and **SoShadowGroup**. ### void SoSeparator::GLRenderOffPath (SoGLRenderAction \* action) \[virtual\] Implements the SoAction::OFF\_PATH traversal method for the rendering action. Reimplemented from **SoNode**. Reimplemented in **SoAnnotation**. ### void SoSeparator::callback (SoCallbackAction \* action) \[virtual\] Action method for **SoCallbackAction**. Simply updates the state according to how the node behaves for the render action, so the application programmer can use the **SoCallbackAction** for extracting information about the scene graph. Reimplemented from **SoGroup**. Reimplemented in **SoGeoSeparator**. ### void SoSeparator::getBoundingBox (SoGetBoundingBoxAction \* action) \[virtual\] Action method for the **SoGetBoundingBoxAction**. Calculates bounding box and center coordinates for node and modifies the values of the *action* to encompass the bounding box for this node and to shift the center point for the scene more towards the one for this node. Nodes influencing how geometry nodes calculate their bounding box also override this method to change the relevant state variables. Reimplemented from **SoGroup**. Reimplemented in **SoGeoSeparator**. ### void SoSeparator::getMatrix (SoGetMatrixAction \* action) \[virtual\] Action method for **SoGetMatrixAction**. Updates *action* by accumulating with the transformation matrix of this node (if any). Reimplemented from **SoGroup**. Reimplemented in **SoGeoSeparator**. ### void SoSeparator::handleEvent (SoHandleEventAction \* action) \[virtual\] Action method for **SoHandleEventAction**. Inspects the event data from *action*, and processes it if it is something which this node should react to. Nodes influencing relevant state variables for how event handling is done also override this method. Reimplemented from **SoGroup**. Reimplemented in **SoExtSelection**, **SoLocateHighlight**, **SoSelection**, and **SoWWWAnchor**. ### void SoSeparator::rayPick (SoRayPickAction \* action) \[virtual\] Action method for **SoRayPickAction**. Checks the ray specification of the *action* and tests for intersection with the data of the node. Nodes influencing relevant state variables for how picking is done also override this method. Reimplemented from **SoNode**. Reimplemented in **SoGeoSeparator**. ### void SoSeparator::search (SoSearchAction \* action) \[virtual\] Action method for **SoSearchAction**. Compares the search criteria from the *action* to see if this node is a match. Searching is done by matching up *all* criteria set up in the **SoSearchAction** -- if *any* of the requested criteria is a miss, the search is not deemed successful for the node. **See also** **SoSearchAction** Reimplemented from **SoGroup**. ### void SoSeparator::getPrimitiveCount (SoGetPrimitiveCountAction \* action) \[virtual\] Action method for the **SoGetPrimitiveCountAction**. Calculates the number of triangle, line segment and point primitives for the node and adds these to the counters of the *action*. Nodes influencing how geometry nodes calculate their primitive count also override this method to change the relevant state variables. Reimplemented from **SoGroup**. Reimplemented in **SoGeoSeparator**. ### void SoSeparator::audioRender (SoAudioRenderAction \* action) \[virtual\] Action method for **SoAudioRenderAction**. Does common processing for **SoAudioRenderAction** *action* instances. Reimplemented from **SoGroup**. ### void SoSeparator::notify (SoNotList \* l) \[virtual\] Notifies all auditors for this instance when changes are made. Reimplemented from **SoNode**. Reimplemented in **SoShadowGroup**. ### void SoSeparator::setNumRenderCaches (const int howmany) \[static\] Set the maximum number of caches that **SoSeparator** nodes may allocate for render caching. This is a global value which will be used for all **SoSeparator** nodes, but the value indicate the maximum number *per* **SoSeparator** node. More caches might give better performance, but will use more memory. The built-in default value is 2. The value can also be changed globally by setting the host system's environment variable IV\_SEPARATOR\_MAX\_CACHES to the wanted number. This is primarily meant as an aid during debugging, to make it easy to turn off render caching completely (by setting "IV\_SEPARATOR\_MAX\_CACHES=0") without having to change any application code. ### int SoSeparator::getNumRenderCaches (void ) \[static\] Returns maximum number of caches **SoSeparator** nodes are allowed to use for render caching. **See also** **setNumRenderCaches()** ### SbBool SoSeparator::affectsState (void ) const \[virtual\] Returns TRUE if the node could have any effect on the state during traversal. If it returns FALSE, no data in the traversal state will change from the pre-traversal state to the post-traversal state. The **SoSeparator** node will for instance return FALSE, as it pushes and pops the state before and after traversal of its children. All **SoShape** nodes will also return FALSE, as just pushing out geometry data to the rendering engine won't affect the actual rendering state. The default method returns TRUE, on a "better safe than sorry" philosophy. Reimplemented from **SoNode**. ### SbBool SoSeparator::cullTest (SoState \* state) \[protected\], \[virtual\] Internal method which do view frustum culling. For now, view frustum culling is performed if the renderCulling field is AUTO or ON, and the bounding box cache is valid. Returns TRUE if this separator is outside view frustum, FALSE if inside. ### SbBool SoSeparator::cullTest (SoGLRenderAction \* action, int & cullresults) \[protected\], \[virtual\] This is an internal Open Inventor method. We've implemented view frustum culling in a different manner. Let us know if you need this function, and we'll consider implementing it. ### SbBool SoSeparator::readInstance (SoInput \* in, unsigned short flags) \[protected\], \[virtual\] This method is mainly intended for internal use during file import operations. It reads a definition of an instance from the input stream *in*. The input stream state points to the start of a serialized / persistent representation of an instance of this class type. TRUE or FALSE is returned, depending on if the instantiation and configuration of the new object of this class type went OK or not. The import process should be robust and handle corrupted input streams by returning FALSE. *flags* is used internally during binary import when reading user extension nodes, group nodes or engines. Reimplemented from **SoGroup**. ## Member Data Documentation ### SoSFEnum SoSeparator::renderCaching Policy for caching of rendering instructions for faster execution. This will typically use the OpenGL *displaylist* mechanism. Default value is **SoSeparator::AUTO**. If you know that some parts of your scene will never change, rendering might happen faster if you explicitly set this field to **SoSeparator::ON**. If you on the other hand know that parts of the scene will change a lot (like for every redraw), it will be beneficial to set this field to **SoSeparator::OFF** for the top-level separator node of this (sub)graph. Usually the default setting of AUTO will handle any scene very well. The advantages that *can* be had from setting **SoSeparator::renderCaching** to ON are: - • If you positively know that the geometry under the **SoSeparator** is static, you get the cache set up right away. Otherwise, the code in Coin will do a bit of testing and decide by some heuristics whether or not to enable it. That will make the rendering be a tiny bit slower right after startup than with renderCaching set to ON. (The slow-down should hardly be noticeable, though, so we don't advice application programmers to do this.) - • For many of the shape nodes that can contain many basic primitives, like e.g. **SoFaceSet**, **SoIndexedFaceSet**, **SoLineSet**, etc etc, there is an internal threshold for how many primitives a node can contain before we don't do caching when **SoSeparator::renderCaching** is set to AUTO. The reason we do this is because OpenGL render lists can potentially suck up a lot of memory resources on the graphics card. But if you know that it will be advantageous on your particular platform, you can override this by setting **SoSeparator::renderCaching** equal to ON. (We don't advice application programmers to do this either. A better solution in these cases would simply be to get in touch with SIM and describe the platform and the problem, and we could integrate a proper fix into Coin.) There are good reasons for setting renderCaching to OFF, like when you know the geometry will be changing a lot. Still, Coin should work fairly well even without this optimization. (If renderCaching is AUTO over a subgraph with changing geometry or other cache smashing nodes, the caching heuristics will stop the **SoSeparator** node from trying to make caches -- at least after a few tries have been made and failed.) The short story about how auto-caching works is as follows: - • For vertex-based shapes with fewer than 100 triangles and where the geometry is detected to be fairly static, caching is enabled. - • For shapes with more than 1000 triangles, it is disabled, to avoid spending too much of the on-board graphics card's memory resources. - • For shapes with more than 100 but less than 1000 triangles, display list caching will be turned on if our heuristics decides that the geometry can be considered static. The maximum threshold (of 1000) is higher when doing remote rendering (as when rendering from one X11-based system to another). Disabling the display list caching takes precedence over enabling, so if you have a **SoSeparator** containing a shape with more than 1000 triangles and a shape with fewer than 100 triangles, caching will be disabled for the **SoSeparator**. It's possible to tune the limits using some environment variables: - • COIN\_AUTOCACHE\_LOCAL\_MIN can be used to change the enable-caching limit, while COIN\_AUTOCACHE\_LOCAL\_MAX controls the disable-caching limit. - • The corresponding variables for remote rendering are COIN\_AUTOCACHE\_REMOTE\_MIN and COIN\_AUTOCACHE\_REMOTE\_MAX. ### SoSFEnum SoSeparator::boundingBoxCaching Policy for caching bounding box calculations. Default value is **SoSeparator::AUTO**. See also documentation for **SoSeparator::renderCaching**. ### SoSFEnum SoSeparator::renderCulling Policy for doing viewport culling during rendering traversals. Default value is **SoSeparator::AUTO**. When the render culling is turned off for Coin, it will be left to be done for the underlying immediate mode rendering library. This will often be faster than doing culling from within Coin, so be careful to monitor the change in execution speed if setting this field to **SoSeparator::ON**. See also documentation for **SoSeparator::renderCaching**. ### SoSFEnum SoSeparator::pickCulling Policy for doing viewport culling during pick traversals. Default value is **SoSeparator::AUTO**. See documentation for **SoSeparator::renderCulling**. ## Author Generated automatically by Doxygen for Coin from the source code.