Editing Hidden-surface determination (section)

== Background ==
Hidden-surface determination is a process that identifies which surfaces are not visible to the user (for example, because they lie behind opaque objects such as walls). Despite advances in hardware capability, [[rendering algorithm]]s require substantial computational resources. By deciding that certain surfaces do not need to be rendered because they are not visible, rendering engines can improve efficiency, allowing the rendering of large world spaces. 
    
There are many techniques for hidden-surface determination, but they generally rely on [[sorting]] the surfaces based on their distance from the viewer. Sorting large quantities of graphics primitives can be computationally-expensive and is usually done by [[divide-and-conquer algorithm|divide and conquer]]. The different hidden-surface determination techniques differ, in part,  through the way in which the space is partitioned prior to sorting.