i was gonna make several models for each model i have, each one at a different LOD. when i say LOD, im talking about the number of polygons, and the textures used. basically, ill have one model for when the object is close to the camera. this model will be of full detail, with the best quality texture. as the object moves in relation to the camera, the object will switch its model to correspond with its distance from the camera.

Good idea. That's the best way to handle LOD.

does the type of texture files i use (tiff is what im using now) affect the overall performance of OpenGL? what if i were to compress all the textures? i dont completely understand how textures are loaded and created yet (more specifically, mipmapping and whatnot).

Quote:does the type of texture files i use (tiff is what im using now) affect the overall performance of OpenGL? what if i were to compress all the textures? i dont completely understand how textures are loaded and created yet (more specifically, mipmapping and whatnot).

The type of file doesn't really matter. All that matters is the size (width*height), bit-depth, and type of filtering.

I think mipmapping should take care of texture lod.

Texture compression will only make a difference if you are using the format that the video card supports. Otherwise you will be sending uncompressed raw bytes to the card and the only saving will be in the time it takes your app to load the file from disk and decompress it.