I have an OpenGL app that generates images by rendering into an off-screen surface. I'd like to get it running on our Linux server, but the only way (that I know of) to initialize an OpenGL context is to create an X window and pass it to glX.

This is lame since I don't need any windows - just a render buffer. Is there any way I can get an OpenGL context on this server?

That's kind of like saying it's "lame" to require Windows (on MS Windows) or MacOS (on a Mac). X Windows is assumed to be the basic "graphics layer" for Linux, and there are any number of drivers that take advantage of hardware optimizations.

ANYWAY:

Google for "OpenGL linux frame buffer". You should find several alternatives; one or more of which might prove ideal for you.

If you're interested in programming OpenGL, and if you're relatively new to it, I *strongly* encourage you to give X a try - at least at first.

Otherwise, if you already have a working application, and just want to render Pretty Pictures as fast as possible - then you should be able to find some good alternatives with Google.

Good luck!