Display lists and functions - difference

OpenGL OpenGL: Basic Coding
1

What is exactly the difference between calling a command in a display list and calling a function (or method in Java) that calls the OpenGL command?

Is it faster to call it from a display list?

2

Think of display lists to OpenGL the way you think of a C++ compiler to C++ code.

This is like calling OpenGL directly:

cc -o exec src.cxx
exec
cc -o exec src.cxx
exec
cc -o exec src.cxx
exec
…

and this is like calling it indirectly via a display list:

cc -o exec src.cxx
exec
exec
exec
exec

3

It depends on the command. If you have vertices, normals, texcoords, the driver can generate a VBO which would be faster for rendering.
For all other GL commands, no, it won’t be faster.

4

Ah, ok! Thanks for your answers. It made it more clear.