Representing a complex line with fewer points in a visually proper way

thenewstack.io

27 pointslelf3 comments

I saw "RDP" and immediately thought: "Remote Desktop Protocol".

In this case RDP stands for something more interesting: "Ramer-Douglas-Peucker Algorithm".

The Ramer–Douglas–Peucker algorithm, also known as the Douglas–Peucker algorithm and iterative end-point fit algorithm, is an algorithm that decimates a curve composed of line segments to a similar curve with fewer points.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramer-Douglas-Peucker_algorith...

We originally changed the article's title to "The RDP algorithm represents a complex line with fewer points", but if RDP is misleading, we can drop that and fit in the rest of the article's own summary. (The reason not for using the original title in the first place is that it's a bit too baity. This is in the site guidelines: "Please use the original title, unless it is misleading or linkbait; don't editorialize.")

I used this algorithm to display satellite telemetry in a faster way. However, this was only reducing the amount of point by 10: that's great but not game changing

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