diff --git a/examples/GLIsosurface.py b/examples/GLIsosurface.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..c4f06adb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/examples/GLIsosurface.py
@@ -0,0 +1,72 @@
+# -*- coding: utf-8 -*-
+
+##  This example uses the isosurface function to convert a scalar field
+##  (a hydrogen orbital) into a mesh for 3D display.
+
+## Add path to library (just for examples; you do not need this)
+import sys, os
+sys.path.insert(0, os.path.join(os.path.dirname(__file__), '..', '..'))
+
+from pyqtgraph.Qt import QtCore, QtGui
+import pyqtgraph as pg
+import pyqtgraph.opengl as gl
+
+app = QtGui.QApplication([])
+w = gl.GLViewWidget()
+w.show()
+
+w.setCameraPosition(distance=40)
+
+g = gl.GLGridItem()
+g.scale(2,2,1)
+w.addItem(g)
+
+import numpy as np
+
+## Define a scalar field from which we will generate an isosurface
+def psi(i, j, k, offset=(25, 25, 50)):
+    x = i-offset[0]
+    y = j-offset[1]
+    z = k-offset[2]
+    th = np.arctan2(z, (x**2+y**2)**0.5)
+    phi = np.arctan2(y, x)
+    r = (x**2 + y**2 + z **2)**0.5
+    a0 = 1
+    #ps = (1./81.) * (2./np.pi)**0.5 * (1./a0)**(3/2) * (6 - r/a0) * (r/a0) * np.exp(-r/(3*a0)) * np.cos(th)
+    ps = (1./81.) * 1./(6.*np.pi)**0.5 * (1./a0)**(3/2) * (r/a0)**2 * np.exp(-r/(3*a0)) * (3 * np.cos(th)**2 - 1)
+    
+    return ps
+    
+    #return ((1./81.) * (1./np.pi)**0.5 * (1./a0)**(3/2) * (r/a0)**2 * (r/a0) * np.exp(-r/(3*a0)) * np.sin(th) * np.cos(th) * np.exp(2 * 1j * phi))**2 
+
+
+print("Generating scalar field..")
+data = np.abs(np.fromfunction(psi, (50,50,100)))
+
+
+print("Generating isosurface..")
+verts = pg.isosurface(data, data.max()/4.)
+
+md = gl.MeshData.MeshData(vertexes=verts)
+
+colors = np.ones((md.faceCount(), 4), dtype=float)
+colors[:,3] = 0.2
+colors[:,2] = np.linspace(0, 1, colors.shape[0])
+md.setFaceColors(colors)
+m1 = gl.GLMeshItem(meshdata=md, smooth=False, shader='balloon')
+m1.setGLOptions('additive')
+
+#w.addItem(m1)
+m1.translate(-25, -25, -20)
+
+m2 = gl.GLMeshItem(meshdata=md, smooth=True, shader='balloon')
+m2.setGLOptions('additive')
+
+w.addItem(m2)
+m2.translate(-25, -25, -50)
+    
+
+
+## Start Qt event loop unless running in interactive mode.
+if sys.flags.interactive != 1:
+    app.exec_()
diff --git a/examples/GLMeshItem.py b/examples/GLMeshItem.py
index 15d6bc33..049ad53d 100644
--- a/examples/GLMeshItem.py
+++ b/examples/GLMeshItem.py
@@ -1,7 +1,8 @@
 # -*- coding: utf-8 -*-
+"""
+Simple examples demonstrating the use of GLMeshItem.
 
-##  This example uses the isosurface function to convert a scalar field
-##  (a hydrogen orbital) into a mesh for 3D display.
+"""
 
 ## Add path to library (just for examples; you do not need this)
 import sys, os
@@ -15,52 +16,117 @@ app = QtGui.QApplication([])
 w = gl.GLViewWidget()
 w.show()
 
+w.setCameraPosition(distance=40)
+
 g = gl.GLGridItem()
 g.scale(2,2,1)
 w.addItem(g)
 
 import numpy as np
 
-def psi(i, j, k, offset=(25, 25, 50)):
-    x = i-offset[0]
-    y = j-offset[1]
-    z = k-offset[2]
-    th = np.arctan2(z, (x**2+y**2)**0.5)
-    phi = np.arctan2(y, x)
-    r = (x**2 + y**2 + z **2)**0.5
-    a0 = 1
-    #ps = (1./81.) * (2./np.pi)**0.5 * (1./a0)**(3/2) * (6 - r/a0) * (r/a0) * np.exp(-r/(3*a0)) * np.cos(th)
-    ps = (1./81.) * 1./(6.*np.pi)**0.5 * (1./a0)**(3/2) * (r/a0)**2 * np.exp(-r/(3*a0)) * (3 * np.cos(th)**2 - 1)
+
+## Example 1:
+## Array of vertex positions and array of vertex indexes defining faces
+## Colors are specified per-face
+
+verts = np.array([
+    [0, 0, 0],
+    [2, 0, 0],
+    [1, 2, 0],
+    [1, 1, 1],
+])
+faces = np.array([
+    [0, 1, 2],
+    [0, 1, 3],
+    [0, 2, 3],
+    [1, 2, 3]
+])
+colors = np.array([
+    [1, 0, 0, 0.3],
+    [0, 1, 0, 0.3],
+    [0, 0, 1, 0.3],
+    [1, 1, 0, 0.3]
+])
+
+## Mesh item will automatically compute face normals.
+m1 = gl.GLMeshItem(vertexes=verts, faces=faces, faceColors=colors, smooth=False)
+m1.translate(5, 5, 0)
+m1.setGLOptions('additive')
+w.addItem(m1)
+
+## Example 2:
+## Array of vertex positions, three per face
+## Colors are specified per-vertex
+
+verts = verts[faces]  ## Same mesh geometry as example 2, but now we are passing in 12 vertexes
+colors = np.random.random(size=(verts.shape[0], 3, 4))
+#colors[...,3] = 1.0
+
+m2 = gl.GLMeshItem(vertexes=verts, vertexColors=colors, smooth=False, shader='balloon')
+m2.translate(-5, 5, 0)
+w.addItem(m2)
+
+
+## Example 3:
+## icosahedron
+
+md = gl.MeshData.sphere(rows=10, cols=20)
+#colors = np.random.random(size=(md.faceCount(), 4))
+#colors[:,3] = 0.3
+#colors[100:] = 0.0
+colors = np.ones((md.faceCount(), 4), dtype=float)
+colors[::2,0] = 0
+colors[:,1] = np.linspace(0, 1, colors.shape[0])
+md.setFaceColors(colors)
+m3 = gl.GLMeshItem(meshdata=md, smooth=False)#, shader='balloon')
+
+#m3.translate(-5, -5, 0)
+w.addItem(m3)
+
+
+
+
+
+#def psi(i, j, k, offset=(25, 25, 50)):
+    #x = i-offset[0]
+    #y = j-offset[1]
+    #z = k-offset[2]
+    #th = np.arctan2(z, (x**2+y**2)**0.5)
+    #phi = np.arctan2(y, x)
+    #r = (x**2 + y**2 + z **2)**0.5
+    #a0 = 1
+    ##ps = (1./81.) * (2./np.pi)**0.5 * (1./a0)**(3/2) * (6 - r/a0) * (r/a0) * np.exp(-r/(3*a0)) * np.cos(th)
+    #ps = (1./81.) * 1./(6.*np.pi)**0.5 * (1./a0)**(3/2) * (r/a0)**2 * np.exp(-r/(3*a0)) * (3 * np.cos(th)**2 - 1)
     
-    return ps
+    #return ps
     
-    #return ((1./81.) * (1./np.pi)**0.5 * (1./a0)**(3/2) * (r/a0)**2 * (r/a0) * np.exp(-r/(3*a0)) * np.sin(th) * np.cos(th) * np.exp(2 * 1j * phi))**2 
+    ##return ((1./81.) * (1./np.pi)**0.5 * (1./a0)**(3/2) * (r/a0)**2 * (r/a0) * np.exp(-r/(3*a0)) * np.sin(th) * np.cos(th) * np.exp(2 * 1j * phi))**2 
 
 
-print("Generating scalar field..")
-data = np.abs(np.fromfunction(psi, (50,50,100)))
+#print("Generating scalar field..")
+#data = np.abs(np.fromfunction(psi, (50,50,100)))
 
 
-#data = np.fromfunction(lambda i,j,k: np.sin(0.2*((i-25)**2+(j-15)**2+k**2)**0.5), (50,50,50)); 
-print("Generating isosurface..")
-faces = pg.isosurface(data, data.max()/4.)
-m = gl.GLMeshItem(faces)
-w.addItem(m)
-m.translate(-25, -25, -50)
+##data = np.fromfunction(lambda i,j,k: np.sin(0.2*((i-25)**2+(j-15)**2+k**2)**0.5), (50,50,50)); 
+#print("Generating isosurface..")
+#verts = pg.isosurface(data, data.max()/4.)
+
+#md = gl.MeshData.MeshData(vertexes=verts)
+
+#colors = np.ones((md.vertexes(indexed='faces').shape[0], 4), dtype=float)
+#colors[:,3] = 0.3
+#colors[:,2] = np.linspace(0, 1, colors.shape[0])
+#m1 = gl.GLMeshItem(meshdata=md, color=colors, smooth=False)
+
+#w.addItem(m1)
+#m1.translate(-25, -25, -20)
+
+#m2 = gl.GLMeshItem(vertexes=verts, color=colors, smooth=True)
+
+#w.addItem(m2)
+#m2.translate(-25, -25, -50)
     
 
-    
-#data = np.zeros((5,5,5))
-#data[2,2,1:4] = 1
-#data[2,1:4,2] = 1
-#data[1:4,2,2] = 1
-#tr.translate(-2.5, -2.5, 0)
-#data = np.ones((2,2,2))
-#data[0, 1, 0] = 0
-#faces = pg.isosurface(data, 0.5)
-#m = gl.GLMeshItem(faces)
-#w.addItem(m)
-#m.setTransform(tr)
 
 ## Start Qt event loop unless running in interactive mode.
 if sys.flags.interactive != 1:
diff --git a/examples/GLSurfacePlot.py b/examples/GLSurfacePlot.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..d930fff7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/examples/GLSurfacePlot.py
@@ -0,0 +1,98 @@
+# -*- coding: utf-8 -*-
+"""
+This example demonstrates the use of GLSurfacePlotItem.
+"""
+
+
+## Add path to library (just for examples; you do not need this)
+import sys, os
+sys.path.insert(0, os.path.join(os.path.dirname(__file__), '..', '..'))
+
+from pyqtgraph.Qt import QtCore, QtGui
+import pyqtgraph as pg
+import pyqtgraph.opengl as gl
+import scipy.ndimage as ndi
+import numpy as np
+
+## Create a GL View widget to display data
+app = QtGui.QApplication([])
+w = gl.GLViewWidget()
+w.show()
+w.setCameraPosition(distance=50)
+
+## Add a grid to the view
+g = gl.GLGridItem()
+g.scale(2,2,1)
+g.setDepthValue(10)  # draw grid after surfaces since they may be translucent
+w.addItem(g)
+
+
+## Simple surface plot example
+## x, y values are not specified, so assumed to be 0:50
+z = ndi.gaussian_filter(np.random.normal(size=(50,50)), (1,1))
+p1 = gl.GLSurfacePlotItem(z=z, shader='shaded', color=(0.5, 0.5, 1, 1))
+p1.scale(16./49., 16./49., 1.0)
+p1.translate(-18, 2, 0)
+w.addItem(p1)
+
+
+## Saddle example with x and y specified
+x = np.linspace(-8, 8, 50)
+y = np.linspace(-8, 8, 50)
+z = 0.1 * ((x.reshape(50,1) ** 2) - (y.reshape(1,50) ** 2))
+p2 = gl.GLSurfacePlotItem(x=x, y=y, z=z, shader='normalColor')
+p2.translate(-10,-10,0)
+w.addItem(p2)
+
+
+## Manually specified colors
+z = ndi.gaussian_filter(np.random.normal(size=(50,50)), (1,1))
+x = np.linspace(-12, 12, 50)
+y = np.linspace(-12, 12, 50)
+colors = np.ones((50,50,4), dtype=float)
+colors[...,0] = np.clip(np.cos(((x.reshape(50,1) ** 2) + (y.reshape(1,50) ** 2)) ** 0.5), 0, 1)
+colors[...,1] = colors[...,0]
+
+p3 = gl.GLSurfacePlotItem(z=z, colors=colors.reshape(50*50,4), shader='shaded', smooth=False)
+p3.scale(16./49., 16./49., 1.0)
+p3.translate(2, -18, 0)
+w.addItem(p3)
+
+
+
+
+## Animated example
+## compute surface vertex data
+cols = 100
+rows = 100
+x = np.linspace(-8, 8, cols+1).reshape(cols+1,1)
+y = np.linspace(-8, 8, rows+1).reshape(1,rows+1)
+d = (x**2 + y**2) * 0.1
+d2 = d ** 0.5 + 0.1
+
+## precompute height values for all frames
+phi = np.arange(0, np.pi*2, np.pi/20.)
+z = np.sin(d[np.newaxis,...] + phi.reshape(phi.shape[0], 1, 1)) / d2[np.newaxis,...]
+
+
+## create a surface plot, tell it to use the 'heightColor' shader
+## since this does not require normal vectors to render (thus we 
+## can set computeNormals=False to save time when the mesh updates)
+p4 = gl.GLSurfacePlotItem(x=x[:,0], y = y[0,:], shader='heightColor', computeNormals=False, smooth=False)
+p4.shader()['colorMap'] = np.array([0.2, 2, 0.5, 0.2, 1, 1, 0.2, 0, 2])
+p4.translate(10, 10, 0)
+w.addItem(p4)
+
+index = 0
+def update():
+    global p4, z, index
+    index -= 1
+    p4.setData(z=z[index%z.shape[0]])
+    
+timer = QtCore.QTimer()
+timer.timeout.connect(update)
+timer.start(30)
+
+## Start Qt event loop unless running in interactive mode.
+if sys.flags.interactive != 1:
+    app.exec_()
diff --git a/examples/GLshaders.py b/examples/GLshaders.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..616b8b4c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/examples/GLshaders.py
@@ -0,0 +1,108 @@
+# -*- coding: utf-8 -*-
+"""
+Demonstration of some of the shader programs included with pyqtgraph.
+"""
+
+
+
+## Add path to library (just for examples; you do not need this)
+import sys, os
+sys.path.insert(0, os.path.join(os.path.dirname(__file__), '..', '..'))
+
+from pyqtgraph.Qt import QtCore, QtGui
+import pyqtgraph as pg
+import pyqtgraph.opengl as gl
+
+app = QtGui.QApplication([])
+w = gl.GLViewWidget()
+w.show()
+
+w.setCameraPosition(distance=15, azimuth=-90)
+
+g = gl.GLGridItem()
+g.scale(2,2,1)
+w.addItem(g)
+
+import numpy as np
+
+
+md = gl.MeshData.sphere(rows=10, cols=20)
+x = np.linspace(-8, 8, 6)
+
+m1 = gl.GLMeshItem(meshdata=md, smooth=True, color=(1, 0, 0, 0.2), shader='balloon', glOptions='additive')
+m1.translate(x[0], 0, 0)
+m1.scale(1, 1, 2)
+w.addItem(m1)
+
+m2 = gl.GLMeshItem(meshdata=md, smooth=True, shader='normalColor', glOptions='opaque')
+m2.translate(x[1], 0, 0)
+m2.scale(1, 1, 2)
+w.addItem(m2)
+
+m3 = gl.GLMeshItem(meshdata=md, smooth=True, shader='viewNormalColor', glOptions='opaque')
+m3.translate(x[2], 0, 0)
+m3.scale(1, 1, 2)
+w.addItem(m3)
+
+m4 = gl.GLMeshItem(meshdata=md, smooth=True, shader='shaded', glOptions='opaque')
+m4.translate(x[3], 0, 0)
+m4.scale(1, 1, 2)
+w.addItem(m4)
+
+m5 = gl.GLMeshItem(meshdata=md, smooth=True, color=(1, 0, 0, 1), shader='edgeHilight', glOptions='opaque')
+m5.translate(x[4], 0, 0)
+m5.scale(1, 1, 2)
+w.addItem(m5)
+
+m6 = gl.GLMeshItem(meshdata=md, smooth=True, color=(1, 0, 0, 1), shader='heightColor', glOptions='opaque')
+m6.translate(x[5], 0, 0)
+m6.scale(1, 1, 2)
+w.addItem(m6)
+
+
+
+
+#def psi(i, j, k, offset=(25, 25, 50)):
+    #x = i-offset[0]
+    #y = j-offset[1]
+    #z = k-offset[2]
+    #th = np.arctan2(z, (x**2+y**2)**0.5)
+    #phi = np.arctan2(y, x)
+    #r = (x**2 + y**2 + z **2)**0.5
+    #a0 = 1
+    ##ps = (1./81.) * (2./np.pi)**0.5 * (1./a0)**(3/2) * (6 - r/a0) * (r/a0) * np.exp(-r/(3*a0)) * np.cos(th)
+    #ps = (1./81.) * 1./(6.*np.pi)**0.5 * (1./a0)**(3/2) * (r/a0)**2 * np.exp(-r/(3*a0)) * (3 * np.cos(th)**2 - 1)
+    
+    #return ps
+    
+    ##return ((1./81.) * (1./np.pi)**0.5 * (1./a0)**(3/2) * (r/a0)**2 * (r/a0) * np.exp(-r/(3*a0)) * np.sin(th) * np.cos(th) * np.exp(2 * 1j * phi))**2 
+
+
+#print("Generating scalar field..")
+#data = np.abs(np.fromfunction(psi, (50,50,100)))
+
+
+##data = np.fromfunction(lambda i,j,k: np.sin(0.2*((i-25)**2+(j-15)**2+k**2)**0.5), (50,50,50)); 
+#print("Generating isosurface..")
+#verts = pg.isosurface(data, data.max()/4.)
+
+#md = gl.MeshData.MeshData(vertexes=verts)
+
+#colors = np.ones((md.vertexes(indexed='faces').shape[0], 4), dtype=float)
+#colors[:,3] = 0.3
+#colors[:,2] = np.linspace(0, 1, colors.shape[0])
+#m1 = gl.GLMeshItem(meshdata=md, color=colors, smooth=False)
+
+#w.addItem(m1)
+#m1.translate(-25, -25, -20)
+
+#m2 = gl.GLMeshItem(vertexes=verts, color=colors, smooth=True)
+
+#w.addItem(m2)
+#m2.translate(-25, -25, -50)
+    
+
+
+## Start Qt event loop unless running in interactive mode.
+if sys.flags.interactive != 1:
+    app.exec_()
diff --git a/examples/Legend.py b/examples/Legend.py
index f615a6eb..af6fce8c 100644
--- a/examples/Legend.py
+++ b/examples/Legend.py
@@ -6,13 +6,14 @@ from pyqtgraph.Qt import QtCore, QtGui
 
 plt = pg.plot()
 
-l = pg.LegendItem((100,60), (60,10))  # args are (size, position)
-l.setParentItem(plt.graphicsItem())   # Note we do NOT call plt.addItem in this case
+plt.addLegend()
+#l = pg.LegendItem((100,60), offset=(70,30))  # args are (size, offset)
+#l.setParentItem(plt.graphicsItem())   # Note we do NOT call plt.addItem in this case
 
-c1 = plt.plot([1,3,2,4], pen='r')
-c2 = plt.plot([2,1,4,3], pen='g')
-l.addItem(c1, 'red plot')
-l.addItem(c2, 'green plot')
+c1 = plt.plot([1,3,2,4], pen='r', name='red plot')
+c2 = plt.plot([2,1,4,3], pen='g', fillLevel=0, fillBrush=(255,255,255,30), name='green plot')
+#l.addItem(c1, 'red plot')
+#l.addItem(c2, 'green plot')
 
 
 ## Start Qt event loop unless running in interactive mode or using pyside.
diff --git a/examples/VideoSpeedTest.py b/examples/VideoSpeedTest.py
index d51798bd..0a20e9cf 100644
--- a/examples/VideoSpeedTest.py
+++ b/examples/VideoSpeedTest.py
@@ -61,37 +61,41 @@ ui.alphaCheck.toggled.connect(updateLUT)
 def updateScale():
     global ui
     spins = [ui.minSpin1, ui.maxSpin1, ui.minSpin2, ui.maxSpin2, ui.minSpin3, ui.maxSpin3]
-    if ui.rgbCheck.isChecked():
+    if ui.rgbLevelsCheck.isChecked():
         for s in spins[2:]:
             s.setEnabled(True)
     else:
         for s in spins[2:]:
             s.setEnabled(False)
-ui.rgbCheck.toggled.connect(updateScale)
+ui.rgbLevelsCheck.toggled.connect(updateScale)
     
 cache = {}
 def mkData():
     global data, cache, ui
-    dtype = ui.dtypeCombo.currentText()
+    dtype = (ui.dtypeCombo.currentText(), ui.rgbCheck.isChecked())
     if dtype not in cache:
-        if dtype == 'uint8':
+        if dtype[0] == 'uint8':
             dt = np.uint8
             loc = 128
             scale = 64
             mx = 255
-        elif dtype == 'uint16':
+        elif dtype[0] == 'uint16':
             dt = np.uint16
             loc = 4096
             scale = 1024
             mx = 2**16
-        elif dtype == 'float':
+        elif dtype[0] == 'float':
             dt = np.float
             loc = 1.0
             scale = 0.1
         
-        data = np.random.normal(size=(20,512,512), loc=loc, scale=scale)
-        data = ndi.gaussian_filter(data, (0, 3, 3))
-        if dtype != 'float':
+        if ui.rgbCheck.isChecked():
+            data = np.random.normal(size=(20,512,512,3), loc=loc, scale=scale)
+            data = ndi.gaussian_filter(data, (0, 6, 6, 0))
+        else:
+            data = np.random.normal(size=(20,512,512), loc=loc, scale=scale)
+            data = ndi.gaussian_filter(data, (0, 6, 6))
+        if dtype[0] != 'float':
             data = np.clip(data, 0, mx)
         data = data.astype(dt)
         cache[dtype] = data
@@ -100,7 +104,7 @@ def mkData():
     updateLUT()
 mkData()
 ui.dtypeCombo.currentIndexChanged.connect(mkData)
-
+ui.rgbCheck.toggled.connect(mkData)
 
 ptr = 0
 lastTime = ptime.time()
@@ -113,7 +117,7 @@ def update():
         useLut = None
 
     if ui.scaleCheck.isChecked():
-        if ui.rgbCheck.isChecked():
+        if ui.rgbLevelsCheck.isChecked():
             useScale = [
                 [ui.minSpin1.value(), ui.maxSpin1.value()], 
                 [ui.minSpin2.value(), ui.maxSpin2.value()], 
diff --git a/examples/VideoTemplate.ui b/examples/VideoTemplate.ui
index 078e7ccf..3dddb928 100644
--- a/examples/VideoTemplate.ui
+++ b/examples/VideoTemplate.ui
@@ -25,7 +25,6 @@
           <verstretch>0</verstretch>
          </sizepolicy>
         </property>
-        <zorder>fpsLabel</zorder>
        </widget>
       </item>
       <item row="0" column="1">
@@ -84,7 +83,7 @@
      </widget>
     </item>
     <item row="3" column="1">
-     <widget class="QCheckBox" name="rgbCheck">
+     <widget class="QCheckBox" name="rgbLevelsCheck">
       <property name="text">
        <string>RGB</string>
       </property>
@@ -218,6 +217,13 @@
       </property>
      </widget>
     </item>
+    <item row="2" column="1">
+     <widget class="QCheckBox" name="rgbCheck">
+      <property name="text">
+       <string>RGB</string>
+      </property>
+     </widget>
+    </item>
    </layout>
   </widget>
  </widget>
diff --git a/examples/VideoTemplate_pyqt.py b/examples/VideoTemplate_pyqt.py
index 21e66635..c3430e2d 100644
--- a/examples/VideoTemplate_pyqt.py
+++ b/examples/VideoTemplate_pyqt.py
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
 
 # Form implementation generated from reading ui file './examples/VideoTemplate.ui'
 #
-# Created: Sun Sep  9 14:41:31 2012
+# Created: Sun Nov  4 18:24:20 2012
 #      by: PyQt4 UI code generator 4.9.1
 #
 # WARNING! All changes made in this file will be lost!
@@ -55,9 +55,9 @@ class Ui_MainWindow(object):
         self.scaleCheck = QtGui.QCheckBox(self.centralwidget)
         self.scaleCheck.setObjectName(_fromUtf8("scaleCheck"))
         self.gridLayout_2.addWidget(self.scaleCheck, 3, 0, 1, 1)
-        self.rgbCheck = QtGui.QCheckBox(self.centralwidget)
-        self.rgbCheck.setObjectName(_fromUtf8("rgbCheck"))
-        self.gridLayout_2.addWidget(self.rgbCheck, 3, 1, 1, 1)
+        self.rgbLevelsCheck = QtGui.QCheckBox(self.centralwidget)
+        self.rgbLevelsCheck.setObjectName(_fromUtf8("rgbLevelsCheck"))
+        self.gridLayout_2.addWidget(self.rgbLevelsCheck, 3, 1, 1, 1)
         self.horizontalLayout = QtGui.QHBoxLayout()
         self.horizontalLayout.setObjectName(_fromUtf8("horizontalLayout"))
         self.minSpin1 = SpinBox(self.centralwidget)
@@ -124,6 +124,9 @@ class Ui_MainWindow(object):
         self.fpsLabel.setAlignment(QtCore.Qt.AlignCenter)
         self.fpsLabel.setObjectName(_fromUtf8("fpsLabel"))
         self.gridLayout_2.addWidget(self.fpsLabel, 0, 0, 1, 4)
+        self.rgbCheck = QtGui.QCheckBox(self.centralwidget)
+        self.rgbCheck.setObjectName(_fromUtf8("rgbCheck"))
+        self.gridLayout_2.addWidget(self.rgbCheck, 2, 1, 1, 1)
         MainWindow.setCentralWidget(self.centralwidget)
 
         self.retranslateUi(MainWindow)
@@ -138,12 +141,13 @@ class Ui_MainWindow(object):
         self.dtypeCombo.setItemText(1, QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "uint16", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
         self.dtypeCombo.setItemText(2, QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "float", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
         self.scaleCheck.setText(QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "Scale Data", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
-        self.rgbCheck.setText(QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "RGB", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
+        self.rgbLevelsCheck.setText(QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "RGB", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
         self.label_2.setText(QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "<--->", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
         self.label_3.setText(QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "<--->", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
         self.label_4.setText(QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "<--->", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
         self.lutCheck.setText(QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "Use Lookup  Table", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
         self.alphaCheck.setText(QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "alpha", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
         self.fpsLabel.setText(QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "FPS", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
+        self.rgbCheck.setText(QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "RGB", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
 
 from pyqtgraph import SpinBox, GradientWidget, GraphicsView, RawImageWidget
diff --git a/examples/VideoTemplate_pyside.py b/examples/VideoTemplate_pyside.py
index 5cbce05c..d19e0f23 100644
--- a/examples/VideoTemplate_pyside.py
+++ b/examples/VideoTemplate_pyside.py
@@ -2,7 +2,7 @@
 
 # Form implementation generated from reading ui file './examples/VideoTemplate.ui'
 #
-# Created: Sun Sep  9 14:41:31 2012
+# Created: Sun Nov  4 18:24:21 2012
 #      by: pyside-uic 0.2.13 running on PySide 1.1.0
 #
 # WARNING! All changes made in this file will be lost!
@@ -50,9 +50,9 @@ class Ui_MainWindow(object):
         self.scaleCheck = QtGui.QCheckBox(self.centralwidget)
         self.scaleCheck.setObjectName("scaleCheck")
         self.gridLayout_2.addWidget(self.scaleCheck, 3, 0, 1, 1)
-        self.rgbCheck = QtGui.QCheckBox(self.centralwidget)
-        self.rgbCheck.setObjectName("rgbCheck")
-        self.gridLayout_2.addWidget(self.rgbCheck, 3, 1, 1, 1)
+        self.rgbLevelsCheck = QtGui.QCheckBox(self.centralwidget)
+        self.rgbLevelsCheck.setObjectName("rgbLevelsCheck")
+        self.gridLayout_2.addWidget(self.rgbLevelsCheck, 3, 1, 1, 1)
         self.horizontalLayout = QtGui.QHBoxLayout()
         self.horizontalLayout.setObjectName("horizontalLayout")
         self.minSpin1 = SpinBox(self.centralwidget)
@@ -119,6 +119,9 @@ class Ui_MainWindow(object):
         self.fpsLabel.setAlignment(QtCore.Qt.AlignCenter)
         self.fpsLabel.setObjectName("fpsLabel")
         self.gridLayout_2.addWidget(self.fpsLabel, 0, 0, 1, 4)
+        self.rgbCheck = QtGui.QCheckBox(self.centralwidget)
+        self.rgbCheck.setObjectName("rgbCheck")
+        self.gridLayout_2.addWidget(self.rgbCheck, 2, 1, 1, 1)
         MainWindow.setCentralWidget(self.centralwidget)
 
         self.retranslateUi(MainWindow)
@@ -133,12 +136,13 @@ class Ui_MainWindow(object):
         self.dtypeCombo.setItemText(1, QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "uint16", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
         self.dtypeCombo.setItemText(2, QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "float", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
         self.scaleCheck.setText(QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "Scale Data", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
-        self.rgbCheck.setText(QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "RGB", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
+        self.rgbLevelsCheck.setText(QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "RGB", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
         self.label_2.setText(QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "<--->", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
         self.label_3.setText(QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "<--->", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
         self.label_4.setText(QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "<--->", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
         self.lutCheck.setText(QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "Use Lookup  Table", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
         self.alphaCheck.setText(QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "alpha", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
         self.fpsLabel.setText(QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "FPS", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
+        self.rgbCheck.setText(QtGui.QApplication.translate("MainWindow", "RGB", None, QtGui.QApplication.UnicodeUTF8))
 
 from pyqtgraph import SpinBox, GradientWidget, GraphicsView, RawImageWidget
diff --git a/examples/__main__.py b/examples/__main__.py
index 3035ddcf..9bd96d8a 100644
--- a/examples/__main__.py
+++ b/examples/__main__.py
@@ -43,9 +43,12 @@ examples = OrderedDict([
     ])),
     ('3D Graphics', OrderedDict([
         ('Volumetric', 'GLVolumeItem.py'),
-        ('Isosurface', 'GLMeshItem.py'),
-        ('Image', 'GLImageItem.py'),
+        ('Isosurface', 'GLIsosurface.py'),
+        ('Surface Plot', 'GLSurfacePlot.py'),
         ('Scatter Plot', 'GLScatterPlotItem.py'),
+        ('Shaders', 'GLshaders.py'),
+        ('Mesh', 'GLMeshItem.py'),
+        ('Image', 'GLImageItem.py'),
     ])),
     ('Widgets', OrderedDict([
         ('PlotWidget', 'PlotWidget.py'),
@@ -127,9 +130,8 @@ class ExampleLoader(QtGui.QMainWindow):
         if fn is None:
             return
         if sys.platform.startswith('win'):
-            os.spawnl(os.P_NOWAIT, sys.executable, sys.executable, '"' + fn + '"', *extra)
+            os.spawnl(os.P_NOWAIT, sys.executable, '"'+sys.executable+'"', '"' + fn + '"', *extra)
         else:
-
             os.spawnl(os.P_NOWAIT, sys.executable, sys.executable, fn, *extra)
         
             
diff --git a/functions.py b/functions.py
index 1342b527..4eafbbf3 100644
--- a/functions.py
+++ b/functions.py
@@ -434,8 +434,10 @@ def affineSlice(data, shape, origin, vectors, axes, order=1, returnCoords=False,
     
 
     ## make sure vectors are arrays
-    vectors = np.array(vectors)
-    origin = np.array(origin)
+    if not isinstance(vectors, np.ndarray):
+        vectors = np.array(vectors)
+    if not isinstance(origin, np.ndarray):
+        origin = np.array(origin)
     origin.shape = (len(axes),) + (1,)*len(shape)
     
     ## Build array of sample locations. 
@@ -580,171 +582,247 @@ def solveBilinearTransform(points1, points2):
     
     return matrix
     
+def rescaleData(data, scale, offset, dtype=None):
+    """Return data rescaled and optionally cast to a new dtype::
     
+        data => (data-offset) * scale
+        
+    Uses scipy.weave (if available) to improve performance.
+    """
+    global USE_WEAVE
+    if dtype is None:
+        dtype = data.dtype
     
+    try:
+        if not USE_WEAVE:
+            raise Exception('Weave is disabled; falling back to slower version.')
+        
+        newData = np.empty((data.size,), dtype=dtype)
+        flat = np.ascontiguousarray(data).reshape(data.size)
+        size = data.size
+        
+        code = """
+        double sc = (double)scale;
+        double off = (double)offset;
+        for( int i=0; i<size; i++ ) {
+            newData[i] = ((double)flat[i] - off) * sc;
+        }
+        """
+        scipy.weave.inline(code, ['flat', 'newData', 'size', 'offset', 'scale'], compiler='gcc')
+        data = newData.reshape(data.shape)
+    except:
+        if USE_WEAVE:
+            debug.printExc("Error; disabling weave.")
+            USE_WEAVE = False
+        
+        #p = np.poly1d([scale, -offset*scale])
+        #data = p(data).astype(dtype)
+        d2 = data-offset
+        d2 *= scale
+        data = d2.astype(dtype)
+    return data
+    
+def applyLookupTable(data, lut):
+    """
+    Uses values in *data* as indexes to select values from *lut*.
+    The returned data has shape data.shape + lut.shape[1:]
+    
+    Uses scipy.weave to improve performance if it is available.
+    Note: color gradient lookup tables can be generated using GradientWidget.
+    """
+    global USE_WEAVE
+    
+    if data.dtype.kind not in ('i', 'u'):
+        data = data.astype(int)
+    
+    ## using np.take appears to be faster than even the scipy.weave method and takes care of clipping as well.
+    return np.take(lut, data, axis=0, mode='clip')  
+    
+    ### old methods: 
+    #data = np.clip(data, 0, lut.shape[0]-1)
+    
+    #try:
+        #if not USE_WEAVE:
+            #raise Exception('Weave is disabled; falling back to slower version.')
+        
+        ### number of values to copy for each LUT lookup
+        #if lut.ndim == 1:
+            #ncol = 1
+        #else:
+            #ncol = sum(lut.shape[1:])
+        
+        ### output array
+        #newData = np.empty((data.size, ncol), dtype=lut.dtype)
+        
+        ### flattened input arrays
+        #flatData = data.flatten()
+        #flatLut = lut.reshape((lut.shape[0], ncol))
+        
+        #dataSize = data.size
+        
+        ### strides for accessing each item 
+        #newStride = newData.strides[0] / newData.dtype.itemsize
+        #lutStride = flatLut.strides[0] / flatLut.dtype.itemsize
+        #dataStride = flatData.strides[0] / flatData.dtype.itemsize
+        
+        ### strides for accessing individual values within a single LUT lookup
+        #newColStride = newData.strides[1] / newData.dtype.itemsize
+        #lutColStride = flatLut.strides[1] / flatLut.dtype.itemsize
+        
+        #code = """
+        
+        #for( int i=0; i<dataSize; i++ ) {
+            #for( int j=0; j<ncol; j++ ) {
+                #newData[i*newStride + j*newColStride] = flatLut[flatData[i*dataStride]*lutStride + j*lutColStride];
+            #}
+        #}
+        #"""
+        #scipy.weave.inline(code, ['flatData', 'flatLut', 'newData', 'dataSize', 'ncol', 'newStride', 'lutStride', 'dataStride', 'newColStride', 'lutColStride'])
+        #newData = newData.reshape(data.shape + lut.shape[1:])
+        ##if np.any(newData != lut[data]):
+            ##print "mismatch!"
+            
+        #data = newData
+    #except:
+        #if USE_WEAVE:
+            #debug.printExc("Error; disabling weave.")
+            #USE_WEAVE = False
+        #data = lut[data]
+        
+    #return data
+
+
 def makeRGBA(*args, **kwds):
     """Equivalent to makeARGB(..., useRGBA=True)"""
     kwds['useRGBA'] = True
     return makeARGB(*args, **kwds)
 
-def makeARGB(data, lut=None, levels=None, useRGBA=False): 
+def makeARGB(data, lut=None, levels=None, scale=None, useRGBA=False): 
     """ 
-    Convert a 2D or 3D array into an ARGB array suitable for building QImages
-    Will optionally do scaling and/or table lookups to determine final colors.
+    Convert an array of values into an ARGB array suitable for building QImages, OpenGL textures, etc.
     
     Returns the ARGB array (values 0-255) and a boolean indicating whether there is alpha channel data.
+    This is a two stage process:
     
+        1) Rescale the data based on the values in the *levels* argument (min, max).
+        2) Determine the final output by passing the rescaled values through a lookup table.
+   
+    Both stages are optional.
+    
+    ============ ==================================================================================
     Arguments:
-        data  - 2D or 3D numpy array of int/float types
-        
-                For 2D arrays (x, y):
-                  * The color will be determined using a lookup table (see argument 'lut').
-                  * If levels are given, the data is rescaled and converted to int
-                    before using the lookup table.
+    data         numpy array of int/float types. If 
+    levels       List [min, max]; optionally rescale data before converting through the
+                 lookup table. The data is rescaled such that min->0 and max->*scale*::
                  
-                For 3D arrays (x, y, rgba):
-                  * The third axis must have length 3 or 4 and will be interpreted as RGBA.
-                  * The 'lut' argument is not allowed.
+                    rescaled = (clip(data, min, max) - min) * (*scale* / (max - min))
                  
-        lut   - Lookup table for 2D data. May be 1D or 2D (N,rgba) and must have dtype=ubyte.
-                Values in data will be converted to color by indexing directly from lut.
-                Lookup tables can be built using GradientWidget.
-        levels - List [min, max]; optionally rescale data before converting through the
-                lookup table.   rescaled = (data-min) * len(lut) / (max-min)
-        useRGBA - If True, the data is returned in RGBA order (useful for building OpenGL textures). The default is 
-                  False, which returns in BGRA order for use with QImage.
-                
+                 It is also possible to use a 2D (N,2) array of values for levels. In this case,
+                 it is assumed that each pair of min,max values in the levels array should be 
+                 applied to a different subset of the input data (for example, the input data may 
+                 already have RGB values and the levels are used to independently scale each 
+                 channel). The use of this feature requires that levels.shape[0] == data.shape[-1].
+    scale        The maximum value to which data will be rescaled before being passed through the 
+                 lookup table (or returned if there is no lookup table). By default this will
+                 be set to the length of the lookup table, or 256 is no lookup table is provided.
+                 For OpenGL color specifications (as in GLColor4f) use scale=1.0
+    lut          Optional lookup table (array with dtype=ubyte).
+                 Values in data will be converted to color by indexing directly from lut.
+                 The output data shape will be input.shape + lut.shape[1:].
+                 
+                 Note: the output of makeARGB will have the same dtype as the lookup table, so
+                 for conversion to QImage, the dtype must be ubyte.
+                 
+                 Lookup tables can be built using GradientWidget.
+    useRGBA      If True, the data is returned in RGBA order (useful for building OpenGL textures). 
+                 The default is False, which returns in ARGB order for use with QImage 
+                 (Note that 'ARGB' is a term used by the Qt documentation; the _actual_ order 
+                 is BGRA).
+    ============ ==================================================================================
     """
     prof = debug.Profiler('functions.makeARGB', disabled=True)
     
+    if lut is not None and not isinstance(lut, np.ndarray):
+        lut = np.array(lut)
+    if levels is not None and not isinstance(levels, np.ndarray):
+        levels = np.array(levels)
+    
     ## sanity checks
-    if data.ndim == 3:
-        if data.shape[2] not in (3,4):
-            raise Exception("data.shape[2] must be 3 or 4")
-        #if lut is not None:
-            #raise Exception("can not use lookup table with 3D data")
-    elif data.ndim != 2:
-        raise Exception("data must be 2D or 3D")
+    #if data.ndim == 3:
+        #if data.shape[2] not in (3,4):
+            #raise Exception("data.shape[2] must be 3 or 4")
+        ##if lut is not None:
+            ##raise Exception("can not use lookup table with 3D data")
+    #elif data.ndim != 2:
+        #raise Exception("data must be 2D or 3D")
         
-    if lut is not None:
-        if lut.ndim == 2:
-            if lut.shape[1] not in (3,4):
-                raise Exception("lut.shape[1] must be 3 or 4")
-        elif lut.ndim != 1:
-            raise Exception("lut must be 1D or 2D")
-        if lut.dtype != np.ubyte:
-            raise Exception('lookup table must have dtype=ubyte (got %s instead)' % str(lut.dtype))
+    #if lut is not None:
+        ##if lut.ndim == 2:
+            ##if lut.shape[1] :
+                ##raise Exception("lut.shape[1] must be 3 or 4")
+        ##elif lut.ndim != 1:
+            ##raise Exception("lut must be 1D or 2D")
+        #if lut.dtype != np.ubyte:
+            #raise Exception('lookup table must have dtype=ubyte (got %s instead)' % str(lut.dtype))
+            
 
     if levels is not None:
-        levels = np.array(levels)
-        if levels.shape == (2,):
-            pass
-        elif levels.shape in [(3,2), (4,2)]:
-            if data.ndim == 3:
-                raise Exception("Can not use 2D levels with 3D data.")
-            if lut is not None:
-                raise Exception('Can not use 2D levels and lookup table together.')
+        if levels.ndim == 1:
+            if len(levels) != 2:
+                raise Exception('levels argument must have length 2')
+        elif levels.ndim == 2:
+            if lut is not None and lut.ndim > 1:
+                raise Exception('Cannot make ARGB data when bot levels and lut have ndim > 2')
+            if levels.shape != (data.shape[-1], 2):
+                raise Exception('levels must have shape (data.shape[-1], 2)')
         else:
-            raise Exception("Levels must have shape (2,) or (3,2) or (4,2)")
+            print levels
+            raise Exception("levels argument must be 1D or 2D.")
+        #levels = np.array(levels)
+        #if levels.shape == (2,):
+            #pass
+        #elif levels.shape in [(3,2), (4,2)]:
+            #if data.ndim == 3:
+                #raise Exception("Can not use 2D levels with 3D data.")
+            #if lut is not None:
+                #raise Exception('Can not use 2D levels and lookup table together.')
+        #else:
+            #raise Exception("Levels must have shape (2,) or (3,2) or (4,2)")
         
     prof.mark('1')
 
-    if lut is not None:
-        lutLength = lut.shape[0]
-    else:
-        lutLength = 256
-
-    ## weave requires contiguous arrays
-    global USE_WEAVE
-    if (levels is not None or lut is not None) and USE_WEAVE:
-        data = np.ascontiguousarray(data)
+    if scale is None:
+        if lut is not None:
+            scale = lut.shape[0]
+        else:
+            scale = 255.
 
     ## Apply levels if given
     if levels is not None:
         
-        try:  ## use weave to speed up scaling
-            if not USE_WEAVE:
-                raise Exception('Weave is disabled; falling back to slower version.')
-            if levels.ndim == 1:
-                scale = float(lutLength) / (levels[1]-levels[0])
-                offset = float(levels[0])
-                data = rescaleData(data, scale, offset)
-            else:
-                if data.ndim == 2:
-                    newData = np.empty(data.shape+(levels.shape[0],), dtype=np.uint32)
-                    for i in range(levels.shape[0]):
-                        scale = float(lutLength / (levels[i,1]-levels[i,0]))
-                        offset = float(levels[i,0])
-                        newData[...,i] = rescaleData(data, scale, offset)
-                elif data.ndim == 3:
-                    newData = np.empty(data.shape, dtype=np.uint32)
-                    for i in range(data.shape[2]):
-                        scale = float(lutLength / (levels[i,1]-levels[i,0]))
-                        offset = float(levels[i,0])
-                        #print scale, offset, data.shape, newData.shape, levels.shape
-                        newData[...,i] = rescaleData(data[...,i], scale, offset)
-                data = newData
-        except:
-            if USE_WEAVE:
-                debug.printExc("Error; disabling weave.")
-                USE_WEAVE = False
-            
-            if levels.ndim == 1:
-                if data.ndim == 2:
-                    levels = levels[np.newaxis, np.newaxis, :]
-                else:
-                    levels = levels[np.newaxis, np.newaxis, np.newaxis, :]
-            else:
-                levels = levels[np.newaxis, np.newaxis, ...]
-                if data.ndim == 2:
-                    data = data[..., np.newaxis]
-            data = ((data-levels[...,0]) * lutLength) / (levels[...,1]-levels[...,0])
+        if isinstance(levels, np.ndarray) and levels.ndim == 2:
+            ## we are going to rescale each channel independently
+            if levels.shape[0] != data.shape[-1]:
+                raise Exception("When rescaling multi-channel data, there must be the same number of levels as channels (data.shape[-1] == levels.shape[0])")
+            newData = np.empty(data.shape, dtype=int)
+            for i in range(data.shape[-1]):
+                minVal, maxVal = levels[i]
+                if minVal == maxVal:
+                    maxVal += 1e-16
+                newData[...,i] = rescaleData(data[...,i], scale/(maxVal-minVal), minVal, dtype=int)
+            data = newData
+        else:
+            minVal, maxVal = levels
+            if minVal == maxVal:
+                maxVal += 1e-16
+            data = rescaleData(data, scale/(maxVal-minVal), minVal, dtype=int)
         
     prof.mark('2')
 
 
     ## apply LUT if given
-    if lut is not None and data.ndim == 2:
-        
-        if data.dtype.kind not in ('i', 'u'):
-            data = data.astype(int)
-            
-        data = np.clip(data, 0, lutLength-1)
-        try:
-            if not USE_WEAVE:
-                raise Exception('Weave is disabled; falling back to slower version.')
-            
-            newData = np.empty((data.size,) + lut.shape[1:], dtype=np.uint8)
-            flat = data.reshape(data.size)
-            size = data.size
-            ncol = lut.shape[1]
-            newStride = newData.strides[0]
-            newColStride = newData.strides[1]
-            lutStride = lut.strides[0]
-            lutColStride = lut.strides[1]
-            flatStride = flat.strides[0] / flat.dtype.itemsize
-            
-            #print "newData:", newData.shape, newData.dtype
-            #print "flat:", flat.shape, flat.dtype, flat.min(), flat.max()
-            #print "lut:", lut.shape, lut.dtype
-            #print "size:", size, "ncols:", ncol
-            #print "strides:", newStride, newColStride, lutStride, lutColStride, flatStride
-            
-            code = """
-            
-            for( int i=0; i<size; i++ ) {
-                for( int j=0; j<ncol; j++ ) {
-                    newData[i*newStride + j*newColStride] = lut[flat[i*flatStride]*lutStride + j*lutColStride];
-                }
-            }
-            """
-            scipy.weave.inline(code, ['flat', 'lut', 'newData', 'size', 'ncol', 'newStride', 'lutStride', 'flatStride', 'newColStride', 'lutColStride'])
-            data = newData.reshape(data.shape + lut.shape[1:])
-        except:
-            if USE_WEAVE:
-                debug.printExc("Error; disabling weave.")
-                USE_WEAVE = False
-            data = lut[data]
+    if lut is not None:
+        data = applyLookupTable(data, lut)
     else:
         if data.dtype is not np.ubyte:
             data = np.clip(data, 0, 255).astype(np.ubyte)
@@ -895,25 +973,6 @@ def imageToArray(img, copy=False, transpose=True):
         return arr
     
     
-    
-
-def rescaleData(data, scale, offset):
-    newData = np.empty((data.size,), dtype=np.int)
-    flat = data.reshape(data.size)
-    size = data.size
-    
-    code = """
-    double sc = (double)scale;
-    double off = (double)offset;
-    for( int i=0; i<size; i++ ) {
-        newData[i] = (int)(((double)flat[i] - off) * sc);
-    }
-    """
-    scipy.weave.inline(code, ['flat', 'newData', 'size', 'offset', 'scale'], compiler='gcc')
-    data = newData.reshape(data.shape)
-    return data
-    
-
 #def isosurface(data, level):
     #"""
     #Generate isosurface from volumetric data using marching tetrahedra algorithm.
@@ -1090,7 +1149,7 @@ def isosurface(data, level):
     *data*   3D numpy array of scalar values
     *level*  The level at which to generate an isosurface
     
-    Returns a list of faces; each face is a list of three vertexes and each vertex is a tuple of three floats.
+    Returns an array of vertex coordinates (N, 3, 3);
     
     This function is SLOW; plenty of room for optimization here.
     """
@@ -1457,7 +1516,7 @@ def isosurface(data, level):
                         pts.append(p)
                     facets.append(pts)
 
-    return facets
+    return np.array(facets)
 
 
     
diff --git a/graphicsItems/GraphicsItem.py b/graphicsItems/GraphicsItem.py
index 7eee89f3..4f4753b1 100644
--- a/graphicsItems/GraphicsItem.py
+++ b/graphicsItems/GraphicsItem.py
@@ -166,13 +166,15 @@ class GraphicsItem(object):
         ## attempt to re-scale direction vector to fit within the precision of the coordinate system
         if direction.x() == 0:
             r = abs(dt.m32())/(abs(dt.m12()) + abs(dt.m22()))
+            #r = 1.0/(abs(dt.m12()) + abs(dt.m22()))
         elif direction.y() == 0:
             r = abs(dt.m31())/(abs(dt.m11()) + abs(dt.m21()))
+            #r = 1.0/(abs(dt.m11()) + abs(dt.m21()))
         else:
             r = ((abs(dt.m32())/(abs(dt.m12()) + abs(dt.m22()))) * (abs(dt.m31())/(abs(dt.m11()) + abs(dt.m21()))))**0.5
-        direction = direction * r
+        directionr = direction * r
         
-        viewDir = Point(dt.map(direction) - dt.map(Point(0,0)))
+        viewDir = Point(dt.map(directionr) - dt.map(Point(0,0)))
         if viewDir.manhattanLength() == 0:
             return None, None   ##  pixel size cannot be represented on this scale
             
@@ -182,7 +184,7 @@ class GraphicsItem(object):
             normView = viewDir.norm()  ## direction of one pixel orthogonal to line
             normOrtho = orthoDir.norm()
         except:
-            raise Exception("Invalid direction %s" %direction)
+            raise Exception("Invalid direction %s" %directionr)
             
         
         dti = fn.invertQTransform(dt)
diff --git a/graphicsItems/GraphicsWidgetAnchor.py b/graphicsItems/GraphicsWidgetAnchor.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..b71e781a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/graphicsItems/GraphicsWidgetAnchor.py
@@ -0,0 +1,63 @@
+from ..Qt import QtGui, QtCore
+from ..Point import Point
+
+
+class GraphicsWidgetAnchor:
+    """
+    Class used to allow GraphicsWidgets to anchor to a specific position on their
+    parent. 
+
+    """
+
+    def __init__(self):
+        self.__parent = None
+        self.__parentAnchor = None
+        self.__itemAnchor = None
+        self.__offset = (0,0)
+        if hasattr(self, 'geometryChanged'):
+            self.geometryChanged.connect(self.__geometryChanged)
+
+    def anchor(self, itemPos, parentPos, offset=(0,0)):
+        """
+        Anchors the item at its local itemPos to the item's parent at parentPos.
+        Both positions are expressed in values relative to the size of the item or parent;
+        a value of 0 indicates left or top edge, while 1 indicates right or bottom edge.
+        
+        Optionally, offset may be specified to introduce an absolute offset. 
+        
+        Example: anchor a box such that its upper-right corner is fixed 10px left
+        and 10px down from its parent's upper-right corner::
+        
+            box.anchor(itemPos=(1,0), parentPos=(1,0), offset=(-10,10))
+        """
+        parent = self.parentItem()
+        if parent is None:
+            raise Exception("Cannot anchor; parent is not set.")
+        
+        if self.__parent is not parent:
+            if self.__parent is not None:
+                self.__parent.geometryChanged.disconnect(self.__geometryChanged)
+                
+            self.__parent = parent
+            parent.geometryChanged.connect(self.__geometryChanged)
+        
+        self.__itemAnchor = itemPos
+        self.__parentAnchor = parentPos
+        self.__offset = offset
+        self.__geometryChanged()
+        
+    def __geometryChanged(self):
+        if self.__parent is None:
+            return
+        if self.__itemAnchor is None:
+            return
+            
+        o = self.mapToParent(Point(0,0))
+        a = self.boundingRect().bottomRight() * Point(self.__itemAnchor)
+        a = self.mapToParent(a)
+        p = self.__parent.boundingRect().bottomRight() * Point(self.__parentAnchor)
+        off = Point(self.__offset)
+        pos = p + (o-a) + off
+        self.setPos(pos)
+        
+        
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/graphicsItems/LegendItem.py b/graphicsItems/LegendItem.py
index a41201e1..14c690a5 100644
--- a/graphicsItems/LegendItem.py
+++ b/graphicsItems/LegendItem.py
@@ -2,12 +2,14 @@ from .GraphicsWidget import GraphicsWidget
 from .LabelItem import LabelItem
 from ..Qt import QtGui, QtCore
 from .. import functions as fn
-
+from ..Point import Point
+from .GraphicsWidgetAnchor import GraphicsWidgetAnchor
 __all__ = ['LegendItem']
 
-class LegendItem(GraphicsWidget):
+class LegendItem(GraphicsWidget, GraphicsWidgetAnchor):
     """
     Displays a legend used for describing the contents of a plot.
+    LegendItems are most commonly created by calling PlotItem.addLegend().
 
     Note that this item should not be added directly to a PlotItem. Instead,
     Make it a direct descendant of the PlotItem::
@@ -15,17 +17,45 @@ class LegendItem(GraphicsWidget):
         legend.setParentItem(plotItem)
 
     """
-    def __init__(self, size, offset):
+    def __init__(self, size=None, offset=None):
+        """
+        ==========  ===============================================================
+        Arguments
+        size        Specifies the fixed size (width, height) of the legend. If 
+                    this argument is omitted, the legend will autimatically resize
+                    to fit its contents.
+        offset      Specifies the offset position relative to the legend's parent.
+                    Positive values offset from the left or top; negative values
+                    offset from the right or bottom. If offset is None, the 
+                    legend must be anchored manually by calling anchor() or
+                    positioned by calling setPos(). 
+        ==========  ===============================================================
+        
+        """
+        
+        
         GraphicsWidget.__init__(self)
+        GraphicsWidgetAnchor.__init__(self)
         self.setFlag(self.ItemIgnoresTransformations)
         self.layout = QtGui.QGraphicsGridLayout()
         self.setLayout(self.layout)
         self.items = []
         self.size = size
         self.offset = offset
-        self.setGeometry(QtCore.QRectF(self.offset[0], self.offset[1], self.size[0], self.size[1]))
+        if size is not None:
+            self.setGeometry(QtCore.QRectF(0, 0, self.size[0], self.size[1]))
         
-    def addItem(self, item, title):
+    def setParentItem(self, p):
+        ret = GraphicsWidget.setParentItem(self, p)
+        if self.offset is not None:
+            offset = Point(self.offset)
+            anchorx = 1 if offset[0] <= 0 else 0
+            anchory = 1 if offset[1] <= 0 else 0
+            anchor = (anchorx, anchory)
+            self.anchor(itemPos=anchor, parentPos=anchor, offset=offset)
+        return ret
+        
+    def addItem(self, item, name):
         """
         Add a new entry to the legend. 
 
@@ -36,15 +66,30 @@ class LegendItem(GraphicsWidget):
         title       The title to display for this item. Simple HTML allowed.
         =========== ========================================================
         """
-        label = LabelItem(title)
+        label = LabelItem(name)
         sample = ItemSample(item)
         row = len(self.items)
         self.items.append((sample, label))
         self.layout.addItem(sample, row, 0)
         self.layout.addItem(label, row, 1)
+        self.updateSize()
+        
+    def updateSize(self):
+        if self.size is not None:
+            return
+            
+        height = 0
+        width = 0
+        print "-------"
+        for sample, label in self.items:
+            height += max(sample.height(), label.height()) + 3
+            width = max(width, sample.width()+label.width())
+            print width, height
+        print width, height
+        self.setGeometry(0, 0, width+25, height)
         
     def boundingRect(self):
-        return QtCore.QRectF(0, 0, self.size[0], self.size[1])
+        return QtCore.QRectF(0, 0, self.width(), self.height())
         
     def paint(self, p, *args):
         p.setPen(fn.mkPen(255,255,255,100))
@@ -61,8 +106,16 @@ class ItemSample(GraphicsWidget):
         return QtCore.QRectF(0, 0, 20, 20)
         
     def paint(self, p, *args):
-        p.setPen(fn.mkPen(self.item.opts['pen']))
+        opts = self.item.opts
+        
+        if opts.get('fillLevel',None) is not None and opts.get('fillBrush',None) is not None:
+            p.setBrush(fn.mkBrush(opts['fillBrush']))
+            p.setPen(fn.mkPen(None))
+            p.drawPolygon(QtGui.QPolygonF([QtCore.QPointF(2,18), QtCore.QPointF(18,2), QtCore.QPointF(18,18)]))
+        
+        p.setPen(fn.mkPen(opts['pen']))
         p.drawLine(2, 18, 18, 2)
         
         
         
+        
diff --git a/graphicsItems/PlotCurveItem.py b/graphicsItems/PlotCurveItem.py
index 17ee4566..d267f58e 100644
--- a/graphicsItems/PlotCurveItem.py
+++ b/graphicsItems/PlotCurveItem.py
@@ -65,6 +65,7 @@ class PlotCurveItem(GraphicsObject):
             'fillLevel': None,
             'brush': None,
             'stepMode': False,
+            'name': None
         }
         self.setClickable(kargs.get('clickable', False))
         self.setData(*args, **kargs)
@@ -238,6 +239,9 @@ class PlotCurveItem(GraphicsObject):
         self.fillPath = None
         #self.xDisp = self.yDisp = None
         
+        if 'name' in kargs:
+            self.opts['name'] = kargs['name']
+        
         if 'pen' in kargs:
             self.setPen(kargs['pen'])
         if 'shadowPen' in kargs:
diff --git a/graphicsItems/PlotDataItem.py b/graphicsItems/PlotDataItem.py
index ce5b11aa..58158905 100644
--- a/graphicsItems/PlotDataItem.py
+++ b/graphicsItems/PlotDataItem.py
@@ -317,6 +317,8 @@ class PlotDataItem(GraphicsObject):
         ## pull in all style arguments. 
         ## Use self.opts to fill in anything not present in kargs.
         
+        if 'name' in kargs:
+            self.opts['name'] = kargs['name']
 
         ## if symbol pen/brush are given with no symbol, then assume symbol is 'o'
         
diff --git a/graphicsItems/PlotItem/PlotItem.py b/graphicsItems/PlotItem/PlotItem.py
index 3177a176..8281f031 100644
--- a/graphicsItems/PlotItem/PlotItem.py
+++ b/graphicsItems/PlotItem/PlotItem.py
@@ -33,6 +33,7 @@ from .. PlotDataItem import PlotDataItem
 from .. ViewBox import ViewBox
 from .. AxisItem import AxisItem
 from .. LabelItem import LabelItem
+from .. LegendItem import LegendItem
 from .. GraphicsWidget import GraphicsWidget
 from .. ButtonItem import ButtonItem
 from pyqtgraph.WidgetGroup import WidgetGroup
@@ -528,6 +529,9 @@ class PlotItem(GraphicsWidget):
             #c.connect(c, QtCore.SIGNAL('plotChanged'), self.plotChanged)
             #item.sigPlotChanged.connect(self.plotChanged)
             #self.plotChanged()
+        name = kargs.get('name', getattr(item, 'opts', {}).get('name', None))
+        if name is not None and self.legend is not None:
+            self.legend.addItem(item, name=name)
             
 
     def addDataItem(self, item, *args):
@@ -596,6 +600,16 @@ class PlotItem(GraphicsWidget):
         
         return item
 
+    def addLegend(self, size=None, offset=(30, 30)):
+        """
+        Create a new LegendItem and anchor it over the internal ViewBox.
+        Plots will be automatically displayed in the legend if they
+        are created with the 'name' argument.
+        """
+        self.legend = LegendItem(size, offset)
+        self.legend.setParentItem(self.vb)
+        return self.legend
+        
     def scatterPlot(self, *args, **kargs):
         if 'pen' in kargs:
             kargs['symbolPen'] = kargs['pen']
diff --git a/graphicsItems/ViewBox/ViewBox.py b/graphicsItems/ViewBox/ViewBox.py
index 89fa1487..0e344e16 100644
--- a/graphicsItems/ViewBox/ViewBox.py
+++ b/graphicsItems/ViewBox/ViewBox.py
@@ -166,7 +166,7 @@ class ViewBox(GraphicsWidget):
             ViewBox.NamedViews[name] = self
             ViewBox.updateAllViewLists()
             sid = id(self)
-            self.destroyed.connect(lambda: ViewBox.forgetView(sid, name) if ViewBox is not None else None)
+            self.destroyed.connect(lambda: ViewBox.forgetView(sid, name) if (ViewBox is not None and 'sid' in locals() and 'name' in locals()) else None)
             #self.destroyed.connect(self.unregister)
 
     def unregister(self):
@@ -1154,7 +1154,7 @@ class ViewBox(GraphicsWidget):
         if any(changed):
             self.sigRangeChanged.emit(self, self.state['viewRange'])
             
-        self.sigTransformChanged.emit(self)
+        self.sigTransformChanged.emit(self)  ## segfaults here: 1
 
     def paint(self, p, opt, widget):
         if self.border is not None:
diff --git a/opengl/GLGraphicsItem.py b/opengl/GLGraphicsItem.py
index 7d1cf70b..1ed757b0 100644
--- a/opengl/GLGraphicsItem.py
+++ b/opengl/GLGraphicsItem.py
@@ -1,5 +1,31 @@
 from pyqtgraph.Qt import QtGui, QtCore
 from pyqtgraph import Transform3D
+from OpenGL.GL import *
+from OpenGL import GL
+
+GLOptions = {
+    'opaque': {
+        GL_DEPTH_TEST: True,
+        GL_BLEND: False,
+        GL_ALPHA_TEST: False,
+        GL_CULL_FACE: False,
+    },
+    'translucent': {
+        GL_DEPTH_TEST: True,
+        GL_BLEND: True,
+        GL_ALPHA_TEST: False,
+        GL_CULL_FACE: False,
+        'glBlendFunc': (GL_SRC_ALPHA, GL_ONE_MINUS_SRC_ALPHA),
+    },
+    'additive': {
+        GL_DEPTH_TEST: False,
+        GL_BLEND: True,
+        GL_ALPHA_TEST: False,
+        GL_CULL_FACE: False,
+        'glBlendFunc': (GL_SRC_ALPHA, GL_ONE),
+    },
+}    
+
 
 class GLGraphicsItem(QtCore.QObject):
     def __init__(self, parentItem=None):
@@ -11,6 +37,7 @@ class GLGraphicsItem(QtCore.QObject):
         self.__visible = True
         self.setParentItem(parentItem)
         self.setDepthValue(0)
+        self.__glOpts = {}
         
     def setParentItem(self, item):
         if self.__parent is not None:
@@ -23,7 +50,52 @@ class GLGraphicsItem(QtCore.QObject):
             if self.view() is not None:
                 self.view().removeItem(self)
             self.__parent.view().addItem(self)
+    
+    def setGLOptions(self, opts):
+        """
+        Set the OpenGL state options to use immediately before drawing this item.
+        (Note that subclasses must call setupGLState before painting for this to work)
         
+        The simplest way to invoke this method is to pass in the name of
+        a predefined set of options (see the GLOptions variable):
+        
+        ============= ======================================================
+        opaque        Enables depth testing and disables blending
+        translucent   Enables depth testing and blending
+                      Elements must be drawn sorted back-to-front for
+                      translucency to work correctly.
+        additive      Disables depth testing, enables blending.
+                      Colors are added together, so sorting is not required.
+        ============= ======================================================
+        
+        It is also possible to specify any arbitrary settings as a dictionary. 
+        This may consist of {'functionName': (args...)} pairs where functionName must 
+        be a callable attribute of OpenGL.GL, or {GL_STATE_VAR: bool} pairs 
+        which will be interpreted as calls to glEnable or glDisable(GL_STATE_VAR).
+        
+        For example::
+            
+            {
+                GL_ALPHA_TEST: True,
+                GL_CULL_FACE: False,
+                'glBlendFunc': (GL_SRC_ALPHA, GL_ONE_MINUS_SRC_ALPHA),
+            }
+            
+        
+        """
+        if isinstance(opts, basestring):
+            opts = GLOptions[opts]
+        self.__glOpts = opts.copy()
+        
+    def updateGLOptions(self, opts):
+        """
+        Modify the OpenGL state options to use immediately before drawing this item.
+        *opts* must be a dictionary as specified by setGLOptions.
+        Values may also be None, in which case the key will be ignored.
+        """
+        self.__glOpts.update(opts)
+        
+    
     def parentItem(self):
         return self.__parent
         
@@ -135,13 +207,30 @@ class GLGraphicsItem(QtCore.QObject):
         """
         pass
     
+    def setupGLState(self):
+        """
+        This method is responsible for preparing the GL state options needed to render 
+        this item (blending, depth testing, etc). The method is called immediately before painting the item.
+        """
+        for k,v in self.__glOpts.items():
+            if v is None:
+                continue
+            if isinstance(k, basestring):
+                func = getattr(GL, k)
+                func(*v)
+            else:
+                if v is True:
+                    glEnable(k)
+                else:
+                    glDisable(k)
+    
     def paint(self):
         """
         Called by the GLViewWidget to draw this item.
         It is the responsibility of the item to set up its own modelview matrix,
         but the caller will take care of pushing/popping.
         """
-        pass
+        self.setupGLState()
         
     def update(self):
         v = self.view()
diff --git a/opengl/GLViewWidget.py b/opengl/GLViewWidget.py
index 6911d849..37d42072 100644
--- a/opengl/GLViewWidget.py
+++ b/opengl/GLViewWidget.py
@@ -12,8 +12,16 @@ class GLViewWidget(QtOpenGL.QGLWidget):
         - Export options
 
     """
+    
+    ShareWidget = None
+    
     def __init__(self, parent=None):
-        QtOpenGL.QGLWidget.__init__(self, parent)
+        if GLViewWidget.ShareWidget is None:
+            ## create a dummy widget to allow sharing objects (textures, shaders, etc) between views
+            GLViewWidget.ShareWidget = QtOpenGL.QGLWidget()
+            
+        QtOpenGL.QGLWidget.__init__(self, parent, GLViewWidget.ShareWidget)
+        
         self.setFocusPolicy(QtCore.Qt.ClickFocus)
         
         self.opts = {
@@ -131,6 +139,16 @@ class GLViewWidget(QtOpenGL.QGLWidget):
                     glMatrixMode(GL_MODELVIEW)
                     glPopMatrix()
             
+    def setCameraPosition(self, pos=None, distance=None, elevation=None, azimuth=None):
+        if distance is not None:
+            self.opts['distance'] = distance
+        if elevation is not None:
+            self.opts['elevation'] = elevation
+        if azimuth is not None:
+            self.opts['azimuth'] = azimuth
+        self.update()
+        
+        
         
     def cameraPosition(self):
         """Return current position of camera based on center, dist, elevation, and azimuth"""
diff --git a/opengl/MeshData.py b/opengl/MeshData.py
index f5024f90..ad77f3d6 100644
--- a/opengl/MeshData.py
+++ b/opengl/MeshData.py
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 from pyqtgraph.Qt import QtGui
 import pyqtgraph.functions as fn
+import numpy as np
 
 class MeshData(object):
     """
@@ -10,148 +11,400 @@ class MeshData(object):
     - list of triangles
     - colors per vertex, edge, or tri
     - normals per vertex or tri
+    
+    This class handles conversion between the standard [list of vertexes, list of faces]
+    format (suitable for use with glDrawElements) and 'indexed' [list of vertexes] format
+    (suitable for use with glDrawArrays). It will automatically compute face normal
+    vectors as well as averaged vertex normal vectors. 
+    
+    The class attempts to be as efficient as possible in caching conversion results and
+    avoiding unnecessary conversions.
     """
 
-    def __init__(self):
-        self._vertexes = []
+    def __init__(self, vertexes=None, faces=None, edges=None, vertexColors=None, faceColors=None):
+        """
+        ============= =====================================================
+        Arguments
+        vertexes      (Nv, 3) array of vertex coordinates. 
+                      If faces is not specified, then this will instead be
+                      interpreted as (Nf, 3, 3) array of coordinates.
+        faces         (Nf, 3) array of indexes into the vertex array.
+        edges         [not available yet]
+        vertexColors  (Nv, 4) array of vertex colors. 
+                      If faces is not specified, then this will instead be
+                      interpreted as (Nf, 3, 4) array of colors.
+        faceColors    (Nf, 4) array of face colors.
+        ============= =====================================================
+        
+        All arguments are optional.
+        """
+        self._vertexes = None  # (Nv,3) array of vertex coordinates
+        self._vertexesIndexedByFaces = None   #  (Nf, 3, 3) array of vertex coordinates
+        self._vertexesIndexedByEdges = None   #  (Ne, 2, 3) array of vertex coordinates
+        
+        ## mappings between vertexes, faces, and edges
+        self._faces = None   # Nx3 array of indexes into self._vertexes specifying three vertexes for each face
         self._edges = None
-        self._faces = []
-        self._vertexFaces = None  ## maps vertex ID to a list of face IDs
-        self._vertexNormals = None
-        self._faceNormals = None
-        self._vertexColors = None
-        self._edgeColors = None
-        self._faceColors = None
-        self._meshColor = (1, 1, 1, 0.1)  # default color to use if no face/edge/vertex colors are given
+        self._vertexFaces = None  ## maps vertex ID to a list of face IDs (inverse mapping of _faces)
+        self._vertexEdges = None  ## maps vertex ID to a list of edge IDs (inverse mapping of _edges)
         
-    def setFaces(self, faces, vertexes=None):
-        """
-        Set the faces in this data set.
-        Data may be provided either as an Nx3x3 list of floats (9 float coordinate values per face)::
+        ## Per-vertex data
+        self._vertexNormals = None                # (Nv, 3) array of normals, one per vertex
+        self._vertexNormalsIndexedByFaces = None  # (Nf, 3, 3) array of normals
+        self._vertexColors = None                 # (Nv, 3) array of colors
+        self._vertexColorsIndexedByFaces = None   # (Nf, 3, 4) array of colors
+        self._vertexColorsIndexedByEdges = None   # (Nf, 2, 4) array of colors
         
-            faces = [ [(x, y, z), (x, y, z), (x, y, z)], ... ] 
+        ## Per-face data
+        self._faceNormals = None                # (Nf, 3) array of face normals
+        self._faceNormalsIndexedByFaces = None  # (Nf, 3, 3) array of face normals
+        self._faceColors = None                 # (Nf, 4) array of face colors
+        self._faceColorsIndexedByFaces = None   # (Nf, 3, 4) array of face colors
+        self._faceColorsIndexedByEdges = None   # (Ne, 2, 4) array of face colors
+        
+        ## Per-edge data
+        self._edgeColors = None                # (Ne, 4) array of edge colors
+        self._edgeColorsIndexedByEdges = None  # (Ne, 2, 4) array of edge colors
+        #self._meshColor = (1, 1, 1, 0.1)  # default color to use if no face/edge/vertex colors are given
+        
+        
+        
+        if vertexes is not None:
+            if faces is None:
+                self.setVertexes(vertexes, indexed='faces')
+                if vertexColors is not None:
+                    self.setVertexColors(vertexColors, indexed='faces')
+                if faceColors is not None:
+                    self.setFaceColors(faceColors, indexed='faces')
+            else:
+                self.setVertexes(vertexes)
+                self.setFaces(faces)
+                if vertexColors is not None:
+                    self.setVertexColors(vertexColors)
+                if faceColors is not None:
+                    self.setFaceColors(faceColors)
             
-        or as an Nx3 list of ints (vertex integers) AND an Mx3 list of floats (3 float coordinate values per vertex)::
-        
-            faces = [ (p1, p2, p3), ... ]
-            vertexes = [ (x, y, z), ... ]
+            #self.setFaces(vertexes=vertexes, faces=faces, vertexColors=vertexColors, faceColors=faceColors)
             
-        """
         
-        if vertexes is None:
-            self._setUnindexedFaces(faces)
+    #def setFaces(self, vertexes=None, faces=None, vertexColors=None, faceColors=None):
+        #"""
+        #Set the faces in this data set.
+        #Data may be provided either as an Nx3x3 array of floats (9 float coordinate values per face)::
+        
+            #faces = [ [(x, y, z), (x, y, z), (x, y, z)], ... ] 
+            
+        #or as an Nx3 array of ints (vertex integers) AND an Mx3 array of floats (3 float coordinate values per vertex)::
+        
+            #faces = [ (p1, p2, p3), ... ]
+            #vertexes = [ (x, y, z), ... ]
+            
+        #"""
+        #if not isinstance(vertexes, np.ndarray):
+            #vertexes = np.array(vertexes)
+        #if vertexes.dtype != np.float:
+            #vertexes = vertexes.astype(float)
+        #if faces is None:
+            #self._setIndexedFaces(vertexes, vertexColors, faceColors)
+        #else:
+            #self._setUnindexedFaces(faces, vertexes, vertexColors, faceColors)
+        ##print self.vertexes().shape
+        ##print self.faces().shape
+        
+    
+    #def setMeshColor(self, color):
+        #"""Set the color of the entire mesh. This removes any per-face or per-vertex colors."""
+        #color = fn.Color(color)
+        #self._meshColor = color.glColor()
+        #self._vertexColors = None
+        #self._faceColors = None
+    
+        
+    #def __iter__(self):
+        #"""Iterate over all faces, yielding a list of three tuples [(position, normal, color), ...] for each face."""
+        #vnorms = self.vertexNormals()
+        #vcolors = self.vertexColors()
+        #for i in range(self._faces.shape[0]):
+            #face = []
+            #for j in [0,1,2]:
+                #vind = self._faces[i,j]
+                #pos = self._vertexes[vind]
+                #norm = vnorms[vind]
+                #if vcolors is None:
+                    #color = self._meshColor
+                #else:
+                    #color = vcolors[vind]
+                #face.append((pos, norm, color))
+            #yield face
+    
+    #def __len__(self):
+        #return len(self._faces)
+    
+    def faces(self):
+        """Return an array (Nf, 3) of vertex indexes, three per triangular face in the mesh."""
+        return self._faces
+        
+    def setFaces(self, faces):
+        """Set the (Nf, 3) array of faces. Each rown in the array contains
+        three indexes into the vertex array, specifying the three corners 
+        of a triangular face."""
+        self._faces = faces
+        self._vertexFaces = None
+        self._vertexesIndexedByFaces = None
+        self.resetNormals()
+        self._vertexColorsIndexedByFaces = None
+        self._faceColorsIndexedByFaces = None
+        
+        
+    
+    def vertexes(self, indexed=None):
+        """Return an array (N,3) of the positions of vertexes in the mesh. 
+        By default, each unique vertex appears only once in the array.
+        If indexed is 'faces', then the array will instead contain three vertexes
+        per face in the mesh (and a single vertex may appear more than once in the array)."""
+        if indexed is None:
+            if self._vertexes is None and self._vertexesIndexedByFaces is not None:
+                self._computeUnindexedVertexes()
+            return self._vertexes
+        elif indexed == 'faces':
+            if self._vertexesIndexedByFaces is None and self._vertexes is not None:
+                self._vertexesIndexedByFaces = self._vertexes[self.faces()]
+            return self._vertexesIndexedByFaces
         else:
-            self._setIndexedFaces(faces, vertexes)
+            raise Exception("Invalid indexing mode. Accepts: None, 'faces'")
+        
+    def setVertexes(self, verts=None, indexed=None, resetNormals=True):
+        """
+        Set the array (Nv, 3) of vertex coordinates.
+        If indexed=='faces', then the data must have shape (Nf, 3, 3) and is
+        assumed to be already indexed as a list of faces.
+        This will cause any pre-existing normal vectors to be cleared
+        unless resetNormals=False.
+        """
+        if indexed is None:
+            if verts is not None:
+                self._vertexes = verts
+            self._vertexesIndexedByFaces = None
+        elif indexed=='faces':
+            self._vertexes = None
+            if verts is not None:
+                self._vertexesIndexedByFaces = verts
+        else:
+            raise Exception("Invalid indexing mode. Accepts: None, 'faces'")
+        
+        if resetNormals:
+            self.resetNormals()
     
-    def setMeshColor(self, color):
-        """Set the color of the entire mesh. This removes any per-face or per-vertex colors."""
-        color = fn.Color(color)
-        self._meshColor = color.glColor()
-        self._vertexColors = None
-        self._faceColors = None
+    def resetNormals(self):
+        self._vertexNormals = None
+        self._vertexNormalsIndexedByFaces = None
+        self._faceNormals = None
+        self._faceNormalsIndexedByFaces = None
+            
+        
+    def hasFaceIndexedData(self):
+        """Return True if this object already has vertex positions indexed by face"""
+        return self._vertexesIndexedByFaces is not None
     
-    def _setUnindexedFaces(self, faces):
-        verts = {}
-        self._faces = []
+    def hasEdgeIndexedData(self):
+        return self._vertexesIndexedByEdges is not None
+    
+    def hasVertexColor(self):
+        """Return True if this data set has vertex color information"""
+        for v in (self._vertexColors, self._vertexColorsIndexedByFaces, self._vertexColorsIndexedByEdges):
+            if v is not None:
+                return True
+        return False
+        
+    def hasFaceColor(self):
+        """Return True if this data set has face color information"""
+        for v in (self._faceColors, self._faceColorsIndexedByFaces, self._faceColorsIndexedByEdges):
+            if v is not None:
+                return True
+        return False
+        
+    
+    def faceNormals(self, indexed=None):
+        """
+        Return an array (Nf, 3) of normal vectors for each face.
+        If indexed='faces', then instead return an indexed array
+        (Nf, 3, 3)  (this is just the same array with each vector
+        copied three times).
+        """
+        if self._faceNormals is None:
+            v = self.vertexes(indexed='faces')
+            self._faceNormals = np.cross(v[:,1]-v[:,0], v[:,2]-v[:,0])
+        
+        
+        if indexed is None:
+            return self._faceNormals
+        elif indexed == 'faces':
+            if self._faceNormalsIndexedByFaces is None:
+                    norms = np.empty((self._faceNormals.shape[0], 3, 3))
+                    norms[:] = self._faceNormals[:,np.newaxis,:]
+                    self._faceNormalsIndexedByFaces = norms
+            return self._faceNormalsIndexedByFaces
+        else:
+            raise Exception("Invalid indexing mode. Accepts: None, 'faces'")
+        
+    def vertexNormals(self, indexed=None):
+        """
+        Return an array of normal vectors.
+        By default, the array will be (N, 3) with one entry per unique vertex in the mesh.
+        If indexed is 'faces', then the array will contain three normal vectors per face
+        (and some vertexes may be repeated).
+        """
+        if self._vertexNormals is None:
+            faceNorms = self.faceNormals()
+            vertFaces = self.vertexFaces()
+            self._vertexNormals = np.empty(self._vertexes.shape, dtype=float)
+            for vindex in xrange(self._vertexes.shape[0]):
+                norms = faceNorms[vertFaces[vindex]]  ## get all face normals
+                norm = norms.sum(axis=0)       ## sum normals
+                norm /= (norm**2).sum()**0.5  ## and re-normalize
+                self._vertexNormals[vindex] = norm
+                
+        if indexed is None:
+            return self._vertexNormals
+        elif indexed == 'faces':
+            return self._vertexNormals[self.faces()]
+        else:
+            raise Exception("Invalid indexing mode. Accepts: None, 'faces'")
+        
+    def vertexColors(self, indexed=None):
+        """
+        Return an array (Nv, 4) of vertex colors.
+        If indexed=='faces', then instead return an indexed array
+        (Nf, 3, 4). 
+        """
+        if indexed is None:
+            return self._vertexColors
+        elif indexed == 'faces':
+            if self._vertexColorsIndexedByFaces is None:
+                self._vertexColorsIndexedByFaces = self._vertexColors[self.faces()]
+            return self._vertexColorsIndexedByFaces
+        else:
+            raise Exception("Invalid indexing mode. Accepts: None, 'faces'")
+        
+    def setVertexColors(self, colors, indexed=None):
+        """
+        Set the vertex color array (Nv, 4).
+        If indexed=='faces', then the array will be interpreted
+        as indexed and should have shape (Nf, 3, 4)
+        """
+        if indexed is None:
+            self._vertexColors = colors
+            self._vertexColorsIndexedByFaces = None
+        elif indexed == 'faces':
+            self._vertexColors = None
+            self._vertexColorsIndexedByFaces = colors
+        else:
+            raise Exception("Invalid indexing mode. Accepts: None, 'faces'")
+        
+    def faceColors(self, indexed=None):
+        """
+        Return an array (Nf, 4) of face colors.
+        If indexed=='faces', then instead return an indexed array
+        (Nf, 3, 4)  (note this is just the same array with each color
+        repeated three times). 
+        """
+        if indexed is None:
+            return self._faceColors
+        elif indexed == 'faces':
+            if self._faceColorsIndexedByFaces is None and self._faceColors is not None:
+                Nf = self._faceColors.shape[0]
+                self._faceColorsIndexedByFaces = np.empty((Nf, 3, 4), dtype=self._faceColors.dtype)
+                self._faceColorsIndexedByFaces[:] = self._faceColors.reshape(Nf, 1, 4)
+            return self._faceColorsIndexedByFaces
+        else:
+            raise Exception("Invalid indexing mode. Accepts: None, 'faces'")
+        
+    def setFaceColors(self, colors, indexed=None):
+        """
+        Set the face color array (Nf, 4).
+        If indexed=='faces', then the array will be interpreted
+        as indexed and should have shape (Nf, 3, 4)
+        """
+        if indexed is None:
+            self._faceColors = colors
+            self._faceColorsIndexedByFaces = None
+        elif indexed == 'faces':
+            self._faceColors = None
+            self._faceColorsIndexedByFaces = colors
+        else:
+            raise Exception("Invalid indexing mode. Accepts: None, 'faces'")
+        
+    def faceCount(self):
+        """
+        Return the number of faces in the mesh.
+        """
+        if self._faces is not None:
+            return self._faces.shape[0]
+        elif self._vertexesIndexedByFaces is not None:
+            return self._vertexesIndexedByFaces.shape[0]
+        
+    def edgeColors(self):
+        return self._edgeColors
+        
+    #def _setIndexedFaces(self, faces, vertexColors=None, faceColors=None):
+        #self._vertexesIndexedByFaces = faces
+        #self._vertexColorsIndexedByFaces = vertexColors
+        #self._faceColorsIndexedByFaces = faceColors
+        
+    def _computeUnindexedVertexes(self):
+        ## Given (Nv, 3, 3) array of vertexes-indexed-by-face, convert backward to unindexed vertexes
+        ## This is done by collapsing into a list of 'unique' vertexes (difference < 1e-14) 
+        
+        ## I think generally this should be discouraged..
+        
+        faces = self._vertexesIndexedByFaces
+        verts = {}  ## used to remember the index of each vertex position
+        self._faces = np.empty(faces.shape[:2], dtype=np.uint)
         self._vertexes = []
         self._vertexFaces = []
         self._faceNormals = None
         self._vertexNormals = None
-        for face in faces:
+        for i in xrange(faces.shape[0]):
+            face = faces[i]
             inds = []
-            for pt in face:
+            for j in range(face.shape[0]):
+                pt = face[j]
                 pt2 = tuple([round(x*1e14) for x in pt])  ## quantize to be sure that nearly-identical points will be merged
                 index = verts.get(pt2, None)
                 if index is None:
-                    self._vertexes.append(QtGui.QVector3D(*pt))
+                    #self._vertexes.append(QtGui.QVector3D(*pt))
+                    self._vertexes.append(pt)
                     self._vertexFaces.append([])
                     index = len(self._vertexes)-1
                     verts[pt2] = index
-                self._vertexFaces[index].append(len(self._faces))
-                inds.append(index)
-            self._faces.append(tuple(inds))
+                self._vertexFaces[index].append(i)  # keep track of which vertexes belong to which faces
+                self._faces[i,j] = index
+        self._vertexes = np.array(self._vertexes, dtype=float)
     
-    def _setIndexedFaces(self, faces, vertexes):
-        self._vertexes = [QtGui.QVector3D(*v) for v in vertexes]
-        self._faces = faces
-        self._edges = None
-        self._vertexFaces = None
-        self._faceNormals = None
-        self._vertexNormals = None
+    #def _setUnindexedFaces(self, faces, vertexes, vertexColors=None, faceColors=None):
+        #self._vertexes = vertexes #[QtGui.QVector3D(*v) for v in vertexes]
+        #self._faces = faces.astype(np.uint)
+        #self._edges = None
+        #self._vertexFaces = None
+        #self._faceNormals = None
+        #self._vertexNormals = None
+        #self._vertexColors = vertexColors
+        #self._faceColors = faceColors
 
     def vertexFaces(self):
         """
         Return list mapping each vertex index to a list of face indexes that use the vertex.
         """
         if self._vertexFaces is None:
-            self._vertexFaces = [[]] * len(self._vertexes)
-            for i, face in enumerate(self._faces):
+            self._vertexFaces = [None] * len(self.vertexes())
+            for i in xrange(self._faces.shape[0]):
+                face = self._faces[i]
                 for ind in face:
-                    if len(self._vertexFaces[ind]) == 0:
+                    if self._vertexFaces[ind] is None:
                         self._vertexFaces[ind] = []  ## need a unique/empty list to fill
                     self._vertexFaces[ind].append(i)
         return self._vertexFaces
         
-    def __iter__(self):
-        """Iterate over all faces, yielding a list of three tuples [(position, normal, color), ...] for each face."""
-        vnorms = self.vertexNormals()
-        vcolors = self.vertexColors()
-        for i in range(len(self._faces)):
-            face = []
-            for j in [0,1,2]:
-                vind = self._faces[i][j]
-                pos = self._vertexes[vind]
-                norm = vnorms[vind]
-                if vcolors is None:
-                    color = self._meshColor
-                else:
-                    color = vcolors[vind]
-                face.append((pos, norm, color))
-            yield face
-    
-    
-    def faceNormals(self):
-        """
-        Computes and stores normal of each face.
-        """
-        if self._faceNormals is None:
-            self._faceNormals = []
-            for i, face in enumerate(self._faces):
-                ## compute face normal
-                pts = [self._vertexes[vind] for vind in face]
-                norm = QtGui.QVector3D.crossProduct(pts[1]-pts[0], pts[2]-pts[0])
-                norm = norm / norm.length()  ## don't use .normalized(); doesn't work for small values.
-                self._faceNormals.append(norm)
-        return self._faceNormals
-    
-    def vertexNormals(self):
-        """
-        Assigns each vertex the average of its connected face normals.
-        If face normals have not been computed yet, then generateFaceNormals will be called.
-        """
-        if self._vertexNormals is None:
-            faceNorms = self.faceNormals()
-            vertFaces = self.vertexFaces()
-            self._vertexNormals = []
-            for vindex in range(len(self._vertexes)):
-                #print vertFaces[vindex]
-                norms = [faceNorms[findex] for findex in vertFaces[vindex]]
-                norm = QtGui.QVector3D()
-                for fn in norms:
-                    norm += fn
-                norm = norm / norm.length()  ## don't use .normalize(); doesn't work for small values.
-                self._vertexNormals.append(norm)
-        return self._vertexNormals
-        
-    def vertexColors(self):
-        return self._vertexColors
-        
-    def faceColors(self):
-        return self._faceColors
-        
-    def edgeColors(self):
-        return self._edgeColors
-        
     #def reverseNormals(self):
         #"""
         #Reverses the direction of all normal vectors.
@@ -168,7 +421,21 @@ class MeshData(object):
     def save(self):
         """Serialize this mesh to a string appropriate for disk storage"""
         import pickle
-        names = ['_vertexes', '_edges', '_faces', '_vertexFaces', '_vertexNormals', '_faceNormals', '_vertexColors', '_edgeColors', '_faceColors', '_meshColor']
+        if self._faces is not None:
+            names = ['_vertexes', '_faces']
+        else:
+            names = ['_vertexesIndexedByFaces']
+            
+        if self._vertexColors is not None:
+            names.append('_vertexColors')
+        elif self._vertexColorsIndexedByFaces is not None:
+            names.append('_vertexColorsIndexedByFaces')
+            
+        if self._faceColors is not None:
+            names.append('_faceColors')
+        elif self._faceColorsIndexedByFaces is not None:
+            names.append('_faceColorsIndexedByFaces')
+            
         state = {n:getattr(self, n) for n in names}
         return pickle.dumps(state)
         
@@ -178,6 +445,45 @@ class MeshData(object):
         state = pickle.loads(state)
         for k in state:
             setattr(self, k, state[k])
-        
-        
-        
\ No newline at end of file
+
+
+
+
+def sphere(rows, cols, radius=1.0, offset=True):
+    """
+    Return a MeshData instance with vertexes and faces computed
+    for a spherical surface.
+    """
+    verts = np.empty((rows+1, cols, 3), dtype=float)
+    
+    ## compute vertexes
+    phi = (np.arange(rows+1) * np.pi / rows).reshape(rows+1, 1)
+    s = radius * np.sin(phi)
+    verts[...,2] = radius * np.cos(phi)
+    th = ((np.arange(cols) * 2 * np.pi / cols).reshape(1, cols)) 
+    if offset:
+        th = th + ((np.pi / cols) * np.arange(rows+1).reshape(rows+1,1))  ## rotate each row by 1/2 column
+    verts[...,0] = s * np.cos(th)
+    verts[...,1] = s * np.sin(th)
+    verts = verts.reshape((rows+1)*cols, 3)[cols-1:-(cols-1)]  ## remove redundant vertexes from top and bottom
+    
+    ## compute faces
+    faces = np.empty((rows*cols*2, 3), dtype=np.uint)
+    rowtemplate1 = ((np.arange(cols).reshape(cols, 1) + np.array([[0, 1, 0]])) % cols) + np.array([[0, 0, cols]])
+    rowtemplate2 = ((np.arange(cols).reshape(cols, 1) + np.array([[0, 1, 1]])) % cols) + np.array([[cols, 0, cols]])
+    for row in range(rows):
+        start = row * cols * 2 
+        faces[start:start+cols] = rowtemplate1 + row * cols
+        faces[start+cols:start+(cols*2)] = rowtemplate2 + row * cols
+    faces = faces[cols:-cols]  ## cut off zero-area triangles at top and bottom
+    
+    ## adjust for redundant vertexes that were removed from top and bottom
+    vmin = cols-1
+    faces[faces<vmin] = vmin
+    faces -= vmin  
+    vmax = verts.shape[0]-1
+    faces[faces>vmax] = vmax
+    
+    return MeshData(vertexes=verts, faces=faces)
+    
+    
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/opengl/items/GLGridItem.py b/opengl/items/GLGridItem.py
index 35a6f766..630b2aba 100644
--- a/opengl/items/GLGridItem.py
+++ b/opengl/items/GLGridItem.py
@@ -11,8 +11,9 @@ class GLGridItem(GLGraphicsItem):
     Displays a wire-grame grid. 
     """
     
-    def __init__(self, size=None, color=None):
+    def __init__(self, size=None, color=None, glOptions='translucent'):
         GLGraphicsItem.__init__(self)
+        self.setGLOptions(glOptions)
         if size is None:
             size = QtGui.QVector3D(1,1,1)
         self.setSize(size=size)
@@ -34,10 +35,10 @@ class GLGridItem(GLGraphicsItem):
     
     
     def paint(self):
-
-        glBlendFunc(GL_SRC_ALPHA, GL_ONE_MINUS_SRC_ALPHA)
-        glEnable( GL_BLEND )
-        glEnable( GL_ALPHA_TEST )
+        self.setupGLState()
+        #glBlendFunc(GL_SRC_ALPHA, GL_ONE_MINUS_SRC_ALPHA)
+        #glEnable( GL_BLEND )
+        #glEnable( GL_ALPHA_TEST )
         glEnable( GL_POINT_SMOOTH )
         #glDisable( GL_DEPTH_TEST )
         glBegin( GL_LINES )
diff --git a/opengl/items/GLMeshItem.py b/opengl/items/GLMeshItem.py
index 266b84c0..c29f29e0 100644
--- a/opengl/items/GLMeshItem.py
+++ b/opengl/items/GLMeshItem.py
@@ -16,65 +16,161 @@ class GLMeshItem(GLGraphicsItem):
     
     Displays a 3D triangle mesh. 
     """
-    def __init__(self, faces, vertexes=None):
+    def __init__(self, **kwds):
         """
-        See :class:`MeshData <pyqtgraph.opengl.MeshData>` for initialization arguments.
+        ============== =====================================================
+        Arguments
+        meshdata       MeshData object from which to determine geometry for 
+                       this item.
+        color          Default color used if no vertex or face colors are
+                       specified.
+        shader         Name of shader program to use (None for no shader)
+        smooth         If True, normal vectors are computed for each vertex
+                       and interpolated within each face.
+        computeNormals If False, then computation of normal vectors is 
+                       disabled. This can provide a performance boost for 
+                       meshes that do not make use of normals.
+        ============== =====================================================
         """
-        if isinstance(faces, MeshData):
-            self.data = faces
-        else:
-            self.data = MeshData()
-            self.data.setFaces(faces, vertexes)
+        self.opts = {
+            'meshdata': None,
+            'color': (1., 1., 1., 1.),
+            'shader': None,
+            'smooth': True,
+            'computeNormals': True,
+        }
+        
         GLGraphicsItem.__init__(self)
+        glopts = kwds.pop('glOptions', 'opaque')
+        self.setGLOptions(glopts)
+        shader = kwds.pop('shader', None)
+        self.setShader(shader)
         
-    def initializeGL(self):
-        self.shader = shaders.getShaderProgram('balloon')
+        self.setMeshData(**kwds)
         
-        l = glGenLists(1)
-        self.triList = l
-        glNewList(l, GL_COMPILE)
+        ## storage for data compiled from MeshData object
+        self.vertexes = None
+        self.normals = None
+        self.colors = None
+        self.faces = None
         
-        glBlendFunc(GL_SRC_ALPHA, GL_ONE_MINUS_SRC_ALPHA)
-        glEnable( GL_BLEND )
-        glEnable( GL_ALPHA_TEST )
-        #glAlphaFunc( GL_ALWAYS,0.5 )
-        glEnable( GL_POINT_SMOOTH )
-        glDisable( GL_DEPTH_TEST )
-        glColor4f(1, 1, 1, .1)
-        glBegin( GL_TRIANGLES )
-        for face in self.data:
-            for (pos, norm, color) in face:
-                glColor4f(*color)
-                glNormal3f(norm.x(), norm.y(), norm.z())
-                glVertex3f(pos.x(), pos.y(), pos.z())
-        glEnd()
-        glEndList()
+    def setShader(self, shader):
+        self.opts['shader'] = shader
+        self.update()
         
+    def shader(self):
+        return shaders.getShaderProgram(self.opts['shader'])
         
-        #l = glGenLists(1)
-        #self.meshList = l
-        #glNewList(l, GL_COMPILE)
-        #glBlendFunc(GL_SRC_ALPHA, GL_ONE_MINUS_SRC_ALPHA)
-        #glEnable( GL_BLEND )
-        #glEnable( GL_ALPHA_TEST )
-        ##glAlphaFunc( GL_ALWAYS,0.5 )
-        #glEnable( GL_POINT_SMOOTH )
-        #glEnable( GL_DEPTH_TEST )
-        #glColor4f(1, 1, 1, .3)
-        #glBegin( GL_LINES )
-        #for f in self.faces:
-            #for i in [0,1,2]:
-                #j = (i+1) % 3
-                #glVertex3f(*f[i])
-                #glVertex3f(*f[j])
-        #glEnd()
-        #glEndList()
-
-                
+    def setMeshData(self, **kwds):
+        """
+        Set mesh data for this item. This can be invoked two ways:
+        
+        1. Specify *meshdata* argument with a new MeshData object
+        2. Specify keyword arguments to be passed to MeshData(..) to create a new instance.
+        """
+        md = kwds.get('meshdata', None)
+        if md is None:
+            opts = {}
+            for k in ['vertexes', 'faces', 'edges', 'vertexColors', 'faceColors']:
+                try:
+                    opts[k] = kwds.pop(k)
+                except KeyError:
+                    pass
+            md = MeshData(**opts)
+        
+        self.opts['meshdata'] = md
+        self.opts.update(kwds)
+        self.meshDataChanged()
+        self.update()
+        
+    
+    def meshDataChanged(self):
+        """
+        This method must be called to inform the item that the MeshData object
+        has been altered.
+        """
+        
+        self.vertexes = None
+        self.faces = None
+        self.normals = None
+        self.colors = None
+        self.update()
+    
+    def parseMeshData(self):
+        ## interpret vertex / normal data before drawing
+        ## This can:
+        ##   - automatically generate normals if they were not specified
+        ##   - pull vertexes/noormals/faces from MeshData if that was specified
+        
+        if self.vertexes is not None and self.normals is not None:
+            return
+        #if self.opts['normals'] is None:
+            #if self.opts['meshdata'] is None:
+                #self.opts['meshdata'] = MeshData(vertexes=self.opts['vertexes'], faces=self.opts['faces'])
+        if self.opts['meshdata'] is not None:
+            md = self.opts['meshdata']
+            if self.opts['smooth'] and not md.hasFaceIndexedData():
+                self.vertexes = md.vertexes()
+                if self.opts['computeNormals']:
+                    self.normals = md.vertexNormals()
+                self.faces = md.faces()
+                if md.hasVertexColor():
+                    self.colors = md.vertexColors()
+                if md.hasFaceColor():
+                    self.colors = md.faceColors()
+            else:
+                self.vertexes = md.vertexes(indexed='faces')
+                if self.opts['computeNormals']:
+                    if self.opts['smooth']:
+                        self.normals = md.vertexNormals(indexed='faces')
+                    else:
+                        self.normals = md.faceNormals(indexed='faces')
+                self.faces = None
+                if md.hasVertexColor():
+                    self.colors = md.vertexColors(indexed='faces')
+                elif md.hasFaceColor():
+                    self.colors = md.faceColors(indexed='faces')
+                    
+            return
+    
     def paint(self):
-        with self.shader:
-            glCallList(self.triList)
-        #shaders.glUseProgram(self.shader)
-        #glCallList(self.triList)
-        #shaders.glUseProgram(0)
-        #glCallList(self.meshList)
+        self.setupGLState()
+        
+        self.parseMeshData()        
+        
+        with self.shader():
+            verts = self.vertexes
+            norms = self.normals
+            color = self.colors
+            faces = self.faces
+            if verts is None:
+                return
+            glEnableClientState(GL_VERTEX_ARRAY)
+            try:
+                glVertexPointerf(verts)
+                
+                if self.colors is None:
+                    color = self.opts['color']
+                    if isinstance(color, QtGui.QColor):
+                        glColor4f(*fn.glColor(color))
+                    else:
+                        glColor4f(*color)
+                else:
+                    glEnableClientState(GL_COLOR_ARRAY)
+                    glColorPointerf(color)
+                
+                
+                if norms is not None:
+                    glEnableClientState(GL_NORMAL_ARRAY)
+                    glNormalPointerf(norms)
+                
+                if faces is None:
+                    glDrawArrays(GL_TRIANGLES, 0, np.product(verts.shape[:-1]))
+                else:
+                    faces = faces.astype(np.uint).flatten()
+                    glDrawElements(GL_TRIANGLES, faces.shape[0], GL_UNSIGNED_INT, faces)
+            finally:
+                glDisableClientState(GL_NORMAL_ARRAY)
+                glDisableClientState(GL_VERTEX_ARRAY)
+                glDisableClientState(GL_COLOR_ARRAY)
+            
diff --git a/opengl/items/GLScatterPlotItem.py b/opengl/items/GLScatterPlotItem.py
index 9ff22c37..d04a2ac7 100644
--- a/opengl/items/GLScatterPlotItem.py
+++ b/opengl/items/GLScatterPlotItem.py
@@ -12,6 +12,8 @@ class GLScatterPlotItem(GLGraphicsItem):
     
     def __init__(self, **kwds):
         GLGraphicsItem.__init__(self)
+        glopts = kwds.pop('glOptions', 'additive')
+        self.setGLOptions(glopts)
         self.pos = []
         self.size = 10
         self.color = [1.0,1.0,1.0,0.5]
@@ -71,27 +73,27 @@ class GLScatterPlotItem(GLGraphicsItem):
         glBindTexture(GL_TEXTURE_2D, self.pointTexture)
         glTexImage2D(GL_TEXTURE_2D, 0, GL_RGBA, pData.shape[0], pData.shape[1], 0, GL_RGBA, GL_UNSIGNED_BYTE, pData)
         
-        self.shader = shaders.getShaderProgram('point_sprite')
+        self.shader = shaders.getShaderProgram('pointSprite')
         
     #def getVBO(self, name):
         #if name not in self.vbo:
             #self.vbo[name] = vbo.VBO(getattr(self, name).astype('f'))
         #return self.vbo[name]
         
-    def setupGLState(self):
-        """Prepare OpenGL state for drawing. This function is called immediately before painting."""
-        #glBlendFunc(GL_SRC_ALPHA, GL_ONE_MINUS_SRC_ALPHA)  ## requires z-sorting to render properly.
-        glBlendFunc(GL_SRC_ALPHA, GL_ONE)
-        glEnable( GL_BLEND )
-        glEnable( GL_ALPHA_TEST )
-        glDisable( GL_DEPTH_TEST )
+    #def setupGLState(self):
+        #"""Prepare OpenGL state for drawing. This function is called immediately before painting."""
+        ##glBlendFunc(GL_SRC_ALPHA, GL_ONE_MINUS_SRC_ALPHA)  ## requires z-sorting to render properly.
+        #glBlendFunc(GL_SRC_ALPHA, GL_ONE)
+        #glEnable( GL_BLEND )
+        #glEnable( GL_ALPHA_TEST )
+        #glDisable( GL_DEPTH_TEST )
         
-        #glEnable( GL_POINT_SMOOTH )
+        ##glEnable( GL_POINT_SMOOTH )
 
-        #glHint(GL_POINT_SMOOTH_HINT, GL_NICEST)
-        #glPointParameterfv(GL_POINT_DISTANCE_ATTENUATION, (0, 0, -1e-3))
-        #glPointParameterfv(GL_POINT_SIZE_MAX, (65500,))
-        #glPointParameterfv(GL_POINT_SIZE_MIN, (0,))
+        ##glHint(GL_POINT_SMOOTH_HINT, GL_NICEST)
+        ##glPointParameterfv(GL_POINT_DISTANCE_ATTENUATION, (0, 0, -1e-3))
+        ##glPointParameterfv(GL_POINT_SIZE_MAX, (65500,))
+        ##glPointParameterfv(GL_POINT_SIZE_MIN, (0,))
         
     def paint(self):
         self.setupGLState()
@@ -139,7 +141,7 @@ class GLScatterPlotItem(GLGraphicsItem):
                     
                     glNormalPointerf(norm)
                 else:
-                    glNormal3f(self.size,0,0)
+                    glNormal3f(self.size, 0, 0)  ## vertex shader uses norm.x to determine point size
                     #glPointSize(self.size)
                 glDrawArrays(GL_POINTS, 0, len(self.pos))
             finally:
diff --git a/opengl/items/GLSurfacePlotItem.py b/opengl/items/GLSurfacePlotItem.py
new file mode 100644
index 00000000..69080fad
--- /dev/null
+++ b/opengl/items/GLSurfacePlotItem.py
@@ -0,0 +1,139 @@
+from OpenGL.GL import *
+from GLMeshItem import GLMeshItem
+from .. MeshData import MeshData
+from pyqtgraph.Qt import QtGui
+import pyqtgraph as pg
+import numpy as np
+
+
+
+__all__ = ['GLSurfacePlotItem']
+
+class GLSurfacePlotItem(GLMeshItem):
+    """
+    **Bases:** :class:`GLMeshItem <pyqtgraph.opengl.GLMeshItem>`
+    
+    Displays a surface plot on a regular x,y grid
+    """
+    def __init__(self, x=None, y=None, z=None, colors=None, **kwds):
+        """
+        The x, y, z, and colors arguments are passed to setData().
+        All other keyword arguments are passed to GLMeshItem.__init__().
+        """
+        
+        self._x = None
+        self._y = None
+        self._z = None
+        self._color = None
+        self._vertexes = None
+        self._meshdata = MeshData()
+        GLMeshItem.__init__(self, meshdata=self._meshdata, **kwds)
+        
+        self.setData(x, y, z, colors)
+        
+        
+        
+    def setData(self, x=None, y=None, z=None, colors=None):
+        """
+        Update the data in this surface plot. 
+        
+        ========== =====================================================================
+        Arguments
+        x,y        1D arrays of values specifying the x,y positions of vertexes in the 
+                   grid. If these are omitted, then the values will be assumed to be
+                   integers.
+        z          2D array of height values for each grid vertex.
+        colors     (width, height, 4) array of vertex colors.
+        ========== =====================================================================
+        
+        All arguments are optional.
+        
+        Note that if vertex positions are updated, the normal vectors for each triangle must 
+        be recomputed. This is somewhat expensive if the surface was initialized with smooth=False
+        and very expensive if smooth=True. For faster performance, initialize with 
+        computeNormals=False and use per-vertex colors or a normal-independent shader program.
+        """
+        if x is not None:
+            if self._x is None or len(x) != len(self._x):
+                self._vertexes = None
+            self._x = x
+        
+        if y is not None:
+            if self._y is None or len(y) != len(self._y):
+                self._vertexes = None
+            self._y = y
+        
+        if z is not None:
+            #if self._x is None:
+                #self._x = np.arange(z.shape[0])
+                #self._vertexes = None
+            #if self._y is None:
+                #self._y = np.arange(z.shape[1])
+                #self._vertexes = None
+                
+            if self._x is not None and z.shape[0] != len(self._x):
+                raise Exception('Z values must have shape (len(x), len(y))')
+            if self._y is not None and z.shape[1] != len(self._y):
+                raise Exception('Z values must have shape (len(x), len(y))')
+            self._z = z
+            if self._vertexes is not None and self._z.shape != self._vertexes.shape[:2]:
+                self._vertexes = None
+        
+        if colors is not None:
+            self._colors = colors
+            self._meshdata.setVertexColors(colors)
+        
+        if self._z is None:
+            return
+        
+        updateMesh = False
+        newVertexes = False
+        
+        ## Generate vertex and face array
+        if self._vertexes is None:
+            newVertexes = True
+            self._vertexes = np.empty((self._z.shape[0], self._z.shape[1], 3), dtype=float)
+            self.generateFaces()
+            self._meshdata.setFaces(self._faces)
+            updateMesh = True
+        
+        ## Copy x, y, z data into vertex array
+        if newVertexes or x is not None:
+            if x is None:
+                if self._x is None:
+                    x = np.arange(self._z.shape[0])
+                else:
+                    x = self._x
+            self._vertexes[:, :, 0] = x.reshape(len(x), 1)
+            updateMesh = True
+        
+        if newVertexes or y is not None:
+            if y is None:
+                if self._y is None:
+                    y = np.arange(self._z.shape[1])
+                else:
+                    y = self._y
+            self._vertexes[:, :, 1] = y.reshape(1, len(y))
+            updateMesh = True
+        
+        if newVertexes or z is not None:
+            self._vertexes[...,2] = self._z
+            updateMesh = True
+        
+        ## Update MeshData
+        if updateMesh:
+            self._meshdata.setVertexes(self._vertexes.reshape(self._vertexes.shape[0]*self._vertexes.shape[1], 3))
+            self.meshDataChanged()
+        
+        
+    def generateFaces(self):
+        cols = self._z.shape[0]-1
+        rows = self._z.shape[1]-1
+        faces = np.empty((cols*rows*2, 3), dtype=np.uint)
+        rowtemplate1 = np.arange(cols).reshape(cols, 1) + np.array([[0, 1, cols+1]])
+        rowtemplate2 = np.arange(cols).reshape(cols, 1) + np.array([[cols+1, 1, cols+2]])
+        for row in range(rows):
+            start = row * cols * 2 
+            faces[start:start+cols] = rowtemplate1 + row * (cols+1)
+            faces[start+cols:start+(cols*2)] = rowtemplate2 + row * (cols+1)
+        self._faces = faces
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/opengl/items/GLVolumeItem.py b/opengl/items/GLVolumeItem.py
index 9981f4ba..4980239d 100644
--- a/opengl/items/GLVolumeItem.py
+++ b/opengl/items/GLVolumeItem.py
@@ -13,7 +13,7 @@ class GLVolumeItem(GLGraphicsItem):
     """
     
     
-    def __init__(self, data, sliceDensity=1, smooth=True):
+    def __init__(self, data, sliceDensity=1, smooth=True, glOptions='translucent'):
         """
         ==============  =======================================================================================
         **Arguments:**
@@ -27,6 +27,7 @@ class GLVolumeItem(GLGraphicsItem):
         self.smooth = smooth
         self.data = data
         GLGraphicsItem.__init__(self)
+        self.setGLOptions(glOptions)
         
     def initializeGL(self):
         glEnable(GL_TEXTURE_3D)
@@ -62,15 +63,16 @@ class GLVolumeItem(GLGraphicsItem):
 
                 
     def paint(self):
+        self.setupGLState()
         
         glEnable(GL_TEXTURE_3D)
         glBindTexture(GL_TEXTURE_3D, self.texture)
         
-        glEnable(GL_DEPTH_TEST)
+        #glEnable(GL_DEPTH_TEST)
         #glDisable(GL_CULL_FACE)
-        glBlendFunc(GL_SRC_ALPHA, GL_ONE_MINUS_SRC_ALPHA)
-        glEnable( GL_BLEND )
-        glEnable( GL_ALPHA_TEST )
+        #glBlendFunc(GL_SRC_ALPHA, GL_ONE_MINUS_SRC_ALPHA)
+        #glEnable( GL_BLEND )
+        #glEnable( GL_ALPHA_TEST )
         glColor4f(1,1,1,1)
 
         view = self.view()
diff --git a/opengl/shaders.py b/opengl/shaders.py
index 7f4fa665..e9a4af9d 100644
--- a/opengl/shaders.py
+++ b/opengl/shaders.py
@@ -1,18 +1,22 @@
 from OpenGL.GL import *
 from OpenGL.GL import shaders
+import re
 
 ## For centralizing and managing vertex/fragment shader programs.
 
 def initShaders():
     global Shaders
     Shaders = [
-        ShaderProgram('balloon', [   ## increases fragment alpha as the normal turns orthogonal to the view
+        ShaderProgram(None, []),
+        
+        ## increases fragment alpha as the normal turns orthogonal to the view
+        ## this is useful for viewing shells that enclose a volume (such as isosurfaces)
+        ShaderProgram('balloon', [
             VertexShader("""
                 varying vec3 normal;
                 void main() {
+                    // compute here for use in fragment shader
                     normal = normalize(gl_NormalMatrix * gl_Normal);
-                    //vec4 color = normal;
-                    //normal.w = min(color.w + 2.0 * color.w * pow(normal.x*normal.x + normal.y*normal.y, 2.0), 1.0);
                     gl_FrontColor = gl_Color;
                     gl_BackColor = gl_Color;
                     gl_Position = ftransform();
@@ -27,7 +31,154 @@ def initShaders():
                 }
             """)
         ]),
-        ShaderProgram('point_sprite', [   ## allows specifying point size using normal.x
+        
+        ## colors fragments based on face normals relative to view
+        ## This means that the colors will change depending on how the view is rotated
+        ShaderProgram('viewNormalColor', [   
+            VertexShader("""
+                varying vec3 normal;
+                void main() {
+                    // compute here for use in fragment shader
+                    normal = normalize(gl_NormalMatrix * gl_Normal);
+                    gl_FrontColor = gl_Color;
+                    gl_BackColor = gl_Color;
+                    gl_Position = ftransform();
+                }
+            """),
+            FragmentShader("""
+                varying vec3 normal;
+                void main() {
+                    vec4 color = gl_Color;
+                    color.x = (normal.x + 1) * 0.5;
+                    color.y = (normal.y + 1) * 0.5;
+                    color.z = (normal.z + 1) * 0.5;
+                    gl_FragColor = color;
+                }
+            """)
+        ]),
+        
+        ## colors fragments based on absolute face normals.
+        ShaderProgram('normalColor', [   
+            VertexShader("""
+                varying vec3 normal;
+                void main() {
+                    // compute here for use in fragment shader
+                    normal = normalize(gl_Normal);
+                    gl_FrontColor = gl_Color;
+                    gl_BackColor = gl_Color;
+                    gl_Position = ftransform();
+                }
+            """),
+            FragmentShader("""
+                varying vec3 normal;
+                void main() {
+                    vec4 color = gl_Color;
+                    color.x = (normal.x + 1) * 0.5;
+                    color.y = (normal.y + 1) * 0.5;
+                    color.z = (normal.z + 1) * 0.5;
+                    gl_FragColor = color;
+                }
+            """)
+        ]),
+        
+        ## very simple simulation of lighting. 
+        ## The light source position is always relative to the camera.
+        ShaderProgram('shaded', [   
+            VertexShader("""
+                varying vec3 normal;
+                void main() {
+                    // compute here for use in fragment shader
+                    normal = normalize(gl_NormalMatrix * gl_Normal);
+                    gl_FrontColor = gl_Color;
+                    gl_BackColor = gl_Color;
+                    gl_Position = ftransform();
+                }
+            """),
+            FragmentShader("""
+                varying vec3 normal;
+                void main() {
+                    float p = dot(normal, normalize(vec3(1, -1, -1)));
+                    p = p < 0. ? 0. : p * 0.8;
+                    vec4 color = gl_Color;
+                    color.x = color.x * (0.2 + p);
+                    color.y = color.y * (0.2 + p);
+                    color.z = color.z * (0.2 + p);
+                    gl_FragColor = color;
+                }
+            """)
+        ]),
+        
+        ## colors get brighter near edges of object
+        ShaderProgram('edgeHilight', [   
+            VertexShader("""
+                varying vec3 normal;
+                void main() {
+                    // compute here for use in fragment shader
+                    normal = normalize(gl_NormalMatrix * gl_Normal);
+                    gl_FrontColor = gl_Color;
+                    gl_BackColor = gl_Color;
+                    gl_Position = ftransform();
+                }
+            """),
+            FragmentShader("""
+                varying vec3 normal;
+                void main() {
+                    vec4 color = gl_Color;
+                    float s = pow(normal.x*normal.x + normal.y*normal.y, 2.0);
+                    color.x = color.x + s * (1.0-color.x);
+                    color.y = color.y + s * (1.0-color.y);
+                    color.z = color.z + s * (1.0-color.z);
+                    gl_FragColor = color;
+                }
+            """)
+        ]),
+        
+        ## colors fragments by z-value.
+        ## This is useful for coloring surface plots by height.
+        ## This shader uses a uniform called "colorMap" to determine how to map the colors:
+        ##    red   = pow(z * colorMap[0] + colorMap[1], colorMap[2])
+        ##    green = pow(z * colorMap[3] + colorMap[4], colorMap[5])
+        ##    blue  = pow(z * colorMap[6] + colorMap[7], colorMap[8])
+        ## (set the values like this: shader['uniformMap'] = array([...])
+        ShaderProgram('heightColor', [
+            VertexShader("""
+                varying vec4 pos;
+                void main() {
+                    gl_FrontColor = gl_Color;
+                    gl_BackColor = gl_Color;
+                    pos = gl_Vertex;
+                    gl_Position = ftransform();
+                }
+            """),
+            FragmentShader("""
+                #version 140 // required for uniform blocks
+                uniform float colorMap[9];
+                varying vec4 pos;
+                out vec4 gl_FragColor;
+                in vec4 gl_Color;
+                void main() {
+                    vec4 color = gl_Color;
+                    color.x = colorMap[0] * (pos.z + colorMap[1]);
+                    if (colorMap[2] != 1.0)
+                        color.x = pow(color.x, colorMap[2]);
+                    color.x = color.x < 0 ? 0 : (color.x > 1 ? 1 : color.x);
+                    
+                    color.y = colorMap[3] * (pos.z + colorMap[4]);
+                    if (colorMap[5] != 1.0)
+                        color.y = pow(color.y, colorMap[5]);
+                    color.y = color.y < 0 ? 0 : (color.y > 1 ? 1 : color.y);
+                    
+                    color.z = colorMap[6] * (pos.z + colorMap[7]);
+                    if (colorMap[8] != 1.0)
+                        color.z = pow(color.z, colorMap[8]);
+                    color.z = color.z < 0 ? 0 : (color.z > 1 ? 1 : color.z);
+                    
+                    color.w = 1.0;
+                    gl_FragColor = color;
+                }
+            """),
+        ], uniforms={'colorMap': [1, 1, 1, 1, 0.5, 1, 1, 0, 1]}),
+        ShaderProgram('pointSprite', [   ## allows specifying point size using normal.x
             ## See:
             ##
             ##  http://stackoverflow.com/questions/9609423/applying-part-of-a-texture-sprite-sheet-texture-map-to-a-point-sprite-in-ios
@@ -58,52 +209,186 @@ CompiledShaderPrograms = {}
 def getShaderProgram(name):
     return ShaderProgram.names[name]
 
-class VertexShader:
-    def __init__(self, code):
+class Shader:
+    def __init__(self, shaderType, code):
+        self.shaderType = shaderType
         self.code = code
         self.compiled = None
         
     def shader(self):
         if self.compiled is None:
-            self.compiled = shaders.compileShader(self.code, GL_VERTEX_SHADER)
+            try:
+                self.compiled = shaders.compileShader(self.code, self.shaderType)
+            except RuntimeError as exc:
+                ## Format compile errors a bit more nicely
+                if len(exc.args) == 3:
+                    err, code, typ = exc.args
+                    if not err.startswith('Shader compile failure'):
+                        raise
+                    code = code[0].split('\n')
+                    err, c, msgs = err.partition(':')
+                    err = err + '\n'
+                    msgs = msgs.split('\n')
+                    errNums = [()] * len(code)
+                    for i, msg in enumerate(msgs):
+                        msg = msg.strip()
+                        if msg == '':
+                            continue
+                        m = re.match(r'\d+\((\d+)\)', msg)
+                        if m is not None:
+                            line = int(m.groups()[0])
+                            errNums[line-1] = errNums[line-1] + (str(i+1),)
+                            #code[line-1] = '%d\t%s' % (i+1, code[line-1])
+                        err = err + "%d %s\n" % (i+1, msg)
+                    errNums = [','.join(n) for n in errNums]
+                    maxlen = max(map(len, errNums))
+                    code = [errNums[i] + " "*(maxlen-len(errNums[i])) + line for i, line in enumerate(code)]
+                    err = err + '\n'.join(code)
+                    raise Exception(err)
+                else:
+                    raise
         return self.compiled
 
-class FragmentShader:
+class VertexShader(Shader):
     def __init__(self, code):
-        self.code = code
-        self.compiled = None
+        Shader.__init__(self, GL_VERTEX_SHADER, code)
+        
+class FragmentShader(Shader):
+    def __init__(self, code):
+        Shader.__init__(self, GL_FRAGMENT_SHADER, code)
         
-    def shader(self):
-        if self.compiled is None:
-            self.compiled = shaders.compileShader(self.code, GL_FRAGMENT_SHADER)
-        return self.compiled
         
         
 
 class ShaderProgram:
     names = {}
     
-    def __init__(self, name, shaders):
+    def __init__(self, name, shaders, uniforms=None):
         self.name = name
         ShaderProgram.names[name] = self
         self.shaders = shaders
         self.prog = None
+        self.blockData = {}
+        self.uniformData = {}
+        
+        ## parse extra options from the shader definition
+        if uniforms is not None:
+            for k,v in uniforms.items():
+                self[k] = v
+        
+    def setBlockData(self, blockName, data):
+        if data is None:
+            del self.blockData[blockName]
+        else:
+            self.blockData[blockName] = data
+
+    def setUniformData(self, uniformName, data):
+        if data is None:
+            del self.uniformData[uniformName]
+        else:
+            self.uniformData[uniformName] = data
+            
+    def __setitem__(self, item, val):
+        self.setUniformData(item, val)
+        
+    def __delitem__(self, item):
+        self.setUniformData(item, None)
 
     def program(self):
         if self.prog is None:
-            compiled = [s.shader() for s in self.shaders]  ## compile all shaders
-            self.prog = shaders.compileProgram(*compiled)  ## compile program
+            try:
+                compiled = [s.shader() for s in self.shaders]  ## compile all shaders
+                self.prog = shaders.compileProgram(*compiled)  ## compile program
+            except:
+                self.prog = -1
+                raise
         return self.prog
         
     def __enter__(self):
-        glUseProgram(self.program())
+        if len(self.shaders) > 0 and self.program() != -1:
+            glUseProgram(self.program())
+            
+            try:
+                ## load uniform values into program
+                for uniformName, data in self.uniformData.items():
+                    loc = self.uniform(uniformName)
+                    if loc == -1:
+                        raise Exception('Could not find uniform variable "%s"' % uniformName)
+                    glUniform1fv(loc, len(data), data)
+                    
+                ### bind buffer data to program blocks
+                #if len(self.blockData) > 0:
+                    #bindPoint = 1
+                    #for blockName, data in self.blockData.items():
+                        ### Program should have a uniform block declared:
+                        ### 
+                        ### layout (std140) uniform blockName {
+                        ###     vec4 diffuse;
+                        ### };
+                        
+                        ### pick any-old binding point. (there are a limited number of these per-program
+                        #bindPoint = 1
+                        
+                        ### get the block index for a uniform variable in the shader
+                        #blockIndex = glGetUniformBlockIndex(self.program(), blockName)
+                        
+                        ### give the shader block a binding point
+                        #glUniformBlockBinding(self.program(), blockIndex, bindPoint)
+                        
+                        ### create a buffer
+                        #buf = glGenBuffers(1)
+                        #glBindBuffer(GL_UNIFORM_BUFFER, buf)
+                        #glBufferData(GL_UNIFORM_BUFFER, size, data, GL_DYNAMIC_DRAW)
+                        ### also possible to use glBufferSubData to fill parts of the buffer
+                        
+                        ### bind buffer to the same binding point
+                        #glBindBufferBase(GL_UNIFORM_BUFFER, bindPoint, buf)
+            except:
+                glUseProgram(0)
+                raise
+                    
+            
         
     def __exit__(self, *args):
-        glUseProgram(0)
+        if len(self.shaders) > 0:
+            glUseProgram(0)
         
     def uniform(self, name):
         """Return the location integer for a uniform variable in this program"""
         return glGetUniformLocation(self.program(), name)
 
+    #def uniformBlockInfo(self, blockName):
+        #blockIndex = glGetUniformBlockIndex(self.program(), blockName)
+        #count = glGetActiveUniformBlockiv(self.program(), blockIndex, GL_UNIFORM_BLOCK_ACTIVE_UNIFORMS)
+        #indices = []
+        #for i in range(count):
+            #indices.append(glGetActiveUniformBlockiv(self.program(), blockIndex, GL_UNIFORM_BLOCK_ACTIVE_UNIFORM_INDICES))
+        
+class HeightColorShader(ShaderProgram):
+    def __enter__(self):
+        ## Program should have a uniform block declared:
+        ## 
+        ## layout (std140) uniform blockName {
+        ##     vec4 diffuse;
+        ##     vec4 ambient;
+        ## };
+        
+        ## pick any-old binding point. (there are a limited number of these per-program
+        bindPoint = 1
+        
+        ## get the block index for a uniform variable in the shader
+        blockIndex = glGetUniformBlockIndex(self.program(), "blockName")
+        
+        ## give the shader block a binding point
+        glUniformBlockBinding(self.program(), blockIndex, bindPoint)
+        
+        ## create a buffer
+        buf = glGenBuffers(1)
+        glBindBuffer(GL_UNIFORM_BUFFER, buf)
+        glBufferData(GL_UNIFORM_BUFFER, size, data, GL_DYNAMIC_DRAW)
+        ## also possible to use glBufferSubData to fill parts of the buffer
+        
+        ## bind buffer to the same binding point
+        glBindBufferBase(GL_UNIFORM_BUFFER, bindPoint, buf)
         
 initShaders()
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/parametertree/Parameter.py b/parametertree/Parameter.py
index e32f0b4a..e84bcebe 100644
--- a/parametertree/Parameter.py
+++ b/parametertree/Parameter.py
@@ -460,7 +460,10 @@ class Parameter(QtCore.QObject):
         self.childs.pop(self.childs.index(child))
         child.parentChanged(None)
         self.sigChildRemoved.emit(self, child)
-        child.sigTreeStateChanged.disconnect(self.treeStateChanged)
+        try:
+            child.sigTreeStateChanged.disconnect(self.treeStateChanged)
+        except TypeError:  ## already disconnected
+            pass
 
     def clearChildren(self):
         """Remove all child parameters."""
@@ -550,6 +553,8 @@ class Parameter(QtCore.QObject):
     def __getattr__(self, attr):
         ## Leaving this undocumented because I might like to remove it in the future..
         #print type(self), attr
+        if 'names' not in self.__dict__:
+            raise AttributeError(attr)
         if attr in self.names:
             return self.param(attr)
         else:
diff --git a/widgets/LayoutWidget.py b/widgets/LayoutWidget.py
index bcf88199..f567ad74 100644
--- a/widgets/LayoutWidget.py
+++ b/widgets/LayoutWidget.py
@@ -56,8 +56,13 @@ class LayoutWidget(QtGui.QWidget):
         """
         Add a widget to the layout and place it in the next available cell (or in the cell specified).
         """
-        if row is None:
+        if row == 'next':
+            self.nextRow()
             row = self.currentRow
+        elif row is None:
+            row = self.currentRow
+            
+        
         if col is None:
             col = self.nextCol(colspan)