   how slow is slow?
  so I know glVertexPointer is a 'slow' call (as opposed to glVertex3f, but considering glVertex3f would have to be called a gazillion times compared to the once glVertexPointer is where we get our speed. anyhow, how slow is 'slow'?Im trying to optimize my custom file format which, for now, issues:one glVertexPointer callone glTexCoordPointer callandone glNormalPointer callper mesh per model. is this okay or is it not good enough?   
  Profile it.   ;  Profiling would be a good idea indeed.  In my program glVertexPointer is the heaviest of the pointer calls, but you should find that glDrawArrays/DrawElements/etc are much heavier.Beyond that, it depends on how you are going to use your model format.  Your current method would be good for props or animated characters.  For a level model though, there is possibly going to be 100s of meshes within a model.The ideal setup is to have a single set of vertices, texcoords, normals, etc for an entire model.  I would choose to ignore the whole concept of user-defined "meshes" (Only for engine purposes, not for modelling, obviously).  Sort the geometry by texture, and you end up with the least amount of calls possible.  rendering would then be:one glVertexPointer/glTexCoordPointer/glNormalPointerand one glDrawArrays/Elements call for each texture used by the model.