Skip to content

5000+ Great Articles

Best Articles & Essays: Interesting Articles to Read Online

  • 5 Best Humble Trove Games 2021 Reviews
  • How to Transcribe Google Meet Calls to Google Docs Google Software/Tips
  • Windows 7 Will Not Sleep or Not Sleeping Windows 7
  • WiFi Extenders vs Powerline Adapters – Which is the Best? Networking
  • boot options windows 10 Computer Tips
  • Best Twitch Streaming Software for Windows and Mac Software Reviews
  • How To Import Your Contacts To Gmail Cool Websites
  • Live Location Sharing During Business Trips Featured Posts

what is DirectX in game programming?

Posted on May 20, 2023May 20, 2023 By blog_786 No Comments on what is DirectX in game programming?

what is DirectX in game programming?.

DirectX is an API or Application Programming Interface. It acts as an intermediary between the video games’ programming code and the hardware used to play them. Without DirectX, playing video games wouldn’t be as painless as it is today, but what is DirectX and why is it so important?

what is DirectX in game programming?

DirectX Is an API, but What Is That?

We said that an API is a software that allows games to interact with hardware, but that’s a big oversimplification. After all, hardware drivers that interact with the operating system can also be described in the same way.

What the API does is standardize a catalog of commands and functions that game developers can request from the computer hardware. It is the software layer between the game and the hardware that translates the two “languages” spoken by the game and the hardware device.

what is DirectX in game programming?

To be more precise, the API refers to the hardware drivers on behalf of the game, and since both the game and the hardware drivers were written to be DirectX compatible and not directly with each other, this means communication is seamless.

If you want to take a deeper look at the API, HDG explains: What is an API? great place to start.

The Bad Old Days Before DirectX

So we’ve established that DirectX is the API that sits between the game and the hardware it needs to run, but why can’t a video game communicate directly with a video card, sound card, etc.?

Windows 8 vs Windows 10: Microsoft’s ten fixes(Opens in a new browser tab)

That is exactly what happened. In the days of MS-DOS and the early days of Windows, video games interacted directly with hardware drivers.

The problem with this approach is that the game developer had to write code for each individual product or product family. If you’re playing a classic MS-DOS game today, you’ll see entries on sound cards for brands like Creative SoundBlaster or AdLib.

what is DirectX in game programming?

These were the most popular sound card brands, so game developers could reach most customers by supporting them, but not all. Eventually, lesser-known hardware manufacturers will create products that are compatible with the same drivers as well-known manufacturers. This is why we had so many Sound Blaster compatible cards at the time.

As a result, even if you had the most widely supported hardware, there was no guarantee that the game would work with your computer. DirectX solved this problem.

DirectX Makes Things Easier for Developers and Hardware Makers

Each version of DirectX (and we up to DirectX 12) installs a set of hardware and software features that compatible hardware should have. In other words, if you want your graphics card to be certified to work with the latest version of DirectX, it must have a minimum set of built-in capabilities.

what is DirectX in game programming?

Then developers write their games not for compatibility with a specific graphics card, but for compatibility with DirectX itself. In other words, both hardware manufacturers and game developers are standardizing their products for DirectX, so any games and hardware components designed to run on a specific version of DirectX are guaranteed to work well with each other.

DirectX Is The “X” in Xbox

Everyone knows that the two biggest names in the game console space are PlayStation and Xbox, but you may not know that the latter was originally called “DirectX Box”.

It’s probably for the best that Microsoft decided to shorten the name, but it’s also a very accurate description of the console. The first Xbox was built with PC hardware running a stripped-down version of Windows and DirectX. This is true today for the newest Xbox Series X and S consoles.

what is DirectX in game programming?

One of the big benefits of this is that transferring games between Xbox and Windows PC is very easy. Because they are actually one platform. However, the PlayStation and Nintendo Switch use their own APIs, which brings us to the next important fact about DirectX.

DirectX is Not the Only Game in Town

While DirectX has become one of the most important and widespread APIs, it is far from the only one. Many organizations have recognized the need for standardization. While DirectX is an API covering everything from graphics to game controllers, there are also APIs that focus on just one aspect, such as graphics.

When the first 3D graphics card became popular in the mid-90s, the need for graphics APIs became acute. 3dFX Voodoo cards used the proprietary Glide API. OpenGL (Open Graphics Library) is an open standard that remains popular today and exists in its modern form as Vulkan. In addition, Apple has its own Metal API for its own devices, and there are many others in other categories of devices such as mobile phones and tablets.

what is DirectX in game programming?

While DirectX does not have complete market dominance, other APIs depend on what Microsoft has chosen to anchor in each version of DirectX. At the same time, they do not dictate to anyone. Each version of DirectX is created in consultation with all stakeholders, so the relationship seems more reciprocal than one might think.

DirectX isn’t Something You Need to Worry About

The big question is how much you, the user, need to worry about DirectX. Previously, with earlier versions of DirectX on older Windows systems, you had to install DirectX manually. In most cases, this game includes the minimum version of DirectX it needs. If this installer found a newer version of this generation of DirectX on the system, it simply wouldn’t install anything.

what is DirectX in game programming?

Each version of DirectX (for example, 9c, 11, and 12) is a separate thing, but Windows 10 comes with pre-installed copies of them. Your old games will run great on your shiny new Windows 10 computer.

Your choice of equipment is much more important. You can always update the software or download the right software to keep the retro games working. But the hardware you have cannot be changed without an upgrade or a new computer.

Hardware Compliance With DirectX

Any hardware related to video games or any other application using similar technology is usually compatible with the latest version of DirectX at the time of its release.

However, if a new version of DirectX is released, it is possible that your existing hardware may not meet the requirements if it lacks the hardware functionality required for the new version of DirectX to work. However, this is not a reason to change the equipment immediately!

what is DirectX in game programming?

There is always a transition period when games support multiple versions of DirectX. For example, games currently generally support both DirectX 11 and DirectX 12. However, if you are looking to purchase new hardware (especially GPUs). It’s a good idea to buy something that is compatible with the latest mainstream models. DirectX version. Because you want your new purchase to stay relevant for at least a few years.

While you are doing this. You can also check if your new hardware is compatible. With the latest versions of other major competing APIs such as Vulcan.

–

what is DirectX in game programming?

what is DirectX in-game programming?.

How to Optimize Windows 10 For Gaming(Opens in a new browser tab)

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
Help Desk Tags:but What Is That?, DirectX Is an API, DirectX is Not the Only Game in Town, DirectX Is The “X” in Xbox, DirectX isn’t Something You Need to Worry About, DirectX Makes Things Easier for Developers and Hardware Makers, Hardware Compliance With DirectX, The Bad Old Days Before DirectX, what is DirectX in game programming?

Post navigation

Previous Post: DVI vs HDMI vs DisplayPort
Next Post: How to fix if Amazon Fire Tablet won’t turn on?

Related Posts

  • Fix “Unsupported wireless network device detected. System Halted” Error Help Desk
  • How to Fix a Discord Awaiting Endpoint Error Help Desk
  • How To Fix ‘Not Enough USB Controller Resources’ On Windows 10 Help Desk
  • Do You Need a Third Party Firewall on Mac and Windows? Help Desk
  • 6 Tips To Fix When Your Computer Fan Is Loud Help Desk
  • HDG Explains – Swapfile.sys, Hiberfil.sys and Pagefile.sys in Windows Help Desk

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Archives

  • September 2023
  • August 2023
  • July 2023
  • June 2023
  • May 2023
  • April 2023
  • November 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • March 2021
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • December 2019
  • July 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018

Categories

  • AI Tools & Guides
  • Amazon Web Services
  • Apple Watch
  • Computer Tips
  • Cool Websites
  • Featured Posts
  • Free Software Downloads
  • Gadgets
  • Gaming
  • General Software
  • Google Software/Tips
  • Hardware
  • Help Desk
  • How-To
  • iOS
  • iPad
  • iPhone
  • islamic Books
  • Linux
  • Linux Tips
  • Mac OS X
  • macOS
  • MS Office Tips
  • Networking
  • Office Tips
  • OS X
  • Product Reviews
  • Reviews
  • Safari
  • Smart Home
  • Smartphones
  • Software Reviews
  • technology
  • text
  • Tools Review
  • Troubleshooting
  • Tutorials
  • Uncategorized
  • Urdu Books PDF
  • Web Site Tips
  • Windows
  • Windows 10
  • Windows 7
  • Windows XP Tips
  • Wordpress
  • How to Make Phone Calls Without Revealing Your True identity
  • 50 Useful Websites on the Internet You Didn’t Know Existed
  • Everything You Need to Know About WannaCry Ransomware Attack
  • Automatically Transcribe YouTube Video/Audio with Google Docs
  • 7 Legal Websites to Get Free Music Downloads
DMCA.com Protection Status

Recent Posts

  • Six Copyscape Alternatives That you can use
  • 4 Different Ways to Test your Internet Speed
  • How to Make Phone Calls Without Revealing Your True identity
  • Use Secret Silver Subscription Plan to Save Money on Audible
  • Everything You Need to Know About WannaCry Ransomware Attack

Recent Comments

  1. 6 Things You Need Know About Email Encryption on Delete All Emails from Gmail With Once Click
  2. Looking For YouTube Alternative? Try These 7 Video Sharing Sites on Ten Best YouTube Video Editing Software 2023
  3. 8 (+1 New) Ways to Post on Instagram From Computer on How I Solved My Bluestacks Graphic Card Error (2 Ways)
  4. Find out what WordPress Theme and Plugin a Website is Using on How to Install a Theme on WordPress
  5. KeepVid Music: Use Online Music as your Personal Music Library on Top Ten Best iPad Music Apps
  • How to Delete Your Alexa Information How-To
  • Restore Show Desktop icon in Windows Vista, 7, 8 and 10 8 and 10
  • How to Find a Lost iPhone Without Find My iPhone How-To
  • How to Format a Drive or Partition with the HFS+ File System OS X
  • Best scientific graphing calculator 2020

    Best scientific graphing calculator 2020. 1 - Rocketbook Smart Reusable Notebook - Dot-Grid Eco-Friendly Notebook with 1 Pilot Frixion Pen & 1 Microf

  • Free HQ Images You Can Use Without Linking to Source How-To
  • How to Download Reddit Videos on iPhone How-To
  • How to fix Touch ID that doesn’t work on Mac Uncategorized

Copyright © 2023 How To Blog.

Powered by PressBook News WordPress theme

Go to mobile version