* Richard Urban:
Well thank you Alan. I will have to check into that which I wasn't aware of.
http://msdn.microsoft.com/msdnmag/issues/07/04/Aero/default.aspx
While Windows Vista will run with a legacy Windows XP-compatible driver, a WDDM video driver is
required to get all the DWM features. Contrary to some speculation, DWM doesn't require DirectX
10, but does require some more video/texture memory and a video card that supports Shader Model
2.0 or better. The biggest change with using WDDM is that it introduces the Video Memory
Manager (VidMM), which can swap video memory allocations between system memory and video
memory. This means that WDDM can virtualize the video card's resources so that it's possible to
do a better job of sharing and swapping video memory, and of context-switching the graphics
processor among different threads in disparate applications. It used to be nearly impossible to
run multiple 3D applications with any kind of stability, due to drivers that were unable to
handle context switches. And prior to WDDM, there was no formal scheduling available, so often
one DirectX application would starve others.With WDDM, it's much harder for that to happen.
Drivers are also on a much tighter leash for Windows Vista and are forced to be much more
robust than for previous versions of Windows.
As an aside, note that DirectX 10 is a Windows Vista-only API. Applications designed for
previous version of DirectX will run on a legacy DirectX API implementation expected to be
called DirectX 9 L.This will be the last version supported by pre-WDDM drivers. DirectX 9 L
apps are expected to run on Windows XP with DirectX 9 L installed as well as on Windows Vista.
DirectX 10 contains no legacy interfaces.
http://letskilldave.com/archive/200...--Repeat-after-me_3A00_-No.-No.-No_2E00_.aspx
This weekend has seen the emergence of rumors that DirectX 10 capabilities will be available
for Windows XP under a special "secret" new version of DirectX called "DirectX 9.0L".
Allow me to pull out the inordinately-large-hammer-of-truth on that one and bang out some
pretty clear messages:
- Absolutely not.
- Definitely not.
- No f'n way.
Now, I'm aware of the fact that some people aren't interested in letting “the facts” get in the
way of a good rumor. If you're one of those people, you can stop right now and tell your
buddies, "I saw this Microsoft guy say it's not going to happen, so the rumor must be true!"
(because we all know that when people say the opposite of what you want to hear, they MUST be
hiding something
.
For those of you still reading, and interested in the facts, here they are:
- DirectX 9.0L was the early name designation for what is now called "DirectX 9.0Ex".
- DirectX 9.0Ex is a Windows Vista only feature. In a nutshell, it is DirectX 9.0c, with some
modifications to work smoothly with the new driver characteristics of Windows Vista, which is
significantly different at the graphics level than Windows XP. You can read more about DirectX
9.0Ex and how it fits into the Windows Vista picture here
http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb173477.aspx
- Windows XP cannot run DirectX 10 (technically, Direct3D 10) applications because of the
significant changes in the graphics API and driver model
- And while I’m on it, the Xbox 360 cannot run Direct3D 10 because it lacks the Shader Model
4.0 hardware.
So, if you’ve read this far and STILL want Windows XP to run DirectX 10, you know the only
answer: You’ll need to upgrade to Windows Vista and install a Shader Model 4.0 graphics card!
http://letskilldave.com/about.aspx
I'm David Weller, the Community Manager at Microsoft's Game Technology Group. LetsKillDave is
the gamertag I use on several game servers, primarily Xbox Live/Live Anywhere. This blog is
focused on bringing news and information about Microsoft's game development technologies (and
gaming) to game developers . In a way, this is a "sister site" to Major Nelson's (his site is
focused on Xbox Live gaming), which explains why my stuff looks a lot like his
What you will not get here: I can’t comment on rumors, unreleased details, data or anything
that is covered under my Microsoft NDA. While I would love to tell you juicy rumors, I love my
employment more. Sorry
-Michael