DX11 revealed - fully compatible with DX10 hardware!

[Kushan]

GAMEFEST 08: New version adds compute shaders for GPGPU; completely compatible with DirectX 10 hardware

Microsoft has revealed the first details on the latest version of its DirectX SDK at the Gamefest event in Seattle.

Chief new features in version 11 are the new Compute Shader technology, which allows GPUs to be used for general purpose computing; support for tesselation, allowing models to be refined and smoother up-close; and multi-threaded resource handling to help games utilise multi-processor set-ups more effectively.

Rather than require new hardware as DirectX 10 did, DirectX 11 will be completely compatible with DirectX 10 and 10.1 cards - but will, like its predecessor, only support Windows Vista.

Source: http://www.developmag.com/news/30218/Micro...eils-DirectX-11

Not entirely clear if it means it'll be software compatible (I.e. if you install DX11, it wont break anything, but you wont get the features of it - like previous versions of DX), or if it's actually fully compatible with current DX10 hardware.

If it's the latter, I'll be a very happy bunny =D

[NienorGT]

Is it me or it look like they are working on this way just because Dx10 failed?

[Coldgunner]

erm, hasn't every previous iteration of DX been compatible with older hardware? the real question is, like previous iterations, will dx11 feature only be available to dx11 cards?

[Ricardo Gil]

erm, hasn't every previous iteration of DX been compatible with older hardware? the real question is, like previous iterations, will dx11 feature only be available to dx11 cards?

Read the bold part. They only upgraded features software wise, no new hardware revision is needed.

[The_Decryptor Veteran]

They probably mean it'll work with current hardware.

Tessellation and GPGPU (think of Stream for ATI and Cuda for Nvidia, among other tools) are already possible on current hardware, and the multi-threading is in software.

Edit: And of course it'll require Vista, did people think it wouldn't?

[NienorGT]

will dx11 feature only be available to dx11 cards?

As what you can read there, there will probably even no "Dx11 card"

Any Dx10 card would just become Dx11 card....

[Kushan]

Now guys, don't start fighting about this, the article wasn't particularly clear about it, so lets just wait for more information from MS.

[Jason S. Global Moderator]

seems more like DX10.5 to me. i'd like to see more new features and enhancements to justify the DX11 name.

[Robbie Khan Reviews]

This looks more like DX11 working on DX10 cards to add new features like GPGPU processing, physics, tessellation etc and more optimisations - not a bad thing at all. Also It is said DX11 is much more developer friendly.

[Minifig]

Sorry to be a spoil sport but is anyone else starting to think DX11 is just a rebranding of DX10 to try and make it successful?

[nmesisca]

.. more bad news for nVidia then as the current cards are not DX10 compliant this could mean no compliance with DX11 either..

[Robbie Khan Reviews]

Sorry to be a spoil sport but is anyone else starting to think DX11 is just a rebranding of DX10 to try and make it successful?

No because it's not the same API otherwise it would not have had the new features and optimisations...

.. more bad news for nVidia then as the current cards are not DX10 compliant this could mean no compliance with DX11 either..

Who told you this? this is completely wrong.... and you didn't read either because the nv cards are DX10 but not DX10.1 and DX11 works on both DX10 and 10.1 cards.

[leesmithg]

I have yet to use DirectX 10 on my system yet, my gc is DirectX 10 enabled.

I have yet to see a download for it either.

Where can you legally get a copy?

[Robbie Khan Reviews]

Of DX10? if you have XP you can't... if you have Vista you already have it.

[NienorGT]

Dx10 is enabled in Vista if you have a Dx10 card... no need to Download anything...

[EduardValencia]

Is it me or it look like they are working on this way just because Dx10 failed?

Nahhh,where did you get that idea,DX 11 is the result of the constant evolution Microsoft is giving to their products,the idea is to stay way ahead the competition.

[ObiWanToby]

Nahhh,where did you get that idea,DX 11 is the result of the constant evolution Microsoft is giving to their products,the idea is to stay way ahead the competition.

DX10 failed because Vista "failed".

I would say neither is true.

[+Chsoriano Subscriber²]

This is cool news, so that means by brand new radeon 4870 isn't going to be left behind by DX.

[leesmithg]

Of DX10? if you have XP you can't... if you have Vista you already have it.

I do have Vista Home Premium 32 bit SP1 installed and

my system reports DirectX 9 only, thats why I asked.

[Coldgunner]

I do have Vista Home Premium 32 bit SP1 installed and

my system reports DirectX 9 only, thats why I asked.

It doesn't look like its reporting the correct version, run dxdiag, that tells you the real version.

[Robbie Khan Reviews]

I do have Vista Home Premium 32 bit SP1 installed and

my system reports DirectX 9 only, thats why I asked.

Does it say the same as DXDIAG (run command) ?

[Leddy]

Nahhh,where did you get that idea,DX 11 is the result of the constant evolution Microsoft is giving to their products,the idea is to stay way ahead the competition.

What competition? OpenGL? I think most games use DirectX these days, haven't played a game in OpenGL mode for... at least 8 years or so

DX10 failed because Vista "failed".

I would say neither is true.

Hardware features usually take a while to absorb by the development industry. The typical development cycle for a game is longer than the time between Vista's release and now, which means that DX10 would've been an afterthought for the developers as they wouldn't have had a finalised SDK to play with.

[NienorGT]

My DXDiag show DX10 . .

[+Chsoriano Subscriber²]

My DXDiag show DX10 . .

I hope mine does too, I mean it should. My laptop does not, but it has an old Radeon 9600 which only supported DX9 so I'm assuming that's why. But I haven't checked the dxdiag for my new desktop so it better show DX 10.1 there when I check.

[NienorGT]

What competition? OpenGL? I think most games use DirectX these days, haven't played a game in OpenGL mode for... at least 8 years or so

You never played any Doom3 based games? (Prey, ET: Quake Wars, Quake 4)

Sure OpenGL isn't popular on Windows, but I'm sure you played a OpenGL game in that 8 year lol...