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| | | Thursday, November 13, 2008 |  | DirectX Explained
By Binod @ 11:29 AM :: 11747 Views :: 3 Comments ::  :: Tech Knowledge |  |
DirectX Versions Released Till Date
Since DirectX’s inception, Microsoft has released more than 15 versions of it and each successive version has undergone many important changes and improvements and the results are something the whole industry enjoys. Though it has proven to be a boon for developers, at the same time, the versions have become more complicated for general users to understand and differentiate between. This table summarizes DirectX versions:
| DirectX Versions |
Version Number |
Release Date |
OS it Became Standard in |
Description / version change Info |
| 1.0 |
4.02.0095 |
30th September 1995 |
|
This was the first version of DirectX which included DirectDraw, DirectSound and DirectInput. |
| 2.0 |
|
5th June 1996 |
|
|
| 2.0a |
4.03.00.1096 |
June, 1996 |
Windows 95 and NT |
|
| 3.0 |
4.04.00.0068 and 4.04.000069 |
15th September 1996 |
Windows NT SP3 |
Introduced special DirectInput files, special joystick control panel applet, a file to support Intel’s MMX technology and DirectSound3D API. |
| 3.0a/3.0b |
4.04.00.0070 |
1996 |
|
Minor bugs fixed. |
| 4.0 |
|
|
|
Never publicly released. |
| 5.0 |
4.05.00.0156 (RC 55) |
16th July 1997 |
Widnows NT 5.0 |
Added many improvements to support force feedback controllers, multi monitor support and a new control panel with overall improved user interface. |
| 5.2 |
4.05.01.1600 (RC 00) and 4.05.01.1998 (RC0) |
1998 |
Windows 95 / Windows 98 |
|
| 6.0 |
4.06.00.0318 (RC3) |
7th August 1998 |
|
Added new 3D features, texture compression, stencil buffers and bump mapping. Support for AMD’s 3D Now. |
| 6.1/6.1a |
4.06.02.0436/4.06.03.0518 |
February 1999 |
Windows 98 SE |
Added the DirectMusic API. |
| 7.0/7.0a |
4.07.00.0700/4.07.00.0716 |
1999-2000 |
|
Transferred generation of three-dimensional objects from the CPU to the GPU, including the introduction of T&L. |
| 7.1 |
4.07.00.3000 |
2000 |
Windows Me |
|
| 8.0 |
4.08.00.0400 |
2000 |
|
Each point of each polygon became programmable via the introduction of Pixel Shader and Vertex Shader. |
| 8.0a |
4.08.00.0400 RC 14 |
2001 |
|
Last supported version for Windows 95. |
| 8.1 |
4.08.01.810 / 4.08.01.0881(RC7) |
Oct 25 2001/ 12th November 2001 |
Windows XP, Windows Server 2003 and Xbox / Windows 98, Windows Me and Windows 2000 |
Created the basis for the Xbox console. Increased Pixel Shader feature so that 22 instructions at a time could be programmed. |
| 8.1a / 8.1b |
4.08.01.0901 and 4.08.01.0901 RC7 |
2002 |
Windows XP SP2 |
Direct3D updated, bug fix for DirectShow on Windows 2000. |
| 8.2 |
4.08.02.0134 |
2002 |
|
Added DirectPlay 8.2. |
| 9.0 / 9.0a/ 9.0b and 9.0c |
4.09.00900 / 4.09.00.0901 (RC6)/ 4.09.00.0902 (RC2)/ 4.09.0000.0904 |
24th December 2002/ March 2003/ Aug 2003/ 2004 |
Windows XP SP2,Windows Server 2003 SP1, Windows Server 2003 R2 and Xbox 360 |
Lots of improvements and bug fixes, support for much longer shader programs, support for .NET framework 2.0, support for high dynamic range lighting. |
| 10 |
6.00.6000.16386 |
2008 |
Windows Vista |
This version was released specifically for Windows Vista, includes Direct3D 10.1, Shader Model 4.0 and Unified Shader Architecture which allows the processing of pixel and vertex shaders on generic instead of specific processing units, eliminating a previous bottleneck. |
| 10.1 |
6.00.6001.18000 |
2008 |
|
Shader Model 4.1. Support for upcoming graphics hardware, requires Vista Service Pack 1. |
Sources: Wikipedia, craig.theeislers.com and HardwareSecrets. Conclusion
Undoubtedly, DirectX innovation can be considered one of the greatest innovations ever done for the evolution of computer gaming. DirectX has made it possible for computer users to play games which were hard to imagine back in the days of early 1990s. Obviously, advancements in GPUs are also paramount, but the ability to program games to utilize the hardware has relied on DirectX. Each new feature results in a more realistic gameplay experience, so it’s worth being familiar with DirectX versions so you can make informed decisions about whether or not you think it’s worth an upgrade to play new games with all their features turned on.
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| Comments |  BySome @
Monday, December 01, 2008 7:54 AM | |
I think you ate too much pizza. OpenGL is much better, just harder to program. |
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| By
raziel @
Saturday, December 06, 2008 6:29 PM | |
graxias por la informacion pero donde la descrago que sea free graxias saludos su paina me ayudo mucho con lo driver |
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| By
Mario @
Monday, January 12, 2009 10:01 AM | |
Well, the title said " Direct X explained' ...however, after reading both pages....I am still the same... and I agree that OpenGL is betta... |
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