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API use was shifted in favor of DirectX by Microsoft's two-pronged DirectX campaign around the launch of XBox 360 and Windows Vista, including the
by taspeotis 13y ago
API use was shifted in favor of DirectX
by Microsoft's two-pronged DirectX
campaign around the launch of XBox
360 and Windows Vista, including the
spread of FUD (fear, uncertainty and doubt)
about the future of OpenGL, and wild
exaggeration of the merits of DirectX.
I thought it was because that, at the time, the OpenGL API was shit [1].
By the time of OpenGL 2.1, OpenGL was
running into a problem. It had a lot of
legacy cruft. The API wasn't easy to
use anymore. There were 5 ways to do
things, and no idea which was the fastest.
And really, the author of the blog post should have known this when the blog post was written...
By David Rosen on January 8th, 2010
OpenGL 2.1 came out in 2006 [2].
[1] http://programmers.stackexchange.com/a/88055/7067 http://programmers.stackexchange.com/a/88055/7067
[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OpenGL#OpenGL_2.1 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OpenGL#OpenGL_2.1
- ekianjo 13y agoIt's also a legacy issue: once developers start using DirectX, it's harder for them to go back, and traditionally PC development has been Windows-only (more or less) for many years. Now that the market is becoming fragmented again between different platforms, there is more incentive to go for a cross-platform API than before - and that's where standards matter.
- MaulingMonkey 13y agoNot really 'legacy' per se either... good luck running OpenGL on Microsoft's consoles or as a ModernUI application! DirectX being a broader and, in my opinion, better designed API certainly doesn't hurt it's adoption either.
- shiven 13y agoWhat about OSX? Does DirectX work (at all/well) on it? Linux? How feasible is it to program with DirectX on any non-MS platform? Edit: I guess the point I'm making is, OpenGL runs on non-MS as well as MS platforms (perfectly/badly is another question), but DirectX is locked to Microsoft only. That is what makes it of little to no value for people like me who need to care about cross-platform products and support.
- computerslol 13y agoA Microsoft OS still runs on over 90% of the desktop market.
- deleted 13y ago[deleted]
- runjake 13y agoI wonder what the percentage is when you figure the entire "computer" gaming market (eg. consoles, tablets, and phones). I suspect Microsoft's dominance on gaming is (and will become even more) weaker than we believe. OpenGL seems like a no-brainer for future survival as MSFT platform dominance exhibits entropy.
- runevault 13y agoIs PS3/PS4 development OGL or a proprietary API? Because if it is OGL then yes that makes said API far more useful for sheer amount of access to hardware.
- LukeShu 13y agoThe PS4 uses OpenGL (4.4?). The PS3 used a proprietary API based on OpenGL 1.0.
- runevault 13y agoSo yeah, OGL grows more useful as the PS4 grows its user base. Thanks for the info
- pjmlp 13y agoFalse info. PS4 uses a proprietary API called GNM http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-how-the-crew-was-ported-to-playstation-4 http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-how-the-cre...
- shadowmint 13y agoYeah, don't worry about those mobile devices. We've got plenty of directx support for those too. What are they again? Surface? Windows phone? I think I know one guy who has one.
- sologrrl 13y agoI don't know anyone that uses desktop Linux, unless I count my sister who I saw using Red Hat at her CAD/CAM workplace four or five years ago. However I am afraid to to state this on HN, given how sensitive and hostile the crowd here can be about Linux.
- computerslol 13y agoI have one of each.
- gtirloni 13y agoOne is usually enough for a guy.
- MaulingMonkey 13y agoThis isn't to say you won't possibly need more than just DirectX. But this is to say you quite possibly need at least DirectX.
- theg2 13y agoNot an Apple or Google product? Gotta be awful! Love how people treat competition as something awful when it doesn't follow their own brand loyalty. Edit: It looks like the authors snark isn't as obvious to others as it was to me. I'm all for cross platform development and doing whatever makes sense your company/brand in terms of development, all my side projects use tools that make them as portable as possible.
- danudey 13y agoNo one was making a qualitative judgement against Windows Phones, just a quantitative comment about install base.
- 13y ago
- yuhong 13y agoAnd to continue the story started from the stackexchange post, again the depreciation turned out to be a good decision. Guess what OpenGL ES that is used today on mobile devices and WebGL in browsers basically is?
- kbenson 13y agoThat stackexchange post is very, very good. Points just for bring that out.
- guiambros 13y agoIt was a great read, indeed. And yet, it was locked by SE mods as out of topic. While I love Stack Exchange and I'm thankful for the value it brought in so many ways, this policy of locking reasonable and valid questions is just upsetting.
- deleted 13y ago[deleted]
- noselasd 13y agoOpenGL was not in any way shit when DirectX started overtaking OpenGL. It became so around the time GPUs started being programmed by shaders - prior to that era OpenGL was quite pleasant compared to DirectX, yet DirectX mostly overtook OpenGL
- Narishma 13y agoI'm not sure I agree with your last point. With the exception of Direct3D, pretty much everything from DirectX has been deprecated at one point or another and replaced with external libraries that usually originate from Xbox development.
- kabdib 13y agoDirectInput, for instance. Over-engineered and badly designed, then virtually abandoned (because who ever gets promoted for fixing bugs? You get promoted for features). Definitely not what anyone really wanted from an input API.
- fritz_vd 13y agothank you.. this is awesome.