whats so good about dx, what does it have that open gl doesnt

[jacob01]

whats so good about dx, what does it have that open gl doesnt

what are the benefits of using dx vs open gl

[Steveway]

DirectX has a big FUD-spreading company in it's back.

[bwhitaker]

From what I've heard DX is slighly easier to use, and more recently has been updated more often than openGL. This means that DX9/10 can produce nicer looking things than openGL. Also the rumor is, that MS paid developers to use their product over the openGL.

[jacob01]

yea i have heard the same thing and i bet ms is a big reason why dx is used more than opengl in graphical type programs.

[Hooloovooloo]

Well, there are many reasons i guess.
As you've mentioned Microsoft is probably on the game producers back and makes sure they use DX.
One more reason is that it's a lot easier to work with since it actually does a lot more than only graphics. It's also a API for network and sound. OpenGL isn't.
That means game devs have to find other API's to use for network and sound instead of just getting a package with everything they need.

OpenGL can do everything that D3D can AFAIK.

[vem0m]

Funny thing is that DX has nothing better and will never also it is not any easier to program then OpenGL to the programmers as they learned both when they became programmers With this said MS is just money hungry forcing developers to use it as part of their ongoing only make windows games campaign

[verb3k]

There is ABSOLUTELY nothing that DX can do that OpenGL can't , you can even do what you want without using either of them ( but with more work)

OpenGL is used in the development of games for all playstation platform ( 1,2,3,PSP, etc) and Nintendo Platforms and it's producing high quality games that surpass those done with DirectX.
OpenGL is more professional , you won't find DirectX being used in science-related activities ,OpenGL is always the choice.Another advantage of using OpenGL is portability , since DX works only on MS platforms ( windows + xbox ) but OpenGL can run on all platforms.

[Ferrat]

The thing about DX vs OpenGL is the production, DX is more or less just click and drag when it comes to connection stuff like networking, sound, grafics ect. this makes the DX enviroment very easy to develop in, SDL that is the counterpart isn't as easy and takes more work.

D3D isn't better than OpenGL, they work in slightly diffirent ways but it's not better, they both have their pros and cons, hopefully OpenGL3 will be a nice step forward, it won't bring as much new stuff as it will be more focused on making it more effective and efficient, removing dead code, upgrading the way OpenGL works ect.

but the main reason DX is used more and more is the dev enviroment that's easier to work with.

[vem0m]

The thing about DX vs OpenGL is the production, DX is more or less just click and drag when it comes to connection stuff like networking, sound, grafics ect. this makes the DX enviroment very easy to develop in, SDL that is the counterpart isn't as easy and takes more work.

D3D isn't better than OpenGL, they work in slightly diffirent ways but it's not better, they both have their pros and cons, hopefully OpenGL3 will be a nice step forward, it won't bring as much new stuff as it will be more focused on making it more effective and efficient, removing dead code, upgrading the way OpenGL works ect.

but the main reason DX is used more and more is the dev enviroment that's easier to work with.


Wrong its not point and click..... Its just as hard or harder to code a 3d game in either let alone 2d as I have worked with both

[Ferrat]

Wrong its not point and click..... Its just as hard or harder to code a 3d game in either let alone 2d as I have worked with both

yes in the grafic area but in the way the diffirent aspekts is put together and interact, directX is not just grafics.

[hikaricore]

Why do I get the feeling this is going to be a long thread?

[vem0m]

LOL Maybe cuz so many people have biased and misled opinions on it?

[Tux0r]

yeah that's true

[cogadh]

DirectX is a full API for programming games for graphics, sound, networking and peripherals. OpenGL is just an API for graphics alone. It is better to compare OpenGL and the graphics component of DirectX, Direct3D. If you are going to compare DirectX as a whole to anything open source, you need to compare it to several different things; OpenGL, OpenAL, SDL, etc. Otherwise, you are not really making any kind of fair comparison.

If you want to compare OpenGL to its only competitor, Direct3D, there is really only one thing that needs to be discussed: portability. OpenGL is platform independent, Direct3D is not. The truth is, both OpenGL and Direct3D are nearly equal in capability and ease of use, so the fact that OpenGL is platform independent is the only thing that makes it better in my book.

[Ferrat]

yes OpenGL vs Direct3D is another matter, often OpenGL is prefered outside gamedev. just because of the multiplatform perks ect.

[curvedinfinity]

I've used both pretty extensively. Using OpenGL requires less code and is generally more readable on tick for tack basis. On the other hand, Direct3D has some advanced graphics techniques boxed up for you, where you have to do it all yourself with OpenGL. If it weren't for the fact that Mircrosoft's documentation is absolutely awful and they insist on amazingly complex and unnecessary naming conventions, I'd say D3D is pretty nice, but in general I very much prefer OpenGL.