OpenGL

[erunamo]

Found this headline on opengl.org today:
Call to Action: Current plan for Windows Vista Aero will degrade OpenGL performance. Act Now to keep OpenGL a first class API under WindowsThe link is to a discussion board. It talks about the new Windows only supporting OpenGL 1.4 (fixed, so no plans to extend) and provides this support through a

Comments

[erunamo]

Yes, but if you install the latest drivers from the manufacturer it will disable the fancy desktop (and basically revert to WinXP style). From what I could determine, Microsoft have a library that can sit between the opengl libraries and directx translating calls, but only up to version 1.4 and will not support any of the OpenGL 2.0 extensions.

[beelsebob]

Dude... what a load of twats... So does that mean that if you install any third party graphics driver it will do that... or just any third party GL driver?

If the former, then gamers are going to be pissed off (no more graphics card upgrades for you)... and if the latter, that's a damn good case for the EU to split them up over anti-trust. And I think that OpenGL *can* survive that long, it's got solid support from just about every non-windows OS, which is quite important when you consider that things like movie animation is done on Solaris/Linux boxen.

Bob

[dwinsper]

The Playstation 3 also uses OpenGL as its primary graphics platform.

[erunamo]

This is one of the things discussed on the forum. It's a good way of reducing ports from one platform to the other. Also forcing people using Windows to only play DirectX based games!

[beelsebob]

You would have thought that MS would want ports from Playstation to PC though... after all, there are likely to be many times more games for PS out there. But then I guess they get ample supply of console ports from XBox.

Bob

[andrew_j_w]

I think their logic is...

Developer: I want to program a Playstation game.
Manager : But then we'd have to use OpenGL.
Developer: OpenGL is teh SAWK!
Manager : But then we couldn't port it to Windows.
Developer: We could write two renderers for only 75% more cost!
Manager : You're fired.
Developed: Ok, Xbox and PC it is.

[beelsebob]

except the flaw is that GL doesn't suck, and that the GL engine would still work on PC... especially well on XP PCs.

Bob

[andrew_j_w]

Whoops, I didn't mean 'teh SAWK!' I meant 'good'.

Noone is going to produce a game for Longhorn that uses OpenGL if it's a choice between Aero or a 50% speed it. Developers will just use DirectX and release on the Xbox instead of the PS3. There is no way they'll just release it for XP.

[beelsebob]

I would doubt that - PS2 is a much bigger market than XBox and PC combined, and PS3 is bound to pick at least some of that up.

Bob