dx10

Install a graphics card quickly and easily

jjones | Guides | 14/02/2007 18:30pm

Need a new graphics card? If you want to play the latest games but aren’t sure what type of card is required, you’ll need one that features Shader Model 3.0 and has at least 256MB of video memory – though 512MB of memory is the amount required to really show them off to their best.

These days, PCI-Express is the norm for connecting the card to your motherboard, but if your PC is still equipped with the older AGP connection type, then luckily the manufacturers are still making some pretty decent cards, meaning you won’t need to go out and buy a brand-new machine just yet.

Prices range from £80 for a good card, up to about £500 for the flagship types. We’ve decided to switch our old card for one with lots more memory and a super-fast processor. It will play the latest games at the highest resolutions with all the eye-popping visuals turned on, and our computer will be future-proof for at least another year, too.

One thing to bear in mind when choosing a card is the physical space in your PC – some cards are much larger than you might expect and may not fit. Usually, computers with two or more free PCI-Express slots will be fine.

If you really want to show off, and you have an SLI- or Crossfi re-enabled motherboard (with two free PCI-E slots), you can buy a second card and connect the two together for even more gaming performance. For most games, though, it’s probably overkill.

Fill a slot while you warm the pot

How to fit a graphics card and make tea. OK, it’s in a mug, if you want to be picky

1. Open Up

Fill the kettle, and start it heating. While it’s taking an age to boil, you can make a start on fitting the card. For safety’s sake, and to avoid damage, turn off the computer and unplug it from the mains before you remove the case door.

2. Take It Out

Unclip the old graphics card from its slot. It’s usually held in place by a screw, but in newer PC cases, like ours, it’s held by quick release clips. We’re halfway through fitting and the tea bag is only just going in the mug! BTW: we don’t do decaf.

3. Slot it in

Fit the new graphics card by pushing it firmly into the now vacant slot and securing it in position. If the card needs an additional power supply, plug it in. Be careful not to scald yourself while trying to keep the tea-making up to schedule.

4. Closed Case

By the time that tea bag has had the opportunity to brew to full strength, you should easily have been able to fasten your computer’s case door back in place, reattach the mains lead and power it up again – the PC is miles ahead of the tea.

5. Install It

Once Windows Vista loads, the new graphics card is detected and the appropriate drivers are automatically installed, so you’re now ready to play. The tea-making is lagging so far behind that the milk is probably past its sell-by date by now.

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DirectX 10 screenshots and comparisions

jjones | Guides | 07/02/2007 12:45pm

Download the original article from Windows Vista: The Official Magazine, Issue 2.
(PDF Format, 4740kb)
Requires Adobe Reader.

Alternatively, buy the issue here.

There’s a lot more to making a good game than the graphics – after, all, two of the best-known and most played games in the world, Tetris and Pong, are simple 2D. No one, though, can deny that, as the power of the desktop grows, games are becoming more lifelike and much closer to cinematic experiences than simple puzzlesolving tasks or tests of players’ reaction speeds.

The next step

Games designers crave the creative freedom that modern PC hardware gives them, and players love the more intense experience of authentic-looking game worlds. Windows Vista introduces the next step towards creating games that are as vivid and detailed as real life, with DirectX 10. It’s a brand new version of the interface that developers can use to control graphics hardware, and it’s only in Windows Vista.

Amazing worlds

A Windows Vista PC with a DirectX 10-capable graphics card is an extremely powerful gaming platform. Not only can existing programming effects be carried out much faster, but it uses graphics cards to their full capability, all of the time.

Older cards had dedicated areas of circuitry for certain effects, and when those weren’t needed, parts of the on-board processor remained idle. DirectX 10 3D hardware means the whole graphics card is in use all the time.

The results? Imagine water that behaves like the rivers and seas of the world around you. And where virtual oceans used to be a series of unconvincing, often-repeated patterns, they are now whirling masses of waves and white horses. Where all the chairs in a room might, in the past, have looked identical, now they can all be different, each with its own stains and defects, just as in real life.

While this isn’t mandatory for creating a great game (Tetris and Pong are downloadable as Sidebar gadgets, if you don’t believe us) it brings us close to the day when virtual worlds will be as varied and stunning as the one we live in. Take a look at these screenshots to see the difference. Simply hover your mouse pointer over each one for a few seconds to see the effect.