Programmers Guide

This guide contains a description of the graphics pipeline implemented by Microsoft® Direct3D®. It is a guide for developers who are implementing three-dimensional (3-D) graphics functionality into their applications. The guide contains architecture descriptions, functional block diagrams, and descriptions of the building blocks in the pipeline, as well as code snippets and sample applications. The information is divided into the following sections:

• Getting Started with Direct3D

  This section contains both an overview of the pipeline and tutorials that can help you get a simple graphics application running in a few minutes.

• Using Direct3D

  This section explains how to use the fixed function pipeline. Included here are the basic functional steps in the graphics pipeline: converting geometry, adding lighting, and rendering output.

• Programmable Pipeline

  This section covers the new programmable extensions to the pipeline. Included here are details about using vertex shaders for manipulating object geometry, pixel shaders for controlling pixel shading, and effects and effect files for building applications that can run on a variety of hardware platforms.

• Advanced Topics

  This section contains examples of different types of special effects you can implement. Topics such as environment and bump mapping, antialiasing, vertex blending, and tweening show how to apply leading-edge special effects to your application.

• Samples

  This section contains sample applications.

• Direct3D Appendix

  This section contains details on additional topics, such as X Files and graphics state.