Game Technologies: DirectX 101 - Game Technologies: DirectX, XNA, XACT, etc.
Recent update: 2008-3-21

Mesh modeling tool

229 byte By SteveB. at 2008-3-7
Hi, I'm looking for a mesh modeling tool. I'm beginner in DX programming so I don't need a tool with thousand of functionnalities for the moment. A free or low cost modeling tool would be great ... Thanks, Steve

An excellent quickstart for DirectX 9

517 byte By Kal_Torak at 2008-3-6
Written by Jack Hoxley, it is the best place I've seen to get a running start into Direct3d graphics. I had looked for a long time for something like this, so I was particularly happy to discover this gem. And now I want to share it with everyone else. DirectX 9 Quickstart ...

New DirectShow forums...

270 byte By DavidWeller at 2008-3-5
We are pleased to announce that the new DirectShow forums are up and running under the Windows Vista group. Please direct any future questions about DirectShow <a target="_blank" title="/msdn/ShowForum.aspx?ForumID=129" href="/msdn/ShowForum.aspx?ForumID=129">here</a>.

Device is ambiguous in the namespace microsoft.directx.direct3d

18931 byte By DickR at 2008-3-3
Can anybody tell me what this compiler error message means."Device is ambiguous in the namespace microsoft.directx.direct3d"I get the same message for PresentParameters, SwapEffect and CreateFlags CreateFlagsI get it when trying to use directx3d in any program, even samples that should ...

Need a bit of help installing directx in vis 2005 beta 2

695 byte By petedee at 2008-3-1
Hey all, hope you can help me out here!I've downloaded and installed visual studio 2005 beta 2 standard edition and it has installed ok on my sytem, I've also downloaded and installed the directx sdk from october 2005 and that looked like it went in ok too. However I'm now wondering how do i ...

Totally newbie question - development platform?

1142 byte By Lengo at 2008-2-28
Ok, I'm totally ignorant about what I need to get started. Do I need Visual Studio Net? Do I need just MS C++? Erm... what?I have experience programming LONG LONG AGO, using MS C, way before Windows was invented. I've also used Borland C++ Builder 5.0, and Borland's Delphi. I know basic ...

porting to c++

159 byte By Smacker at 2008-2-27
not sure how to do this but heard it could be done, is there a way to use the sampleframe work from the c++ code in a C# app and if so how could this be done?

I need some spiritual DirectX guidance.

900 byte By dxfoo at 2008-2-26
I've been learning from a book titled Tricks of the Windows Game Programming Gurus by Andre' Lamothe. It's outdated using DirectX 7.0a SDK, and I believe his second volume creates software rasterization with DirectX 8.0 SDK. I really enjoy his books because it is very in depth and low ...

Tutorials build but will not run

913 byte By WallyLawless at 2008-2-25
I figured I would give DirectX programming a try since I've been finding myself frustrated with the old school ways of OpenGL. I downloaded the October SDK and installed it, I am using Visual Studio 2003 Professional on a Windows XP Professional operating system. This is running inside a ...

Card game development

288 byte By NitinP1 at 2008-2-24
Hi I am new to game programming. Recently I have downloaded a casino game from 24ktgold casino and very curious about it. I am vb.net programmer and wanted to know how can I develop a card or casino game with .net? If anybody can suggest, it would be great starting point for me.

Render in a Form

606 byte By salvodif at 2008-2-23
Hi guys, I've a project in vs 2003 ( http://it.geocities.com/salvodifazio/littlEngine.zip ). My problem is: If I write the code of Vertex.cs in CreateDevice.cs I make a beautiful triangle otherwise if I leave the code of Vertex.cs in this file the Form is not Rendered... Does anyone ...

some problem in sample framework(dxmutgui.cs)

474 byte By williamx at 2008-2-22
I think here's some problems in this sdk file(october 2005).Or the sdk is right but I am wrong?I am not sure...in dxmutgui.csline 853,MessageProc()not set the isDialogMinimized..so when click the Caption,it's not minimize..line 1654 OnRender()Rectangle(0, -captionHeight, width, 0);the last ...

drawing a colored, transformed quad not working as expected

637 byte By ColonelSanders at 2008-2-22
So I just switched over to Managed DirectX For .Net 2.0, and since I can no longer draw an array of verticies, I've been playing with Generic.GraphicsBuffer(Of CustomVertex.TransformedColored). It gave me this odd shape with only 4 verticies specified: Screen Shot. The white is not part of my ...

Managed DirectX, disposing resources

271 byte By chrouble at 2008-2-21
If objects dispose themselves in C#, do we ever need to explicitly dispose Pool.Default resources when the device is reset or Pool.Managed resources when the device is destroyed? If they dispose themselves, what are the OnLostDevice and OnDestroyDevice methods for?

How to scroll a 2D background

1032 byte By GeorgeClingerman at 2008-2-20
Well, I've been searching the web and I cannot find a single example of someone scrolling a 2D background using Managed DirectX WITHOUT using the deprecated DirectDraw. I can already scroll a background using DirectDraw, but I'm trying to be a good boy and stop using the deprecated code. ...

Prefered Env

253 byte By Omicron at 2008-2-19
I guess I'm just curious how many of you fair people use solely C++ for your DirectX babies and how many use the managed env? Why do you prefer one over the other? Could it be that managed env is superseding C++ in DirectX? Contribute your opinion!

Microsoft.DirectX.DirectPlay.Server tutorials

112 byte By CyrilDex at 2008-2-18
Does anyone know where to get tutorials on the Server class in Microsoft.DirectX.DirectPlay? Preferrably in C#.

Strange memory leak

2418 byte By PiratSS at 2008-2-17
Hello there, this is my third time recoding a simple 2D engine, but I keep getting the same memory leak. This is by far the smallest memory leak(8k a second), but I am still concerned with the problem.This is the code I have to rendering, and I am sure it's something with the way I display my ...

Managed C++ DirectX Devices

2151 byte By perin at 2008-2-16
I recently upgraded my Windows::Forms application to use DirectX with Managed C++ (instead of unmanaged C++). Ever since I did it I get exceptions with the following line (even if before I succesfully built and ran my application, containing the line, several times, ) :DeviceList * deviceList ...

3D map

407 byte By Smacker at 2008-2-15
kinda hard to explain but what I want to do is place meshes about 200 of them I guess it would be in world space then each time a player moves the camera with point to there current location, what is the best way to get the cords for the mesh not all 200 need to be shown on the screen at one ...

Setting up a D3D app in Visual C++ .NET 2003

4034 byte By GIJoehosaphat at 2008-2-15
I have a small 3D app I am coding as I am learning. I am trying to implement some DirectX fonts to display stats to the screen but am having trouble at compile time. c:\dxsdk\include\dinput.h: DIRECTINPUT_VERSION undefined. Defaulting to version 0x0800 c:\Documents and Settings\Joe\My ...

InvalidDataException Using TextureLoader.FromFile :(

683 byte By Graham83 at 2008-2-15
Hey everyone, I'm fairly new to MDX and new to game development in general (been in web dev for about 8 years) and with the very limited tuts out there, i must say i'm only just clinging on with this learning curve. My project is breaking on this line, but the file does exist in this ...

Where is d3dim.lib, d3drm.lib, dsound3d.lib?

638 byte By dxfoo at 2008-2-15
My questions:1) My book ("Tricks of the Windows Game Programming Gurus ed1" ) teaches DirectX 8.1 SDK. Is it fine to have that SDK on for ease-of-understanding w/ the book, or use the updated DirectX 9.0c SDK? 2) Relating to DirectX 8.1 SDK, the book says I need the following library files: ...

What step have i missed

10446 byte By MariaWelborn at 2008-2-15
I am trying to learn use Direct 3D (version 9b of the SDK) on windows after some experience with Open GL on linux machines in Computer Science.As I understand it the basic steps involved in drawing primitives are:Create a deviceCreate a vertex buffer of an appropriate formatlock the vertex ...

capture audio

592 byte By ahmedilyas at 2008-2-14
Hi! REALLY sorry to post this here but didnt know where else! is there a way to capture audio from the sound card? I am trying to use directX but the sample I have seen is hard to understand unfortuantly :( How do I capture audio either using DirectX or some other method? I want to capture it ...

newbie needs help with direct programming

9734 byte By lew26 at 2008-2-14
I need some help with direct i am new too directx programming and i am kinda having a hard time learning it becuase there is really no tutorials that explain what the code does like for instance below i have a code from the august directx sdk that say the below code should be a starting point ...

Billboard Question

2830 byte By RayAB at 2008-2-13
I try to create a Billboard with a texture plus a written text.Everything works fine and see both, the texture and the text. When I move (transalte / rotate) my world the following happens:The texture remains more or less stable. If I rotate the world to the back, the billboard flips, so that I ...

statically linking D3D?

553 byte By rich81 at 2008-2-13
Hi there, Might seem a dumb question, but I'm wondering whether it's possible to statically link with Direct3D/other DX components; I realise the application size would probably grow to the nth degree, but at the moment that's not a problem. The reason for this is that I seem to be having ...

dxguid.lib corrupt?

525 byte By StiNKy at 2008-2-12
Hi.I'm trying to use DirectInput8 from the October SDK edition with Visual c++ 6.0 and when I try and link dxguid.lib (in order to get IID_IDirectInput8) I get the error:dxguid.lib(dxguid.obj) : fatal error LNK1103: debugging information corrupt; recompile moduleAnyone else get this? Or am I ...

Namespaces Microsoft.DirectX not found

473 byte By KJ555 at 2008-2-11
I've installed the DirectX 9.0 SDK and the runtime and can run the sample executables, but when I try to run the code in the edit or debug mode (using vb.net ver.2003) it can't find Microsoft.DirectX and Microsoft.DirectX.DirectInput namespaces. I verified it as having 9.0c using ...

Griffin PowerMate Knobs and DirectInput

1354 byte By break_r at 2008-2-10
Hi, So I purchased one of these PowerMate knobs: http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/powermate/ And of course, I thought I'd try and program against it using DirectInput. I've done the following: - enumerated device objects - get/set various properites for those objects (although the ...

SampleFramework Camera

566 byte By RayAB at 2008-2-10
I have a small problem with the sampleframework. I just create a world with one mesh and manipulate the view with the mouse / keyboard. Most works well, i.e. key movements, mouse wheel and the camera-movement with the right mousebutton. The problem is, that I can't move the world with the left ...

DX9c and VStudio 6

162 byte By Ultrageek at 2008-2-8
I just downloaded the DX9c SDK and it did not add an application template to the IDE. Can I do this manually? Do I need to reinstall? Thanks. -Lee

sampleFramework: mouse- and keyboardcallbacks

1909 byte By UdoSchneider at 2008-2-8
Hi!I'm trying to write a game, with the help of the book"Beginning 3D Game Programming" by Tom Miller(ISBN 0-672-32661-2).For his examples, he uses the Microsoft "sampleFramework"which ships with the DirectX SDK. (Actually, the samples inthe book use the Summer 2004 edition, while I use the ...

Problem installing Directx 9.0c Failed due to cabinet file

274 byte By Milltimeir at 2008-2-7
So it installed everything and then after downloading the runtime components and is ready to install it says: a cabinet file necessary for installation cannot be trusted. What in the world does that mean and how can I fix it? I would really appreciate your help thanx.

Packaging a DirectX Game

750 byte By Geffo at 2008-2-7
Hi, I've recently started programming using DirectX and C#. I created a game and it runs fine on my development machine (.Net 1.1, DX SDK). But when I compile the game for a release, and move it onto a machine that only has the DirectX runtimes, it fails to find any of the neccessary libraries ...

3d Mesh background with sprites on top

682 byte By ANoble at 2008-2-7
Ok, so i'm a complete noob to Directx. But the basic idea is to create a background ( I am assuming at this point a mesh with texture mapping) that is zoomable and scrollable (no need to rotate, although that may be added in the future) with simple 2d objects on top of the background ( right ...

Possible to make an online RPG with DirectPlay?

363 byte By RedLink at 2008-2-7
I've been working on an MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game) for awhile. I'm getting up to where I have to wonder, "Now what do I do to make it an online game?" Is it possible to use DirectPlay for the networking..? Thanks in advance. ...

problem loading .x file

1746 byte By talk2Sushant at 2008-2-6
Hi I wrote a code to load and display a .x file. The .x file i am using is provided with the SDK itself namely tiger.x. It is not loading the file. The same code is working fine on a different PC with a different version of Direct-X(older one). Is it a problem of Direct-X version as i have ...

Integrating Joystick w/ DirectX9.0 and VB.net

825 byte By KJ555 at 2008-2-6
I had successfully integrated a joystick using VB6 and DirectX8.0 (?) a few years ago. I wanted to do the same thing with newer technology...I recently purchased VB.NETand a joystick thinking that the taks would be a cut and paste of old code with some minor modifications. I found that I can't ...

DirectX on other OS's

989 byte By BloodLust at 2008-2-5
Hi, my name is Eddie and i'm 18 years old. I've been programming for about 4 years now and used languages like Visual Basic, Dark Basic, Blitz Basic, and now C++. For ALL my game development needs, i've always looked for DirectX. I know alot about it as i have been working with it for about ...

Good source (s) to learn Direct X (c++)

616 byte By CruS at 2008-2-5
Hi, I have begun programming with DirectX and C++ for a while now (not a very long while =))I've read the 6 tutorials that comes with the SDK and understand them quite well, but where do I go from here? Most interesting info I find about DirectX programming for newbies is in managed, but, ...

Problem with Directx 9 alpha blending

1218 byte By Reuomi at 2008-2-4
I wrote an effect file to do alpa blending. I soon noticed after working more on it that there are points in the blend where polygons are being skipped or somthing.. What happens is i enable alpha blending liek so AlphaBlendEnable = 1; DestBlend = 6; SrcBlend = 5; then it looks like the ...

Problem with Directx 9 alpha blending

1218 byte By Reuomi at 2008-2-4
I wrote an effect file to do alpa blending. I soon noticed after working more on it that there are points in the blend where polygons are being skipped or somthing.. What happens is i enable alpha blending liek so AlphaBlendEnable = 1; DestBlend = 6; SrcBlend = 5; then it looks like the ...

WorldMatrix Problems

227 byte By MooMansun at 2008-2-4
I have a mesh for which I am writing a shader. The shader requires the worldMatrix of the mesh, however, my Matrix contains the camera.viewProjection. How do I obtain the worldMatrix of the Mesh without effecting the Matrix?

IntelliSense with October DirectX SDK

264 byte By StiNKy at 2008-2-4
Hi. I'm still using Visual C++ 6.0 (still the best imo) and I've just installed the October DirectX SDK and for some reason the IntelliSense doesn't work with ANYTHING from DirectX. Can anyone suggest how I can get it working? Thanks in advance.

Robust X-File Mesh Loading

724 byte By DanJanos47 at 2008-2-3
A friend of mine has made several models using Maya and has exported the models to .x files. The DXViewer utility that is shipped with the DXSDK (as well as the older MeshViewer) has no problem loading the models and computing edges, normals, adjacencies, etc. However, the code in the managed ...

How do I animate tiny.x in VB.Net using the existing animation?

500 byte By KnightTechnologies at 2008-2-3
I am unable to animate tiny when using the AnimationSet method, tiny displays, but just doesn't move, does anyone know of a simple and working VB.Net source sample to show tiny.x's built-in basic walk animation?I'm following the examples for animation at: http://www.jkarlsson.com-Thanks! ...

October 2005 DirectX SDK is available!

4781 byte By DavidWeller at 2008-2-2
The DirectX? Team is pleased to announce the release of the DirectX 9.0 SDK October 2005 Update! The October Update includes the first public release of the XInput SDK. This SDK will allow game developers to fully support Xbox 360 Controller for Windows. To download or learn more about this ...

Coordinate System

381 byte By CruS at 2008-2-2
Hi everyone!I need some help here... I am trying to write a D3D-application which renders different objects depending on choises from a menu..I just want to know:How do I change the inbuilt(?) coordinate system in d3dx to a more standard one:like 400,300 would be the center of the screen (using ...