tech blog

New shader would allow games programmers to access a GPU’s horsepower without needing to go through a graphics API
Microsoft may have decided against the idea of direct physics acceleration in DirectX 10, but it looks as though a new shader could change all that in DirectX 11. Currently referred to as the ‘compute shader,’ the new shader will allow games developers to access all the number crunching capabilities of a GPU.

An anonymous insider who works in the 3D graphics business told Custom PC that ‘for all of those who will offer hardware acceleration of DirectX 11 in a variety of ways, the compute shader is a very attractive option – it allows games developers to get at the horsepower inside the GPU, without necessarily working through a graphics API.’So why would you need this in DirectX? Our source gave the example of trying to ride a bike like a car, saying: ‘You don’t climb on to a bicycle and expect a steering wheel and three pedals – brake, accelerator and clutch – just because I’m used to that in the car. I want to solve a different problem, so I’ll address it with a different UI. From a games programmer’s point of view, what they’re looking for is a compute shader that's generic enough to use across multiple pieces of hardware. You can just get at the horsepower and get number crunching done on the GPU.’There are many possibilities for such a shader, but our source reckons that it will be ‘the more likely route that games developers will go down for physics.’ However, they also rightly pointed out that the new API would be ‘at least two years away,’ and that none of this had been made public knowledge yet.