Microsoft® Windows® XP Unleashed

What Is DirectX?

When Windows NT was first released, all graphics devices, much like other hardware components such as memory, network cards, and so on, were controlled by the kernel, and the response time was much slower than on a MS-DOS machine, where, for example, applications could directly control the display driver. To make up for this, and thus allow high-speed graphics and input devices, DirectX was incorporated into the operating system. Windows XP supports DirectX Version 8, which includes the following components:

• DirectX Graphics—This combines earlier components known as Microsoft DirectDraw and Microsoft Direct3D into a single component. This simplifies the task of the application developer who creates those wonderful games or other ...