What in the holy hell is DirectX?

[roberttitus]

I just got a new laptop today & decided to redownload SBCGFAP only for it to tell me that the game wouldn't work right unless I downloaded Direct X. I did of course, but I'm not sure I should have. I mean this is a somewhat new laptop so I might have an updated version or something already on it right?

[JedExodus]

Don't worry about it. DirectX is smart enough to not let you downgrade without telling you. basically DirectX is the gubbins that run the graphics under Winders

[skeeter]

I'm no expert, but sometimes games insist you download an older version to work the game. It doesn't overwrite the newer version as far as I know... but hopefully someone who knows more than me will be able to help more...

[Icedhope]

Usually when you install a telltale game, they ask if you want to check your Direct X, and install the update.

[Elvenmonk]

Even if it does overwrite any newer game will auto update it for you.
Problem is some games only work with older versions of DirectX because newer versions can change stuff around.

[SHODANFreeman]

I'm surprised you are unfamiliar with DirectX, as it has been pretty much required for gaming on Windows PCs for almost 15 years.

[Hassat Hunter]

I've never encountered a game that required older DirectX versions to run.

Sure, old DX5 games can disfunction, but that's more probably because of Vista/XP/7 or modern graphic cards/drivers than DirectX.

^ EDIT: Obviously roberttitus is a console player...

[Jake]

I'm pretty sure many versions of DirectX can exist simultaneously on a Windows install, and it's required for some older games or games which desire to be compatible with older computers.

[Chyron8472]

Originally Posted by SHODANFreeman

I'm surprised you are unfamiliar with DirectX, as it has been pretty much required for gaming on Windows PCs for almost 15 years.

Originally Posted by Hassat Hunter

Obviously roberttitus is a console player...

Obviously.

Quoted from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DirectX
Microsoft DirectX is a collection of application programming interfaces (APIs) for handling tasks related to multimedia, especially game programming and video, on Microsoft platforms. Originally, the names of these APIs all began with Direct, such as Direct3D, DirectDraw, DirectMusic, DirectPlay, DirectSound, and so forth. The name DirectX was coined as shorthand term for all of these APIs (the X standing in for the particular API names) and soon became the name of the collection. When Microsoft later set out to develop a gaming console, the X was used as the basis of the name Xbox to indicate that the console was based on DirectX technology. [...]

Direct3D (the 3D graphics API within DirectX) is widely used in the development of video games for Microsoft Windows, Microsoft Xbox, and Microsoft Xbox 360. [...] As Direct3D is the most widely publicized component of DirectX, it is common to see the names "DirectX" and "Direct3D" used interchangeably.

[...] The first version of DirectX was released in September 1995 as the Windows Games SDK.

DirectX has been around PC gaming for a long time now. If a game complains that you don't have it, then it's possible that it either is missing some component (accidentally or by malfunction) or is not the latest desired version... or that your computer is being stupid and you need to reboot.

You don't need to worry about upgrading/reinstalling DirectX causing problems. If the game says you need to upgrade, then upgrade. However, games usually do come with their own SDK copy of DirectX that you can use to reinstall, rather than having to download it from Microsoft.

[Hassat Hunter]

I have yet to buy a game that doesn't have DX on their disk ("Silver" has a broken version of it which quite messed up my PC, but aside from that they all seem to be fine). And even downloaded games like with Telltale have DX installations included.

Not sure about Steam or D2D or GamersGate and similar download platforms though.

[Blooglspash]

Originally Posted by Hassat Hunter

Not sure about Steam or D2D or GamersGate and similar download platforms though.

Steam automatically updates DirectX when you try to run a game that requires the latest version.

[Elvenmonk]

Originally Posted by Jake

I'm pretty sure many versions of DirectX can exist simultaneously on a Windows install, and it's required for some older games or games which desire to be compatible with older computers.

Some of the newer versions of DirectX change where libraries are and such, that sometimes older versions are needed, but very rarely. Sometimes some games just have a checker. If you don't have Direct X 8 installed you need to install 8, even though you have 9.c. I've encountered those too.

[taumel]

Originally Posted by SHODANFreeman

I'm surprised you are unfamiliar with DirectX, as it has been pretty much required for gaming on Windows PCs for almost 15 years.

I suspect hobbies like concentrating on the 20 best songs ever made doesn't leave you too much space for other aspects of life.

[doodo!]

It means you're computer is set to go BOOM!

[roberttitus]

Originally Posted by SHODANFreeman

I'm surprised you are unfamiliar with DirectX, as it has been pretty much required for gaming on Windows PCs for almost 15 years.

I very rarely play PC games... not to mention that my last PC died rougly 7 1/2 months ago, so I am stuggling to remember these things.

Originally Posted by taumel

I suspect hobbies like concentrating on the 20 best songs ever made doesn't leave you too much space for other aspects of life.

I'm not sure what this has to do with anything (especially in THIS thread)... but OK...

[Will]

DirectX has the weirdest setup of any program I know. Let's say that over the years, Microsoft as created the following:
DX9.a
DX9.b
DX9.c

DX10.a
DX10.b
DX10.c

DX11a
DX11b

Your shiny new laptop comes with DX11b. HORRAY! Naturally you assume that DX11 includes all of that previous crap. Instead, what is actually included on your computer is DX9a, DX10a, DX10b, and the DX11 stuff. Why they don't include the rest? I don't know. At any rate, many games are built with the stuff contained in, say, DX9c. So we either have to include that file with the game, or get people to run the DX updater, which installs all relevant versions of DirectX. The annoying thing is that so much of this stuff is entirely invisible to the user. All they see is DX11 which should obviously be better than DX9. Or else we would all need Win95 to run Win7.

Anyway, end rant!

[Hassat Hunter]

To make things MORE complicated each version has different changes too.

So one 9C may be different than the other 9C. I've had it with MS Game beta's where was explicitely told that we needed to install 9C even if we had it because of that.

[doodinthemood]

Never had any problems with DirectX, mind you, in my head I always see the install buttons like this:
"Do you want to check to see if you have the right DirectX components?
Yes, it will only take a couple of seconds to check
No, and risk DESTROYING YOUR COMPUTER FOREVER."

[Friar]

Interesting factoid: The Original Xbox was originally going to be called the "DirectXbox", however, they wanted to seperate it more from PC's, so shortened it.

[Avistew]

Originally Posted by Friar

Interesting factoid: The Original Xbox was originally going to be called the "DirectXbox", however, they wanted to seperate it more from PC's, so shortened it.

That sentence just made me realise that I've always pronounced the X in "DirectX" the French way, but the X in "XBox" the English way.
Weird.