I’m a software engineer, TTRPG nerd, open-source tinkerer, and occasional writer. This is where I share what I’m building, learning, and thinking about (since 2006, for better or worse).
OpenGL 3.0: Finally some news!
After waiting for a long time an update has been issued about the OpenGL 3.0 specification. While this is an update, there is still no specification but the promise that the OpenGL ARB is working hard on the spec is below.
You understandably want to know where the OpenGL 3 specification is. I have good news and some bad news. First the bad news. Obviously, the specification isn’t out yet. The OpenGL ARB found, after careful review, some unresolved issues that we want addressed before we feel comfortable releasing a specification. The good news is that we’ve greatly improved the specification since Siggraph 2007, added some functionality, and flushed out a whole lot of details. None of these issues we found are of earth-shocking nature, but we did want them discussed and resolved to make absolutely sure we are on the right path, and we are. Rest assured we are working as hard as we can on getting the specification done. The ARB meets 5 times a week, and has done so for the last two months, to get this out to you as soon as possible. Getting a solid specification put together will also help us with the follow-ons to OpenGL 3: OpenGL Longs Peak Reloaded and Mount Evans. We don’t want to spend time fixing mistakes made in haste.
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A retrospective view of a 1996 Steve Jobs interview
I know it’s easy to sit back and criticize what someone said 11 years ago. That’s why I won’t criticize Steve Jobs for what he said, rather, I’d like to show the difference of what the prediction was and what the reality is at the moment - regardless of who said it.
On a side note: It doesn’t matter if you like Apple, Steve Jobs or any of the associated parties, Jobs is an incredible innovator and one of the great digital-minds of the 20th (and turns out 21st) century. In all honesty, I personally do not “like” Apple’s machines and Operating System but that doesn’t mean that I don’t like the innovation that they have brought about in the field of computing and computer software - it is simply mind boggling when you research it.
Read all 785 wordsRe: Microsoft Open Source
Matthew Mullenweg at Photomatt.net “predicts” that:
Microsoft will Open Source Windows before 2017.
While I usually like Matt’s posts — I get them through the Wordpress control panel — I think that he might be a bit off this time. The Windows kernel is still under constant development and was derived from the DOS base architecture first founded in 1981.
This means that DOS is now 26 years old, almost 27.
Read all 270 wordsNVSG: NVIDIA Scene Graph SDK 4.0
An update to NVIDIA’s powerful NVSG toolset has been released for usage with C++. The library takes advantage of OpenGL functionality and GPU optimizations to allow next-gen features to be displayed.
Atom: a gem in the making
Timothy Farrar over at FarrarFocus.com is creating a unique game called Atom. The reason why I call it unique is that unlike many games out there the content for Atom is 100% dynamic which means that (for example) everything can be set in motion. Here’s a quote from Timothy’s post on GameDev.net:
Atom started with the idea to go back to PC gaming’s roots (low risk investment, experimenting with technology, fun timeless gameplay, taking a wild idea from concept to market), while taking advantage of the power of modern hardware.
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The State of DirectX 10
Quite recently I released a small article discussing if you (as a developer) should upgrade to Vista to take advantage of DirectX 10 functionality only available in Windows Vista. Quite simply the answer was “yes” in my article. As a developer you should always take advantage of new technologies, specially if that technology will replace an existing technology.
HotHardware.com has released an article more aimed towards the end-user than the developer which discusses the State of DirectX 10. In this article both performance and image quality are evaluated to give a fair estimation.
Read all 106 wordsid Software: John Carmack's Response to OpenGL issue
Recently I’ve created a post about how id Software will no longer use OpenGL as their primary graphics API for game development. Here’s John Carmack’s response to the rumors:
There is certainly no plans for a commercially supported linux version of Rage, but there will very likely be a linux executable made available. It isn’t running at the moment, but we have had it compiled in the past. Running on additional platforms usually provides some code quality advantages, and it really only takes one interested programmer to make it happen.
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idTech 5, Rage, and more in 3 Videos
Somehow I keep getting back on this topic. Maybe it’s because of the excitement that was involved with the features promised by the idTech 5 engine as presented in the earlier QuakeCon demo.
Today was one of those exciting days for me. I just finished watching a two part video commentary on the development aspect of idTech 5 that was posted on GameSpy. A third video is an interview with John Carmack on the changes that will be occurring within id Software and other issues. The two commentary videos feature commentaries by John Carmack and Matt Hooper from id Software.
Read all 331 wordsMicrosoft Direct3D 10.1 Presentations at Siggraph 2007
Below follows a link to all of Microsoft’s Siggraph 2007 presentations in one ZIP file.
Way Off Topic: Internet Taxes, November 1st 2007
If you’re an American citizen or resident and you’re not aware of this issue, keep reading. Otherwise, take action. Links follow.
The Internet is the “Information Highway.” It provides unlimited information, a myriad of free resources and some commercial resources. Due to an expiration of the “Internet Tax Freedom Act of 1998” we might be hitting some toll-plazas along our routes. If you do not feel comfortable paying taxes for free information, sign up at DontTaxOurWeb.org to take some action. If you want to do more, write your senator, but do it promptly. We’re almost at November 1st.
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