Why DX9 and Windowed mode

[Mhurron]

It's a silly question, not really important when you think about it, but I was wondering what prompted the decision to update the engine to DirectX 9 and adding an official Windowed Mode, and why now?

[Raydeus]

Re: Why DX9 and Windowed mode

Noooo, you didn't add the question mark! You are doomed.


And I think their answer after all the official stuff will be:

"Because we felt like it. w"

=P

[ItazuraNhomango]

Re: Why DX9 and Windowed mode

The answer to why of adding Windowed mode is fairly obvious; NA players on PC have been demanding it forever, and many are using the Windower to get this feature.

The DX9 question is very interesting, though; I'd really like to know why as well.

[Feba]

Re: Why DX9 and Windowed mode

Ita, the "What prompted" is the important bit here. It's a nice way of saying "thanks for finally getting off your asses, but why now instead of three freaking years ago?"

And this is actually an interesting question, despite how simple it is.

[Mhurron]

Re: Why DX9 and Windowed mode

The answer to why of adding Windowed mode is fairly obvious; NA players on PC have been demanding it forever, and many are using the Windower to get this feature.

Thats true. The reason it popped into my head was the "why now" After 5 years and 3 expansions they get around to adding it.

The DX9 question is very interesting, though; I'd really like to know why as well.

I also should have added if this means they are dropping support for older DX8 cards.

[Shadowneko]

Re: Why DX9 and Windowed mode

It's probabaly to keep up with vista since it's not very backwards compatable friendly...

[Mhurron]

Re: Why DX9 and Windowed mode

It's probabaly to keep up with vista since it's not very backwards compatable friendly...

Actually, other then the same nVidia problems that XP has, FFXI runs just fine on Vista the way it is.

Incidentally, I believe that it is the nVidia driver problems that were a big reason for the DX9 update.

[Jarre]

Re: Why DX9 and Windowed mode

Would the DX9 patch sort out alot of problems had with some of the later graphics cards that many threads on this forum complained about? if so then its a great dea, especially as people will be using the new DX10 cards in systems, the abckwards compatibility of those can only go so far..

[Ellipses]

Re: Why DX9 and Windowed mode

Pikko: The Allakhazam community was very happy to hear about an official windower. Are you involved in its development and do you have any word on its progress?

Tanaka-san: Up until now the problem has been that the graphics parts of it have been published in DirectX 8 but now that we’ve been able to upgrade it to DirectX 9, which is what we are doing right now, this will become available for all of the cards. We hope to have it in by the release of Wings of the Goddess. We think it will be ready.

So, ostensibly DX9 support is being added because of windowed mode.

[Feba]

Re: Why DX9 and Windowed mode

I doubt that, it's obviously possible to create windowed DX8 applications.

[Ellipses]

Re: Why DX9 and Windowed mode

Yeah, thus "ostensibly." Just a question of whether they'd give out any other reason if that's the official party line.

[Mhurron]

Re: Why DX9 and Windowed mode

I doubt that, it's obviously possible to create windowed DX8 applications.

Obviously it's generally possible, but this is asking about FFXI specifically. It's possible that if the decision to add windowed mode came first, then when they sat down to do make the engine modifications that they realized or decided the quicker way was to clean up and modify the engine to a point where it was designed with windowing in mind.

On the other hand, the decision to upgrade the engine could have come first as a response to the growing problems on modern nVidia cards, and they just decided to add windowing mode while they were fixing the engine anyway.

Would the DX9 patch sort out alot of problems had with some of the later graphics cards that many threads on this forum complained about?

Yes it should.

[Raydeus]

Re: Why DX9 and Windowed mode

I'm more interested in Exactly when? than in Why?

But it would be fun seeing them coming up with an answer to this. :P

[Mhurron]

Re: Why DX9 and Windowed mode

I'm more interested in Exactly when? than in Why?

When it was let out that they were, they already said they were hoping to have it out with Wings.

[Feba]

Re: Why DX9 and Windowed mode

Mhurron: obviously, they could've just used a method similar to the Windower to make FFXI windowed if they wanted to. I agree that it's far more likely they did it for compatibility though.