| Direct3D
Microsoft's Direct3D is part of the larger DirectX standard that takes
away one of the great burdens of 3D software development: addressing
display hardware efficiently. Direct3D is a type of API called a hardware
abstraction layer that stands between the application and the hardware
that will display it. The developers of the software (usually a game)
write instructions to Direct3D, which then translates them to the graphics
card. To take advantage of the API, therefore, both the application and
the graphics card must support Direct3D. |