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The GDC Video On Approaching Zero Driver Overhead in OpenGL Is Now Up

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We mentioned before about a couple big names talking up OpenGL and how to unlock many times performance gains with it, the GDC video is now up in the vault for all to see.

You can find the video here.

With AMD attempting to push their Mantle API which still isn't confirmed to be on Linux, but is being considered OpenGL is important for us and developers to push it.

A lot of developers are still starting their projects with Directx rather than OpenGL and we need to politely reach out to these developers about the advantages of OpenGL.

Sadly the reason developers go for Directx is still because of all the FUD Microsoft spread multiple years ago about the future of OpenGL and how Directx was the better option. Not only that, but of course Windows still has the majority of desktop users, but times are changing.

The advantages of OpenGL are probably widely known by some of you, but for those not so clued up here are just a few:
  • OpenGL is cross-platform, you set yourself up for ports to other operating systems and consoles
  • OpenGL is better for the future, since it's a non-profit open standard
  • Directx is closed off from input, graphics card manufacturers and developers can get involved in future OpenGL versions


It's a fight I fear we will never really win though, not at least until we have a much, much bigger market-share. Things are of course improving with the massive AAA-class game engines like Unreal Engine & CryEngine supporting OpenGL and Linux.

Here's a good article from Wolfire Games on it all. Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
Tags: Editorial
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I am the owner of GamingOnLinux. After discovering Linux back in the days of Mandrake in 2003, I constantly came back to check on the progress of Linux until Ubuntu appeared on the scene and it helped me to really love it. You can reach me easily by emailing GamingOnLinux directly. Find me on Mastodon.
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Anonymous Apr 25, 2014
Quoting: Half-Shot
Quoting: JasonThis isn't true. The OpenGL 3.x/4.x path on OSX is core profile only (no compatibility profile).
Metro only included a 3.x path only Linux and OSX, they decided not to put two in. It was hardly 'shoddy'. Strictly a business/time/money decision.
But why did they lower standards on Linux to save time. And actually how much business/time/money does it save once you are on OpenGL. I'm not expert, but it couldn't take THAT long to include some OpenGL 4 features. It's not an easy job to port DX to GL, but once your there, why stop short.

It's probably to stop the OSX users whining that Linux got a better port than them which is evil, bad and should never be done.

TL;DR : Any port that lowers its standards to meet another system despite not acutally needing to IS 'shoddy'. There is enough games to line my walls which were ported from consoles and look crap on PC just because the developers wanted a quick cash in.

By the time the Linux port came out, they could have updated the game for 4.x on OSX as well... Nothing about 'whining users'... It's simply a money/time thing. They already had one backend, they didn't want to write another.
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