   Getting Down to the Basics...
  Hello,I am an aspiring game developer.  I am familliar with general progamming concepts.  I am proficient in Visual C++.  However, I am new to the graphics/gaming world. what exactly does opengl offer interms of grpahical capabilities?is it used primarily to produce 3d models from scratch similar to 3dsmax and other 3d modeling software?how does it compare with Direct X?how is sound handled in pc games?thanks for the help...[edited by - tacticalgamer on February 2, 2004 9:54:23 PM]
  opengl and directx do not "produce" graphical models like 3dstudio max. opengl and directx are API''s used to talk to the hardware,(a set of .libs, .dll''s, and .h files basicly) they are the way of using both hardware and software methods of drawing images, polygons, triangles, etc to the screen. unlike most here would say, directx9 and the latest build of opengl are about on par with each other, directx might be a little faster with some cards, opengl faster with others.sound can be handled in thousands of different ways, two common ones are using the fmod library and directsound(part of directx sdk), i recommend fmod, google for it if you want to try it out.   ___________________-Nicholas Anton-raptor85.siigna.net;  thanks for the reply raptor.. i appriciate your help...how are maps made? via opengl/directx?thanks ;  OpenGL/DirectX are not used to create content, merely to display it. Think of them as a highly abstract layer for video card drivers. You still use other software (such as 3D Studio Max) to design your models, and I believe maps are usually created with custom map makers. ;  Ok, so when the term API is used to describe opengl/directx, does it mean that the developer works primarily in these environments rather than using visual C++ and other such windows programming languages?  I am refering to general programming such as particle physics, console interactions, menus ect ect..thanks ;quote:Original post by TacticalGamer  Ok, so when the term API is used to describe opengl/directx, does it mean that the developer works primarily in these environments rather than using visual C++ and other such windows programming languages?  I am refering to general programming such as particle physics, console interactions, menus ect ect..You have an interesting predicament: terminology over-exposure.API means Application Programming Interface. Digest that for a second. An API is a set of functions - in a given programming language - that invoke certain behavior within a library, whether that is a system library (such as Windows'' Win32) or a third-party vendor library (such as the device driver and/or OpenGL implementation supplied by your graphics card''s vendor). The term''s meaning is always the same, regardless of what product it refers to.Particle physics is an abstract notion, as are console interactions and menus. You make them concrete in various ways through implementation in your software (particle physics, for instance, means that you have a software model that considers phyiscal objects as particles possessing acceleration, mass, velocity and so forth and attempts to faithfully reproduce the interactions they would have in the real world - or in the world you are presenting in your game software).Forget everything you ever read on the side panel of a game''s box. Forget every highfaluting concept that has passed into common modern gamer parlance. Start from the beginning: a pixel, a triangle.Good luck! ;  OpenGL and DirectX aren''t environments, they''re just API:s. You just use them do render a bunch of polygons to the screen. They are you''re way of communicating with the graphics card. It sounds like you''re confusing the meaning of API with something else. What is it you want to do? If you write some lines for what you want to do we can tell you where to use a certain API and where to create your own stuff./Q ;  Wonderful things are making much more sense now...Regarding my goals, I wish to make 3D first/third-person/squad-based/singleplayer games. I would like to emulate the graphics produced in such games as Medal of Honor Allied Assault. By the way, is it normal practice for development teams to use a a modified SDK for the production of maps or do they build their own from scratch? Finally, can someone please clarify the term "game engine"?I have heard of such "engines" as Quake, but i am not certian as to its functional aspects nor its comparison to other "engines".thank you all for you input...    [edited by - tacticalgamer on February 2, 2004 10:20:58 PM];quote:Original post by Oluseyi    Good luck!   OK this is starting to get at me. Why tell some one what they need to do (or in this case what something is) and then at the very end wish them good look as if to say, "you have 1 in 1,000,000 chance of succeeding LOSER! HAHAHAHA!" Why not just leave out the discouraging comments before he even gets started and let him make up his mind on whether or not he'll need luck. Game development can be hard at times—but it’s not brain surgery! There are so many tutorials, books, help, free resources, and other great stuff that makes GD more fun then pain.Here is what my definition of an API is:An Application Programming Interface is a way to program applications easier than by doing it all by yourself much like how you use a steering wheel to turn the car’s wheels instead of moving the tires with your bare hands.OK back to my framework now.  [edited by - DIRECTXMEN on February 2, 2004 10:44:04 PM];quote:Original post by TacticalGamer   Finally, can someone please clarify the term "game engine"?A game engine deals with graphics programming. It will usually deal with rendering to the screen and the animation of objects.Good...wait must stop...(I know) have fun!  "Do not flame people you don't know in a public forum. Only amateurs do that. Professionals in the industry know they will run into each other over and over. The person you flame this year may the person you want to do business with next year. Don't burn your bridges," (Diana Gruber, http://www.makegames.com/chapt6.html)  .   [edited by - DIRECTXMEN on February 2, 2004 10:47:17 PM]