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Last Updated:
06
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22
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2004
Developer Newsletter: Issue #19
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DEVELOPER RESOURCES |
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Shader Triathlon at ShaderTech.com
Inspired by the summer Olympics taking place this year, ShaderTech.com is hosting a shader contest this summer with three categories: Materials & Environmental Effects, Image Processing & NPR Effects, and Thinking Outside the Box.
With over $20,000 worth of prizes available, the Shader Triathlon is a great way to show off your shader skills. Participants can win gold, silver, and bronze prizes for each category, as well as the grand prize: 3ds max, RT/Shader, and a GDC 2005 Gigapass! In addition, all entrants will be entered into a random drawing for the following prizes: 3ds max, RT/Shader, and GPU Gems books.
The Shader Triathlon is sponsored by NVIDIA, discreet, RTzen, and the Game Developers Conference 2005.
   
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Individual SDK Samples Now Available
Individually packaged samples and effects are now available on our Web site. This feature is particularly useful for those with lower-bandwidth Internet connections, since it gives access to specific examples without requiring our entire SDK to be downloaded. In each release of our SDK you'll find hundreds of code samples, effects, and tools to help you take advantage of the latest in graphics technology.
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New NVIDIA Developer Web Site Launched
 We have recently completed a full redesign of the NVIDIA Developer Site, making it easier to find the documentation, tools, developer events, and other resources you need to get the most from your GPU. The navigation bar on the left side of the page is now available on all pages, and the simplified set of categories will help you quickly access the information on our site. If you don't find what you need within a few clicks, try using our integrated Google search engine at the top of the page.
If you still can't find the information you need or would like to share suggestions for additional improvements, please contact us at devrelfeedback@nvidia.com.
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Making of the Nalu and Clear Sailing GeForce 6800 Demos
 If you're interested to learn how the NVIDIA Demo Team created the Nalu and Clear Sailing GeForce 6800 Launch Demos, nZone has write-ups for each demo, including interviews with both programmers and artists from the NVIDIA Demo Team. The write-ups explain how the demos were produced, including conception, developing the required techniques, integrating artistic input, and achieving realism.
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Become a Registered Developer Today
Joining our Registered Developer program is free and gives you access to a number of benefits:
- Developer Forums
- Prerelease Tools
- Prerelease Drivers
- Bug Reporting
- Board Store Access
Joining is easy! Simply fill out one of applications below:
Please note that it may take a few weeks to receive a decision on your application, due to the large number of applicants.
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GPGPU Feature: The ACM GP2 Workshop
The ACM Workshop on General Purpose Computing on Graphics Processors ("GP2") will be held the Saturday and Sunday before SIGGRAPH 2004 at the SIGGRAPH headquarters hotel. GP2 will explore current issues in general-purpose computing using graphics hardware, including:
- Do GPUs have the potential to be a useful co-processor for a wide variety of applications? What are their algorithmic and architectural niches and can these be broadened?
- What are the major issues in terms of programmability, language and compiler support and software environments for GPUs?
- What are some of the future technology trends that can lead to more widespread use of GPUs?
This workshop will bring together leading researchers and practitioners from academia, research labs and industry working in computer graphics, scientific computation, high performance computing, computer architecture and related areas. The program will consist of invited talks, panels and poster presentations. GP2 is sponsored in part by NVIDIA. For more information, including registration details and the workshop program, please go to http://www.cs.unc.edu/GP2.
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EVENTS |
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Meltdown 2004 in July (Seattle, WA, USA)
Meltdown 2004 is two intense days for gaming industry experts to test your limits. Go one-on-one with leading hardware developers. Learn the latest news about gaming's hottest advances. Get straight-up answers to your toughest questions.
Because there is more at Meltdown than any one person can absorb, most companies will want to send everyone who wants to learn how to get the most from Microsoft® Windows® XP and DirectX, as well as prepare for the next generation software development platform for gaming: XNA.
This event isn't just for game developers anymore. Meltdown 2004 provides content for nearly everyone in the gaming business, with tracks covering graphics development, publishing/business development, Quality Assurance, game testing, and of course, a track for hardcore game programmers.
Make sure you stop by the NVIDIA suites! Test your builds on the latest NVIDIA hardware and discuss cutting-edge technologies with our developer technology engineers. Get hands-on instruction with our performance tool suite, including NVPerfHUD 2.0.
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NVIDIA U in August (Los Angeles, CA, USA)
Established by NVIDIA Corporation, NVIDIA U (short for "NVIDIA University") is a conference developed to promote the advancement of graphics technology through industry and academic collaboration. In 2001 the inaugural NVIDIA U was held in Austin, Texas with representatives from 12 universities worldwide. 2003 brought NVIDIA U San Diego with more than 60 university and industry affiliates represented.
NVIDIA U 2004 has again reinvented itself, and will be a highly focused, one day event on August 6, 2004 at the Los Angeles Marriott Downtown hotel. Conveniently held in Los Angeles one day before GP2 and two days prior to SIGGRAPH 2004, it is sure to sizzle with presentations targeting current and future NVIDIA technology.
NVIDIA U is an NDA only conference that provides the ideal forum for leaders in the graphics world to collaborate and share ideas and research in graphics technology. We look forward to seeing you at NVIDIA U 2004, and working together to power next generation research.
Apply here to attend NVIDIA U 2004. Applications will be accepted through July 1st. Space is limited, so be sure to submit your application early!
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Microsoft HLSL Hands-on Workshops at SIGGRAPH 2004
Microsoft will be presenting both Introductory and Advanced High-Level Shader Language (HLSL) Workshops at SIGGRAPH 2004. The Introductory workshop introduced real-time shader programming with the Microsoft DirectX 9.0 HLSL. Attendees learn how to harness the power of the latest GPU technology through a language as familiar as C while using a powerful shader IDE. Developers learn how to integrate shaders with their applications and create new effects that are only possible with HLSL. The workshop is intended for experienced graphics programmers familiar with fundamental 3D graphics techniques, including simple matrix math.
In the Advanced workshop, attendees develop a variety of next-generation advanced shader effects, focusing on practical, high-quality techniques that can easily be integrated with attendees' ongoing and future projects to help set them apart from the pack. Topics include High Dynamic Range (HDR) and Pre-Computed Radiance Transfer (PRT) lighting techniques as well as implementation specifics such as usages of floating-point filtering, and floating-point blending. The workshop also includes strategies for writing high-performance shaders, as well as an overview of potential applications in graphics and general-purpose scenarios. The advanced session is for experienced coders who are already conversant with writing shaders and want to take their knowledge to a higher level.
The workshops will be taught by the experts from Microsoft who actually developed HLSL. All machines used for the labs are the latest AMD64-based computers with NVIDIA’s latest GPUs.
Register now by e-mailing HLSL@microsoft.com. Make sure to specify your preferred and alternate choice of sessions and times. For more information, please see our "NVIDIA at SIGGRAPH 2004" web page.
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NVIDIA Sessions at SIGGRAPH 2004
We will be presenting a number of sessions throughout SIGGRAPH 2004, with content tailored specifically for the SIGGRAPH audience. The session titles are listed below. For descriptions, times, and locations, please see our "NVIDIA at SIGGRAPH 2004" web page.
- Shader Model 3.0 Unleashed
- Transforming Production Workflows with the GPU
- GPU Performance Tools and Analysis Techniques
- Image Processing with the GPU
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PRODUCTS |
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NVIDIA Introduces MXM: Mobile PCI Express Module
 Unlike desktop PCs, that have consistent designs and easily upgradeable parts, notebooks are subject to restrictive size and thermal constraints, leading to multiple customized designs. In order to implement a new generation of graphics technology in their notebooks, manufacturers have to do extensive redesigns, resulting in the slow adoption of the latest graphics technology.
NVIDIA recognizes the explosive growth of the notebook PC market, and the value that consumers place on portable systems that offer uncompromised features and performance, and deliver the latest graphics technology. The transition to the PCI Express graphics specification presents the ideal opportunity to introduce a consistent interface for any GPU from any vendor to instantly connect to any mobile system.
MXM (Mobile PCI Express Module), the result of a joint design effort between NVIDIA and the industry’s leading notebook manufacturers, provides a consistent interface for mobile PCI Express graphics in order to achieve:
- Faster time to market for the latest notebook graphics
- Multiple system configurations and price points from a single system design
- Compatibility for any graphics solution from any vendor
- Configure-to-order upgradeable graphics through notebook manufacturers, or potentially by consumers
With these goals in mind NVIDIA has worked with these leading notebook manufacturers to create MXM—a consistent graphics interface designed for notebook PC systems.
Learn more on our MXM page.
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NVIDIA and PCI Express
NVIDIA is working hand-in-hand with Intel's workstation, desktop, and mobile engineering teams to help define, develop, and deploy PCI Express solutions. The graphics processing unit (GPU) has the largest bandwidth appetite of all PC subsystems, and from the start NVIDIA has been a key contributor to the PCI Express architecture, as both a developer and supporter.
Learn more about Intel's collaboration with NVIDIA on PCI Express in video form, or read about it on our web site.
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Take Advantage of Special Pricing for NVIDIA Quadro Products
PNY Technologies and NVIDIA are teaming up to give you the power of NVIDIA Quadro at special pricing!
The NVIDIA Quadro FX series of professional solutions delivers the fastest application performance and the highest quality workstation graphics. NVIDIA Quadro FX takes the leading digital content creation (DCC) applications for game development to a new level of interactivity by enabling unprecedented capabilities in programmability and precision.
Go to http://www.pny.com/products/quadro/gamedev for more information on this incredible deal.
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Tip of the Month: How to Properly Check for Non-Power-of-Two Texture Support in Direct3D
Because the GeForce 6 Series architecture unconditionally supports non-power-of-two (NP2) textures, the D3DTEXTURECAPS_NONPOW2CONDITIONAL caps-bit (which indicates "conditional" textures that only support CLAMP addressing and don't support mipmaps or compressed textures) is NOT exposed. Thus, applications querying for NP2 support must take care to detect both conditional NP2-support for pre-GeForce 6 architectures, as well as unconditional NP2-support, as provided by the GeForce 6 architecture.
Instead of simply testing for D3DTEXTURECAPS_NONPOW2CONDITIONAL, i.e.,
// Incorrect test for any kind of NP2 support:
if ((pCaps->TextureCaps &
D3DPTEXTURECAPS_NONPOW2CONDITIONAL) == 0)
{
MessageBox(NULL,"Device does not support NP2 textures!",
"ERROR",MB_OK|MB_SETFOREGROUND|MB_TOPMOST);
return E_FAIL;
}
an application must test for conditional, as well as unconditional NP2 support; the D3DPTEXTURECAPS_POW2 caps-bit indicates general NP2 texture-support, i.e.,
// Correct test for any kind of NP2 support:
// If both unconditional and conditional support is
// unavailable then fail.
if ( ((pCaps->TextureCaps & D3DPTEXTURECAPS_POW2) != 0) &&
((pCaps->TextureCaps &
D3DPTEXTURECAPS_NONPOW2CONDITIONAL) == 0))
{
MessageBox(NULL, "Device does not support NP2 textures!",
"ERROR", MB_OK|MB_SETFOREGROUND|MB_TOPMOST);
return E_FAIL;
}
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Popular Pages and Downloads
The most popular pages and downloads over the past few weeks have been:
- GDC 2004 Presentations. This page lists all the content we gave at GDC 2004, including video clips of our sponsored sessions.
- NVSDK 7.0. A suite of cutting edge content creation, code integration, performance analysis and educational resources to help you take advantage of NVIDIA GPUs using DirectX and OpenGL.
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Job Openings
NVIDIA's Developer Technology group is always looking for talented engineers and artists in the US, Japan, and Europe. See http://talent.nvidia.com for more general info, or our specific openings for: Lead Artist, Developer Technology Engineer (Japan).
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