- DirectX 9.0c includes support for Pixel Shader and Vertex Shader 3.0, along with many new features across all technologies, which can be accessed by applications using the DirectX 9.0 APIs. This download provides the DirectX 9.0c end-user redistributable that.
- Free 3d shader model 3.0 download software at UpdateStar - Intel X3000 Chipset incorporates key features available in previous Intel Graphics versions like Dynamic Video Memory Technology (DVMT) as well as hardware acceleration for 3D graphics that utilize Microsoft DirectX. 9.0C and OpenGL. 1.5X.
- 'DirectX 9.0 Shader Model 3.0' is the version of the pixel/vertex shader program that comes with your video card. So no, they are not the same thing.
The only GPU in its class with support for Microsoft ® DirectX ® 9.0 Shader Model 3.0 and with support for PCI Express, the GV-NX66128DP-SI delivers ultra-realistic effects, unmatched features, and rock-solid stability so you can play your game the way it's meant to be played.
ATI is banking on new texture map compression technology to drive demand for its Radeon X800 graphics chips - aka R420 - rather than support for the DirectX 9.0 API's most up-to-date shader systems.
And, as anticipated, the Radeon X800 Pro, which ATI launched today, does not support DirectX 9's Pixel Shader 3.0 - unlike its rival, the GeForce 6800, unveiled by Nvidia last month.
Instead, ATI believes that its 3Dc technology will prove of more use to games developers and games players alike.
The new code allows games developers to compress 'normal maps' by a factor of four to one. Normal maps are used to apply a high level of detail to 3D characters, allowing developers to produce visually complex entities without the need to construct them out of large, processor-unfriendly and memory-consuming numbers of polygons.
Directx 9.0 Shader Model 3.0 Download
Normal maps are increasingly being harnessed by games developers - the likes of Doom 3 and Half Life 2 make extensive use of the technology - but memory limitations remain. ATI believes that 3Dc will allow coders to exploit normal map technology to the full.
Serious Sam 2 with 3Dc enabled (left) and disabled (right)
That, the company claims, will be far more value to developers than version three shaders, which provide no visual enhancements over version two and so far only promise a performance gain over their predecessors.
Shader Model 3.0 Windows 10
Unlike ATI, Nvidia has put version three shaders at the heart of its next-generation chip, NV40, the basis for the GeForce 6800 and 6800 Ultra. Games that support Pixel and Vertex Shader 3.0 are a long way off - far enough, ATI hopes, for it to focus on enhancing the performance of Pixel and Vertex Shader 2.0.
ATI claims X800 chips process pixels faster than the GeForce 6800 series, particularly as pixel shader routines become more complex. That leaves Nvidia relying heavily on whatever performance gains Shader 3.0 can yield, and that is unproven, ATI European developer relations chief Richard Huddy told The Register.
And it's likely to remain unproven for some time, if what games developers tell him is anything to go by. His personal hunch is that games developers will not go beyond Shader 2.0 technology until Shader 4.0 arrives with the next major Windows revision, 'Longhorn', and that may not happen until 2006.
That still leaves Nvidia with an advantage: NV40 is future proof, and it coffers are large enough to encompass enticements to persuade games developers to support Shader 3.0. The visual benefits may be limited, but there is value in being able to say you're at the forefront of games technology.
Even if that happens, ATI is assuming it has still time within its on-going launch schedule to offer a Shader 3.0 supporting GPU - and it will have had a longer time than Nvidia has to perfect it. ®
Related stories
ATI launches R420
ATI 'drops pixel, vertex shader 3.0 support' from R420
ATI R420 slips from April to May
ATI 'to ship R420 as Radeon X800'
ATI targets Nvidia's 60% desktop chip share
Shader Models are components used to help render graphics sent from the CPU to the graphic card. The version of shader model your computer can support is based in the combination between your DirectX version and the version your graphics card can support.
It is important to always have your DirectX updated to the latest version you can do so by clicking here: Download DirectX
Please note DirectX versions prior to DirectX 8.0 do not support shader models
• DirectX 8.0 - Shader Model 1.0 & 1.1
• DirectX 8.0a - Shader Model 1.3
• DirectX 8.1 - Shader Model 1.4
• DirectX 9.0 - Shader Model 2.0
• DirectX 9.0a - Shader Model 2.0a
• DirectX 9.0b - Shader Model 2.0b
• DirectX 9.0c - Shader Model 3.0
• DirectX 10.0* - Shader Model 4.0
• DirectX 10.1* - Shader Model 4.1
• DirectX 11.0* - Shader Model 5.0
*DirectX 10.0 and higher will not run in Windows XP
Please remember that your version of Shader Model doesn't just rely on DirectX, but also the hardware version of your graphics card. So if your graphics card only supports up to version 2.0, and you have DirectX 10.0 installed. You can still only play games that support up to Shader Model 2.0
The best way to tell which version of Shader Model is supported on your graphics card is to visit the manufacturer's website and inspect the specifications of your card. If you still have to box the card came in, it may also say on the back of the box.
Bounty Hounds Online has a minimum requirement of Shader Model 3.0, so if you do not meet that requirement you will get the error message 'ERROR: Does not support Shadel Model 3.0'.
If you are getting this error, then please update your DirectX, if you have the latest version of DirectX then unfortunately you do not meet the minimum requirements to play Bounty Hounds Online.