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Posted 27 January 2013 - 06:14 PM
I've been wondering about whether or not I should use the Effects11.lib file for loading shaders using Directx11.0, or if I should just load the vertex and pixel shaders seperately using the built in d3dx11.h files without using techniques or passes. Which one is better? I know that Effects11.lib is deprecated, but do people still use it anyways? I figure that it would work just fine, but would a professional development team use it or not?
Edited by Solid_Spy, 27 January 2013 - 06:15 PM.
Posted 27 January 2013 - 07:57 PM
If you're going to be happy getting your project out the door on D3D11, then use whatever you like. If there's a reasonable chance you'll want to upgrade to D3D12 whenever that happens, in in which the deprecated Effects11.lib might be removed, consider moving away from it now. Other than that it doesn't really matter what others are doing, do what's best for you, there's no right or wrong to worry about.
If it were me I'd probably make the switch now, as it seems like the sort of decision that has non-trivial design consequences.
Posted 28 January 2013 - 12:23 AM
If you're going to be happy getting your project out the door on D3D11, then use whatever you like. If there's a reasonable chance you'll want to upgrade to D3D12 whenever that happens, in in which the deprecated Effects11.lib might be removed, consider moving away from it now. Other than that it doesn't really matter what others are doing, do what's best for you, there's no right or wrong to worry about.
If it were me I'd probably make the switch now, as it seems like the sort of decision that has non-trivial design consequences.
Thanks for the help :3 I've decided to stick with using the Effects11.lib library, as it seems to be easier to use, and you don't have to create a constant buffer.
Posted 28 January 2013 - 02:52 AM
Sounds fine.
Just an additional note though -- The effects framework is just a layer on top of the lower-level functionality for setting up the pipeline. It takes care of a lot of the details for you, so you gain convenience at some cost to flexibility and fine-grained control. Neither approach is hands-down better than the other, it just depends on your needs and preferences (setting aside the deprecation issue, that is). Anyhow, I suspect you have some idea of this, but I just wanted to clarify that the effects framework isn't something fundamentally different than all the other stuff, its just a nice software layer on top of the other stuff. You could write your own, work-alike effects framework if you were so inclined.
Posted 29 January 2013 - 01:29 PM
Oh, and also, I don't know how comparable it is to the entire technique thing, but DirectXTK (DirectX Tool Kit) provides a set of tools that are meant to kind of ease XNA programmers into C++ and modern (post 9.0c) DirectX and, among other things, provides Effects, texture loading, etc.
If you ever do become interested in switching over, that might offer a path of lesser resistance.
