NVSG, the NVIDIA Scene Graph, has just been updated with better tracking, occlusion culling, and an updated "VisSim" complete sample application.
URL: http://developer.nvidia.com/object/nvsg_home.html.
The NVIDIA Scene Graph Software Development Kit (NVSG SDK) is an object-oriented programming library for creating scene graph-based applications -- the NVSG is built from the ground up for modern computer systems, rather than as a hacked reqorking of 1980's workstation code. It supports CgFX, volume rendering, and is packaged with multiple usage samples.
Register for a Full Conference NVISION 2008 registration package (US$995) at
NVISION 08 before August 18, 2008 to receive a
complimentary
next-generation NVIDIA® Quadro® FX high-end professional graphics
board, valued at US$1999 MSRP -- and a 50% discount on our new NVIDIA Shader Debugger.
Click here for
all the details -- and yes: if you've previously registered at the early bird
discount, you've already won!
Curious about the NVISION Technical Program? Click here for a complete Technical Session Invitation in PDF format.
Attending Gamefest in Seattle? NVIDIA will be presenting the talks listed below, and co-exhibiting with Natural Motion Ltd. Visit both the NVIDIA PhysX team and Natural Motion in the Exhibitors Hall, or arrange to discuss privately
in Suite #310 (you can set up a meeting online, via the Gamefest web site).
Be sure to catch these NVIDIA conference presentations:
- Water-Tight, Textured, Displaced Subdivision Surface Tessellation Using Direct3D 11
Ignacio Castano, NVIDIA
- In this talk, we discuss using the Direct3D 11 pipeline to
tessellate displacement mapped subdivision surfaces. We cover
motivation for use of tessellation in games. We also discuss
various issues related to water-tight approximation of surfaces.
Finally, we cover content creation issues, tools, and model
quality.
- Graphics Performance and Authoring Tools for Direct3D 10
Daniel Horowitz and Jeff Kiel, NVIDIA
- In this fast-paced, one-hour talk, attendees learn all about
NVIDIA's latest debugging, performance analysis, and content
creation tools. It includes several recently-released products such
as PerfHUD 6, FX Composer 2.5, and the NVIDIA Shader Debugger. For
each product, key features for DirectX developers are demonstrated
with the goal of helping attendees to rapidly increase their
productivity.
Three new chapters from the "High Quality Rendering" section of GPU Gems 2 are now available online:
Along with the recent release of FX Composer 2.5 is a comprehensive update to the NVIDIA Shader Library. Almost every effect file has been updated and rewritten, and new shaders added.
Primary changes include:
- Support for DirectX 10's new Shader Model 4 and "technique10" format is provided for many HLSL effects.
- Vertex and pixel (fragment) functions have been re-written to explicitly pass "global" effect properties as formal parameters -- this makes it much simpler for developers to copy-and-paste shader code back and forth between the shader library and "real world" shaders in running games.
- Extra macros for support of DCC apps such as 3DSMax, XSI, and game 3D engines like Torque and OGRE have been provided to HLSL effects.
- Support has been added for object-space lighting -- a simple macro change is all that's required.
- Support for COLLADA shared-surface shadowing has been expanded.
- New shaders like "post_godrays" (pictured).
The July NVIDIA Developer Newsletter is now available -- click here if you haven't received your email copy, or click here for an overview of recent editions. Keep up on the latest NVIDIA events, software releases for graphics and physics, books, contests, and more.
Congratulations go out to John Ashley of SGI, winner in our June Newsletter monthly giveaway of a new NVIDIA Quadro FX 3700 professional graphics card.
Three new chapters from the "High Quality Rendering" section of GPU Gems 2 are now available online:
We are proud to announce the release of the NVIDIA Shader Debugger, a full-featured pixel shader debugger that allows shaders to be debugged just like CPU code.
The Shader Debugger offers:
- Cross-Language, Cross-API Support
- Microsoft DirectX 9 & 10 (HLSL)
- OpenGL (CgFX & COLLADA FX Cg)
- Debugger Run Control
- Single Step, Run to Cursor, Run to Bookmark
- Variable Inspection
- View Globals, Parameters, and Local Variables
- Technique, Pass, and Function selection
- Watch Expressions
- Visual Debugging
- Value Visualization (Map variables to colors)
- Conditional Pixel Kill
You can download a 30-day evaluation of the NVIDIA Shader Debugger here. A free license for non-commercial use is also available.
The NVIDIA Shader Debugger is the first product in
the NVIDIA Professional Developer Tools lineup. These are new tools
directed at professional developers who need more industrial-strength
capabilities and support. For example, the NVIDIA Shader Debugger will
run on leading GPUs from all vendors.
In addition to the free
versions available for non-commercial use, some of the new tools will
be subject to a license fee, but they will be priced to be accessible
to developers. Our existing free tools (such as FX Composer, PerfHUD,
Texture Tools, and our SDKs) will not be affected -- they will continue
to be available to all developers at no cost.
FX Composer 2.5, the latest version of NVIDIA's powerful shader development environment, has been released.
FX Composer supports DirectX, OpenGL, HLSL, Collada FX, and CgFX, as well as the .fbx, .x, .3ds, .obj, and .dae file formats for importing geometry.
Version 2.5 adds:
- DirectX 10 support, including geometry shaders and stream out
- Particle Systems
- Visual Styles
- Major User Interface Improvements
- Remote Control over TCP/IP
- Support for the NVIDIA Shader Debugger
- New Sample Projects
Download it now!
http://physxcomp.thegamecreators.com/ is the address you'll need to try your hand at the Game Creators/PhysX demo competition. Software and assets are provided free and prizes are to be supplied by ASUS and EVGA.
The new competetion is really two contests in one: both a challenge to create new demos for specific features of the NVIDIA PhysX toolkit running within The Game Creator's Dark Physics software, and also a challenge to create an "Über demo" with the simple criterion: knock our socks off!
Initial deadline for entry is July 20th, 2008 -- with a closing deadline for finished demos: August 31st. See here for all the details, and here for downloadable software (including a complete Dark Physics package) and freely-available media files that you may use (or not) to build your winning demo!
Video: A Quick Dark Physics How-To
