Software rendering
Software rendering describes image synthesis without specialized hardware, i.e. H. only by the CPU without the support of a graphics card or similar. The graphics card forwards the data calculated by the CPU to the monitor without being involved.
Software rendering was primarily used before the widespread use of graphics cards in home computers for games, and is still available as an option in some 3D applications to this day for users who have a graphics card without 3D acceleration or without the required drivers.
However, there are also situations in which it can make sense to consciously avoid using the graphics card, for example if you want a picture that looks the same regardless of the hardware, in which the graphics card cannot cause deviating images due to display inaccuracy due to manufacturer-dependent instruction interpretation. Therefore, software rendering is sometimes used to generate reference images.
These advantages are paid for by the often slow, stuttering display, since the CPU is not specialized in graphics. Therefore, when using software rendering in games, the smallest possible level of detail is used so that the software rendering can still deliver a reasonably acceptable frame rate .
Individual evidence
- ^ A b Allen Sherrod: Game Graphic Programming . Cengage Learning, 2008, ISBN 978-1-58450-615-7 , pp. 116 ( limited preview in Google Book search).