Chapter20.The Programmable Pipeline

Chapter 20. The Programmable Pipeline

Everything you've done until this point in this book has focused on using what is called the fixed-function pipeline. The name comes from the fact that the functionality in the pipeline is fixed and cannot be changed aside from some minor tweaks to certain variables. Back in the early days of 3D programming, it was perfectly adequate for the vast majority of applications; however, today it is not.

What you will focus on in this chapter is understanding the programmable pipeline and the High-Level Shader Language (HLSL).

In this chapter, you'll learn

• About the programmable pipeline

• How to use HLSL

• How to transform vertices

• How to use a pixel shader