Messages in this thread |  | | From | lilo <> | Date | Thu, 6 Jun 1996 07:13:19 -0500 (CDT) | Subject | Re: Games (was Re: SVGA kernel chipset drivers) |
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I'm going to make one more comment on this, though IMO it (or my contribution anyway) has gotten pretty far afield, so anyone who wants to reply to me specifically is invited to do so via email. Anyone who wants to make one of the more typical remarks, i.e., snide, is invited to reply to my address at /dev/null.... ;)
I reiterate my belief that what is good for graphics programmers is good for graphics users. Why? Several reasons.
(1) Graphics programmers ARE ultimately graphics users. A programmer who isn't willing to use the finished product in this area has less vested interest in producing good product.
(2) A good programming interface makes programming graphics easier, and hence is likely to produce more programs, of which some percentage will be coded well, useful and hence worth using. If the percentage of programs which are good out of the lot remains approximately fixed, more programs means more application programs which are worth using. I see no positive correlation between a good programming interface and bad coding technique or lack of usefulness of the finished product, and anyone who believes they do is free to comment.
(3) An efficient, reliable implementation of graphics at the operating system level means graphics work well. This is good for programmers in that it means application problem reports are more likely to be real application problems, and results are more likely to be reproducible. It's an incentive to program for, and use, the particular implementation.
CAVEAT: Where I'm referring to operating system, programming interface, etc., I'm not referring to any particular locus of implementation, kernel, library, a combination, etc. Just ``operating system'' level as opposed to ``application level.''
I could go on, I imagine, but I think I've made my point. This is pretty basic stuff, so consider it was intended for the logically impaired... ;)
lilo
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