In order to make DirectX 10 compatible with Windows XP, you need to make a lot of changes to various system files responsible for creating the display on your screen (also called rendering). Since DirectX is tied to the way graphics are drawn, therein lies the problem with newer versions of DirectX. In other words, the way Windows Vista and Windows 7 create images on your screen is different to the way Windows XP does it. It features in both Windows Vista and Windows 7 but not XP. Part of the reason that versions 10 and above are not available for Windows XP is due to an update in the more recent Operating Systems that use the new 'Windows Display Driver Model'.

DirectX 11 was aimed at Windows 7 users, but a download for DirectX 11 running on Windows Vista is also available. However, from version 10 onwards, the latest update for DirectX is available only for specific operating systems and under very controlled circumstances.ĭirectX 10 was only available for Vista and not XP.

Up until version 9.0c, the latest version of DirectX was generally available as a separate download from Microsoft. Each version of DirectX offers newer features and better rendering – in other words, prettier pictures that are more detailed and realistic (assuming your PC has the hardware to handle the heavier load). However, a game written specifically for DirectX 10 will generally not run on DirectX 9 or earlier. So, if a game was written for DirectX 9, it should run if you have DirectX 10 or DirectX 11 installed on your PC. It allows developers to standardise certain video display and audio files – this makes them easier to develop and run on different types of PCs (it is also used on consoles such as the Xbox).ĭirectX is supposed to be backward compatible.

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