Introduction to Effect Files	08/01/2004	The first in a series of articles targetted at DirectX Effect Files, provides an introduction to the use of Effect Files with the D3DX framework. Effects allow the developer to define rendering techniques outside of application code. Benefits include greater flexibility for your rendering engine, support of various hardware capabilities, and a rapid integration of new objects and visual effects into an application without the need for changes to compiled code.
Locating an Application CD	06/13/2004	Techniques and source code that provide a reliable technique to scan a system for tour application's CD, and to prompt the user for insertion if it is not available. Handles systems with multiple CD-ROMs properly, and determines CD drive locations and volume names without unnecessary file reads.
FPS Versus Frame Time	01/22/2003	Provides a critical comparison between common measurements used for overall performance testing, and looks at an all too common pitfall of using FPS as a measurement of performance.
Batching of Polygons with a Vertex Cache	09/27/2002	Illustrates the use of a vertex cache to improve performance by batching together smaller groups of triangles.
Modular Programming with DLLs	01/20/2002	This article provides information and source code, that will allow you to easily implement a full screen DirectX application as a series of loadable modules.
Writing the Game Loop	01/20/2002	The game loop drives the flow of the program, providing a heartbeat for synchronizing object motion and rendering of frames in a steady, consistent manner. Provides source code for a basic game loop using the Performance Counter, and provides automatic detection of the Performance Counter and fallback to timeGetTime if it is not available.
Implementing Steady Motion	01/20/2002	To allow for variations in playback, it is important that motion within the game be scaled to frame time. This insures that motion is steady, and aids in synchronizing the motion of objects.
Using a Blit Queue	01/20/2002	Learn how to cache blit commands to make better use of the refresh cycle under DirectDraw. Includes source code for a blitting queue.
Synchronization of Game Threads	11/15/2001	First in a series exploring the creation of multithreaded entertainment titles. Learn how to create worker threads and utilize them to dynamically manage processor load in your game.