Re: XBox - was Windows XP Media Center Edition Review

[Bruno Prior <bruno@xxxxxxx>]

roaming@xxxxxxx wrote:
>
> There are so many combinations of cpus/mobos/graphics cards etc etc
out there 
> that it is impossible to write something to take full advantage of
every combo.
> By using the latest hardware, you are basically compensating for the
fac that 
> the developers cannot optimise their code for any particular
machine.
> 
> HTH,

Thanks, Tony. It does indeed help.

Presumably then, X-Box does not use DirectX, Direct3D etc. As this 
abstracts the interface between software and hardware, a developer would
not need to know what hardware is underneath to obtain improved 
performance from higher-specced equipment. Did Microsoft not use Direct*
on the XBox because there is actually a large performance penalty to pay
for this abstraction?

Incidentally, what GPU does the XBox use? As I understand it, GPU is 
more significant than CPU to games performance. If they use a 
high-powered GPU, do they not need a fan, and if they do, is the X-Box 
not noisy? If they don't need a high-powered GPU, one again has to 
wonder at the flannel that is put out by the hardware manufacturers and
magazine reviewers about how much better the latest, greatest graphics 
cards are.

And one other thought. Does the Celeron 733 not need a fan? I thought 
Intel/AMD processors at this speed needed one (they should have used a 
Via or Transmeta). Does this not also introduce another noise source? 
Does the X-Box run near-silent?

Cheers,

Bruno Prior

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