Graphics cards and its morphing future

With the release of the nVidia 9800GTX scheduled for the end of this year, one might begin to think what will they do once they've run out of numbers. Here's a sizeable list of graphics cards from the two leading chipset developers:

ATi	nVidia
Radeon HD 2900 XT
	GeForce 8800 Ultra
Radeon X1950 XTX	GeForce 8800 GTX
Radeon X1950 XT	GeForce 8800 GTS
Radeon X1950 Pro
Radeon X1950 CrossFire	GeForce 7950 GX2
	GeForce 7950 GT 512
Radeon X1900 XTX	GeForce 7950 GT 256
Radeon X1900 XT 512
Radeon X1900 XT 256	GeForce 7900 GTO
Radeon X1900 GT	GeForce 7900 GTX
	GeForce 7900 GT
Radeon X1800 XL	GeForce 7900 GS
Radeon X1800 XT
Radeon X1800 GTO	GeForce 7800 GTX SLI
	GeForce 7800 GTX Extreme
Radeon X1650 XT	GeForce 7800 GTX
Radeon X1650 Pro	GeForce 7800 GT
	GeForce 7800 GS
Radeon X1600 XT
Radeon X1600 Pro	GeForce 7600 GT
	GeForce 7600 GTS
Radeon X1550 Pro 512 DDR2
Radeon X1550 GE 256 DDR2	GeForce 7300 GT
Radeon X1550 GE 128 DDR2	GeForce 7300 GS 256
Radeon X1550 PE 256 DDR2	GeForce 7300 GS 128
Radeon X1550 PE 128 DDR2	GeForce 7300 TC
	GeForce 7300 LE
Radeon X1300 XT
Radeon X1300 Pro	GeForce 7100 GS TC 256
Radeon X1300	GeForce 7100 GS TC 128
Radeon X1050 DDR 256	GeForce 6800 XT
Radeon X1050 DDR 128	GeForce 6800 Ultra Extreme
	GeForce 6800 Ultra SLI
Radeon X850 XT PE	GeForce 6800 Ultra
Radeon X850 XT	GeForce 6800 GT SLI
Radeon X850 Pro	GeForce 6800 GT
	GeForce 6800 GS
Radeon X800 GTO	GeForce 6800
Radeon X800 GT	GeForce 6800 LE
Radeon X800 XL
Radeon X800 XT PE	GeForce 6600 GT SLI
Radeon X800 XT	GeForce 6600 GT
Radeon X800 XT AIW	GeForce 6600
Radeon X800 Pro	GeForce 6600 LE
Radeon X800 Pro (VIVO)
Radeon X800	GeForce 6500
Radeon X800 VE
Radeon X800 SE 256-bit	GeForce 6200 TC64
Radeon X800 SE 128-bit	GeForce 6200 TC32
	GeForce 6200 TC16
Radeon X700 Pro 256	GeForce 6200 AGP
Radeon X700 Pro 128	GeForce 6200
Radeon X700 XT
Radeon X700	GeForce FX 5950 Ultra
	GeForce FX 5950
Radeon X600 XT	GeForce PCX 5950 Ultra
Radeon X600 Pro AIW
Radeon X600 Pro 256	GeForce FX 5900 Ultra
Radeon X600 Pro 128	GeForce FX 5900 XT
	GeForce FX 5900
Radeon X550	GeForce FX 5900 SE
	GeForce FX 5900 ZT
Radeon X300	GeForce PCX 5900
Radeon X300 SE
Radeon X300 HM	GeForce FX 5800 Ultra
	GeForce FX 5800
Radeon 9800 XT
Radeon 9800 Pro AIW	GeForce PCX 5750
Radeon 9800 Pro (DDR2)
Radeon 9800 Pro 256	GeForce FX 5700 Ultra
Radeon 9800 Pro	GeForce FX 5700 Ultra (DDR2)
Radeon 9800	GeForce FX 5700 VE
Radeon 9800 SE AIW (128-bit)	GeForce FX 5700 LE
Radeon 9800 SE (128-bit)	GeForce FX 5700
Radeon 9700 Pro AIW	GeForce FX 5600 Ultra (FC)
Radeon 9700 Pro	GeForce FX 5600 Ultra
Radeon 9700	GeForce FX 5600 XT
	GeForce FX 5600
Radeon 9600 XT AIW	GeForce FX 5600 SE
Radeon 9600 XT
Radeon 9600 Pro AIW	GeForce FX 5500
Radeon 9600 Pro
Radeon 9600	GeForce PCX 5300
Radeon 9600 SE
	GeForce FX 5200 Ultra
Radeon 9550	GeForce FX 5200 XT
Radeon 9550 SE	GeForce FX 5200
	GeForce FX 5200 SE
Radeon 9500 Pro
Radeon 9500
Radeon 9500 128
Radeon 9500 64

It seems for ATi, once they ran out of 9??? (for example, 9800) numbers they changed to x??? (for example, x850) and then x???? (for example, x1950) numbers. nVidia have not needed to alter its model number pattern yet, but it will need to if it ever wants to release products beyond the capabilities of the 9800GTX. So, what will be next? An n880GTX?
If we put model numbers aside and take a look purely on the technical side, you'll notice that newer graphics cards no longer have specific pipelines - they use general-purpose pipelines, essentially letting you process anything you want to, and that includes physics (most notably the nVidia 8800 series). Will graphics cards maintain its identity as a graphics processor, or will it eventually become the new mathematics coprocessor, whose floating-point calculation abilities render it useful for more than just 3D rendering - physics, logic, sound, and more could eventually be processed by what was once a graphics card...

Influential FPS games

Look at current first-person shooters: Half-Life 2, Unreal Tournament 2004, Quake IV, Doom 3, F.E.A.R., and Far Cry, just to name a few. Look at the first-person shooters of the future: Crysis and Unreal Tournament 1007 readily pop up in my mind. Notice something? A pattern... a trend... ?

Better Graphics, Better Audio

Better Player Immersion

There's no denying it. The games of the future will focus on better graphics and audio, or 'better immersion'. The primary reason is it is impractical to focus on anything else. But like the spark of an engine which gives way to ignition, what triggered the concept of first-person shooters?
When asked to list the original 3D games, any self-respecting geek could come up with a sizable list:

• Wolfenstein 3-D


• Doom


• Heretic


• Rise of the Triad (ROTT)


• Duke Nukem 3D


• Quake

Technologically, Wolfenstein 3-D was the first step to both 3D and the first-person shooter genre, introducing raycasting as a means of rendering 3D environments. However, is it really the most memorable? Out of the six I have listed, I think the one game which all will remember is Duke Nukem.

There can be no substitute for the Duke. This game introduced fresh personality into the player - you were no longer a nameless person who had to escape a castle by shooting people. You were Duke Nukem. You had a purpose. You had a voice. You also had at your disposal unconventional weapons, including the Shrink Ray, which can also be used in conjunction with Duke's Mighty Foot to devastating effect.
However, the game was not without controversy. It's attempts to parallel real life certainly also reached the more indecent aspects. Then again, 3D Realms did really think the game through, adding even toilets to the mix! Need a health boost? Break open that toilet, and you can gain health just as you can with a fire hydrant.
In fact, just thinking about it makes me want to go and play it now.
Hail to the King, baby!
On a side note, Duke Nukem Forever is seriously taking forever, and the official 3D Realms release date, 'When It's Done' doesn't help explain the delay either. Still, here's hoping to a release soon...

Minerva - A Half-Life 2 mod

Minerva, created by Adam Foster, who apparently has an 'over-active imagination', is without a doubt one of the best Half-Life 2 mods out there. When I started playing, I noticed that this mod was quite different to other mods I've played. The first three maps, Metastasis, are being developed. Two have been released: the first map was released on September the 2nd, 2005 and the second on March the 3rd, 2006. Each level is sculpted with a great deal of precision, making the mod a whole lot of fun.


In fact, it was these screenshots that drew my attention towards Minerva - they display a degree of perfection that I haven't seen before in a Half-Life 2 mod. The game is influenced by other releases such as Halo and System Shock in both map design and gameplay. Other than the fact that the level design is of a high quality, the plotline is also good, following as an extension to the Half-Life 2 world, where the player receives orders from an unknown third party. Perhaps the enemies are slightly harder to kill than the original Half-Life 2 ones (then again, I do have combat difficulty set to hard), but it is by no means impossible, and in fact it is more fun with this extra challenge.
It almost feels like a released game, until you notice some of the minor quirks that are surprising evident in almost all mods (that annoying HUD misalignment that means you can't make out your weapon ammo level). However, this is unlikely to be the mod's fault; more likely it is the Source engine's problem.
Nonetheless, the fact remains that it is quite a captivating game mod, and provided you have a valid copy of Half-Life 2, I think you should try it out.
Links:

• Minerva (Official)


• Minerva (Valve Developer Community)


• Minerva mod interview

Upcoming and promising first-person shooters

Although they are still months away, I am already tingling with anticipation. Who wouldn't be? I speak of course of:

• Crysis (jump to Wikipedia article)


• UT3 (jump to Wikipedia article)


• Half-Life 2: Episode 2 (jump to Wikipedia article)

There are, of course, other FPS' that I am very interested to play, such as Portal (jump to Wikipedia article) and Bioshock (jump to Wikipedia article), but these three top the list.
Why Crysis?
What's not to like about Crysis? Built on the magnificent CryEngine2, this beast will certainly show off a lot of new features, including advanced physics (realistic object destruction (including vegetation, terrain, vehicle and rope physics) and particle simulation), realistic 3D ocean technology, advanced lighting (time of day, real time ambient maps, dynamic soft shadows, lightbeams), general rendering improvements (long range view distance, motion blur, depth of field), advanced texture maps (parallax occlusion), as well as character animation improvements (facial animation, parametric skeletal animation system, procedual motion warping). So what's not to like? Probably all the cutting edge hardware you'll need to buy in order to play this game.
Why UT3?
There's no denying it: UT3 will be the next generation of multi-player action. New game types, more maps, and better graphics equals ultimate and unreal fun, especially with other human opponents. That's not to say that playing by yourself won't be much fun - an actual storyline ensures the single-player mode will also be lots of fun (unlike the tournament/ladder system in UT2004), and advanced bot AI ensures that, apart from being able to match with an equally-skilled opponent, you can also communicate via voice to any bots in your team. Yes, you heard me - you can actually give orders to those bots using a more complex and natural voice command model (that is, instead of saying something like "Alpha Defend" in UT2004, you'll be able to say "Defend this room, Malcolm" in UT3. Now that alone will be a lot of fun.
Why Half-Life 2: Episode 2?
To continue the saga. I have been hooked on the Half-Life series since its inital release, and will be curious to play out the captivating plot.
Well, as the release dates for each of these games get closer, my anticipation grows higher... Let the fragging begin...

Web comic recommendations (snapshot)

Last time, I recommended two of my favourite web comics - Hackles and Concerned. Now, I'm going to link to three of what I think are the best strips from each comic series. All right, here we go (click to pop up an enlarged image):

Hackles

1. 

   (link)


2. 

   (link)


3. 

   (link)

Concerned

1. 

   (link)


2. 

   (link)


3. 

   (link)

It was very tough to pick out the best strips - they all were (and still are) brilliant. Nevertheless, I believe that these strips I've picked out do justice to the comic series they represent. In case you haven't read the comics yet, I hope that these snapshots will convince you to read them all now. However, that's all for now...

Web comic recommendations

Of course, every techie knows that web comics are a staple part of their daily cycle. Here's one I particuarly like:

Hackles (jump to first comic)

I won't reveal much, suffice to say that it expresses a lot of feelings that we programmers can sometimes feel. It's a bit outdated, but who cares? Another one I particuarly like is:

Concerned (jump to first comic, jump to index)

Anyone who's played Half-Life 2 will immediately get the references. If you haven't, I suggest you do - it's quite a good game.
Both comics have been completed. Have a good read of each. They are truly terrific and their authors deserve credit. I'll post some highlights from each web comic next time...

Initial Thoughts

What is a weblog?

web-log /noun/ A website that displays in chronological order the postings by one or more individuals and usually has links to comments on specific postings.

Ah.

It seems as though a weblog is a medium to express one's thoughts to an audience - the opposite to a diary. With that in mind, it seems the possibilities are endless... until you realise the impracticality of maintaining a vast collection of free thoughts covering a diverse range of topics. Even with advanced weblog software, it becomes impractical to maintain each topic area. Therefore, I will place some guidelines for what this weblog is to be. This weblog will cover the following topics:

• Programming concepts (Assembly, C++, PHP)


• Computer hardware/software


• Gaming (mostly computer FPS)


• Latest technology

Essentially, this will be a tech blog. If you are expecting something other than pure tech, you've come to the wrong weblog. With that in mind, let's move on. The title of this weblog is 'Coding Penguin'. You may be wondering why. There are several reasons:

1. I have been informally nicknamed 'Penguin' by some of my friends.


2. As this is to be a tech blog, it needed to sound like a tech blog. The keywords 'tech', 'coding', 'programming', and 'gaming', among others, come to mind.


3. Most *penguin* (note * is a wildcard) variants have been taken, and in the end it was a decision between 'programmingpenguin' and 'codingpenguin'. The latter is easier to type, and so I decided to stick with it.

There, now that we've got all that out of the way, I can finally focus on the tech part of this blog...