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News AMD unveils TressFX Hair simulation technology

Discussion in 'Article Discussion' started by Gareth Halfacree, 26 Feb 2013.

  1. Gareth Halfacree

    Gareth Halfacree WIIGII! Lover of bit-tech Administrator Super Moderator Moderator

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  2. greigaitken

    greigaitken Minimodder

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    I hope this wont be an exclusive to head hair - i want my muscly shirtless soldier to proudly boast some realistic chest hair too!
     
  3. sotu1

    sotu1 Ex-Modder

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    I was thinking other hair....
     
  4. greigaitken

    greigaitken Minimodder

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    sorry, my soldier waxes below
     
  5. M_D_K

    M_D_K Modder

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    2 posts to get to smut lol.
     
  6. Lenderz

    Lenderz Minimodder

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    Fully expect it to be exclusive and driver dependant/controlled, much like physx is on Nvidia cards, theres no reason it couldn't run on AMD cards, but both want a competitive advantage. Why should AMD enable this on Nvidia cards whilst Nvidia don't enable their tech they put their R&D time into on AMD cards.

    There is a cost to developing these technologies and they recoup by shifting boxes.
     
  7. Corky42

    Corky42 Where's walle?

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    TRESemmé professional, affordable
    On a more serious note, i would have expected a video showing it off not just stills.
     
  8. jrs77

    jrs77 Modder

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    nVidia has those fancy hair-stuff for some time now, but noone has really implemented it into their games, so why should anyone consider the solution made by AMD? Maybe because the new consoles have an impact on this with their AMD-hardware.

    In general: old news is old.
     
  9. Deders

    Deders Modder

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    Is it really "worth it"
     
  10. GeorgeStorm

    GeorgeStorm Aggressive PC Builder

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    Pity there isn't a video.

    This is actually something I think could potentially be really good (if it's well implemented and widely used) since hair is something that normally really does remind you you're playing a game.
     
  11. Gareth Halfacree

    Gareth Halfacree WIIGII! Lover of bit-tech Administrator Super Moderator Moderator

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    But Nvidia's implementation of PhysX is written in CUDA, which (given they hired the guy who invented it) only works on Nvidia hardware; TressFX Hair, by contrast, is written in DirectCompute, which works on both Nvidia and AMD hardware. Thus there is a technical reason (born, admittedly, of a marketing decision) for PhysX to run exclusively on Nvidia hardware that does not exist for TressFX Hair.
    Well then AMD is ahead of the game, 'cos they've already got one win in the bag: as the article states, Tomb Raider features TressFX Hair technology.
    Given AMD only announced this late last night, after teasing a couple of hints a day or so ago, I'm curious as to how you're categorising this as "old news." I should be building a time machine and bringing you news from next week, perhaps?
     
  12. Archandel

    Archandel What's a Dremel?

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    Realistic P0RN game anyone? Puhlease?! Pretty please?!
     
  13. Griffter

    Griffter What's a Dremel?

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    what can pics show u of realistic hair??? thats like showing u realistic gravity and physics with pics. ai
     
  14. Gareth Halfacree

    Gareth Halfacree WIIGII! Lover of bit-tech Administrator Super Moderator Moderator

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    Just received confirmation from AMD: TressFX Hair is compatible with any DirectX11 GPU, including those made by Nvidia. I thought as much - what a cleverly-worded press release!
     
  15. Parge

    Parge the worst Super Moderator

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    That is great news to be honest, it would be beneficial to consumers if both NVidia and AMD shared software tech more.
     
  16. Gareth Halfacree

    Gareth Halfacree WIIGII! Lover of bit-tech Administrator Super Moderator Moderator

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    Just updated the update - as well as word from an unnamed spokesperson (Pro Tip: if a journalist quotes a "company spokesperson," what they actually mean is "PR person from a third-party outfit hired to represent the company" - but don't tell anyone I told you that, it's a secret) I've received the following from Devon Nekechuck, AMD's terribly genial product manager for the High-End Discrete Desktop Graphics division:
     
  17. jrs77

    jrs77 Modder

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    It's old because nVidia is showcasing this technology for over a year now.

    AMD must have paid alot of money to get this implemented into Tomb Raider, or it's because of the new consoles using AMD-hardware.
     
  18. Gareth Halfacree

    Gareth Halfacree WIIGII! Lover of bit-tech Administrator Super Moderator Moderator

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    No, Nvidia hasn't been showcasing anything like this. You show me a single DirectCompute-powered hair rendering engine released by Nvidia. Go ahead. I'll wait here.

    Now, what Nvidia *did* release a couple of years back - and the release that, I believe, has you confused - was a demo of a hair-rendering engine. This engine was not available to developers as a plug-in they could add to their games, and nor was it new even then: Nvidia has been working on realistic hair rendering for years. Heck, here's a SIGGRAPH paper from 2008 all about the subject.

    Compare and contrast with AMD, which has released a working hair rendering engine that is compatible with all DirectCompute-enabled graphics cards and can be licensed right damn now for inclusion into a game - hence its appearance in Tomb Raider.

    That is what we in the business call 'news.'
     
  19. runadumb

    runadumb What's a Dremel?

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    Yeah they really need to release a video of it in "action".
     
  20. yougotkicked

    yougotkicked A.K.A. YGKtech

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    glad to see it's not going to be an exclusive. Nvidia's PhysX was a great graphics feature that almost no one has used since mirrors edge because it was proprietary, developers don't want to invest time in a feature only half of their fans will be able to use.
     

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