Slashdot Mirror
Microsoft Unlocks Framerates For Smoother Gameplay On Windows 10 (pcper.com)
An anonymous user writes: Back in March, Microsoft's Phil Spencer addressed some of the concerns over the Unified Windows Platform and PC gaming. He noted that Microsoft would "plan to open up VSync off, FreeSync, and G-Sync in May" and the company would "allow modding and overlays in UWP applications" sometime further into the future. Well, it appears that Microsoft is on point with the May UWP update. According to the MS DirectX Developer Blog, a Windows 10 update being pushed out today will enable UWP to support unlocked frame rates and variable refresh rate monitors in both G-Sync and FreeSync varieties. Today's update won't automatically enable these features in UWP games like Gears of War or Quantum Break, they will still need to be updated individually by the developer. Microsoft states that Gears of War and Forza will be the first to see these changes, but there is no mention of Quantum Break here, which is a game that could DEFINITELY benefit from the love of variable refresh rate monitors.PCWorld has more details.
"oday's update won't automatically " whats the use of win10 if not the automatically part.
UWP just seems like another stupid layer of bloated crap between the game and the hardware.
It's more like 70 million on steam alone.
I get where Microsoft is going with UWP - It's replacing the legacy overall application framework that's been cobbled together since DOS/3.11. Every windows desktop application has a bit of baggage that's a holdover from DOS, and can in theory interact and work with legacy DOS systems (USB floppy drive? and sneakernet? Add an old DOS hard drive via a USB cable?)
UWP is a different beast. Sandboxed applications that come through a managed app store - Yeah it's tablet like but it's easy and safe for users. Bad applications can't root your system and getting new ones, updating them is easy as hell.
Of course, conveniently, Microsoft gets a piece of the pie or has their hand in every UWP application in some manner or another.
Trouble is UWP is tied to the shitfest that was windows 8 "Metro" and got an astoundingly bad start. It's also got serious issues. Ask any developer that wants to code something more complicated than an online photo browser or "App" that that replaces a web page for some simple service.
Huge pain in the ass straight jacket that makes porting legacy applications near impossible.. Limited access to system resources. Interface issues that make it a complete nonstarter for any serious productivity application. And as we see now, really really really poor and forced choices for games that make it useless for anything that's not a port of a tablet/mobile game.
The joy of closed source, where you have to beg and wait for a feature and even a large community of users and/or programmers have no other recourse if the answer is either no or wait forever.
That's part of why I like the flexibility offered by open source operating systems -- even if a feature is beyond the ability of some or most of the people who want it, if someone comes along who does have the ability to implement it then it will be done.
That's also my beef with ostensibly open source Android -- I still can't manage my phone as I see fit and I have all sorts of garbage apps that just show up by magic (Samsung Pay? Don't want. Flipboard? I keep disabling that and it keeps coming back anyway.)
I'm used to my computers where I know what's running on them and why and no mysterious processes exist that I can't get rid of and don't fully understand.
Why can't I get a phone like that, too?
If you're a zombie and you know it, bite your friend!
I'm a little saddened by the fact that Windows 10 now outnumbers Windows 7 in steam's stats. The honest fact is, the plebs don't care about UWP, or even about forced upgrades or telemetry reporting back everything you type, speak or do. Microsoft wins again, thanks largely to the apathetic masses.
Pretty sure that all the optional feedback settings have been turned off, but still not sure why I should give a shit about some telemetry going back to the software management teams. What is the big deal, actually? There are far too many people using the O/S for Microsoft to be monitoring each and every one of them, it is the big picture of over-all numbers of people and applications and what works and doesn't and such, that matters to them. Why get so rabid about some telemetry?
We need real reasons, not paranoia.
If I had a DeLorean... I would probably only drive it from time to time.
Ah, so that's why it's called Windows 10!
So what's your point? It's easier to get a blowjob from a Windows 10 user?
Perhaps it has to do with Steam users generally not worrying much about other people having partial control over their computer?
I'm one of those people who have refused Windows 10 so far, but I also use Steam very sparingly:
DRM (even in a relatively benign form) and one-sided EULA terms are a reason why I only have purchased a handful of Steam games so far, with correspondingly low activity on Steam.
In the Steam usage stats, people like me will obviously not leave a big footprint.
C - the footgun of programming languages
Microsoft employees just wanted to have better frame-rates while snooping on their customers^D^D^D^D^D^D^D^D^D bitches.
Is there still a genuine practical use for it in today's world?
Change is certain; progress is not obligatory.
UWP is only for Windows Store apps. Steam games won't get this feature.
Remember the Tim Sweeney editorial from just 2 months ago?
https://games.slashdot.org/sto...
No it wont. It'll all be done in secret courts with subpoenas that are classified.
Why should they monitor each and every one of them. Come to think of it, why should they monitor even ONE of them?
Does this mean you think it's ok if McDonald's monitors every one who eats there to ensure proper satisfaction? It's none of their damned business.
Privacy is vital and a basic right. Don't be so quick to sell yourself for a half assed OS. If you can't see what's wrong with telemetry then you're amazingly naive. This is not some corporation that has proven itself to be responsible and trustworthy over time, they're very much the opposite. They've proven to be hostile to the consumer and openly flaunting of national laws and legal judgements. This is not paranoia, this is about protecting basic rights.
You're kidding, right? 60 to 90 is a noticeable jump in smoothness, and many people can distinguish between 90, 120, 144, and even 165 Hz.
this sig was brought to you by the letter
There will not be a Windows 11. Microsoft has said that Windows 10 is the last version ever. What this means in practice is that they will just keep modifying it over time, adding new features, removing older features that they've grown tired of supporting, changing the UI every time they want, etc. And customers must follow along, because no one is allowed to defer these updates forever. Even Windows 10 Enterprise edition is not immune, since at some point the security patches will stop coming unless you have also installed the "feature" updates. There is no more picking and choosing of updates. How this will work over time is a bit of an unknown, but I suspect users will start referring to the year to describe the version of Windows 10 (as in "remember when Windows 2016 didn't require the blood test?", or possibly "anyone remember when Windows was a thing?)).
They don't even show movies or television at that speed. If someone can distinguish between 144 and 165Hz I'd be wondering if they were also one of those who claim to hear the audio difference when using gold plated connectors.
1- They are only doing this because the xbone is failing hard to the PS4. If they had a dominant position on consoles, we wouldnt be talking about this.
2- Again, to give the 360 and now the xbone advantages, they crippled DirectX gamepad tech. (DirectInput - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
3- Trying to kill Steam,but given how dirty M$ will always be, they will kill Steam and with it, multiplatform releases (OSX and more important, Linux/Steam OS).
Might be more, but perhaps you get the idea.
Personally, I am tired of this damn monopoly, tired of paying license for a damn OS or better yet, not trusting the OS at all (W10).
UWP is getting built up as fast as possible to match Win32, and when parity is achieved, UWP will have all the new API updates and Win32 will stagnate. Eventually MS will say it's not worth supporting Win32 as a development platform and will leave it to a virtual machine for compatibility. It will be deemed too insecure and out of date. UWP will be supported on more devices. Through MS's store, UWP applications have DRM containers and the Windows PC won't be as open as it used to be, allowing for community fixes and game updates like texture packs and mods. Anyway that's what it seems like.
Twinstiq, game news
What data is actually being reported back to MS? Do you have any verifiable details on the data being transmitted? Does the transmitted data contain personal details that can be used to identify or track a specific user?
It is needed for game footage capture. Without it youtubers have to use an external device between the monitor and the pc with the associated lag. Or point a camera at the monitor.
I'm a little saddened by the fact that Windows 10 now outnumbers Windows 7 in steam's stats. The honest fact is, the plebs don't care about UWP, or even about forced upgrades or telemetry reporting back everything you type, speak or do. Microsoft wins again, thanks largely to the apathetic masses.
Surely if they did care about all those things then they probably wouldn't use Steam. It has forced updates, telemetry reporting (aka achievements), cloud saves (albeit optionally) and DRM. The apathetic masses had already spoken a long time ago.
The gamers on Steam are not representative of the general population. They do care less about privacy and are more interested in getting the latest & greatest in hardware & software. They also want to use DirectX 12, which is a major reason to use Windows 10. Windows 10 use amongst this demographic will always be higher than the average.
You don't have a clue.
movies and tv have obvious judder. Temporal blurring helps fake it a little but it's obvious especially for people exposed to high frame rates. Another thing is input lag. Lower frame rates increase this dramatically.
That's false. Anybody can install UWP apps (packages use the .appx extension), without having to enable developer mode or anything in settings. A warning pops up if the app is unsigned, which is the same with Win32 apps. Steam could use this, too. The only requirement is that they're installed the Windows way (Doing it manually requires invoking a powershell command, but Steam could do that in the background)
Hell, there's the App Installer app available through the Windows store that will install apps that way just by double clicking.
I don't think Windows 10 reports back "everything you type, speak or do", no.
You can see the difference in the smoothness of cursor movement alone, let alone everything else.
Nah, its' not needed. I can capture it just fine regardless with borderless full screen and not have performance drop below 60fps.
Change is certain; progress is not obligatory.
You're obviously not a gamer, or not a very good one.
Scruting the inscrutable for over 50 years.
CRT displays relied on phosphorous glowing for a short period after being blasted by electrons. You had to keep redrawing the screen to refresh the pixels. But modern monitors are based on LED technology - they don't need refreshing - you just turn them on and off. So why have refresh rates at all? Why doesn't the device simply send frames to the monitor as and when they are ready and the monitor just display what it's told. If I don't send a new frame for an hour the monitor should just sit there for an hour showing the same picture without any refreshing or switching or scanning or any of that.
If you don't risk failure you don't risk success.
I'm not a PvP or shooter player. But I play a lot of games.
So in other words you have no idea what data is being sent to MS. Your "good picture" is nothing more than a wild ass guess. Sort of like the fabled "back door" hidden within Windows that allows MS to access your machine at will. If there was a backdoor why are people constantly trying to create their own? Some of these guys are damn smart and if there really was a designed backdoor in the OS someone would have found it and published the details. Do we live in a world where facts are replaced by innuendo, guesses, and out right lies? Is exaggeration and misinformation acceptable as long as it supports a pre-determined point of view or political stance?
You obviously haven't seen 60Hz and 144Hz side by side, or hell even 90. Once you see that smoothness, a 60Hz monitor will look janky. Go do that and get back to us.
"Science is the power of man"
Once again Microsoft shows that paid operating systems are unethical. Limiting function and performance as they see fit.