Introduction to the DirectX® 9 High Level Shading Language

Introduction
One of the most empowering new components of DirectX 9 is the High Level
Shading Language (HLSL). Using this standard high level language, shader writers are
able to think at the algorithm level while implementing shaders, rather than worry about
meddlesome hardware details such as register allocation, register read-port limits,
instruction co-issuing and so on. In addition to freeing the developer from hardware
details, the HLSL also has all of the usual advantages of a high level language such as
easy code reuse, improved readability and the presence of an optimizing compiler. Many
of the chapters in this book and in the ShaderX2 - Shader Tips & Tricks book will utilize
shaders which are written in HLSL. As a result, it will be much easier for you to
understand and work with those shaders after reading this introductory chapter.
In this chapter, we will outline the basic structure of the language itself as well as
strategies for integrating HLSL shaders into your application.