Microsoft Prepares 3-D Windows Interface

Welcome Guest. | Log In| Register | Membership Benefits

April 01, 1998 (10:55 AM EST)

By Andy Patrizio,

Microsoft is working on changing the nature of the Windows interface by taking advantage of advances in the 3-D hardware market to create a more graphically rich Windows interface.

The new GUI technology, GDI 2000, was first demonstrated last week at the Windows Hardware Engineering Conference (WinHec) in Orlando, Fla., but was overshadowed by Chrome, a new interface for Internet Explorer.

Like Chrome, GDI 2000 is a ways off. It won't appear in any Microsoft products until the next OS release after Windows NT 5.0, according to Kevin Bachus, DirectX product manager at Microsoft, in Redmond, Wash.

"The name should be a good indication of when we expect to ship," he said. GDI 2000 will tightly integrate the graphic driver interface with DirectDraw and Direct3D, two APIs in DirectX that provide 3-D graphics.

This will allow developers to integrate graphic driver interface services, such as Windows interface items like buttons and scroll bars, into multimedia applications. It will also allow for a more 3-D interface for Windows itself. This means that windows on the desktop won't be limited to the square design they have now, and the Windows GUI will be able to do real-time animation, Bachus said.

GDI 2000 will take advantage of 3-D hardware, such as the 3Dfx chip or 3-D cards like ATI's All-in-Wonder card, but won't require these cards. However, the presence of these cards will accelerate the performance of the GUI, Bachus said. Microsoft is banking on these cards, which have relatively small market penetration now, to gain wider use by the time GDI 2000 ships.

The possibilities of a 3-D interface means a different way of looking at the way people use computers, said Rob Enderle, senior analyst with the Giga Information Group, in Santa Clara, Calif. "Microsoft learned its lesson with Bob," he said, referring to the company's high-profile attempt at a more social interface -- an animated face called Microsoft Bob.

"A 3-D interface would mean a totally different experience," he said. With 3-D, users can change how they organize a desktop, Enderle.

"Instead of drilling down through folders, you can click once to get through several levels of folders to get where you want," he said. "Or it could render a new interface in real time, so if you're doing research, it would give you a book-like interface."