Hello there,
I need a development system for 3d graphics
programming.
It will be in opengl/direct3d in c/c++ for windows.

I am a student with a tight bugdet.
Currently, I have a Geforce 2, AMD 1000,
RAM: 1500MB (testing environment for db, appl. servers).

I have downloaded the radeonsdk and nvsdk,
but most of the features require latest technology.

My favourite choice is a geforce4 ti4200,
which has all the required extensions for nvsdk,
shader support, dx8.1 support.
I admit, I like the nvsdk more than the radeonsdk.

Is lack of dx9 support and lack of shader version 2.0+
a problem?

Which video card would you choose for 3d graphics development?

thank you.

the lack of DX9 support would in the short term only be a problem if you are intending to do high end gaming programming.

if your programming is aimed more at 3D design etc. it shouldnt be much of a problem for quite a while. if you prefer the Nvidia developer tools and are limited by budget then the Ti4200 would be the logical choice. but I do believe that oversll ATI cards have better image quality which is something to consider.

If you need DirectX 9 Support, then the cheapest commercial card is probably the ATi Radeon 9500.

If you are planning on doing really high end work, or want very high image quality then you should consider NVIDIAs Quadro Range or ATi's FireGL Range, as they use higher quality components.

BTW whats your RAM size? YOu probably need extra RAM too like 512MB or more.

Are there any developers out there who use ATI cards?
NVIDIA seems to be too prevalent and so is their
Opengl extension set in the Opengl ARB.

I know that Ravensoft bought a dozen of rigs from
DELL featuring Geforce4 cards. But that was some time ago.

Might be a good idea to jump on the same bandwagon too.

Maybe Carmack's endorsement for ATI Radeon 9xxx cards
changes our mind.

Agreed, if you are doing any development you should develop for either a set version of DirectX (8.1 or 9.0), or Standard OpenGL (i.e. the reference version of OpenGL1.3). It really depends on preference, and your target audience (i.e. the only true DirectX 9.0 cards at the moment are the Radeon 9500/9700 and in a couple of months the Geforce FX and the Radeon R350)

Both DirectX and OpenGL have their advantages :-

DirectX:-

Advantages:- Easier access to pixel and vertex shaders, has additional functions (Sound/LAN/Input)

Disadvantages:- Windows Plaatform Only

OpenGL:-

Advantages:- Multi-Platform, Industry Standard for CAD, Rendering etc.

Disadvantages:- Harder to access special features of Graphics Card (Pixel Shaders/Vertex Shaders)