Contary to what Product Marketing Manager for Windows Ben Basaric had to say earlier in the week, it is now confirmed DirectX 11 (the latest API collection) will be built into Windows 7, Microsoft's next operating system (OS). More than that, X11 will also be available for Windows Vista users, though it's not clear if it will be released when that OS' Service Pack 2 hits (before 7).
One of the APIs, Direct 3D 11, has been revealed to include GPGPU, tessellation and improved multi-threading support, the latter meaning better gaming for those who use multi-core processors. Tessellation and Shader Model 5.0 will require hardware which supports the new API, but for the stubborn and/or cheap folk, parts of Direct3D 11 will be supported on 9/10/10.1-class hardware.
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