DirectX 9.0 offers the following new benefits for developers:

High-level shader language

library that supports patch meshes and traditional polygonal meshes

Improved real-time animation capabilities that allow separate animations on the same mesh to be blended

Enhanced low-level graphics programmability with new programmable vertex and pixel shader 2.0 models in the Direct3D® API

Full integration, including debugging, of new programmable shader models with the Microsoft Visual Studio® .NET development system

Enhanced DirectShow® video rendering hardware acceleration

A new version of DirectMusic® Producer, enabling support for DirectMusic enhancements such as low-latency playback

New wizards for creating DirectX Media Objects (DMOs) for audio effects and DirectMusic tools for MIDI processing

Improved DirectPlay® performance for multiplayer games

Availability of DirectPlay for Pocket PC 2002