INF: GDI Simulation Routines and Device Drivers for Windows

ID Number: Q10834

2.00 3.00

WINDOWS

Summary:

The following information concerns GDI's simulation routines for

device drivers:

GDI discards its simulation routines when more intelligent drivers

provide the required information. GDI is demand-loadable and

discardable. When a smart driver registers its capabilities with GDI,

GDI dumps the simulation routines that it uses for less intelligent

display drivers. For example, when writing a driver that can handle

all the OUTPUT functions, GDI will avoid loading all the simulation

routines.

In addition, GDI's simulation routines are optimized. However, it is

usually the case that device drivers can complete output functions a

lot faster because no GDI object or memory must be allocated during

the operations, and device drivers can deal directly with the hardware

device.