I currently have a mac and am using some generic 32 MB DDR AGP 2x Radeon card.

I am buying a new computer, either a 1.25 DP or 1.42 DP and am wondering which video card to get. I can get either the GeForce 4ti 128 MB or the Radeon 9700 128 MB. Devs, which one is better for Vendetta? (That's the game I play most, so that's what I will weigh my options with.)

geforce 4 which ti?
and for the same price?

Well, unless it's a Ti 4800, get the Radeon 9700. Full DX9 support (which means you'll be able to use the new OpenGL shader effects in 3.2.6). None of the GeForce4's have DX9/Pixel and Vertex Shader 2.0 support. The 9700 is somewhat better performing than the Ti 4800 too, if I remember correctly.

same price. It's whatever Ti that Apple offers. Here's the link from the BTO page:

http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore.woa/71106/wo/i87bYuPhQdRQ2ccgy6Z5hF9HKNh/1.3.0.5.21.1.2.19.3.1.1.0?35,9

I say go for the Radeon. The drivers are worse, but you're gonna get more time on it. (Personally, I'd skip Apple and get either a Radeon 9800 or a NVIDIA GeForce FX 5900, but that's just me. )

same price, then the radeon, almost as roguelazer said it.

i wish voodoo was still round because i was able to install a PC video card on my mac... prolly can do the same now. But it wont get the software that it needs.
/me growls and gallops off.

I would say, go for the card with the DX9 featureset. Benchmark oriented people have been whining a lot about the DX9 cards being "slower", but that's a pretty nebulous thing to define. DX8 cards are very well optimized and fast for DX8 games, which are all that really exist right now. DX9 cards are much more powerful, but inherently less optimized for specific DX8 cases. DX9 cards will be much more worthwhile to have as time goes on and DX9 games are actually released. I would definitely want a DX9 card to play HalfLife2 or Doom3 or any of the other various games in development now (hopefully those will arrive on the mac..).

Of those two cards, I would get the Radeon.

little confused, is this DX8/DX9 you are speaking of DirectX?

if so, judging by the speeds he posted, he is thinking about a 1.26ghz G4 dual processor or 1.42ghz G4 dual processor, meaning directx wouldnt be valid correct?

Aah... but DX9 gfx cards also support Pixel and Vertex Shaders 2.0, which is part of OpenGL as well as DirectX (Yes, DX does stand for DirectX)

DirectX is what pushes the videocard featuresets, so it's often used as a method of describing the particular featureset available. "DirectX 8.1" would potentially include cards that support Pixel/Vertex Shaders 1.1 through 1.4 (GeForce3, GeForce4 Ti but not MX, Radeon 8500 and 9000, etc). "DirectX 9" would include 2.0 or better (GeForceFX, Radeon 9700/9800).

DirectX is obviously a windows-only thing. OpenGL still has access to the shaders.. but unlike DirectX, which practically defines what the features and architecture will be, OpenGL support is kind of hacked in after the fact, using vendor-specific extensions and other dumbness. This is due to OpenGL being architecturally out of date (as I mentioned in another thread, at least until OpenGL 2.0 or some other solution presents itself). So anyway, yes, I'm just saying that it's a good idea to get cards that support Pixel/Vertex Shaders 2.0.

I would say the radeon 9700 if you want the most feature-rich card.

Wait... Is this a 9700 or the 9700 pro? They perform differently... Take a look at www.tomshardware.com. *prods a1k0n* Now, how about those <a href> tags or autosensing links? :P Question: Is Vendetta going to go to DX9, or will it stay DX8? Frankly, I'd go for a GF FX 5900 if it doesn't cost much more...

We intend to move to DX9, but it may not happen in the immediate future.

Yet another reason for me to get a new computer... :D Will it retain support for DX8-only cards, though?

It has to. Otherwise no one will play. Much less than 1/8 the current users have DX9-capable gfx cards, and the rest of us aren't gonna spend $400 just to keep playing Vendetta. Think about it, currently you need a GeForce as the minimim. That's 5 steps below the current hot gfx card. So they ought to be on DX11 or so before we need to upgrade. I hope.

Effects that use Pixel Shader / Vertex Shader 2.0 will only be available on hardware that supports it. The game will still work on lower end cards, it just might not potentially look quite as cool. We don't currently even use any 2.0-specific effects, we just use an openGL shader interface (ARB_fragment_program) that is specific to those cards supporting 2.0 shaders. Hence, only DX 8.1 is required on Windows.

Interesting...

My advice, buy 2 computers, one with each card =P

lol Phoenix.
Radeon 9700 has more features than the GeForce4 Ti, and if it really is the same price, get the radeon.