117.61.102.192: /* Uses */

2025-03-20T12:17:17Z

Uses

New page

{{Short description|Windows text layout and glyph rendering API}}
'''DirectWrite''' is a text layout and glyph rendering [[Application programming interface|API]] by [[Microsoft]]. It was designed to replace [[Graphics Device Interface|GDI]]/GDI+ and [[Uniscribe]] for screen-oriented rendering and was first shipped with [[Windows 7]] and [[Windows Server 2008 R2]], as well as [[Windows Vista]] and [[Windows Server 2008]] (with [[Windows Vista Platform Update|Platform Update]] installed).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://blogs.msdn.com/directx/archive/2009/09/10/windows-7-transition-pack-for-windows-vista.aspx |title=The Platform Update for Windows Vista |publisher=DirectX Developer Blog |date=10 September 2009 |access-date=27 January 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140408062133/http://blogs.msdn.com/b/directx/archive/2009/09/10/windows-7-transition-pack-for-windows-vista.aspx |archive-date=8 April 2014 }}</ref> DirectWrite is [[hardware-accelerated]] (using the [[GPU]]) when running on top of [[Direct2D]], but can also use the CPU to render on any target, including a [[Graphics Device Interface|GDI]] [[bitmap]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/dd371554(v=vs.85).aspx|title=Introducing DirectWrite|publisher=Microsoft|work=Microsoft Developer Network|date=26 January 2022 }}</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20101018203853/http://channel9.msdn.com/Blogs/pdc2008/PC18 Windows 7: Introducing Direct2D and DirectWrite] – PDC 2008 video 15:00-16:00 and 27:00-28:00</ref>

== Features ==
* Comprehensive support for [[Unicode]], with over 20 scripts providing layout and rendering of every language supported in Windows. DirectWrite supports measuring, drawing, and [[hit-testing]] of multi-format text. Supported Unicode features include [[Bi-directional text|BIDI]], line breaking, surrogates, UVS{{Clarify|date=November 2022}}, language-guided script itemization, number substitution, and glyph shaping.
* Sub-pixel [[ClearType]] text rendering with bi-directional [[Spatial anti-aliasing|antialiasing]] which can interoperate with GDI/GDI+, [[Direct2D]]/[[Direct3D]] and any application-specific technology. When using with Direct2D, text rendering can be hardware-accelerated or can use [[Windows Advanced Rasterization Platform|WARP software rasterizer]] when hardware acceleration is not available.
* Supports advanced typographic features of [[OpenType]], such as stylistic alternates and [[Swash (typography)|swashes]], which were never supported in GDI and [[Windows Forms|WinForms]]. These features were demoed at DirectWrite's launch (at [[Professional Developers Conference|PDC]]2008) using the [[Gabriola (typeface)|Gabriola font]], itself also introduced with Windows 7.<ref>{{cite web|date=29 October 2008|url=http://channel9.msdn.com/Blogs/pdc2008/PC18|title=Windows 7: Introducing Direct2D and DirectWrite – pdc2008|publisher=Microsoft|work=Channel 9|access-date=9 September 2023|archive-date=30 June 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110630233825/http://channel9.msdn.com/blogs/pdc2008/pc18|url-status=bot: unknown}}</ref>
* Provides a low-level glyph rendering API for those who employ proprietary text layout and Unicode-to-glyph processing.

In [[Windows 8.1]], DirectWrite gained support for [[OpenType#Color fonts|color fonts]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/hh802480(v=vs.85).aspx|title=What's new in DirectWrite|publisher=Microsoft|work=Microsoft Developer Network|date=4 October 2021 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Dan McLachlan|date=26 June 2013|url=http://channel9.msdn.com/Events/Build/2013/3-191|title=Innovations in High Performance 2D Graphics with DirectX – Build 2013|publisher=Microsoft|work=Channel 9}}</ref>

=== DWriteCore ===
DWriteCore is the [[Windows App SDK]] (Project Reunion) implementation of DirectWrite that runs on versions of Windows down to Windows 10, version 1809 (10.0; Build 17763), and opens the door for cross-platform usage.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/win32/directwrite/dwritecore-overview |title=DWriteCore overview |department=DirectWrite |website=[[Microsoft Docs]] |access-date=2021-10-19}}</ref>

== Uses ==
The [[Open XML Paper Specification|XPS]] viewer in Windows 7 uses DirectWrite, but it renders the output on a GDI+ surface.<ref>{{cite web|author=Worachai Chaoweeraprasit|date=13 February 2009|url=http://blogs.msdn.com/b/e7/archive/2009/02/13/advances-in-typography-and-text-rendering-in-windows-7.aspx|title=Advances in typography and text rendering in Windows 7|publisher=Microsoft|work=Microsoft Developer Network}}</ref>

[[Internet Explorer 9]] and later versions use DirectWrite layered over Direct2D for improved visual quality and performance.<ref>{{cite web|author=Tim Anderson|url=http://www.itwriting.com/blog/3003-firefox-4-as-psychedelic-as-ie9-with-direct2d-enabled.html |title=Firefox 4 as Psychedelic as IE9 with Direct2D enabled |publisher=itwriting.com |date=11 August 2010 |access-date=6 August 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Shankland |first=Stephen |url=http://www.cnet.com/news/firefox-4-beta-4-adds-hardware-acceleration/ |title=Firefox 4 beta 4 adds hardware acceleration |publisher=CNET |date=25 March 2014 |access-date=6 August 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|date=13 September 2010|url=https://www.theregister.co.uk/Print/2010/09/13/mozilla_v_windows_on_hardware_acceleration/|title=Mozilla chucks Roc at Microsoft's new hardness|work=The Register}}</ref> Firefox 4 also added DirectWrite support, but rendering in the DirectWrite specific style was made non-default for some fonts in Firefox 7 due to user complaints about the rendering quality.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://blog.mozilla.org/nattokirai/2011/08/11/directwrite-text-rendering-in-firefox-6/ |title=DirectWrite Text Rendering in Firefox 6 |publisher=Blog.mozilla.org |date=11 August 2011 |access-date=9 August 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140810103409/https://blog.mozilla.org/nattokirai/2011/08/11/directwrite-text-rendering-in-firefox-6/ |archive-date=10 August 2014 }}</ref>

[[Microsoft Office 2013]] supports either Direct2D/DirectWrite or GDI/Uniscribe for display rendering and typography.<ref>{{cite web|author=Murray Sargent|url=http://blogs.msdn.com/b/murrays/archive/2012/07/29/office-adopts-new-windows-display-technology.aspx|title=Office Adopts New Windows Display Technology|publisher=Microsoft|work=Microsoft Developer Network}}</ref>

[[Google Chrome]] in Windows supports DirectWrite starting from version 37.<ref>{{cite web|author=Brandon Chester|title=Google Updates Chrome To Version 37 With DirectWrite Support|url=http://www.anandtech.com/show/8431/google-updates-chrome-to-version-37-with-directwrite-support|date=26 August 2014|access-date=27 August 2014|work=AnandTech}}</ref> [[Microsoft Edge]] with [[Chromium (software)|Chromium]] engine also supports DirectWrite and use it by default.<ref>https://blogs.windows.com/msedgedev/2021/06/02/improving-font-rendering-in-microsoft-edge/</ref>

[[Telegram (messaging service)|Telegram]]'s desktop client uses DirectWrite to render color emojis on Windows.

[[Steam (service)|Steam]] has the option to enable DirectWrite for improved font smoothing and kerning on its desktop client

== See also ==
*[[Pango]]: a cross platform library for rendering text in high quality, emphasising support for multilingual text.
*[[Cairo (graphics)|Cairo]]: a vector-based cross platform graphics library that can render text.

== References ==
{{reflist}}

{{Microsoft APIs}}

[[Category:Text rendering libraries]]
[[Category:DirectX]]

DirectWrite - Revision history

117.61.102.192: /* Uses */