Course 3D_MDX: 3D-Graphics with Managed DirectX 9.0 Chapter C4, Grid Version: Building a 3D-Grid with Cylinders Copyright © by V. Miszalok, last update: 15-12-2006
Let me know what you think	Projekt grid1   Form1, OnResize, OnTimer

Project grid1

This code is the grid1 variant of the previous mesh_primitive1 project. It animates a 3D-grid of cylinders.

Main Menu after starting VS 2008: File → New Project... → Visual Studio installed templates: Windows Forms Application
Name: grid1 → Location: C:\temp → Create directory for solution: switch it off → OK
Delete the files Program.cs and Form1.Designer.cs and the content of Form1.cs, as described in the chapters 2DCisC1 to 2DCisC4.

If You find no Solution Explorer-window, open it via the main menu: View → Solution Explorer.
Inside the Solution Explorer-window click the plus-sign in front of grid1. A tree opens. Look for the branch "References". Right-click References and left-click Add Reference.... An Add Reference dialog box opens. Scroll down to the component name: Microsoft.DirectX Version 1.0.2902.0.
Highlight this reference by a left-click and (holding the Strg-key pressed) the reference Microsoft.DirectX.Direct3D Version 1.0.2902.0 somewhere below. Quit the Add Reference dialog box with OK.
Check if both references Microsoft.DirectX and Microsoft.DirectX.Direct3D are now visible inside the Solution Explorer window underneath grid1 → References.

Form1, OnResize, OnTimer

Write the following code to Form1.cs:

using System;
using System.Drawing;
using System.Windows.Forms;
using Microsoft.DirectX;
using Microsoft.DirectX.Direct3D;

public class Form1 : Form
{ [STAThread] static void Main() { Application.Run( new Form1() ); }
  static Device device = null;
  static float fAngle = 0f;
  const int GridSize = 4; //can be any no. between 1 and 10
  static Mesh meshCylinder;
  Timer myTimer = new Timer();

  public Form1()
  { Text = "Grid1";
    myTimer.Tick += new EventHandler( OnTimer );
    myTimer.Interval = 1;
    ClientSize = new Size( 400, 300 ); //Calls OnResize( ... )
  }

  protected override void OnResize( System.EventArgs e )
  { myTimer.Stop();// stop the timer during initialization
    try
    { PresentParameters presentParams = new PresentParameters();
      presentParams.Windowed = true;                 //no full screen display
      presentParams.SwapEffect = SwapEffect.Discard; //no swap buffer
      presentParams.EnableAutoDepthStencil = true;   //with depth buffer
      presentParams.AutoDepthStencilFormat = DepthFormat.D16; //16 bit depth
      if ( device != null ) device.Dispose(); //free the old canvas if any
      device = new Device( 0, DeviceType.Hardware, this,
                           CreateFlags.SoftwareVertexProcessing, presentParams );
      Material mtrl = new Material();
      mtrl.Diffuse = mtrl.Ambient = Color.White;
      device.Material = mtrl;
      device.Lights[0].Type = LightType.Directional;
      device.Lights[0].Diffuse = System.Drawing.Color.DarkTurquoise;
      device.Lights[0].Direction = new Vector3( 1, 1, 5 );
      device.Lights[0].Enabled = true;//turn it on
      device.RenderState.Ambient = System.Drawing.Color.FromArgb( 0x202020 );
      device.Transform.View = Matrix.LookAtLH(
        new Vector3( 0f, 0f,-4f ),   //eye point 4.0 in front of the canvas
        new Vector3( 0f, 0f, 0f ),   //camera looks at point 0,0,0
        new Vector3( 0f, 1f, 0f ) ); //world's up direction is the y-axis
      device.Transform.Projection = Matrix.PerspectiveFovLH( (float)Math.PI/4, 1f, 1f, 10f );
      device.RenderState.CullMode = Cull.None;
      device.RenderState.Lighting = true;
      if ( meshCylinder != null ) meshCylinder.Dispose(); //free the old mesh if any
      meshCylinder = Mesh.Cylinder( device, 0.05f, 0.05f, 2f, 10, 2 ); //front+back radii, length, slices+stacks
      myTimer.Start(); //start the timer again
    }
    catch (DirectXException) { MessageBox.Show("Could not initialize Direct3D."); return; }
  }

  protected static void OnTimer( Object myObject, EventArgs myEventArgs )
  { if (device == null) return;
    device.Clear( ClearFlags.Target | ClearFlags.ZBuffer, Color.Blue, 1f, 0 );
    Matrix anim = Matrix.RotationY( fAngle +=0.01f );
    float GridStep = 2f / GridSize;
    device.BeginScene();
      for ( float y = -1f; y <= 1f; y += GridStep )  //z-rods
        for ( float x = -1f; x <= 1f; x += GridStep )
        { device.Transform.World  = Matrix.Translation( new Vector3( x, y, 0f ) ) * anim;
          meshCylinder.DrawSubset( 0 );
        }
      Matrix turn = Matrix.RotationY( (float)Math.PI/2f ); //horiz. rods
      for ( float z = -1f; z <= 1f; z += GridStep )
        for ( float y = -1f; y <= 1f; y += GridStep )
        { device.Transform.World  = turn * Matrix.Translation( new Vector3( 0f, y, z ) ) * anim;
          meshCylinder.DrawSubset( 0 );
        }
      turn = Matrix.RotationX( (float)Math.PI/2f ); //vertical rods
      for ( float z = -1f; z <= 1f; z += GridStep )
        for ( float x = -1f; x <= 1f; x += GridStep )
        { device.Transform.World  = turn * Matrix.Translation( new Vector3( x, 0f, z ) ) * anim;
          meshCylinder.DrawSubset( 0 );
        }
    device.EndScene();
    device.Present();
  }
}

Click Debug → Start Without Debugging Ctrl F5. Try to drag all window borders.

Exercise: Try out different grids by changing const int GridSize = 4; in line 11 from 4 to any arbitrary integer value between 1 and 10.

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