News 

The next version of Microsoft's DirectX multimedia framework will enable graphics processors to perform tasks that are currently handled by the main computer processor.

That is precisely what OpenCL, which will form part of the next, Snow Leopard version of OS X, will do. Apple chief executive Steve Jobs said that the technology is "way beyond what Nvidia or anyone else has".

Microsoft clearly has something to say about that, but while its technology will only be available to Windows Vista and its successor, Apple is proposing OpenCL as a standard that can work anywhere. And in today's increasingly cross platform world, that may appeal to developers.

DirectX will also provide tools for programming on machines that have multiple-core processors, something Apple will address in Snow Leopard with its Grand Central technology.