Where is DirectX going?

I read somewhere *cof* http://www.managed-world.com/SoonDirectXDirect3DNothingElse.aspx *cof* that Microsoft is deprecating a large part of DirectX (DirectInput, DirectSound)

he then hints about learning Shaders
http://www.managed-world.com/AdviceLearnShadersNow.aspx

so the question is, should I not bother to learn DirectInput, DirectSound, etc... what should I be learning if I want to develop DirectX applications in the future
is DirectX the future of graphics programming or is there something else coming (XAML anyone )

thanks for your comments

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Where is DirectX going?

Giftednewt
Won't XACT be replacing directsound in the near future
Gimlei
The only public information about future of DirectX can be found in the meltdown slides. http://msdn.microsoft.com/directx/

There are several slides sets missing from this set as the information is still under NDA so will not be discussed publically.

XAML will not be replacing DirectX anytime soon and the basic graphic concepts for 3D game programming will always be the same if you are learning. I would avoid DirectDraw but Direct3D is still fine to learn.

As for the others things - since there is no replacement announced you need to continue with those if you want to complete a game in the short term future.
jony_cool
The SDK documentation offers up-to-date guidance. However, you need to look in the C++ side of the docs. Open the C++ docs and look at the link for "DirectX 9.0 Components". That lets you know what is available and what is deprecated (for instance, DirectInput is not deprecated).

As new technologies become available, or replace existing ones, we will make announcements on the DirectX Developer Center as well as in the SDK.
ram1608
heh heh.. I was just joking to myself that the next thing MS was going to deprecate is DirectInput. Then I saw this thread.
Where is DirectX going?

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