This is off topic in many ways, so an admin is free to move it...but its a response to software graphics coders involved in this latest intro.
I'm a newcomer here and Im not interested in software rendering demos...its not my thing. However, its damn good to see some people are. I started out coding gfx back in the early eighties when only plot pixel was around. Ive watched trends and methods in computer graphics come and go and cycle round again. And guess what? software rendering is coming back again. For a long time any idiot could do 3d by reading a book on OGL and downloading some code and throwing it on the screen. Fast hardware meant fast graphics.
But it meant we were stuck with triangles, alpha blending and texture mapping. Look how little of anything changed in demos/intros in the last 5-6 years. Sure it got bigger, faster and more stylistic but its the same damn stuff over and over again.
However, its going to change. Shaders you see are software renderers. Their support in hardware is becoming mainstream and more popular. I believe its taken a long time to take route in the demo community because many do not have a software rendering background. Shaders are software renderers pure and simple. Ask your average demo coder to code a lighting equation of their own and you will probably get blank looks. The best I can say so far is that most shaders are downloaded or simple 2d post effects. Not true in all cases but generally so.
To be a good shader coder you need a good solid background in software rendering. So take heart software graphics coders. Your time is coming. In fact, if you learn it now, I'd say next year is the time. Demoing is about pushing the boundaries and doing things you didnt know was possible (more software balls than ever before on a spectrum, a real time raytracer at 1600x1400, etc.) The innovators are software graphics coders.
For those who doubt shaders are the future, I could discuss the subject forever...but that really is for another thread.
Dont stop doing software rendering. Its an art that must be kept alive.