Intended for computer game development,
Microsoft DirectPlay is a
media-independent networking
API that provides
networking services at the
transport
protocol and session protocol levels. *DirectPlay's media independence
means that DirectPlay sessions can be run on
TCP/IP networks, IPX networks, and
over directly connected modems and serial cables. DirectPlay's media
independence also allows it to be extended in the future to support new
standards and protocols as they become widely deployed. Also included in
DirectPlay are the DirectPlay Lobby APIs, which allow applications to register
themselves with DirectPlay so that other applications can easily launch them and
pass them network addressing information. This allows you to write games that
can be immediately launched by a number of different matchmaking services and
utilities, without having to write special code for each launcher.
* [Source:
MS Knowledgebase]
