Terrible Flickering with Direct3D

I'm making a program with four viewports that each display different angles of the same scene. I'm writing this in C# using MDX and no seems to have tried this. I know the SDK docs say "use multiple swap chains", but I found some C++ code where some just did it with multiple viewports. With that in mind, why does this program flicker so badly?

 

namespace CameraPlacer
{
/// <summary>
/// Summary description for Form1.
/// </summary>
public class MainForm : System.Windows.Forms.Form
{
	private Microsoft.DirectX.Direct3D.Device DirectDevice;
	private VertexBuffer VertBuf;
	private System.Windows.Forms.Button SubtractCamera;
	private System.Windows.Forms.Button AddCamera;
	private System.Windows.Forms.Panel Buttons;
	private Camera UpperLeft;
	private Camera UpperRight;
	private Camera LowerLeft;
	private Camera LowerRight;
	private ArrayList Cameras = new ArrayList();
	private int Active;
	private float angle = 0.1f;
	private System.Windows.Forms.Panel DrawPanel;
	private Mesh Tea;

	/// <summary>
	/// Required designer variable.
	/// </summary>
	private System.ComponentModel.Container components = null;

	public MainForm()
	{
		
		//
		// Required for Windows Form Designer support
		//
		InitializeComponent();
		InitializeGraphics();

		this.SetStyle(ControlStyles.AllPaintingInWmPaint | ControlStyles.Opaque | ControlStyles.UserPaint | 
			ControlStyles.DoubleBuffer, true);
			
	}

	/// <summary>
	/// Clean up any resources being used.
	/// </summary>
	protected override void Dispose( bool disposing )
	{
		if( disposing )
		{
			if (components != null) 
			{
				components.Dispose();
			}
		}
		base.Dispose( disposing );
	}

	public void InitializeGraphics()
	{
		// Set our presentation parameters
		PresentParameters presentParams = new PresentParameters();

		presentParams.Windowed = true;
		presentParams.SwapEffect = SwapEffect.Discard;
	    //presentParams.PresentationInterval = PresentInterval.Immediate;
		presentParams.PresentFlag = PresentFlag.DeviceClip;
		
		// Create our device and cameras
		DirectDevice = new Microsoft.DirectX.Direct3D.Device(0, Microsoft.DirectX.Direct3D.DeviceType.Hardware, DrawPanel, CreateFlags.HardwareVertexProcessing, presentParams);
		UpperLeft = new Camera(.035f, 0, 0, 5, 0, presentParams.BackBufferHeight, presentParams.BackBufferWidth);
		UpperRight = new Camera(.035f, 0, 5, 0, 0, presentParams.BackBufferHeight, presentParams.BackBufferWidth);
		LowerLeft = new Camera(.035f, 5, 0, 0, 0, presentParams.BackBufferHeight, presentParams.BackBufferWidth);
		LowerRight = new Camera(.035f, 0, 0, 5, 0, presentParams.BackBufferHeight, presentParams.BackBufferWidth);
		UpperLeft.ProjMatrix = Matrix.PerspectiveFovLH((float)Math.PI / 4, UpperLeft.View.Width / UpperLeft.View.Height, .035f, 5.0f);
		UpperRight.ProjMatrix = Matrix.PerspectiveFovLH((float)Math.PI / 4, UpperLeft.View.Width / UpperLeft.View.Height, .035f, 5.0f);
		LowerLeft.ProjMatrix = Matrix.PerspectiveFovLH((float)Math.PI / 4, UpperLeft.View.Width / UpperLeft.View.Height, .035f, 5.0f);
		UpperLeft.View.X = 0;
		UpperLeft.View.Y = 0;
		UpperRight.View.X = presentParams.BackBufferWidth / 2;
		UpperRight.View.Y = 0;
		LowerLeft.View.X = 0;
		LowerLeft.View.Y = presentParams.BackBufferHeight / 2;
		Cameras.Add(new Camera(.035f, .07f, 0, 0, 0, presentParams.BackBufferHeight, presentParams.BackBufferWidth));
		Active = 0;
		LowerRight = (Camera) Cameras[Active];
           VertBuf = new VertexBuffer(typeof(CustomVertex.PositionColored), 3, DirectDevice, Usage.Dynamic | Usage.WriteOnly, CustomVertex.PositionColored.Format, Pool.Default);
           VertBuf.Created += new EventHandler(this.OnVertexBufferCreate);
		OnVertexBufferCreate(VertBuf, null);
	}

	private void OnVertexBufferCreate(object sender, EventArgs e)
	{
		VertexBuffer buffer = (VertexBuffer)sender;

		CustomVertex.PositionColored[] verts = new CustomVertex.PositionColored[3];
		verts[0].SetPosition(new Vector3(0.0f, 1.0f, 1.0f));
		verts[0].Color = System.Drawing.Color.Aqua.ToArgb();
		verts[1].SetPosition(new Vector3(-1.0f, -1.0f, 1.0f));
		verts[1].Color = System.Drawing.Color.Black.ToArgb();
		verts[2].SetPosition(new Vector3(1.0f, -1.0f, 1.0f));
		verts[2].Color = System.Drawing.Color.Purple.ToArgb();

		buffer.SetData(verts, 0, LockFlags.None);
	}

	#region Windows Form Designer generated code
	/// <summary>
	/// Required method for Designer support - do not modify
	/// the contents of this method with the code editor.
	/// </summary>
	private void InitializeComponent()
	{
		this.SubtractCamera = new System.Windows.Forms.Button();
		this.AddCamera = new System.Windows.Forms.Button();
		this.Buttons = new System.Windows.Forms.Panel();
		this.DrawPanel = new System.Windows.Forms.Panel();
		this.Buttons.SuspendLayout();
		this.SuspendLayout();
		// 
		// SubtractCamera
		// 
		this.SubtractCamera.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(16, 0);
		this.SubtractCamera.Name = "SubtractCamera";
		this.SubtractCamera.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(16, 16);
		this.SubtractCamera.TabIndex = 4;
		this.SubtractCamera.Text = "-";
		this.SubtractCamera.Click += new System.EventHandler(this.SubtractCamera_Click);
		// 
		// AddCamera
		// 
		this.AddCamera.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(0, 0);
		this.AddCamera.Name = "AddCamera";
		this.AddCamera.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(16, 16);
		this.AddCamera.TabIndex = 5;
		this.AddCamera.Text = "+";
		this.AddCamera.Click += new System.EventHandler(this.AddCamera_Click);
		// 
		// Buttons
		// 
		this.Buttons.Controls.Add(this.SubtractCamera);
		this.Buttons.Controls.Add(this.AddCamera);
		this.Buttons.Dock = System.Windows.Forms.DockStyle.Top;
		this.Buttons.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(0, 0);
		this.Buttons.Name = "Buttons";
		this.Buttons.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(1016, 16);
		this.Buttons.TabIndex = 8;
		// 
		// DrawPanel
		// 
		this.DrawPanel.Dock = System.Windows.Forms.DockStyle.Fill;
		this.DrawPanel.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(0, 16);
		this.DrawPanel.Name = "DrawPanel";
		this.DrawPanel.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(1016, 725);
		this.DrawPanel.TabIndex = 9;
		this.DrawPanel.Paint += new System.Windows.Forms.PaintEventHandler(this.DrawPanel_Paint);
		// 
		// MainForm
		// 
		this.AutoScaleBaseSize = new System.Drawing.Size(5, 13);
		this.ClientSize = new System.Drawing.Size(1016, 741);
		this.Controls.Add(this.DrawPanel);
		this.Controls.Add(this.Buttons);
		this.Name = "MainForm";
		this.Text = "FirstAttempt";
		this.Buttons.ResumeLayout(false);
		this.ResumeLayout(false);

	}
	#endregion

	/// <summary>
	/// The main entry point for the application.
	/// </summary>
	[sTAThread]
	static void Main() 
	{
		using (MainForm frm = new MainForm())
		{
			// Show our form and initialize our graphics engine
			frm.Show();
			Application.Run(frm);
		}

	}

	private void AddCamera_Click(object sender, System.EventArgs e)
	{
		Cameras.Add(new Camera(.035f, .07f, 0, 0, 0, DirectDevice.PresentationParameters.BackBufferHeight, 
				   DirectDevice.PresentationParameters.BackBufferWidth));
	}

	private void SubtractCamera_Click(object sender, System.EventArgs e)
	{
		if (Cameras.Count > 1)
               Cameras.RemoveAt(Active);
	}

	private void DrawPanel_Paint(object sender, System.Windows.Forms.PaintEventArgs e)
	{
		LowerRight = (Camera) Cameras[Active];
		DirectDevice.Transform.World = Matrix.RotationAxis(new Vector3(angle / ((float)Math.PI * 2.0f), angle / ((float)Math.PI * 4.0f), angle / ((float)Math.PI * 6.0f)),  angle / (float)Math.PI);
		DirectDevice.RenderState.CullMode = Cull.None;
		angle += 0.1f;
		DirectDevice.RenderState.Lighting = false;
		DirectDevice.VertexFormat = CustomVertex.PositionColored.Format;
		DirectDevice.SetStreamSource(0, VertBuf, 0);
		
		DirectDevice.Viewport = UpperLeft.View;
		DirectDevice.Clear(ClearFlags.Target, System.Drawing.Color.Red, 1.0f, 0);
		DirectDevice.Transform.Projection = UpperLeft.ProjMatrix;
		DirectDevice.Transform.View = Matrix.LookAtLH(UpperLeft.Location, new Vector3(), new Vector3(0,1,0));
		DirectDevice.BeginScene();
		DirectDevice.DrawPrimitives(PrimitiveType.TriangleList, 0, 1);
		DirectDevice.EndScene();
		DirectDevice.Present();

		DirectDevice.Viewport = UpperRight.View;
		DirectDevice.Clear(ClearFlags.Target, System.Drawing.Color.CornflowerBlue, 1.0f, 0);
		DirectDevice.Transform.Projection = UpperRight.ProjMatrix;
		DirectDevice.Transform.View = Matrix.LookAtLH(UpperRight.Location, new Vector3(), new Vector3(0,1,0));
		DirectDevice.BeginScene();
		DirectDevice.DrawPrimitives(PrimitiveType.TriangleList, 0, 1);
		DirectDevice.EndScene();
		DirectDevice.Present();

		DirectDevice.Viewport = LowerLeft.View;
		DirectDevice.Clear(ClearFlags.Target, System.Drawing.Color.Green, 1.0f, 0);
		DirectDevice.Transform.Projection = LowerLeft.ProjMatrix;
		DirectDevice.Transform.View = Matrix.LookAtLH(LowerLeft.Location, new Vector3(), new Vector3(0,1,0));
		DirectDevice.BeginScene();
		DirectDevice.DrawPrimitives(PrimitiveType.TriangleList, 0, 1);
		DirectDevice.EndScene();
		DirectDevice.Present();
		
		DirectDevice.Viewport = LowerRight.View;
		DirectDevice.Clear(ClearFlags.Target, System.Drawing.Color.Gray, 1.0f, 0);
		DirectDevice.Transform.Projection = LowerRight.ProjMatrix;
		DirectDevice.Transform.View = Matrix.LookAtLH(LowerRight.Location, new Vector3(), new Vector3(0,1,0));
		DirectDevice.BeginScene();
		DirectDevice.DrawPrimitives(PrimitiveType.TriangleList, 0, 1);
		DirectDevice.EndScene();
		DirectDevice.Present();
		
		DrawPanel.Invalidate();
	}
}
}

Flickering is usually caused by trying to render each frame onto the front buffer, a possible solution is to use a back buffer, this is called double buffering.

I'm new to all this... so is that harder than just setting the style of the window to ControlStyles.DoubleBuffer? I already did that, and it didn't seem to affect the flickering at all.

Oh yeah, I also should mention that I'm drawing inside a panel, not there entire window... how do you setstyle for a panel?

ControlStyles.DOubleBuffer is for GDI+ :)

I am not a C# programmer so i'm not too sure about the c# add-on stuff. But

from reading your codes i think you are missing a few lines to initialise the back buffer format, height and width.

 

presentParams.BackBufferHeight = HERE YOU PUT THE DISPLAY HEIGHT

presentParams.BackBufferWidth = HERE YOU PUT THE DISPLAY WIDTH

presentParams.BackBufferFormat = HERE YOU PUT THE DISPLAY FORMAT

 

hope this will help ~ let me know.

also,

you need to lock the vertex buffer before setting the vertices and remember to unlock them when you're done

 

private void OnVertexBufferCreate(object sender, EventArgs e)

{

VertexBuffer buffer = (VertexBuffer)sender;

 

CustomVertex.PositionColored[] verts = new CustomVertex.PositionColored[3];

 

buffer.lock(0,0) = verts[] //sry dude i dont remember the actual syntax of the command

verts[0].SetPosition(new Vector3(0.0f, 1.0f, 1.0f));

verts[0].Color = System.Drawing.Color.Aqua.ToArgb();

verts[1].SetPosition(new Vector3(-1.0f, -1.0f, 1.0f));

verts[1].Color = System.Drawing.Color.Black.ToArgb();

verts[2].SetPosition(new Vector3(1.0f, -1.0f, 1.0f));

verts[2].Color = System.Drawing.Color.Purple.ToArgb();

buffer.unlock;

 

// buffer.SetData(verts, 0, LockFlags.None); //not too sure what this line does(its in your code above)

}