“Linux games publisher Loki and sound card vendor Creative
Technologies have co-released an open source 3D audio equivalent of
SGI’s 3D graphics standard, OpenGL.”
“Called – surprisingly enough – OpenAL, the audio API will be
offered as a cross-platform technology. So while it will
naturally find favour among Linux users, who have long lacked a
solid 3D audio infrastructure, OpenAL will be also made available
in MacOS and Windows versions….“
“Loki’s efforts should provide games developers with a single
reference point for 3D audio, no matter which platform they are
developing for. With Windows the prime focus of PC games
development and DirectX well entrenched there, the advantage here
is really for companies porting titles over to other platforms, as
Loki does for Linux. OpenAL’s success, then, will depend very much
on its adoption by the major PC games developers.”