Editing DirectShow (section)

===Simplicity===
Commanding DirectShow to play a file is a relatively simple task. However, while programming more advanced customizations, such as commanding DirectShow to display certain windows messages from the video window or creating custom filters, multiple developers complain of difficulties.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mperfect.net/mceDirectShow/ |title=Using DirectShow with Media Center Edition |work=/mceDirectShow |access-date=2010-08-18 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101121141842/http://www.mperfect.net/mceDirectShow/ |archive-date=2010-11-21 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gamedev.net/reference/articles/article1345.asp|title=The Basics to using DirectShow|author=Roushu, Kurifu|work=Gamedev.net|date=2001-03-13|access-date=2010-08-18|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120208101104/http://www.gamedev.net/page/resources/_/technical/directx-and-xna/the-basics-to-using-directshow-r1345|archive-date=2012-02-08}}</ref> It is regarded as one of Microsoft's most complex development libraries/APIs.<ref>{{cite web|first=Mark |last=Richards |url=http://www.mquter.qut.edu.au/mobile/ARTFilterDX/files/ARTFilterDX09-10.doc |title=Overview: What is the Augmented Reality Toolkit? |date=2008-08-26 |access-date=2009-01-25 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080719030713/http://www.mquter.qut.edu.au/mobile/ARTFilterDX/files/ARTFilterDX09-10.doc |archive-date=2008-07-19 }}</ref>{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}}

Developers rarely create DirectShow filters from scratch. Rather, they employ DirectShow Base Classes.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}} The Base Classes can often simplify development, allowing the programmer to bypass certain tasks. However, the process may remain relatively complex;{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}} the code found in the Base Classes is nearly half the size of the entire [[Microsoft Foundation Class Library|MFC library]].{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}} As a result, even with the Base Classes, the number of COM objects that DirectShow contains often overwhelms developers.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}}{{Weasel inline|date=August 2010}} In some cases, DirectShow's API deviates from traditional COM rules, particularly with regard to the parameters used for [[Method (computer science)|methods]].{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}}{{Weasel inline|date=August 2010}} To overcome their difficulties with DirectShow's unique COM rules, developers often turn to a higher level API that uses DirectShow, notably, ''Windows Media Player SDK'', an API provides the developer with an ActiveX Control that has fewer COM interfaces to deal with.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}}{{Weasel inline|date=August 2010}}

Although DirectShow is capable of dynamically building a graph to render a given media type, in certain instances it is difficult for developers to rely on this functionality and they need to resort to manually building filter graphs if the resulting filter graph is variable.{{Citation needed|date=April 2008}} It is possible for filter graphs to change over time as new filters are installed on the computer.{{Citation needed|date=August 2010}}