triplebuffering

Triple buffering is a graphics rendering technique used to improve the smoothness of animated visuals on a display. It is an extension of double buffering, which uses two buffers to store image data: one for rendering and one for display. In double buffering, the graphics card renders a new frame in the back buffer while the front buffer is displayed. Once the frame is complete, the buffers are swapped. This prevents screen tearing, where parts of multiple frames are displayed simultaneously, but can still lead to stuttering if the rendering time exceeds the display refresh rate.

Triple buffering introduces a third buffer. This allows the graphics card to render a new frame in the back buffer even if the front buffer is still being displayed and the second buffer (which was the previous back buffer) is not yet ready to be displayed. Essentially, it provides an extra buffer for the rendering process to work with. This means that the display can always show the most recently completed frame without waiting for the rendering pipeline to finish the next one.

The primary benefit of triple buffering is a reduction in input lag and stuttering, particularly in demanding games or applications. By decoupling the rendering and display processes more effectively, it ensures that the display is always updated with a complete frame as soon as one is available, rather than having to wait for a buffer swap. While it can increase memory usage due to the additional buffer, the perceived improvement in visual fluidity is often considered a worthwhile trade-off. The effectiveness of triple buffering can depend on the specific graphics hardware and software implementation.