Patent ID: 8365153

Claim:
A method of requesting server-based code compilation, the method comprising: sending, by a driver running on a central processing unit (CPU) of a client, a code compilation request to a server having a plurality of compilers, the client including a graphics processing unit (GPU), wherein the server is configured to compile shader programs that render graphics effects and that calculate a color associated with a graphical element; receiving a response to the code compilation request from the server, the response indicating that the server can compile shader program code associated with the code compilation request; upon detecting that the response indicates that the server can compile the shader program code, sending the shader program code to the server; loading, by the GPU, vertex and texture shading data while waiting for shader object code from the server, the shader object code being a compiled version of the shader program code; receiving the shader object code from the server; providing the shader object code to the GPU after receiving the shader object code from the server; and executing the shader object code at the GPU.