Open Standards for Real-Time 3D Communication

 Visualizing Information Using SVG and X3D

Nov 19, 2008

This book is devoted to both SVG and X3D as a new and universal means of visualizing information. It presents the state-of-the-art research emerging in this novel area and introduces SVG and X3D fundamentals and leading authoring tools. The key topics covered include: - The foundations of SVG and X3D - Data, information, knowledge and network visualization - Advanced and distributed user interfaces - Visualizing metadata and the Semantic Web - Visual interfaces to Web services - New trends and paradigms in publishing and Interactive TV - Displaying geographically referenced data and chemical structures - Advanced use of Adobe Illustrator and X3D-Edit authoring tools This book will be essential reading not only for researchers, Web developers and graduate students but also for undergraduates and everyone who is interested in using the next-generation computer graphics on their websites.

 OCTAGA ENTERPRISE 2.2 - The Ultimate 3D Viewing Solution

Oct 31, 2008

OCTAGA ENTERPRISE 2.2 a VRML/X3D player! Now includes the functionality of Octaga Professional and much more…
Octaga Enterprise is the ultimate tool for the interactive visualization of large and complex models through an intuitive, user-friendly 3D interface. 
Compliant to ISO X3D and ISO 15926 it’s a tool for unlimited access to 3D enterprise data for use in operations, training and simulation. Delivering best of breed CAD visualization solutions for Plant, Subsea, Aerospace, Marine and other industries utilizing CAD data for design, Octaga Enterprise Suite is a leading tool for presenting environments which aren’t easily accessible. Octaga Enterprise creates value from enterprise CAD data by presenting models in a clear, intuitive, user friendly manner within a life-like environment. Utilizing Octaga technology, owners, operators and engineers can now realize their 3D CAD models.
OCTAGA ENTERPRISE ONLINE SEMINAR
Octaga is holding two online seminars to demonstrate the power of Octaga Enterprise
Europe/Middle East/Africa – Wednesday 5th November 10 am GMT+1 REGISTER HERE
Americas – Thursday 6th November 17:00 GMT +1 REGISTER HERE

 Blender 2.48a release adds VRML and X3D import script

Oct 27, 2008

Blender 2.48a release, a free open source 3D content creation suite, available for all major operating systems adds VRML and X3D import scripts along with several bug fixes especially for using the Game Engine and GLSL.

 Geospatial X3D Earth component support for FreeWRL Version 1.21.0 and above

Oct 22, 2008

The FreeWRL X3D Viewer team is proud to announce Geospatial X3D Earth component support for FreeWRL Version 1.21.0 and above.

This effort was supported by the Intelligence Advanced Research Project Agency for the Analyst for Exploration (A-SpaceX) Program via the MOVES institute, and will encourage use of X3D Earth standards.

FreeWRL is an open source project, and runs on the Apple OSX and Linux operating systems, and is freely available. Management and development support is provided by the Communications Research Center, Canada.

FreeWRL is available at sourceforge.

 Tutorial on Web3D Open Standard X3D at SIGGRAPH Asia 2008

Oct 20, 2008

SIGGRAPH Asia attendees don’t miss this opportunity to learn about Web3D technologies and the open standard X3D at SIGGRAPH Asia in Singapore on Saturday, 13 December 2008. Don Brutzman, founder of the Web3D Consortium and author of “X3D: Extensible 3D Graphics for Web Authors” will be offering a tutorial on Interactive Introduction to X3D Graphics. Extensible 3D (X3D) graphics is the open standard for 3D real-time communication on the web. X3D defines scene files that integrate network-enabled 3D graphics and multimedia. X3D applications are real-time, interactive, animated systems that can run stand-alone or in networked virtual environments.

This tutorial focuses on the primary functionality of X3D including scene authoring, creation of geometry, web capabilities, designing animation chains, and user interaction. Specific topics include animation design using interpolators and sequencers. The tutorial briefly examines embedded scripting, prototypes for extensibility, and various visualisation examples. Attendees learn hands-on how to build an X3D world, and they have access to the latest X3D Showcase DVD, which contains a wide variety of free and commercial viewers, authoring tools, and example content.

Web3D Consortium will also be there at SIGGRAPH Asia in Singapore, we’ll have a both with our new member DreamAxis of Singapore plus a Tech Talk and several group meetings as well. Details coming soon…Exciting new opportunities. Hope to see you there!

 3D-Tool v8.5 Released to Communicate and Coordinate CAD-Data

Oct 17, 2008

3D-Tool, a professional CAD-Viewer which provides a wide range of functionality to dynamically display and analyze 3D-models and to view 2D-drawings announces the availability of its 3D-Tool version 8.5. 3D-Tool is more than just a viewer. 3D-Tool enables all members of the project team, and external parties such as customers and suppliers, to dynamically check and evaluate your CAD models. The new version 8.5 offers multiple strategies for publishing and distributing CAD models to anyone inside or outside of your company.

 Shapeways a DIY 3D design and production company announces black detail object color for Halloween

Oct 17, 2008

Halloween is coming and it’s time to be creepy and creative!
Shapeways, a leading global community for DIY 3D design and production is proud to announce a new, high-resolution Black Detail (Objet) color for their customers. Perfect for Halloween you can now use this new black detail color to create the scariest of designs with brilliant accuracy using one of the highest resolution design media available. In celebration of Halloween the new Black Detail material is available at an introductory rate of only $.0.97 per cm3 (66.6% below the regular price) until October 19th, shipping and tax included.
Black Detail (Objet) is the latest of the detail materials already offered by Shapeways and their cost-effective, DIY printing service. Other additional materials include White Strong & Flexible (SLS), Cream Robust (FDM), White Detail and Transparent Detail (Objet).  Simply upload a new or existing three dimensional mode in STL, Collada or X3D, to Shapeways at http://www.shapeways.com, and the custom produced model will arrive in just a few short days, globally. Orders placed by October 19th will be delivered, just in time for Halloween.

 view3dscene a browser for VRML and X3D

Oct 17, 2008

view3dscene is a browser for VRML (1.0 and 2.0) and X3D, and a viewer for other 3D model formats (3DS, MD3, Wavefront OBJ, and Collada). It supports viewing the scene in the “Examine” mode and walking in the virtual world with features such as collision detection and gravity. Rendering is done using OpenGL. A built-in ray-tracer allows the generation of images with more effects (like shadows and mirrors) and conforming precisely to the VRML 97 lighting specification. The program can also convert files from 3DS, MD3, and other formats to VRML and pretty-print VRML files.

 Is a 3D web more than just empty promises?

Oct 16, 2008

VRML veterans like, Web3D Consortium member Tony Parisi last month marked the tenth anniversary of the language’s first commercial implementation. And after a decade of waiting for a computer graphics Godot, they’re used to encountering scepticism when they herald the imminent emergence of Web 3D.

Bodies littering the Web 3D landscape include that of Microsoft’s Chromeffects effort (shelved in 1998), Adobe’s Atmosphere title (killed in November), and Intel and Macromedia’s joint venture to popularise Shockwave 3D on the Web (which dissolved along with other Intel Web 3D alliances).

In 10 years of turmoil and tried patience, both VRML and Parisi have changed. VRML, after achieving ISO standardisation, in recent years has been reborn, under the auspices of the Web3D Consortium, as an XML-based ISO standard called X3D. Parisi has kept the Web 3D religion with a San Francisco start-up called Media Machines now (Vivaty), whose clients include the US Navy and Joe Firmage’s ManyOne portal.

 Reality To Go: 3-D Virtual Reality On Mobile Devices

Oct 13, 2008

If mere texting, talking, e-mailing and snapping pictures on mobile devices aren’t enough to satisfy your data cravings, now there’s the prospect of accessing and displaying 3-D virtual reality simulations and animations on them. New information architecture from researchers in Offenburg, Germany puts 3-D visualizations in the palm of your hand to make this possible.

By devising a novel information and communication architecture with optics technology, researchers created a new approach based on outsourcing to servers all the heavy number crunching required by computer animations and virtual reality simulations. After churning through it, the servers then provide the information either as stream (avi, motion JPEG) or as vector-based data (VRML, X3D) displayable as 3-D on mobile devices. Dan Curticapean and his colleagues Andreas Christ and Markus Feisst of Offenburg’s University of Applied Science devised the approach.

Since the processing power of mobile phones, smart phones and personal digital assistants is increasing—along with expansion in transmission bandwidth—it occurred to us that it is possible to harness this power to create 3-D virtual reality,“ says Curticapean. “So we designed a system to optimize and send the virtual reality data to the mobile phone or other mobile device.“

 WBandD a community for virtual world builders promotes VRML/X3D

Oct 13, 2008

Bruce Lehmann, Founder and Administrator of WBandD a community for virtual world builders promotes VRML and X3D.

With the Blaxxun Free Server going down and possibly not coming back, and the advent of new multi-user ideas. WBandD is for those who build, and develop in VRML/X3D to share worlds and ideas. Right now there is a large interest in 3D and Virtual Worlds and VRML/X3D are the original platforms. An open standard with ease of use. It is a fairly easy to learn method when compared to some of the other platforms. It is a friendly format, meaning that it is a fairly common saving/exporting convention in most 3D modeling programs, which means that you’re not locked into a proprietary format or in-world building. And as an ISO Standard, it has support and specification availability.

 “X3D for Web Authors” - Course Videos for chapters 1-8

Oct 09, 2008

Thanks to Don Brutzman author of “X3D for Web Authors”,  Jeff Malnick and Jeff Weekley of NPS, we now have course videos for 35 course-lesson for chapters 1-8 of this book. These video podcasts are available at: X3dForWebAuthors
Don Brtuzman and his team expect to finish the remaining chapters 9-14 in November 2008 and are placing new lectures online several times each week. This complements the full set of course notes and examples, already available at:
http://x3dgraphics.com/slidesets
http://X3dGraphics.com/examples/X3dForWebAuthors
We hope these resources help to encourage teaching and learning X3D.