Let's make Google adopt VRML

[Hiperia3D - Jordi R Cardona]

Please read:

http://news.hiperia3d.com/2009/04/another-standard-for-web-3d-googl...

I have submitted the suggestion to make O3D adopt VRML or X3D in classical vrml encoding. The option is getting votes.

PLEASE GO THERE AND VOTE! Let's make VRML and X3D be supported by O3D!

Just login in Google account and go to:

http://moderator.appspot.com/#16/e=41eb1

And vote the option:

"Create support for VRML or X3D in classical VRML syntax because it's an already existing standard for web3D and it's easy for everyone"

[Hiperia3D - Jordi R Cardona]

> xj3d hasn't been updated since'06:

Xj3D is updated very often. But that is the latest stable version. The newer versions are here:

http://www.xj3d.org/snapshots.html

And the last one is from 01/05/2009.You can install them instead of 1.0, as they are rather stable too, they are called development snapshots simply because the features to add to a final 2.0 are many.

I am in contact with Don Brutzman and we have spoken several times to integrate my modules on X3D-Edit, but it's a lot of work and I have little time. If when doing my app I discover what fails, I will report the reason and fix.

In the X3D-Edit website my modules appear as compatible plugins, but there are some things that don't work, as the open dialog and this way there is not much sense using them there until the bugs of the interaction with X3D-edit are solved.

[Steve]

I guess I will wait til the final. Not to keen on dealing with a bunch of jar files...

X3D can wait. LOL

[fabricator]

Steve said:

I guess I will wait til the final. Not to keen on dealing with a bunch of jar files...

X3D can wait. LOL

Exactly the point of most CONTENT authors, programs should be straight forward to install. There is no 'simply use this Jar file to display content', no instead you need to fool around with Jar files from different versions.

That Xj3D hasn't had an official stable version in 3 years is rather disturbing. It also doesn't support gziped .wrl files, instead demands .wrl.gz <- this isn't 1995 get serious.

[Hiperia3D - Jordi R Cardona]

Xj3D comes with an installer and you don't need to deal with any jar file.
It is an standalone program, not a plugin for a browser. I work with Xj3D often, I am quite happy with it, specially because with it you can add an x3d or vrml window to your Java application. That is its main virtue.

As a plugin, there is Vivaty, Octaga, BSContact and others. Many people may not like Xj3D because it is not for the browser, better use a commercial plugin.

Someone may also build a Firefox extension to open x3d and vrml files with Xj3D.

Open source applications take a lot of time to be developed and may not be very satisfying because programmers need to earn money and no one makes donations, so they need to spend their time coding things that people pay. So things only get done if a large number of people collaborate, which is very hard to achieve. Sad but true.

[Doctor]

I installed and tried out X3D-Edit as well. I liked the idea of having the 3D viewer as part of the editor.
The syntax highlighting and node palette were promising, but I was (like most VRML people) hoping that I could edit an X3D file in X3Dv format with syntax highlighting and a palette with the full compliment of X3D nodes. I tried adding Jordi's X3DV Module but was not successful in getting X3Dv with syntax highlighting, and the X3Dv palette I got was a small subset of the X3D nodes. Perhaps X3D-Edit will eventually get to the point where it satisfies our expectations.

Nevertheless, if more people had browser plug-ins that supported X3Dv then I would start using X3Dv instead of VRML97. I used to just use Notepad for VRML97 for years, until I finally decided to buy a license for VRMLpad. Most of my VRML was exported anyway from authoring tools like 3Dcanvas or Vivaty (previously Spazz3D, then VizX3D, then Flux Studio and now Vivaty Studio), so Notepad was sufficient for merging objects exported from authoring tools (and to add javascript to script nodes).
Hmmm. Now that I think about it, it should be a relatively simple matter to create a syntax highlighting template for X3Dv in Notepad++, which can be customized in that manner. Not as fully featured as VRMLpad, but it would at least provide syntax highlighting and collapsable (hideable) node sections. We still need (in my opinion) to move people towards 3D viewers and browser plug-ins that support *.x3dv files (BS Contact instead of blaxxun, for instance), or there would be no point in creating x3dv files, let alone having a VRMLpad style tool.

[Hiperia3D - Jordi R Cardona]

I remember that was a syntax highlighter for an app called RADVRML, I think I have it somewhere in my discs, as it disappeared. There was also another for the editor called Treepad or something that way (not sure). But the coloring was confusing.

My modules don't work well with X3D-Edit, as I said. The palette is also in a very alpha phase. It is not for all nodes but for code clips often used. I need to make it customizable.

Maybe when I finally make it, I will make a poll or forum or group to ask for ideas of what people need more.

[Steve]

Doctor said:

I installed and tried out X3D-Edit as well. I liked the idea of having the 3D viewer as part of the editor. The syntax highlighting and node palette were promising, but I was (like most VRML people) hoping that I could edit an X3D file in X3Dv format with syntax highlighting and a palette with the full compliment of X3D nodes.

Were you able to figure out how to export the file currently into the editor as x3dv?

Yes the viewer is key i think but I never did mind opeing the view from vrmlpad after i have made some changes. I guess i am used to that and I, like you, used to use notepad quite a bit to edit my old VR Creator exported files. I am sure glad i started using VRMLPad but I did learn to recognize code alot better when i was using black&white notepad. lmao.

All in all I am not to impressed with the resources available for x3d content developers. If one is going to efficiently create content we need software that works the way it is supposed to and works all the time.

|-Hiperia3D - Jordi R Cardona-|

.Xj3D comes with an installer and you don't need to deal with any jar file. It is an standalone program, not a plugin for a browser

Jordi that is only if you choose to use version 1.0, which hasn't been updated in 3 years. If you use the new "snapshots" you have to deal with .jar files. I am in agreement with Fab here. In 3 years time you would think they could create a newer version that is stable. I realize that pay is a deciding factor sometimes but the consortium undertook this project. It is their baby. Just disappointed here that they have focused all this attention and energy on x3d and we still don't have a reliable set of resources to work with.

VRML is not only established but many commercial software companies still build support for it. X3D relies on plugins and whatever donated code comes along, none of which is very user freindly at the moment. Somehow I think that the consortium needs to start talking to these commercial software developers and find a way to start drumming up some support for X3D if they hope to have a successful go of it. Until then we won't see a vast amount of content being developed using X3D.

[Hiperia3D - Jordi R Cardona]

If you double click the jar file, it installs. I use to install every snapshot they produce. If double-clicking the jar does not install, then there is some problem in your system.