VRML, the context for

What is VRML

- VRML 1.0...Snowcrash

Science Fiction

Confluence of Technologies

- Web, 3D, VR, MOOs

Quick Demo

.

VRML, the context for[next].[previous].[index] slide 3

VRML Today

Brief History

- Cyberspace, VRML paper, Geneva BOF, www-vrml, selection, draft

- QvLib, the Hype, final spec and browsers

VRML 1.0 Specification

Hype - 3-APR-95, Newsweek, etc.

Other good sources

Frequently Asked Questions

VRML, the context for[next].[previous].[index] slide 4

VRML Tomorrow

VRML Technologies

Work with the IETF - Internet Engineering Task Force

VRML, the context for[next].[previous].[index] slide 5

VRML-NG

VRMOO/VRMUD - the social aspect of VR

Provide the richness of expression - sound, video...

Exploring the world together

Look at Snowcrash by Neal Stephenson

.

.

.

VRML, the context for[next].[previous].[index] slide 6

Web Hype

The Web is the Internet (in Technicolor)

The Web has grown exponentially (35,000 servers 4/95)

Web packets passed ftp packet in April 1995 as most common

Fortune magazine, March 1994, Mosaic is killer app

Fortune magazine, March 1995, Using the Web to Invest

All online services now access the Web

.

VRML, the context for[next].[previous].[index] slide 7

Web Technology

Content - searching

HTTP - HyperText Transport Protocol

Webservers

URLs, URNs & URIs

- (protocol)://(host)[:(port)]/(path)

Browsers

HTML

http://www.w3.org/hypertext/WWW/TheProject.html
VRML, the context for[next].[previous].[index] slide 8

HTTP & Webservers

HTTP 1.0 is becoming an IETF standard

client/server model

port 80

Many servers

- CERN, NCSA, EMWACS, Netsite, Apache...

A whole industry has sprung up

http://www.w3.org/hypertext/WWW/Protocols/Overview.html and http://www.ics.uci.edu/pub/ietf/http

VRML, the context for[next].[previous].[index] slide 9

HTML - HyperText Markup Language

Based on SGML (has a DTD Doc. Type Description)

Plain text

NOT a page description language

HTML 2.0 is the first "standard"

Lots of Authoring tools available

HTML 3.0 will add tables, I18N, insets, math

http://www.w3.org/hypertext/WWW/Tools/Overview.html and http://www.ics.uci.edu/pub/ietf/html

VRML, the context for[next].[previous].[index] slide 10

Browsers

NCSA Mosaic was the Web catalyst

Browser, Viewer & Client

- ftp, gopher, USENET news, mail, images...

http://www.w3.org/hypertext/WWW/Clients.html

VRML viewers

- QvLib parser, URL fetcher, rendering code, CCI & user interface

http://www.ncsa.uiuc.edu/SDG/Software/Mosaic/Docs/cci-spec.html

VRML, the context for[next].[previous].[index] slide 11

Helper Apps & MIME

Browsers cannot handle all data types - audio, video

MIME RFC 1521 & RFC 1522

Configure Browser

Configure Server

Compressed VRML files

http://www-dsed.llnl.gov/documents/WWWtest.html
VRML, the context for[next].[previous].[index] slide 12

3D in 3 Minutes

3D geometry to pictures via Graphics Pipeline

Transformations

Viewing & Cameras

Lighting and Shading

Texture Mapping

Open Inventor

3D PC libraries

VRML, the context for[next].[previous].[index] slide 13

VR Virtually

Desktop VR

Immersive VR

- HMD, gloves, sound, haptic input

Augmented Reality

CAVE

http://www.ncsa.uiuc.edu/EVL/docs/html/CAVE.html

- when it has bugs - when it works

OVRT

http://nemo.ncsl.nist.gov/~sressler/OVRThome.html ftp://sunee.uwaterloo.ca/pub/vr/documents/whatisvr.txt
VRML, the context for[next].[previous].[index] slide 14

MOO Musings

MUD is Multi-User Dungeon

programmable environments

text based

IRC - Internet Relay Chat

server architecture

Very real social interaction

http://vesta.physics.ucla.edu:7777/lambda/lambda.html

http://www.cis.ohio-state.edu/hypertext/faq/usenet/games/mud-faq/top.html

VRML, the context for[next].[previous].[index] slide 15

Navigation

within worlds, between worlds

Locomotion & Steering

- walking - flying (DOF)

Props - WIM

http://uvacs.cs.virginia.edu/~rws2v/wim/wim-paper.html

Teleport & Magic

Cyberspace Topology & Connectivity

System Architecture

VRML, the context for[next].[previous].[index] slide 16