[thelist] 3D on the web (WAS:Whatever happened to VRML?)

[viveka]

At 4:58 PM +0100 11/3/01, __ Chris Bell __ wrote:
>there's cult3d (http://www.cult3d.com) but that can also only be 
>authored on a wintel machine. but the authoring software is 
>free(though you have to build the models in 3d studio max or maya) 
>(browser plugins for mac and wintel and linux and whatever). and it 
>works great.
>then there's the metastream format (http://www.metastream.com) but 
>their plugin is wintel only (they say that a mac version will come 
>soon . . . . . and have said so many many moons ago).
>
>if i was to go for 3d on the web i would go for cult3d, the 
>programmers are great and given that the browser plugins exist both 
>for the wintel and mac . . . .

Why wouldn't you use VRML? I'm honestly interested - what's wrong with it?

The Cortona plugin exists for both PC and Mac, and there are even VRML
plugins for Linux, IRIX and i think Solaris. Just about every 3D package
exports VRML, and most import it as well. There are no native all-in-one
VRML authoring packages for the Mac (there's one for the PC, and it's
cheap - $100 and very good - http://www.spazz3D.com ), but it's markup,
so you can do it by hand if you need to. There are also free Java applet
viewers available if you don't want your users to download a plugin.

Why does cult3D beat it for you?

V.
-- 
|  Viveka Weiley, Karmanaut.	 http://www.karmanaut.com
|  hypermedia :: virtual worlds :: human interface :: truth :: beauty
|  http://www.planet-earth.org :: http://www.MacWeb3D.org
|  http://www.sydney.siggraph.org.au