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Exploring Virtual Worlds with VRML
by Joe Kraynak

VRML is a 3D programming language for the Internet. With VRML, Web page developers can insert VRML files on Web pages, animating them and giving you a dynamic, three-dimensional, interactive interface in which you can work, play, and receive immediate feedback to your commands.

With Microsoft's VRML add-in for Internet Explorer 3.0, you can explore virtual worlds without ever leaving your browser. This chapter shows you how to download, install, and use Microsoft's VRML viewer to explore several virtual worlds on the Web. In addition, you'll learn how to use other VRML helper apps, which you might find more useful and manageable.

What Is VRML?


VRML (sounds like "vermal") stands for Virtual Reality Modeling Language. It used to stand for Virtual Reality Markup Language, but VRML developers decided that "Modeling" was a more descriptive term for this impressive new technology.

VRML adds a third dimension to the Web. Instead of displaying flat pictures on a flat screen, VRML enables you to explore three-dimensional worlds. For example, if you visit the VRML kitchen shown in Figure 19.1, you'll find yourself "walking" through a virtual reality kitchen, ducking under tables, opening cabinets, looking out the kitchen window, and even taking a peek inside the refrigerator.

Figure 19.1. The VRML kitchen adds another dimension to your Web journeys.

Most VRML sites aren't all that impressive, yet. Many sites contain objects that you can spin in space and look at from all sides. Others may give you the opportunity to drive a virtual car or stroll down the streets of a blocky cityscape. However, VRML's potential is magnificent. Programmers dream of a day in the not-too-distant future when you'll be able to shop at a virtual department store, lifting items off the shelves, viewing demonstrations of a product, and rolling your cart through a virtual reality checkout lane.

Or, imagine a VRML chat room in which you walk around and talk to other people. Or, a VRML game where you battle other Internet players in virtual space!


NOTE

VRML is not like other programming code. A VRML file does not have to be completely downloaded and compiled before it can start. Instead, code is parsed, enabling the VRML browser to start playing the world before it has been completely downloaded. However, some VRML applets are compressed and must be decompressed before you can play them. A few VRML browsers decompress files themselves; others need the help of a decompression utility, such as WinZip.

Using Microsoft's VRML Add-In


Internet Explorer 3.0 itself cannot play VRML applets. It needs the help of a VRML browser that can read VRML codes. Microsoft offers its own VRML browser for Internet Explorer, which acts as an add-in. Unlike helper applications, which run outside of your Web browser, an add-in becomes an integral part of the browser. When you click on a VRML link, Internet Explorer downloads and plays the VRML file itself, providing you with controls for moving through the virtual world with your keyboard, mouse, or joystick.

To get the VRML add-in, go to the Internet Explorer Home Page at 




http://www.microsoft.com/ie

and follow the trail of links to the link for the VRML add-in. Right-click on the link, and select Save Target As (see Figure 19.2). Use the Save As dialog box to save the file to a folder on your hard drive or directly to the Windows desktop. After you download the file, run it and follow the on-screen instructions to install the add-in.


Note

During the writing of this book, Microsoft offered its VRML browser as an add-in. In later versions of Internet Explorer, Microsoft might build the VRML support right into its Web browser.

Figure 19.2. Pick up the VRML add-in at Microsoft.

That's all you have to do. You can then run VRML files simply by clicking on their links. The following sections show you how to use the controls in the Microsoft VRML add-in to explore virtual worlds and provide help if you have trouble with the controls. Later in this chapter, in the section called "VRML Helper Apps," you'll learn how to download and use other VRML viewers.

Maneuvering Through Virtual Worlds


Unlike Java applets, which have their own controls, VRML worlds rely on the VRML player for controls, so you'll be able to use the same controls no matter which world you're exploring. Microsoft's VRML player offers controls that enable you to explore virtual worlds using your mouse, keyboard, or joystick.

To see how these controls work, visit a virtual world. Microsoft has a list of VRML sites you can explore at 




http://www.microsoft.com/ie/addons/sites.htm

Connect to this site, and click on links until you load a VRML file. If you can't connect to this page, try the following URLs: 




http://www.vrml.com/models/vertex/








http://www.geom.umn.edu/~daeron/bin/legitlist.cgi








http://www.zdnet.com/zdi/vrml/content/vrmlsite/outside.wrl








http://www.ocnus.com/models/models.html








http://www.lightscape.com/models.html

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Many sites offer compressed and noncompressed versions of virtual files. The compressed version is usually marked as GZip, and it's typically about one-fourth the size of the uncompressed version. When given a choice, choose the compressed version. Microsoft's VRML player has a built-in GZip decompression utility that can unzip the file after downloading it.

After you've loaded a world, it appears in the Internet Explorer window or in a separate window. You can then use the mouse along with the buttons at the bottom of the window to control movement:

With a mouse, click on the desired control button, click inside the viewing area, and then drag with the left mouse button in the direction you want to move. Double-click on an object in the window to quickly move closer to it.

If you have a joystick, you can use the joystick lever to explore. Movements are fairly obvious with a joystick. First, click inside the viewing area with your mouse. You can then move forward by pushing the stick forward; backward by pulling the stick toward you; and side-to-side by pushing the stick left or right. Hold down the Shift key to tilt while moving the stick, or hold down the Ctrl key to slide. If your stick has a POV control at the top, you can use it to slide forward, back, left, or right.

If you have neither a joystick nor mouse (highly unlikely, but possible), use the arrow keys to move left, right, forward, or back. Hold down the Shift key with an arrow key to tilt, or hold down the Ctrl key with an arrow key to slide.


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Some VRML worlds contain links that take you to a Web page or another virtual world. If you move the mouse pointer over a link, it turns into a hand, indicating that you're over a link. Click on it as you would click on any other link. Because Microsoft's VRML viewer is built into Internet Explorer, you can skip from 3D worlds to 2D Web pages seamlessly.

Using the Menu


On the left side of the button bar is a Menu button that enables you to change the behavior of the VRML viewer. Click on the button and select any of the following options to customize the viewer (see Figure 19.3):

Help provides online help for using the VRML viewer.

Figure 19.3. Click the Menu button or right-click inside the viewing area to display this menu.

Common Problems


With this new technology, you didn't expect your explorations to proceed without a hitch, did you? The virtual world itself can have a bug, your joystick might need to be calibrated, or some setting in the VRML viewer might be causing problems.

If you have a joystick and the world keeps spinning, tilting, or sliding, you probably have to calibrate your joystick. Open the Windows Control Panel, double-click on the Joystick icon, and use the Joystick dialog box to recalibrate your joystick. If that doesn't work, you might have to play with the adjustment controls on the joystick itself.

If you can't move, right-click in the viewing area and select Walk through walls. If you're at a site that does not support collisions, and Walk through walls is off, you might not be able to move. Likewise, if you're at a site that does support collisions, and Walk through walls is on, you might have jammed yourself in a corner, and you can't get out.

Finally, if the virtual world is moving too slowly for your liking, your hardware might not be up to snuff. Virtual worlds typically require a 486DX processor, 8MB of RAM, and a fancy video card. If you have all that, and the world is still slow, click on the Menu button and try turning off some of the extras, such as Load textures and Load inline worlds.

VRML Helper Apps


Microsoft's VRML viewer isn't the only game in town. Several companies have developed their own viewers that offer additional controls and features you might not find in Microsoft's viewer. In addition, Microsoft's viewer can't handle all the various incarnations of VRML worlds you'll encounter on the Web. To play these files, you might need to use other VRML helper apps.

The following sections provide a rundown of several of the more popular VRML viewers on the Internet, along with prices and locations from which you can download the viewers.

Unlike Microsoft's viewer, which is an add-in, the programs listed here are helper apps or plug-ins. At the time this book was being written, these products were not offered as add-ins for Internet Explorer 3.0. However, by the time you read this book, add-ins or ActiveX controls for Internet Explorer 3.0 might be available. If you can't find an add-in or ActiveX control, try a Netscape Navigator plug-in. Microsoft has designed Internet Explorer 3.0 to work with Navigator plug-ins.


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Most VRML files end in the extension .WRL or .VRML. Keep in mind that you can set up only one helper app for any given file extension. As you experiment with the following helper apps, you must first disable the previous helper app or the Microsoft add-in by changing the file associations. See Chapter 15, "Using Helper Applications," for details on how to associate file types with specific helper apps. To reassociate VRML files to Internet Explorer 3.0, associate the WRL file type to the Internet Explorer program file.

VRealm Browser


http://www.ids-net.com/ids/vrealm/instruct.html

VRealm is one of the best VRML viewers you can get. Its support for both VRML and HTML files gives it a unique edge over its competitors. With this dual support, VRealm can display both virtual worlds and Web pages that those worlds might link you to. In addition, VRealm offers support for Open Inventor and most VRML file types. Personally, I'm not overly fond of its controls. Although powerful, they lack the simplicity of Microsoft's VRML viewer controls, and they contradict the intuitive nature of the mouse.

The VRML file you download is a self-extracting file; simply run it and follow the on-screen instructions to install VRealm. Then, in Internet Explorer 3.0, set up a file association between vrealm.exe and WRL files, as explained in Chapter 15.

A good place to check out some sample VRML worlds is the IDS Cool Worlds site at 




http://www.ids-net.com/ids/vrml/idsworld.html

This site contains links to several demo worlds created by IDS. When you click on a link for a VRML file, Internet Explorer 3.0 downloads the file and runs VRealm, which opens the VRML file. You'll see the VRealm window, as shown in Figure 19.4.

Figure 19.4. VRealm opens the VRML file in a separate window.

At the top of the VRealm window are standard controls you might see in any Web browser: Back, Forward, Home, Reload, Open, Help, Print, and Stop.

At the bottom of the window are the controls you use, along with the mouse, to move through the virtual world. These controls are much less intuitive. The following buttons enable you to change the viewer options, step through camera shots, and control movements:

Add lets you add your own camera angle. When you've focused in on an area of the scene, click Add, type a name for the camera angle, and click OK.

The buttons are fairly easy to figure out. But before you try to use the movement controls (bottom center), you'll need a brief primer.

The black square on the left is the navigational movement pad, along with a slider. The slider is easy; drag it up to pan the camera up, or drag it down to pan down. The movement pad is a little trickier. Move the mouse pointer over the movement pad, hold down the mouse button, and drag in the direction you want to go. The farther you drag from the pad, the farther and faster you go.

To achieve "hands-off" movement (so you don't have to drag), double-click inside the navigational movement pad until a Stop sign appears. Now you can move the mouse pointer without holding down the mouse button to move through the world. To turn off this continuous movement option, click inside the movement pad.

To the right of the navigational movement pad is a combination heading indicator and artificial horizon pad. The heading indicator is the outside part, which contains a bright red pointer. Click anywhere inside this outside dial to quickly change viewpoints. The red pointer indicates your viewpoint. The artificial horizon pad is sort of like a horizon indicator in a flight simulator. When you're in Fly mode, the horizon indicator shows your relative orientation to the horizontal axis of the scene.

After you've mastered the left mouse button movements, try using the right mouse button. In Walk mode, drag with the right mouse button to slide around in the scene. In Fly mode, use the right mouse button to tilt up and down and from side to side.


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It takes some practice to become accustomed to the controls in any VRML viewer. Movement is typically jerky, and if you drag the mouse too far or too quickly, objects will fly right out of the viewing area. Take it slow at first, and make tiny movements with the mouse until you get used to it.

Pioneer


http://www.caligari.com/

Unlike the other VRML viewers covered here, Pioneer offers both viewing and authoring tools. If you decide that you want to start creating VRML worlds of your own (home worlds instead of home pages), Pioneer is the viewer for you.

But even if you don't want to create your own virtual worlds, Pioneer is no slouch in the viewer department. It offers support for a wide range of VRML files, and fairly intuitive controls that enable you to perform walk-throughs and fly-bys, change the level of detail, view different perspectives, and experience wire-frame rendering. This viewer is also the most competent at handling hyperlinks inside virtual worlds.

Download Pioneer from the site specified, and then run the self-extracting file. This dumps a bunch of files (including the all-important Setup.exe file) in the directory in which you placed the downloaded file. Run Setup.exe, and follow the on-screen instructions to install Pioneer. Then set up a file association to link WRL files to Pioneer, as explained in Chapter 15 (Pioneer.exe is placed in the Win32app\Pioneer directory on drive C.)


NOTE

After the installation is complete, Pioneer offers you the opportunity to run a tutorial and view a Readme file. This step is optional, but the tutorials provide a glimpse of the powerful Pioneer VRML authoring tools.

The following site is a good place to visit if you want to take Pioneer for a test drive, where you'll find links to a couple of virtual worlds created with Pioneer: 




http://www.caligari.com/lvlone/2vrml.html

When you click on a link for a VRML file, a dialog box appears, informing you that you're using Pioneer on a trial basis. Click OK. Pioneer will leap into action and play the selected file, as shown in Figure 19.5.

Figure 19.5. Pioneer offers both viewing and authoring capabilities.

If you move the mouse pointer over various objects in the scene, the pointer might change into a 2D or 3D icon. A 2D icon indicates that the pointer is over a link that points to a two-dimensional Web page. If you click with the left mouse button, Pioneer will attempt to run your Web browser and load the page. (You might have to help Pioneer determine where your Web browser is located the first time this happens.) If you click on a link by mistake, click the Stop button to terminate the transfer.

If the mouse pointer turns into a 3D icon, you're over a hyperlink to another world or virtual object. If you click this link, Pioneer downloads the world or object and shows it up close. Again, if you click on an object by mistake, you can terminate the transfer by clicking Stop.

You might be wondering: If you click on an object and it starts loading, how can you ever get close to the object? The answer is right-click on it. When you right-click on an object, a cool, three-dimensional arrow appears above it. You can then drag the mouse in the viewing area to get closer to the object or change views of it. (See Figure 19.6.)

Figure 19.6. Right-click on an object to view it close up without loading it.

I'm not going to explain all the buttons at the bottom of the screen. To see the name of a button, rest the mouse pointer on it and look in the status bar. One other important point about these buttons is that they're actually menus. For example, rest the mouse pointer on the Fly Through World button (the button with the airplane on it), and hold down the left mouse button. A menu pops up, enabling you to select a different viewing mode: Walk, Fly, Encircle, or Point. (To use Encircle or Point, first select an object by right-clicking on it.)

After you've selected a view option, use the following mouse strokes to move:


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Pioneer offers a comprehensive set of tools for maneuvering through worlds. To learn more about using these tools, open Pioneer's Help menu and click on Contents.

VR Scout


http://www.chaco.com/vrscout/

One of the first VRealm browsers to make the big time, VR Scout is a very capable VRML viewer, offering the standard controls for walk-throughs, fly-bys, illumination, and perspective shifts. However, VR Scout offers neither the simplicity of Microsoft's VRML add-in nor the innovative controls of VRealm or Pioneer.

To try it out, download VR Scout from the specified location, and then run the self-extracting file. A dialog box appears, asking where you want the extracted files placed. It's a good idea to unzip them to a separate directory, so you can delete the whole bunch after the installation. After VR Scout unzips itself, it runs the installation program. Simply follow the on-screen instructions, and then associate VR Scout with the WRL file type, as explained in Chapter 15.

You might have trouble opening some virtual world file types in VR Scout. So, if you want to play, try out Chaco's test files first at http://www.chaco.com/vrml/. Figure 19.7 shows Chaco's VR Coffee Gallery, a virtual reality breakroom.

Figure 19.7. The VR Coffee Gallery.

To move in a VR world, first click on one of the movement buttons in the toolbar: Walk (to stroll through the room), Fly (to fly over and through it), or Examine (to spin the world around and look at it from all sides). After you click a button, drag the mouse pointer in the viewing area to change perspectives. As you drag, a crosshair pointer appears, and the mouse pointer drags a line out from the center of the crosshair. The line represents the magnitude of the movement.

WebSpace


http://www.sd.tgs.com/~template/WebSpace/

WebSpace has the look and feel of a race car built in some guy's backyard. The controls are interesting and fairly simple, but the execution is kind of clunky. Instead of having access to buttons that you can use to quickly change from Walk to Examine mode, for example, you have to open the View menu to get at those options. However, WebSpace does have some unique controls that show promise. It's worth checking out.

After you copy WebSpace from the download site, run the self-extracting file. This decompresses the file and creates four subdirectories (named disk1, disk2, disk3, and disk4) under the current directory. Change to the disk1 directory, and run the Setup.exe file. This installs WebSpace on your hard drive. In Internet Explorer 3.0, set up a file association connecting WebSpace to WRL files.

You don't have to connect to the Web in order to take WebSpace for a test run. WebSpace comes with its own VRML files that you can run locally. Open the File menu, select Open, and double-click on one of the WRL files in the list. Figure 19.8 shows WebSpace displaying the file Kitchen.wrl.

Figure 19.8. The joystick in the middle of the screen is your main control.

The main controls are attractive in their simplicity. When WebSpace loads a VRML world, it displays three basic controls: a joystick, a seek tool, and an arrow pad. You can drag the handle on the joystick up to move forward, back to move back, and side-to-side to move left or right. On the right side of the joystick is a little red mark; drag it to tilt while you move.

To the left of the joystick is the Seek tool. Click on it, and your mouse pointer turns into a crosshair pointer. Click on any object to move closer to it. To the right of the joystick is an arrow pad. Drag the arrow pad left, right, up, or down to move in corresponding directions.

If you change to Examine view (by selecting Examiner Viewer from the View menu), a ball replaces the joystick. You can drag the ball to spin it, rotating the scene in the same direction.

WorldView


http://www.webmaster.com/vrml/

WorldView was the first stand-alone VRML browser available for Windows 95. Using Microsoft's Reality 3D software rendering technology, WorldView enables you to manipulate full-color, 3D objects over the Internet. Like VRealm, WorldView enables you to directly connect to URLs over the Internet rather than relying on your Web browser. WorldView displays a flashy interface, plenty of controls, and a robust menu system giving it a professional look and feel.

With WorldView, you can experience VRML using less powerful computer equipment. A 486DX with 8MB of RAM and a 14.4Kbps modem is sufficient, although a more powerful computer and a faster modem connection will increase its performance.

To try WorldView, download it using the URL specified at the beginning of this section. When you get the file, run it; the file is a self-extracting compressed file. After extracting the files, run the Install.exe file, and follow the on-screen installation instructions. Then, skip back to Chapter 15 and associate the WRL file type to WorldView. Now you can click on a VRML link to launch WorldView into action.


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If you prefer to try WorldView without connecting to the Web, WorldView comes with several demo virtual worlds. Run WorldView by double-clicking on its icon (or choosing it from the Windows 95 Start menu, if you chose to place it there during the installation). Then, enter the File | Open command, click the Open Local File button, and use the dialog box to select one of the many VRML files from the WordView folder or one of the Worlds subfolders.

Figure 19.9 shows a sample world displayed in WorldView. The toolbar offers most of the buttons you need to move around in the world. The buttons on the left end of the toolbar act as buttons in a typical Web browser. They enable you to open a world, print, go back or forward to a world, stop loading a world, or reload a world. (Rest your mouse pointer on a button to view its name.)

Figure 19.9. WorldView offers a complete selection of buttons for loading worlds and maneuvering inside them.

The seven buttons on the right side of the toolbar control your movement. Use the Navigate button to walk through the scene, and Pan to move from side to side. Tilt turns the scene. Inspect rotates it. Go To moves you closer to an object. Straighten aligns the view. Finally, Restore takes you back to the original view.

To move the image, click on the desired button, and then drag the mouse inside the viewing area.

Some VRML Sites in Action


If you've downloaded, installed, and played around with all the VRML viewers in this chapter, you've probably killed at least a couple of hours (maybe a couple of days, if you have a slow modem). Now that you've found the perfect VRML viewer and set up Internet Explorer 3.0 to use it, try visiting a few sites to see how capable your viewer really is. Keep in mind that no matter which viewer you have, you're going to have trouble opening at least a few of the virtual worlds you find on the Web.

I reassociated the WRL file type with Internet Explorer 3.0 before visiting the sites covered here. These sites work with Microsoft's VRML add-in.

New Orleans Cityscape


If you're interested in taking a trip to the Big Easy, and you don't want to risk flying to New Orleans, visit Planet Nine's virtual reality rendition of the city of saints at 




http://www.planet9.com/worlds/neworl.wrl.gz

(See Figure 19.10). Here, you can stroll down the Mississippi, explore Bourbon street, and even fly over the deck of a riverboat. You can't eat the food, but this site does have some of the flavor of New Orleans. Planet Nine's home page (http://www.planet9.com) has several links to other virtual worlds that you might find interesting.

Figure 19.10. Take a virtual vacation in New Orleans.


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If you're using Microsoft's VRML add-in to view virtual worlds, and if the virtual world has links to other worlds and Web pages, you can view a list of these links. Click on the Menu button on the left end of the toolbar and point to Shortcuts. You can select a shortcut from this list to go to the corresponding world or page.

3D Hyperlinks at Ziff Davis


When Mardi Gras is over, you might want to saunter over to the Ziff Davis Terminal Reality site (see Figure 19.11). From there, you can click on the airplane to go to the BayBank Hall page, where you can learn more about VRML. Or, you can hop aboard the ZD Ship and sail off to Nubble's Treehouse. The blimp at the top of the screen can take you to Paragraph International, and the rocket. . .well, I don't want to spoil it for you. You'll find out when you get there. If you want to enter another virtual world, click on the entrance to the Terminal Reality building.

Figure 19.11. The Terminal Reality site is a good place to find out how smoothly VRML and HTML can work together.

Grafman's VR World


For a real treat, visit Grafman's VR World. This site has a virtual reality, randomly generated bunny that looks a little different each time you visit the site, a virtual reality snowman that you can help create, and even Grafman's virtual gallery itself. The gallery takes awhile to download with a modem, but the opening graphic is worth the wait.

Where to Learn More About VRML


If you haven't gotten your fill of VRML in this chapter, you can learn more of its history, development, application, and future on the Web. Check out the following Web sites for VRML FAQS, primers, and other information: 




http://www.environs.com/baybank/faqfr.html








http://www.oki.com/vrml/VRML_FAQ.html








http://www.sdsc.edu/vrml/








http://www.vrml.org/








http://cedar.cic.net/~rtilmann/mm/vrmlup.htm

What's Next?


In this chapter, you learned how to acquire, install, and use Microsoft's VRML add-in to explore virtual worlds on the Web. Hopefully, you downloaded and tried some of the VRML helper apps in this chapter as well. You should now have your favorite VRML viewer poised to load any WRL file you happen to click on.

The next chapter offers a look at other helper applications that don't quite provide the excitement of VRML worlds but are no less useful—the Microsoft Office viewers.

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