 The magazine of the Melbourne PC User Group Tools for the Web: Acrobat, Java, and Virtual Reality Book reviews Major Keary |
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Remarkable advances in software development are making the Web a more versatile and colourful environment. The graphical interface has been the key, bringing about a dramatic shift from text-based readers to browsers that now enable sophisticated imaging, animation, choice of font styles and sizes, and an increasing level of user interactivity.
Adobe Acrobat
Even though not designed for the purpose, Adobe Acrobat has proved to be a useful tool for Web publishing. Its advantage over HTML is that the creator of a document has control over how end users will see it. Apart from other features, its portable document format (PDF) can resist alteration - which has security implications - but end users can, with Acrobat Exchange, attach hypertext links to PDF files, move pages from one document to another, and add annotations.
Adobe publishes various software for creating PDF files, including one (Distiller) that converts PostScript files to PDF format, and some DTP and word processing and DTP packages now offer output to PDF.
Acrobat files will be seen more frequently on the Internet at large and in other electronic media (such as publishing documents on CD). A particular application is publication of financial information where tables and charts are an essential element. It is a technology that should be studied by anyone with a serious interest in creating high class electronic documents that will retain DTP quality, especially where they contain illustrations, graphs, tables, or images. PDF viewers can be found at http://www.adobe.com/Acrobat.
An excellent account of the Acrobat system is contained in Acrobat 2.1 - Your Personal Consultant. It describes the various Adobe applications and how they can be used with leading DTP and word processing packages. It covers viewing, integrating Acrobat with other applications, creating PDF documents, the use of Exchange and Distiller, searching and indexing PDF documents, conversion of scanned documents to PDF, and a range of available plug-ins.
There is also information about software development kits available from Adobe ftp sites. A very good reference for application developers and anyone with a serious interest in electronic publishing.
| Roy Christmann: Acrobat 2.1 - Your Personal Consultant ISBN 1 56276 336 9 Published by Ziff-Davis 396 pages RRP $49.95. |
HotJava
Java and HotJava are two names more likely to have come to the notice of Web users, largely because of media excitement. Java is the name of a programming language developed by Sun Microsystems; HotJava is the name of the software that makes Java happen.
At the time of writing not all platforms are supported, but ports for Windows 95 and Macintosh Operating System 7.5 are close to release; others are being developed for Amiga, NeXT, and Linux. Netscape is integrating Java into its browser - check with their home page
(http://home.netscape.com) for the latest information. Other sites where you will find information about the progress of Java are, http://www.microsoft.com (for Win 95 port),
http://www.yahoo.com/Computers/PCs/Amiga/,
http://www.apple.com, and http://java.sun.com/porting.html. Information about Java sites and how to download HotJava can be found at
http://java.sun.com/installation.html.
Java is not a replacement for HTML; it is invoked from within Web pages using a special HTML tag that causes the user's browser to download and execute
Java programs. They are called applets and can support animation and interactive features.
HTML gives the appearance of being interactive because hypertext links produce a
magic carpet effect as they send the user off to this site and that. In fact the interactive capacity of HTML browsers is one-sided; the server calls the shots, so to speak.
Java will enable client-side interactivity, which has important implications for educational use of the Web. Another important feature is that
Java can, as Mark Pesce observes, provide "the ability to create an object that behaves similarly on different computers" (Mark Pesce:
VRML Browsing & Building in Cyberspace).
If you want to know more about Java and HotJava a good introduction that explains how Java works and what one can expect of it is:
| John December: Presenting Java ISBN 1 57521 039 8 Published by Sams.net 207 pages RRP $34.95 |
VRML
Virtual Reality Modeling Language (VRML) is another development that will change the way we see images on the Internet. Yes, I know your dictionary says
modelling but modeling is the American usage, cited for those who may want to use the full term for a string search.
The home of VRML is the San Diego Supercomputer Center (SDSC) where a VRML research and development team works. SDSC is described as "The Official VRML Repository" and can be found at
http://sdsc.edu/vrml/, the official VRML standards site is at
http://www.vrml.org/, and one can subscribe to the VRML mailing list by sending e-mail to
info-rama@wired.com with "subscribe www-vrml <sender's e-mail address>" in the message body (leave the subject blank).
First, VRML does not mean that virtual reality, as most people understand or perceive it, is now on the Internet. The creators of VRML have chosen the term to describe what is essentially static 3D imaging achieved with sophisticated computer art techniques, such as Phong shading. The illusion of depth in computer-generated images can be quite impressive and makes the flat pictures we have seen on the Web look just that: flat. VRML enables the creation of 3D scenes within the Web home-page environment. We can expect to see some kind of animation as VRML and Java come together; given the pace of development that may not be so far away.
VRML Browsing & Building Cyberspace
A prime mover in the creation of VRML, Mark Pesce, has written about the new program, describing its evolution, how it works, and how VRML browsers are used.
A substantial part of the book is a VRML primer, starting off with a discussion of 3D graphics, then going on to cover VRML at three levels: introductory, intermediate, and advanced.
VRML is a computer language that describes scenes, in much the same way as PostScript describes pages, and - like
PostScript - the files are written in ASCII. VRML files are run through a
parser that converts the ASCII file "into a set of objects that the computer ... (can) understand and manipulate".
Part 3 describes a project, building a virtual house. The planning stages are described, including design, sampling, construction, testing, and publishing. The VRML code was to have been included on a companion CD, but for some reason missed the bus. However, the code can be obtained from
http://www.mcp.com/newriders/; look out for Project 188. There is more VRML-related material in the multimedia area of the New Riders site.
Part 4 discusses publishing, describes the structure of a VRML browser, outlines a style guide, and talks about the future of VRML. A well written and comprehensive resource for those who want to understand VRML.
The companion CD has a lot of useful software (including VRML browsers and authoring tools) as well as extensive documentation.
| Mark Pesce: VRML Browsing & Building Cyberspace ISBN 1 56205 498 8 Published by New Riders 424 pages plus CD RRP $54.95 |
The VRML Sourcebook
Another important VRML title, just released, is The VRML Source Book. The three authors are each employed at SDSC. Andrea Ames specialises in technical communications and is involved in creating information for online interactive multimedia and the Web; David Nadeau is a 3D graphics expert and co-leader of SDSC's VRML research and development team; and John Moreland is also part of the team.
This is a professional reference in the sense that it comes to the subject quickly and deals with its topics in a manner that one expects of a text for professional and technically-competent users. The material is presented in technical language, but without obfuscation or jargon.
A level of knowledge sufficient to grasp explanations of necessary technical terms and concepts is assumed. However, it is suitable - indeed, designed - for a wide audience: computer hobbyists and enthusiasts who "like to fiddle with interesting technology"; technical and non-technical artists who like to create graphics; games hobbyists and enthusiasts who create their own levels; and technical experts and application developers. The preface contains brief, but good advice about coming to grips with VRML for hobbyists and enthusiasts.
An introduction to VRML, discussion of key concepts, and use of VRML's predefined shapes (cube, sphere, cylinder, and cone), is followed by a description of how those
primitives are used, manipulated, grouped, shaded, and all the other things necessary to create realistic (and surrealistic) images. The progression is logical and each item, so to speak, is illustrated by a graphic representation or screen capture and the VRML code that produced it. Those who want to know about advanced techniques for lighting and shading, for example, will find all the information they need here.
Even though VRML provides sophisticated lighting controls, VRML shapes do not cast shadows - a complex operation that does not lend itself to interactive presentations. It is, however, possible to create artificial shadows to enhance the sense realism.
The book contains a very extensive library of routines that can be applied to VRML Web pages. VRML is a much easier way to achieve graphical effects that, hitherto, have been largely the province of professional computer artists using high-end systems. Those who buy the book are able to download the code examples from either a Web or ftp site.
This a valuable technical reference for professional developers and informed enthusiasts. I suspect VRML will find wider application in the 3D imaging field, in which case
The VRML Sourcebook will be an essential reference.
| Ames, Nadeau, and Moreland:
The VRML Sourcebook ISBN 0 471 14159 3 Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 650 pages RRP $59.95 |
Digital Design Media
I have reviewed this book before, but mention it here because anyone serious about 3D imaging should at least be aware of a useful resource for VRML developers. It is written for design professionals and students, particularly those who want to establish a firm foundation of theoretical knowledge. Professional developers who want to take advantage of the VRML environment, especially for architectural applications (whether to demonstrate the features of a planned structure, or to create a VR
walk-through of, say, a museum) should consider this for their library.
| Mitchell and McCullough: Digital Design Media 2nd
edn. ISBN 0 442 01934 3 Published by Van Nostrand Reinhold 494 pages RRP $59.95 |
Reprinted from the April 1996 issue of PC Update, the magazine of Melbourne PC User Group, Australia
