A New 3D Paradigm
By Clayton Crooks
The recent trends toward creating 3D content for the Web have focused on software products that produce virtual 3D worlds or environments. A new tool called WoozLab, which is currently in beta release, expands the idea of 3D content on the Internet. Instead of creating virtual worlds, you can use the authoring tool to create and manage 3D elements, then place them in a standard HTML file, and map content on every surface. In other words, you map HTML pages onto the faces of a 3D object that can rotate within a Web browser. This makes for a very interesting and easily navigable user interface.
The User Interface
WoozLab's user interface is similar to that of most Windows applications. It includes a standard toolbar and menu bar options and a workspace that resembles many authoring or graphics packages. It also includes Palettes that let you quickly access things such as Geometric Properties, Work Properties, Dynamic Properties, the ActiveX window, and the Function Curve Editor.
When you first open the program or begin a new project, there's a basic work area where you can view the 3D object that's being generated. In this space you can manipulate and verify the object's geometric properties. The work area itself is made up of two windows: the Work Page where you can visualize the 3D object, and the Preview Page where you examine the object and the behaviors it offers. The Toolbar and Menu Bar functions, such as Export 3D, which creates a file that you can view in a Web browser, and lets you open the Palettes that control everything within a scene.
