n_polys: [-empyre-] ready to stoke the pyre- ~!

["Nicholas F. Polys" <npolys@virtuworlds.com>]

Greetings all,

Here is a little post to prime the pump; I will drop another (perhaps more
controversial ? ;-) later this evening...

When I first saw the Web3D Art show at VRML99, I was wide-eyed with wonder
at how powerful and unique the material was.  Ideas and execution that were
ahead of the curve for the fact that they did not let technology and web
delivery limit their vision, but capitalized on them to bootstrap into new
frontiers of expression.  This has proven true in every subsequent show
including our most recent in Tempe.  So much is in the approach... and the
passion to make it work!

Kathy Rae-Huffman and Karl Dudnesek once again brought together a peerless
show for what I think is some of the coolest stuff pushing the envelope of
Web3D!  And they got the color plates in the Proceedings!  Awesome!
www.web3dart.org


King Content has yet to be deposed, and his courtiers and his business types
have given a little breathing room recently.
Two factors make this a great opportunity for us:  the breathing room allows
us to concentrate on the real issues at hand (rather than almighty $) such
as UI and usability requirements as well as the fact that without
big-brother business, we actually have recourse to influence the course of
the tech/spec... for a little while at least.

Our feature 'pallete' will be much richer in X3D as we begin to discover
what 'Extensible' means for 3D. This has been everyone's goal.


Quick Symposium Retrospect:

   As odd as it sounds coming from upstate NY/Europe, this is inevitably my
favorite time of year- the rounds here at the Web3D Symposia are
invigorating and inspiring... and the facilities here in Pheonix are not too
shabby for N. America, especially when it's a standard short sleeve!  But
honestly, I'd go to the ends of the earth or meet in a garage for this.
These events really do set the tone for the year.

  Climatology aside, this gathering is so wonderful for its spectrum of
interests which simultaneously plumb-the-depths of passion and expertise.
The program commitee really did a nice job collecting and enabling a wide
variety of media and technology to be shown.  I always treasure this
face-to-face time because we as a community have a notorious nature of
compounding momentum and go-forward ideas from it...  Damn cool peeps too!

    Anyhow, I hoped a little i-spy-intro-eye would be tolerated since we'll
no doubt see some 'official' accounts on our standard sites; but stepping
out with a draft spec, supporting tutorials and demos, and a press release
has certainly galvanized both a solid support and approach.  This is exactly
when and where we needed to do it- and it's appearing that we can maintain
our Milestone 4 timeline with some real prospects.

    As tough as it might seem, this flow-and-ebb and flow-and-ebb and flow
... ride is really a healthy cycle that ratchets the actual substance of the
industry upward.
    YES its about the power and portability of a componentized XML
representation for realtime, interactive 3D scenegraphs that enables
publishing, serving, and integrating with the world wide web, and
    YES its about your frontend and your backend and your kids and your
parents, and
    YES this beast is about business and art and computer science, and
    YES value is not a mirage.


    Tutorials:
    Excellent content, venue, and audience.  We've been weaving a rather
involved story inside these technical groups and these slots really let us
frame it out in concrete and (hopefully!) accesssible terms.  X3D Authoring
and publishing systems design, architecture & components and extensibility
all
got good reception and real engagement.  With continued spec and tech
development for Siggraph, we expect even stronger stories and examples...
Also, Ivan Hermann from W3C did a really good one on SVG.


    Web3D Art:
    This stuff really hits!  The  motivation is content and expression, and
you gotta see what this most vibrant community is doing without 'business':
pushing the envelope of Web3D technology!  Awesome!  www.web3dart.org


    Presentations
    [I'll touch on this next post...]
        Adobe
        Macromedia
        Hi Corporation-cool little 3D for your Jphone/cellular mobiles and
PDAs


    Web3D 'Unplugged'
prizes = Swiff 3D software packages
    - the SigningAvatar tech by VCom3D just gets better and better... inside
an easy authoring environment, they've built a system which can capture and
even automate some of the really interesting parts of language, meaning, and
context.
    I also really liked seeing the Virtual Access Model (www.shakealeg.org)
which helps illustrate the pragmatic points of the Americans with
Disabilities Act.
    It was a really fun whirlwind tour- all 12 demos were good- and thanks
to Sandy Ressler for being the MC.


    Suggestions from attendees:

Whitepaper and/or academic references which show productivity increases in
3D environments (builds business case for direct involvement in standards
activity and Consortium membership  ie ROI).

Spec layout- Put Component level support tables next to or near Profile's
supported components table.


    Papers and Ben Scheiderman keynote were great on Web3D technology and
perspectives on it, and thanks to Matt Beitler and all involved because it
again rings true that the papers presented at these Symposia are indicative
if not definitive of the kinds of solutions that will guide us on towards
that sweet horizon... Schneiderman's 'Visual Thinking' book is worth a look.

Thanks all!!!

    more to come!

pax max,

    n_polys


----- Original Message -----
From: "Nicholas F. Polys" <npolys@virtuworlds.com>
To: <empyre@imap.cofa.unsw.edu.au>
Sent: Tuesday, March 05, 2002 12:13 AM
Subject: [-empyre-] ready to stoke the pyre- ~!


> Greetings all,
>
>     I am most honored and pleased to be invited to participate in this
list;
> my name is Nicholas Polys, currently writing and producing for 3DeZ.net
and
> active on the Board of Directors of the Web3D Consortium as well as the
X3D
> Task and Spec groups.
>     In the last few years of being a writer and Web3D technologist, I have
> been consistently inspired by the content artisan's approach and use of
Deep
> Media- it has helped me contextualize my programming and production work
and
> learn lessons on how to integrate principles of the visual graphics
> designer.
>
>     Innovation is spawned by necessity, and this had proved true as our
> pioneers have build beachheads in the void of tools and the flux of stable
> players.  While I do believe that design and programming skills are
> converging onto the resume, and my outreach is principly concerned with
> giving language to this bridge, I feel we are looking at exciting new
> prospects with X3D.  Its success will be directly proportional to those
> pioneers' continued engagement and improvement.
> I hope to cover usability, 3D UI, a little bit of tech as relates to
> whatever goals we may discover.
>
> I will post a little industry update and diatribe shortly here, and I look
> forward to hearing your points of view and feedback.
>
>
> Here's a little background / CV used for Symposium and SIGGRAPH
coursewares~
>
>     Nicholas Polys is Founder, CTO, and Media Amoeba at VirtuWorlds LLC,
an
> international consulting and production house for web graphics and data
> systems.  Mr. Polys currently manages research and development,
distributed
> operations, and production for VirtuWorlds and its online destinations,
> while evaluating new technologies, software integration, and strategic
> alliances.  Over the last 3 years, Mr. Polys has written numerous
technical
> pieces on Web3D technology for The 3DeZine, an online publication for the
> Web3D industry, including news, tutorials, and analysis.  He has extensive
> Web3D production experience delivering robust multi-media solutions for
> clients and has developed The VirtuPortal, a quarterly collection of the
> best of the 3D Web as well as the Web3D Consortium's Software Development
> Kit (SDK).  His current product-research activities are focused on
> user-centric 3D interface design and XML data integration.
>
>     Nicholas received his BA in Cognitive Science from Vassar College and
is
> currently serving his 2nd term on the Board of Directors of the Web3D
> Consortium.  He is an active contributor to new X3D specification and
> related working groups,  liaison to the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C -
> WAI, SMIL) and member of the Siggraph Online Committee (2001 & 2002).  Mr.
> Polys has enjoyed presenting at national and international digital media
> conferences and symposia Including Web3D and Stuttgart Filmwinter.
>
>
> thanks and bets wishes,
>     I look forward to our conversations~!
>
>     _nicholas
>
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>