How to Use X3D to Make Simple 3D Graphics for the Web

X3D Graphics is the open source based, XML-based, international standard for 3D on the Web. In the 30 years that 3D graphics have been in existence, technology has progressed to the point where one no longer has to acquire costly proprietary computer programs or tools to create 3D graphics. X3D is designed for Web interoperability and does not require advanced programming skills to be able to start producing basic 3D graphics! This article will demonstrate the necessary steps to setup an X3D authoring environment and how to produce "Hello World" in X3D!

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• A computer connected to the Internet with at least 128 MB RAM Permission to install applications on the computer Java version 5 or 6 installed on your computer

1. 
    
   Download Java from Sun

   If you do not have Java 5 or 6 installed, download from Sun Microsystems at: http://www.java.com/en/download/index.jsp and install. To confirm what version of Java is installed on your computer, read the helpful tips portion of this article.

2. 
    

   Download X3D-Edit from https://savage.nps.edu/X3D-Edit/ and install.

3. 
    

   Download a Web Browser plug-in to view X3D. The open-source (free) implementation is produced by Yumetech, Inc. and can be downloaded at: http://www.xj3d.org/ .

4. Launch X3D Edit.

5. 
    
   Pretty Print (HTML) view of HelloWorld.x3d

   Open HelloWorld.x3d by selecting the file->open menu from the X3D-Edit file menu. The X3D graphics file is now viewed in the X3D Edit tool. Every programming language starts authors on viewing and recreating 'Hello World' in that language.

6. 
    

   View Hello World in Xj3D.

7. Click on the text node in the HelloWorld.x3d scenegraph. Edit the words Hello World to Hello and your first name.

8. View the updated X3D scene.

Tips & Warnings

• If you are on a Windows computer and don't know what version of Java is installed, open the command prompt from your start menu and type: java -version to confirm the java build installed on the computer. On a Mac running OS X, got to the Utilities folder inside of the applications folder. Open the terminal and type java -version to confirm the java build installed on the computer.
• Making X3D worlds can be addictive!

Resources

• Current Java download from Sun Microsystems (Free)
• X3D-Edit Download Site (Free)
• X3D Overview
• XJ3D Download
• X3D - Extensible 3D Graphics For Web Authors website