INTRODUCING NETSCAPE
LIVE3D
OVERVIEW
Netscape Live3D extends Netscape Navigator so that you can experience
distributed, interactive 3D spaces rich with text, images, animation, sound,
music, and video. In addition to providing a high-performance VRML viewer,
Live3D extends Netscape's Java, JavaScript, and plug-in interfaces to make
it easy to develop distributed 3D applications on the Netscape Navigator
platform. Due out in October is Live3D's 
Moving
Worlds based on the VRML 2.0 (Virtual Reality Modeling Language) specification.
VRML 2.0 was recently ratified by the VRML Architecture Group and endorsed
by many companies.
GETTING STARTED WITH
LIVE3D
Live3D requires Netscape Navigator 2.0 or later and is currently available
for Windows
95, Windows NT, Windows 3.1, and now, PowerMac.
A Unix version will be available soon.
Once you've downloaded Live3D, you can:
- Explore
the coolest VRML worlds on the Web.
- Learn
what VRML is all about and how to add 3D to your Web site.
USER FEATURES
- High-Performance VRML Viewing - Live3D lets you experience rich
3D spaces rendered at maximum speed with adaptive rendering, background
processing, hardware acceleration, and GZIP data compression.
- Multimedia - Live3D offers full integration with LiveMedia
for streaming audio and video in 3D space.
- Animation - Live3D worlds can be full of objects with rich,
lifelike behaviors.
- 3D Applications - Soon, you will be able to run 3D applications
written for the Live3D platform. Examples include multiuser 3D games, chat
environments, geographical information systems, authoring environments,
interactive advertisements, online presentations, and database visualizations.
- Navigation - Live3D makes it easy to navigate in 3D space by
letting you walk, fly, or point. Selectable camera viewpoints, collision
detection, and optional gravity add flexibility and realism to navigation.
- Multiplatform - Live3D 1.0 is now available for Windows 95,
Windows NT, and Windows 3.1, and in the Live3D Beta for PowerMac. A Unix
version will be available soon.
DEVELOPER FEATURES
- Moving Worlds Support - Live3D is built on top of the Moving
Worlds VRML 2.0 specification recently approved by the VRML Architecture
Group.
- Plug-in Support - Live3D extends the Netscape plug-in API to
support Navigator plug-ins in 3D space.
- Java and JavaScript Support - Live3D defines Java and JavaScript
objects that make it easy to develop fully interactive and dynamic 3D worlds.