[whatwg] Web Applications and 3D

[Ian Hickson]

On Thu, 28 Apr 2005, Matthew Raymond wrote:
>
> I've been pondering how someone would have 3D graphics inside a Web 
> application using current web standards and some in development (XBL2, 
> HTML5, et cetera), and while I have a general idea, I'm not exactly sure 
> how it would work.

The current idea is to do the same for '3d' as for '2d', probably using an 
OpenGL ES API subset, tweaked to be appropriate for use from JavaScript.

Unfortunately I know very little about 3D graphics myself so someone else 
is going to have to actually define the API.


> ...what happens when you want objects for your 3D world to exist in the 
> DOM? What happens when you want 3D effects that change when you use a 
> different stylesheet?

What's the use case? The use cases that people have raised for 3D so far 
are primarily games (as in Quake-like things). In those, you don't really 
need to have a DOM representation, and stylesheets are unlikely to be used 
for styling them.

Having said that, there are probably use cases for declarative 3D, just 
like there are with declarative 2D. And for those you would use a 
dedicated markup language, just like you use SVG for 2D graphics.


> 1) A Web standards version of Microsoft's "Flipin' CD Button" example.

The markup for that is easy:

   <input type="button">

...or some such. Making it actually look like something 3D would involve 
CSS, XBL, and either X3D or <canvas> (or some other 3D solution).


> 2) An example of something similar to Quake done entirely as a web
> application, with a HUD.

That's pure <canvas>, with a 3D context for the 3D, and a 2D context for 
the HUD.


> 3) An example of a simple 2D GUI with 3D effects as a web application.

Not sure what you mean there.

-- 
Ian Hickson               U+1047E                )\._.,--....,'``.    fL
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