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Main Selling Features:
WireFusion's key selling points are
plug-in and price, two issues that
have long been stumbling blocks in
the web3D community.
Demicron's approach to plug-ins is
simple, they don't have one. WireFusion
presentations are Java 1.1 compatible
and will run any machine that is Java-enabled.
The advantage to Demicron is that
they don't have to waste valuable
development time trying to extend
their product onto every new system
configuration, allowing them to focus
on core development. For the user
the advantage is also clear, end users
have no pesky plug-in screens or configuration
issues. This also solves another issue
common to the web3D community, disappearing
plug-ins. Many of us have content
that can no longer be widely viewed
because the appropriate plug-ins are
no longer being published. Even if
Demicron goes under, WireFusion content
should be viewable indefinitely.
Price has always been a concern
for web3D developers. For most, a
straightforward software purchase
is a well-planned and carefully considered
choice. For the last five years most
useful web3D applications have required
complex and highly over-priced license
fees. Demicron offers a variety of
authoring packages depending on the
feature set you choose. They range
from Educational (US$99) to Enterprise
(US$1995). Most serious commercial
web3D producers will want either the
Professional (US$995) or Enterprise
versions. This brings Demicron in
line with Macromedia's Shockwave3D
(US$1199), which until now had been
the only cost-efficient tool available.
About the Engine
Since the engine is Java-based, each
presentation download includes the
viewer. From the looks of it, this
can range from 30kb to 100kb depending
on what features your presentation
uses. WireFusion has more overhead
than most (Cult3D ~4kb, Shockwave3D
~13kb), but this is a reasonable tradeoff
considering the plug-in issues that
it solves.
The core 3D format is a sub-set of
VRML that is extended, compressed
and re-compiled before publishing.
This makes it very easy for users
to quickly produce new content or
convert existing content. Virtually
every 3D authoring platform in existence
offers some sort of VRML export, and
if not command-line converters are
easily found.
I won't go through every feature
in detail, since most of the specifications
are what you would expect from a web3D
tool (vertex/matrix animation, collision-detection,
multiple renderers, lightmaps/refmaps,
alpha-channels, etc..). Some of the
notable exceptions are extensive anti-aliasing
options (auto/full/edge), and easily
controlled automatic content streaming.
The navigation controls address the
most common types of web3D interaction,
object-based and world based. When
you insert an object you select either
the object-mode or the world mode.
Both types of interaction are can
be customized and you can even save
out your navigation preferences.(!)
WireFusion boasts at least one innovation
that has yet to be seen (to my knowledge)
in any other web3D app. It is possible
to apply controllable Photoshop-style
effects over all or part of a 3D scene.
It doesn't seem to affect performance
either. I'm not sure how they do it,
or what I will use it for, but it
is easily the coolest new web3D feature
in a long time.
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