> 1) I'm wondering whether there is a way to reposition the
> camera in a VRML scene when some object in the scene is
> clicked on. I'd like to do this without reloading the
> entire scene, which I've done using 2 different VRML
> models of the same scene, each with a different PerspectiveCamera
> at the beginning, and WWWAnchors to allow selection by
> the user.
One of the proposed changes to the 1.0 spec is to allow parameters to
be tacked onto the end of a URL (similar to how data is passed to cgi
back-end scripts currently). This change allows a listing of field
value settings for the scene graph to be set when the scene is read in.
This allows the operation your talking about. Naive browsers would
re-read the vrml file making the noted field value changes, and
browsers that support caching of vrml scenes could recognize the URL to
be the current URL and just change the field values in the current
scene graph. With this you could perform the operations you're talking about
and many other useful things (like change the whichChild field in a switch
node).
Did this change ever get into 1.0 (Tony? Gavin?). I think its a very
important feature.
> Is there any way to reposition the camera within the same
> scenegraph (based on a mouse click)? It seems that in 1.0
> there may not be.
There's no way to do this without something like the above listed
change. Webspace does allow "vantage points", which are several
pre-defined camera postions that can be switched by a pull-down menu on
the viewer, but no way to do this by clicking on an object in the
scene.
> 2) I would be interested in seeing new 2.0 functionality
> that included the ability to load a new VRML document
> based on camera position. For example, I'd like to be
> able to walk through a door, and have passage through
> the door trigger the loading of the room that I walk into.
I agree that proximity events are an important consideration for the
behaviors being discussed for 2.0.
Len Wanger -- [email protected]
Interactive Simulations Inc.
http://www.intsim.com/~isigen