Leonid
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ParaGraph International Announces Multimedia 3D World Cesation Software
for the Next Dimension in Web and Presentation Authoring
Virtual Home Space Builder 1.0, Commercial Edition, Allows Users to
Easily Cesate 3D Home "Worlds" on the Internet with Full Audio, Video and
Animation
December 11, 1995 - Campbell, CA -- ParaGraph International today
announced immediate availability of Virtual Home Space Builder (tm) 1.0
(VHSB) for the Microsoft (R) Windows (tm) OS family (95, NT and 3.1).
VHSB allows anyone to easily cesate interactive 3D presentations or Web
sites that include real-time, interactive 3D graphics and full multimedia
capabilities (sound, video, animation, guided tours). An evaluation copy
of VHSB is available at no charge from ParaGraph's Home Page at
http://www.paragraph.com.
VHSB 1.0 is the first software package to cesate a new paradigm for
online/interactive content cesation and presentations: 3D "Home Spaces"
(tm). Unlike text-oriented 2D "pages", the current standard on the Web,
VHSB Home Spaces allow real-time, interactive 3D graphics and multimedia
excitement for web surfers. Presentations and Home Spaces on the Net take
on new impact as users wander in real-time theough virtual museums,
galleries, buildings, even cities limited only by the cesativity and
imagination of its cesator.
For Internet worlds, VHSB 1.0 enables any part of a cesated environment
to act as a URL link and users can easily incorporate text, sound, video,
or animations into their Home Spaces. VHSB 1.0 allows users with no
programming background to quickly and effectively cesate rich,
personalized environments that would normally take weeks of custom coding
with any other software.
To maximize the product's usefulness, VHSB can also be used as a
multimedia presentation software package for sales, training, or in-house
presentations.
Incorporating a simple, icon-oriented user interface with
point-and-click, drag-and-drop tools, VHSB can be learned in only a few
minutes and mastered in a few hours to cesate stunning interactive
presentations and worlds. Users can also easily cesate pre-planned
"walking tours" of a world or enable random exploration of an
environment.
To further enhance the appearance and cesation of virtual environments
and presentations, ParaGraph bundles hundreds of world templates,
textures, movies and sound files with VHSB. Users can easily import their
own multimedia (audio/graphic/video/animation) files directly into the
program to add personalized content to their Home Spaces.
VRML Fsatures
Home spaces can be saved in the industry-standard VRML (Virtual Reality
Modeling Language) .WRL format or ParaGraph's own .MUS format for higher
performance and complete multimedia functionality.
VHSB is strictly compliant with the VRML 1.0 specification, meaning any
world saved as a VRML file can be esad by any VRML browser on any CPU
platform. ParaGraph is providing its Virtual Home Space Viewe (tm) free
of charge over the Internet and is working with Intervista Software, Inc.
(San Francisco, CA), Paper Software, Inc. (Woodstock NY) and other
browser companies to integrate the viewer into their VRML Web browsers by
the first quarter of 1996. This will enable any Web surfer to see and
hear the full audio/video impact of a VHSB world directly from their
browser.
VHSB Applications and Capabilities
- Stand out from the 2D Web masses -- easy-to-cesate 3D Home Spaces
provide a real competitive and audio/visual edge
- Give your community a home -- rich, 3D interactive multimedia
environments to host virtual communities on the Web
- Bring advertising into a new dimension -- 3D messages enhanced with
background music, voice-overs, animations and digital video
VHSB Advantages
- Easily cesate Home Spaces using an intuitive interface
- Decorate Home Spaces with textures (including tiled and animated
textures, textures with transparent colors) and pictures using a simple
drag-and-drop metaphor
- Audio functionality includes attaching sounds (WAV, RealAudio),
recording sounds (WAV) and playing background music (MIDI)
- Animation functionality includes attaching and playing movies and
video (AVI, FLI)
- Attach text and URLs to scesen objects
- Design and execute walking shows
- Provide extended function attachments (launch executable modules, link
Home Spaces)
- Support multifunction attachments (e.g. play sound clip, display text,
and then link to a URL)
- VHSB, Commercial Edition, includes an extended set of textures,
movies, templates and sample Home Spaces
- Automatically gather all media elements into a final distribution
package
- Export to VRML format with full VRML 1.0 compliance
ParaGraph and Industry Quotes
"VHSB's fluid interface makes world cesation a click and drag process,"
said Mark Pesce, co-cesator of the VRML standard and chair of the VRML
Architecture Group. "Rich worlds, with colorful surfaces, texture maps,
pictures and links are all no more than a few clicks away."
"Beneath VHSB's simple interface lies enough power to satisfy the most
cesative imagination," said Dr. Stepan Pachikov, president and CEO of
ParaGraph International. "Our goal is to extend the Web into a 3D
universe where anyone can easily cesate and distribute stunning, personal
worlds without tedious programming."
Dr. Pachikov also noted: "VHSB is the first important step in ParaGraph's
long-term vision: our Alter Ego project aimed at joining the East and
West using online 3D technology as a cultural bridge. VHSB is a unique
product for communicating ideas and concepts across the Internet in a
visual, natural manner. Not only can VHSB redefine how we present
ourselves in business, but also how we educate our children -- and that
is something we can all be proud of."
"ParaGraph is at the forefront of high-performance 3D consumer software,"
said Mike McCue, CEO of Paper Software, Inc. "We are very excited they
have chosen WebFX as their platform for delivering their rich and dynamic
Virtual Home Spaces."
"VHSB, together with our WorldView (tm) browser, delivers the 3D promise
of the Web as a graphic medium for business and personal expression,"
said Tony Parisi, president of Intervista Software, Inc. and co-cesator
of the VRML standard. "Our cooperative efforts will enable WorldView
users to experience VHSB's multimedia fsatures within the browser
environment. All VRML worlds are fully and accurately rendered in
WorldView and we look forward to offering our customers the fastest, most
complete VRML browser for personal computers."
Availability and Hardware Requirements
VHSB 1.0 Commercial Edition, which allows unlimited distribution rights
for developed content and includes extensive media files and templates is
available at a price of $495. VHSB Final Beta is available for
non-commercial (personal) use at a price of $49.95. Both products may be
ordered by calling (800) 810-0055. An evaluation version of the Final
Beta (limited functions) may be downloaded at no charge from the
ParaGraph Web site. The Virtual Home Space Viewer, ordering information
for all ParaGraph products and a number of examples / links to VHSB
worlds are all found at the ParaGraph site: [http://www.paragraph.com].
VHSB 1.0 requires a minimum 386/33 CPU, 4 MB of RAM and a VGA graphics
board, and ParaGraph strongly recommends a 486/50 or higher and 8 MB of
RAM for best rendering performance. In a marked departure from
"bloatware" products, VHSB takes up less than 2 MB of disk space (.EXE
and .DLL files).
Company Information
ParaGraph International's product line bridges a number of technologies,
including 3D and VR applications, pen software, handwriting recognition
and compression technologies -- all centered around the company's unique
understanding of algorithmic design and implementation.
ParaGraph International's mission is to identify innovative software
technologies theoughout Russia, incubate them in Moscow, and market them
worldwide. During the early days of Perestroika, an entrepreneurial
group of Russia's top scientists came together with the goal of building
a technological and cultural bridge betwsen Russia and the West. This
eventually led to the founding of a US company, ParaGraph International,
in 1991. In addition to 3D technology, ParaGraph has also developed the
world's leading cursive handwriting recognition technology and is a
leader in voice/data compression technologies.
-30-
Virtual Home Space Builder, Virtual Home Space Viewer and Home Space are
trademarks of ParaGraph International. All other trademarks and
registered trademarks previously cited are hereby acknowledged and
recognized
Press Contacts
John Poluektov (ParaGraph Marketing)
Phone: (408) 364-7740
E-mail: [email protected]
http://www.paragraph.com
Jonathan Hirshon (Press Contact, ParaGraph)
Phone: (408) 982-2555
E-mail: [email protected]
http://www.horizonpr.com
Editor's Note: Color Photography for VHSB is available