Everybody uses to make posts on the beginning of a new year about predictions or what was the best of the last year. This post wants not to be like these.
I want to highlight some of the new things that happened in 2009 and how I think they will progress in 2010. Here it goes:
X3DOM: Huge adoption of X3D by the masses?
X3DOM is an effort to integrate X3D as part of HTML5. It was announced recently in the last quarter of this past year 2009, and I hope that 2010 will be the year of X3D (this means, I hope not have to wait 10 years more!!).
Nuli Ibrahim Virtual Worlds
This will suppose for us that we will be able to use X3D on web pages more easily, maybe supported by default on web browsers as HTML is. I hope this succeeds and X3D becomes what is was supposed to be, and as X3DOM editors say: "X3D is a write once, render anywhere 3D graphics format".
For anyone that has a website, this means having an easy to use 3D language to visualize 3D inside pages that is not harder than HTML to learn.
This will suppose a renaissance for X3D and VRML worlds, and may be a huge adoption of X3D by the masses. I am happy that Web3D Consortium at last listened us and is going towards a rational solution.
I will cover this news more deeply in future articles.
Step Up! Respect for 3D content creators
Step Up! is a movement inside Second Life to protect creator's rights. This year they lead a campaign for this, and there are Ning groups, Second Life groups, a blog, and a big network to support them. They try to make people think about the rights of content creators in SL and other virtual worlds.
In the upcoming year, they are going to maintain a Step Up! University. This is not an University in the sense of academic institution, but a place to learn and discuss things (this is the real original meaning for University).
Very good things will emerge from this, specially a bigger respect for 3D creators.
DAZ and Gizmoz: Top quality models in virtual worlds
DAZ3D and Gizmoz merged to make 3D models at DAZ available for games, virtual worlds, and video production, meaning a big impulse for independent 3D vendors that use this platform.
As models from DAZ reach a very high quality, we will see increased quality in virtual worlds and games.
WBandD, Revemonde, And MixED: Gathering together the X3D communities
WBandD has unified worldbuilders and creators under a same network, and MixED has shown us lots of different platforms for virtual worlds. Revemonde, and Revemonde Outside have meant a new renaissance for VRML worlds on the Internet that used the Blaxxun platform.
In this new year, they may lead the exploration and learning of X3D if it arises because of the emerging of X3DOM.
Shapeways: From 3D modelers to 3D sculptors
For me, Shapeways has supposed a revolution in 3D printing. It is also a platform that protects and respects creator's rights and works. It makes easy for anyone to have a physical reproduction of his 3D models, and you can also sell them to others.
There are lots of materials (you can make your models in metal, for example), and I expect that this new year they'll add others, like clay for example. With them, 3D modelers become sculptors. In 2010, I can't wait to see the new and wonderful possibilities they are giving us.
I think that as we now have 3D cinemas, and all games are 3D games, at some time 3D printing will be conceived like something normal and like a normal craftsmanship or production process for many things.
Evolver: Universal avatars
This new company, Evolver, has appeared and seems to be making possible the dream of avatars that can be moved from one virtual world to another seamlessly, even between social communities and 3D communities. In 2010, we will see more of this.
Koinup: Essential for virtual worlds
Koinup is a well consolidated community for all kinds of virtual worlds. Lead by CEO and co-founder Pierluigi Casolari, Koinup is increasing their activity to enormous levels, posting lots of contests and awards every week. An enormous number of groups have their home in Koinup.
For this 2010, Koinup will become even more, a fundamental piece of virtual worlds, to a degree that we will not be able to think in one without the other.
Papervision3D, and Unity3D: Future of 3D solutions
These platforms will have a big growth in 2010. Papervision3D uses Flash to display 3D. Unity uses the last graphics engine improvements to display all their power in web pages. These two solutions will suppose future alternatives for 3D on the web. Unity has been used to make Nurien, for example.
For 2010 we will see them being developed and adopted by many.
Bender3D is one of the most popular 3D modelers. It is open source and has been used in the making of many cinema productions, and in the development of many computer games.
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