Viewing and displaying panoramas on the Web is done in two ways:
By installing a dedicated plug-in for viewing panoramas.
By using a Java viewer.
Plug-ins are generally more effective since they are developed for specific platforms. Apple®’s QuickTime® is the most popular player, and it allows panoramas to be displayed in the QuickTime VR format. Unfortunately, its functionalities for displaying panoramic content are limited.
The fact that plug-ins need to be installed on the host computer can pose a problem. Users often can't install the plug-ins because their network or Internet access does not allow it, or because they are simply against installing plug-ins.
The Java solution, on the other hand, is perfectly secure, does not require a plug-in, and is already installed on most computers (PC and Macintosh). But because they were renowned for their lack of performance, Java viewers could not compete with plug-ins, in terms of speed or resolution.
But that was before the arrival of ImmerVision’s PURE Player™ for Java. This viewer finally offers an ideal compromise between the flexibility and security of Java, and the effectiveness of plug-ins.
More on PURE Player for Java.
The question that arises: is there another alternative, more accessible than Java, that would allow panoramic images to be displayed on the Web?
Is There an Alternative to Java?
In past years, Macromedia® has developed and promoted its Flash file format and it became the most popular tool for creating and viewing interactive multimedia content on the Web. It is installed on almost all computers running Windows, as demonstrated in the following table:
Flash allows users to play and display various types of media (vector drawing, images, sounds, video) through the Web. After having optimized its PURE panoramic rendering engine for Java, ImmerVision’s R&D team studied the capabilities of Flash to evaluate if Flash had sufficient functionalities to include PURE basic algorithms, in order to display and manipulate panoramic images.
Before and After Flash 8
Our examination of the latest versions of the Flash player has demonstrated that Flash 7 is not capable of displaying panoramas.
It makes the operation extremely complex and imprecise. However, while Flash 8 does not have a 3D engine, it offers the required
functionalities to manipulate panoramic images. These functionalities, if properly used, can display panoramas without excessive
distortion. It is now possible to process geometrical transformations on images to simulate distortions due to the visualization
perspective. Flash 7 cannot apply a transformation over each image pixel, and the number of possible transformations is limited,
as shown below:
The introduction of these new capabilities in Flash 8 allows us to simulate a 3D textured object: a full panorama (360°x360°) for this case study,
Limitations
Flash 8 is still very new and is not yet installed on many computers. However, Macromedia offers Flash scripts and Javascript that will recognize the version of Flash that is installed on most popular Web browsers, and offer to install Flash 8. The popularity of Flash makes it easy to install updates.
Running Flash scripts is much slower than running a native or Java program. The resolution of the panorama and the visualization must be limited to maintain an acceptable frame rate and smooth motion.
Uses of Flash 8
Users who feature panoramic images on their sites, among other types of media, may be interested by the Flash 8 viewer. The Flash player is the most installed and used player on the Web. It therefore guarantees maximal visibility for their creations.
Users who wish to display large-size panoramic images in high resolution will not be interested by Flash for the moment, since it doesn't offer the speed necessary to compete with Java viewers and plug-ins. The best solution available today is ImmerVision’s PURE Java Player. It offers highly advanced multimedia functionality for the creation of powerful interactive presentations.
All products, company names and logos mentioned in this document are the trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.
ImmerVision Panorama in Flash
This is a sample only. ImmerVision does not yet have a release date.
Panorama control: Left mouse-button to move Mouse wheel or Shift and Ctrl keys to zoom
