3Di, Inc., which develops and offers 3D Internet solutions, has launched an open source project, 3Di Viewer "Rei," for viewing and interacting with OpenSim-based 3D virtual worlds in web browsers.
With this open source technology, 3Di will assist industry adoption and standardization of 3D Internet technology. Using the same core technology as 3Di's commercial product 3Di Viewer, "Rei" is open source BSD-licensed viewer software for 3D virtual worlds and the 3D Internet. 3Di Viewer "Rei" allows to view and interact with multi-user 3D virtual worlds using a web browser.
3Di Viewer "Rei" works with open source upstream OpenSim servers. It also works with commercial 3Di OpenSim Enterprise servers.
3Di Viewer "Rei" has some extended features that set it apart from other virtual world viewers for OpenSim. Some of the features are, run-time execution inside of a web browser, easy-to-use point-and-click mouse interface, JavaScript API for interaction with the containing web page and with web services, mesh-based avatar, Irrlicht 3D Mesh data ,ability to logout and login without needing to re-starting the viewer, and camera control by JavaScript.
Multi-user 3D virtual worlds have been able to grow in focused application areas, but they have not yet achieved universal adoption, like traditional 2D web media. 3Di Viewer "Rei" addresses this problem by integrating 3D content inside of traditional 2D web pages, allowing existing 2D content to merge with or migrate to 3D content.
In a release, Norman Lin, technology group manager, 3Di, said "We have been receiving quite some interest about the possibilities of a viewer running inside the web browser. Also, the OpenSim community has been looking for a new BSD-licensed viewer solution. By offering our viewer as open source under the BSD license, we’re hoping to help accelerate the standardization and industry-wide adoption of 3D Internet technologies."
Since 3Di Viewer "Rei" is open source, application developers can customize the platform. 3Di Viewer "Rei" is currently designed for use with OpenSim-based virtual world servers, such as the commercial 3Di OpenSim Enterprise or the community-supported open source OpenSim.