3d pdf objects

so i can now make 3d pdf objects, and i'd like to make it more useful. adobe put out some docs on their support for 3d, as well as javascript for 3d. they claim the possibility of animations, though i seem to recall from reading about this before that that is only via matrix transforms for rigid-body motion and not mesh deformation. i wonder if i can use insdljs.sty for the javascript....

3d pdf objects

i tried for way too much time to compile the u3d reference library from sourceforge, with something tantalizingly close to success. the only way i could actually use it, though, was to use wine on the precompiled windows binary on an idtf file. the only way i have successfully created an idtf is by exporting an imported stl file from meshlab. i did manage to shove the resulting u3d into a pdf, and it looked pretty cool. but i need to find an easier way to make idtf files. EDIT: apparently vrml 97 can be converted to u3d with acrobat 3d. s2plot site gives some instructions, including some basic frame-based animation. also, some russian dude made a vtk->idtf exporter. not sure if he published anywhere. also also, mathgl supposedly has idtf export capability, so things like udav that use it should, too.

3d pdf objects

apparently there a couple of ways to embed 3d objects in pdf files. viewers can pan, rotate, and zoom on a quite smooth 3d model *drool*. i haven't seen much on the really really new format, and it's only supported in new versions of acroread. but the older u3d format is out there and already seems to be near-abandonware. there's a spec def on sourceforge that is the only free implementation i've found so far, though this page has some links i should check out. (click fast, it's tripod!) maybe one of these days i'll write something to convert meshes to u3d so i can embed them in docs.