Q tales project - WebGL

WebGL (Web Graphics Library)A JavaScript API for rendering interactive 3D

computer graphics and 2D graphics within any compatible web browser without the use

of plug-ins

|Creative Industries Concertation Meeting | 17.02.2016 | Luxembourg |

What is WebGL• WebGL enables web content to use an API based on OpenGL ES 2.0 to perform 3D rendering in an HTML canvas in browsers that support it without the use of plug-ins.

• WebGL programs consist of control code written in JavaScript and special effects code (shader code) that is executed on a computer's Graphics Processing Unit (GPU).

• WebGL elements can be mixed with other HTML elements and composited with other parts of the page or page background.


How will affect web browsing?

• WebGL will enable iOS-like applications to function on the web• WebGL elements can be mixed with other HTML elements • WebGL can also enable some typically non-web based programs to run on the cloud

Cinema4DUnity3D


History of WebGL

• Version 1.0 of the WebGL specification was released March 2011• Development of the WebGL 2 specification started in 2013• Latest update: 2 February 2016• https://www.khronos.org/registry/webgl/specs/latest/2.0/

Major browser vendors Apple (Safari), Google (Chrome), Mozilla (Firefox), Opera (Opera), and lately Microsoft, are members of

the WebGL Working Group.

https://www.khronos.org/registry/webgl/specs/latest/2.0/


We are in the middle of a big change

April 2015: Google's Chrome started phasing out NPAPI support

Summer 2015 – IE drops support for NPAPI plug-in

September 2015 –Chrome 45 NPAPI plug-in support removed

December 2016 - Firefox's is dropping NPAPI entirely

By late 2015, many browser vendors have either removed or

announced timelines for the removal of standards based plug-in support,

eliminating the ability to embed Flash, Silverlight, Java and other

plug-in based technologies


How this all started?• Security issues with flash(vulnerability)• “.. We don’t want to reduce the reliability and security of our iPhones, iPods and iPads by adding Flash”, “…Flash was the number one reason Macs crash”, April 29, 2010, Steve Jobs, "Thoughts on Flash"

13/2/2016. Google Drops Flash to go 100% HTML5 for Ads8/2/2016. Adobe releases Animate CC -> to move away from its proprietary plug-in and runtime in favour of HTML5 Canvas and WebGL

Today…


WebGL and UNITY3D

• Unity 5.3(December 2015) makes WebGL support official.• Unity is going to drop Web player support (web plug-in) in version 5.4, due March 2016.• Unity (and Unreal) exporters work: taking a runtime written in native (i.e. C/C++), and cross-compiling it to asm.js + WebGL via Emscripten. • Emscripten is an LLVM(Low Level Virtual Machine)-based project that compiles C and C++ into highly-optimizable JavaScript in asm.js format. This lets you run C and C++ on the web at near-native speed, without plugins.


WebGL and UNITY3D• Unity3D embraced WebGL. It is already used in a number of successful commercial titles that way. • Their continued efforts can be easily addressed through their roadmap on their website https://unity3d.com/unity/roadmap which has been set to public as a proof for their credibility.

http://beta.unity3d.com/jonas/AngryBots/

https://unity3d.com/unity/roadmap

https://unity3d.com/unity/roadmap


WebPlayer vs WebGLBig Buck Hunter


Q-Tales and WebGL

• Q-Tales tools (Authoring tool and e-book Reader) support a number of Digital Screens (PC, iMac, Android tablets, iPads). • They also can be exported as web players. …But they work only in Firefox and only till the end of 2016. • WebGL seems the only way, but…its not stable yet…, not officially supported from Unity 3d, and not all the existing features are working properly(testing).

Early in 2015…


Q-Tales and WebGLEarly in 2016…


Next steps

• Browser vendors and Unity 3D have a lot of things still to improve.• Q-Tales is using the stable delivery channels for dissemination (tablets as the main players).• Everything that is added to the tools we take care to be WebGL compliant. •We believe that this will prove to become our advantage at the end as early adopters of WebGL.


Q-Tales ecosystem (1/4)

Collaboration Platform

• Initiators start new e-book projects.

• Seek collaborators for the co-creation of the e-books

• Send their e-books for Curation• Publish their e-books to the Q-Tales Store(s)


Q-Tales ecosystem (2/4)Authoring Tool

• Initiators setup book style• Use the assets uploaded from collaborators (images, sounds, 3d).

• Insert and customize texts• Add educational mini-games/ features

• Use free assets offered by Q-Tales



Q-Tales Store

• Curated books are sold to the public

• There is a premium store for publishers to buy rights of e-books

• Also free e-books are there

• Links to Q-Tales Reader apps


Q-Tales e-bookPC iMacTablets


HoloLens

Q-Tales Readers


Thank you!

Co-funded by the European Union under the Horizon 2020 programme

Q tales project - WebGL

Technology

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