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1. Tips and Troubleshooting This chapter describes solutions to problems you may encounter when creating QTVR media General problems These problems may appear in panoramas or object movies When I zoom in on an image it looks blurred Cause 1 The images are not of a high enough resolution Solution 1a If you took your images from a PhotoCD check to see if you have higher resolution images If so remake your panorama or object with the higher resolution images Solution 1b Reshoot the source material at a higher resolution It s usually a good idea to capture or photograph the source material at the highest resolution possible and then use an image processing tool such as Adobe Photoshop to make copies that are lower in resolution You can always go back to the higher resolution originals if you find the resolution you selected is too low Solution 1c Limit how much the user can zoom in by adjusting the playback settings for the panorama or object Cause 2 You used a compression method or compression quality settings that introduced too much distortion in the image Solution 2 Open the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio document and select a different compression method or use the same compression method at a higher quality setting 87 Chapter 9 I can t play a QTVR panorama object or scene Cause 1 The computer on which you are trying to play the media does not have the necessary components to play QTVR media
2. Solution 1 See System Requirements for Playing QTVR Media in Chapter 1 You may need to obtain acomponent such as the QuickTime VR extension If you are playing QTVR media on a computer other than the one you used to create the QTVR media Cause 2 The QTVR media file is not flattened and you are playing it back on a computer that does not have the source material files Solution 2 Before you build QTVR media click the File tab in the Settings window and click the checkbox labeled Flatten To Data Fork Then rebuild your QTVR panorama object or scene I have to wait a very long time to view a QTVR panorama or object movie over the Internet Cause When you view QTVR media over the Internet the data must be transmitted to your computer Therefore it takes longer to view an object or panorama over the Internet than it would if you were viewing It directly from your hard disk Data is transmitted more slowly if you are connected to the Internet through a modem rather than through a local area network Solution Decrease the resolution or size of the images used to build your panorama or object movie You may also want to pick a compression method such as Photo JPEG that decompresses well over the Internet I see a message that my movie file can t be found when I try to play QTVR media Cause The QTVR media file is not flattened and you are playing it back on a computer that does not have the source material files Solut
3. 16 Chapter 3 Using the Panorama Maker To make a panorama from a single panoramic image follow these steps Double click the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio icon Choose New from the File menu then select Panorama Maker A dialog box appears Type aname for your Panorama Maker document A Panorama Maker document is a record of your Panorama Maker session If you quit QuickTime VR Authoring Studio before you make the panorama you can open the document later to continue your work You can also open the Panorama Maker document to make changes to a panorama you ve already finished Click Save The Panorama Maker window appears Panorama Maker Mars Landscape Source mage Output Files Save Set Tile J QT RDisk Mars Landscape tile Py 3 x Pano OTYRDisk Mars Landscape pano Make Fano Rotate Ea 5 Click Add Image A dialog box appears Select the image you want to use for your panorama and click Open You can use any image that is in a format supported by QuickTime such as PICT TIFF JPEG and GIF Shortcut Instead of clicking Add Image you can drag the image file you want to use to the bottom section of the Panorama Maker window The image you select appears in the Panorama Maker window 6 Check to be sure the image is oriented properly Normally the image should be in landscape orientation If the image is in portrait orientation you may need to rotate it 90 degrees or 90 degrees
4. Click the Folder button to add a folder to the project You can use folders to organize project components as shown below lt EL clothing PA Apple Baby Shirt 8 26 97 11 40 AM 9 8 26 97 11 40 AM EE Apple Sweatshirt af2e6 97 11 40 AM ef26 97 11 41 4M a SL Computers EE 20th Anniversary Macintosh 8 26 97 11 41 AM 2 26 97 11 41 AM EE PowerBook 1400 amp r26raT 11 41 AMH 267 97 11 41 AM You can add as many folders as you like to the project Adding files and setting preferences You must add source files for the QTVR media in your project before you can build the project Double click an icon that represents a panorama object or scene The window for the associated QuickTime VR Authoring Studio tool appears For example if you click a stitched panorama icon the Panorama Stitcher window opens Managing QTVR Projects 75 76 Chapter 7 Add files to the tool window and set preferences Follow the procedure described in one of the previous chapters for adding files and changing settings For example if you are defining a stitched panorama follow steps 5 through 25 in Chapter 4 Stitching a Panorama From a Series of Images Do not make the panorama The Project Manager will do that for you later Close the window Follow steps 1 through 3 for each of the QTVR objects panoramas and scenes in your project Building the project You use the Build Project button to make the QTVR panoramas objects and scenes
5. The left arrow rotates the image counterclockwise the right arrow rotates it clockwise Rotate 7 Ifyou want the tile movie file to have a different name or location from the one listed next to the Tile button click Tile In the dialog box that appears enter aname and location for the tile movie file Output Files Save Set x Tile aTYRDisk Project f Mars Landscape tile x OTYRDIsk P roject f Mars Landscape pana The tile movie is an intermediate step in the creation of a panorama To make the tile movie the Panorama Maker compresses your image and divides it into equal sized sections called tiles You can view a tile movie using a standard QuickTime player Be sure to click the checkbox next to the Tile button if you want to save the tile movie There are two reasons you may want to save the tile movie T0 save time lf you decide to remake the panorama later and you saved the tile movie the Panorama Maker does not have to repeat the compression step T0 play the panorama from your hard disk f you don t flatten the panoramic movie file see step 14 you must save the tile movie to be able to view your panorama 8 Ifyou want your panorama to have a different name or location from the one listed next to the Pano button click Pano In the dialog box that appears enter aname and location for the panorama file The panorama file is the final QTVR panorama To save your panorama make sure there is an X in the
6. the Pano button click Pano In the dialog box that appears enter aname and location for the panorama file The panorama file is the final QTVR panorama To save your panorama make sure there s an X in the checkbox next to the Pano button Click Settings The Stitch Settings window opens with the Image tab selected Stitching a Panorama From a Series of Images 27 28 Chapter 4 18 Select the image options appropriate for the panorama Stitch Settings Image Processing X Blend X Fill gt Deskew gt Sharpen LI Stretch Image 5ize Crop Auto Size Height o o Width o Image Processing These options determine the types of processing applied to the stitched image All except Stretch are selected by default Blend Softens sharp edges within an image and where images overlap Fill Fills the edge of the image not covered by pixels from the source images with the first non black color identified by the Panorama Stitcher Deskew Compensates for slight rotation in images that occurs when you capture the images Sharpen Sharpens blurry images by increasing the contrast of adjacent pixels Stretch Stretches the source images as needed so they can be aligned more accurately Image Size Crop Removes pixels from the top and bottom of the stitched image to give a clean edge and hide the boundaries of the original images It is selected by default Auto Size Lets the size
7. 215 364 1778 a info kaidan com a http www kaidan com Peace River Studios m 617 491 6262 AQTVRHP peaceriverstudios com m http www peaceriverstudios com Authoring environments You can import QTVR panoramas object movies and scenes into environments authored with these tools Director Macromedia Inc m 800 326 2128 a http www macromedia com software director 97 98 Appendix B mTropolis a mbactory Inc m 415 548 0600 a htto www mfactory com mtropolis Software These tools are used to process source material Adobe Photoshop Retouch images for panoramas Adobe After Effects Remove object supports in an object movie remove jitter Adobe Systems Inc 800 833 6687 a http www adobe com This tool is used to convert VRML to QTVR ModelShop VR a Electric Caf Inc m 415 675 7480 a http www eleccafe com A growing number of 3D rendering applications support the output of QTVR panoramas and objects More information can be found at the Apple QuickTime VR Web site listed in the next section Production services The QuickTime VR Service Directory at Apple s QuickTime VR World Wide Web site lists some of the companies that provide multimedia production services You can access the service directory by going to the Apple QuickTime VR Web site at htto atvr quicktime apple com Index A absolute objects 55 57 Add Images button 24 Add Map button 60 ali
8. Fundamentals of the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio Interface and Setting QuickTime VR Authoring Studio Preferences later in this chapter provide a general orientation to QuickTime VR Authoring Studio s user interface and show how you can customize QuickTime VR Authoring Studio for your use Chapters 3 through 7 contain step by step guides to using each of QuickTime VR Authoring Studio s five tools As you work through each chapter use the source material provided on the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD so you can focus on learning how to use the tools Read Chapter 8 Creating Source Material Once you know how to use the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio tools read Chapter 8 for tips on creating your own QTVR source material These tips focus on the differences between conventional photographic techniques and techniques for QTVR photography or videography You ll also find information about QTVR equipment rigs Introduction to QuickTime VR Authoring Studio 9 Fundamentals of the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio interface When you open one of QuickTime VR Authoring Studio s five tools the window for that tool appears The windows for the Object Maker Panorama Maker Panorama Stitcher and Scene Maker have similar layouts Each has a section for defining source images another for defining output files the files the tool creates as it processes your QTVR media a process button and asection where you can view source mate
9. Oea jy View State 1 a Bl Making Objects 41 42 Chapter 5 8 10 Check to be sure the images are oriented properly and in the correct order Click each image you want to rotate then click one of the rotation arrows to rotate the image counterclockwise or clockwise Rotate Note QuickTime VR Authoring Studio displays files in alphanumeric order by filename If the file naming scheme you used does not result in the proper sequence of Images you need to change the order of images by dragging the image you want to move to anew position in the series of images You can also rename your files before adding them to the Object Maker window If you want the movie file to have a different name or location from the one listed next to the Movie button click Movie In the dialog box that appears enter aname and location for the movie file Output Files Save Set x OT RDisk 20th Anniversary Mac mow x Object OTYRDisk 20th Anniversary Mac obj The movie file is an intermediate step in the creation of an object If you want to save the file make sure there s an X in the checkbox next to the Movie button Saving the file may save processing time later if you decide to remake the object If you do not want to save the file click the checkbox to remove the X If you want your object to have a different name or location from the one listed next to the Object button click Object In the dialog box that appears enter
10. Slow Fast High Use as an alternative to Photo JPEG Graphics Computer generated Moderate Fast Low Only allows animation compression at 100 quality Photo JPEG Photographic stills Moderate Slow Highest 25 40 quality gives or video good results Best for QTVR media Video Video Fast Fast High Compression ratio better than Cinepak Use as an alternative to Photo JPEG Other ways to reduce file size You can do one or more of the following before compressing a file to help reduce file size Fill background areas with a solid color Background color on a captured image may look solid but it contains small variations due to noise If you use an image processing program to fill the background with a solid color the variations disappear and you will get better compression Crop images lf the areas of interest are only in the center of your images but not on the sides crop the images a Dejltter object movies Better compression can be achieved if objects are located in precisely the same location in each view frame See Capturing Images for QTVR Objects in Chapter 8 for details on eliminating jitter from your objects Equipment Software and Services Object and camera rigs The following companies sell object and camera rigs you can use to photograph images for QTVR object movies and panoramas Corybant West m 800 884 2674 info corybantwest com a htto www corybantwest com Kaidan Inc m
11. Transparency Search Range Default Adjust the alignment options or click the checkbox labeled Use Defaults If you don t use the default values you should first drag one image so that it is roughly aligned with the other image You can use the arrow keys to align the two Images more precisely AS you move the Images the horizontal overlap and vertical offset values change Next adjust the other alignment options Horizontal Search Range The horizontal distance in pixels over which the Panorama Stitcher searches to find similar areas The default value is calculated from the lens length Type another value if you do not want to use the default a Vertical Search Range The vertical distance in pixels over which the Panorama Stitcher searches to find similar areas The default value is calculated from the lens length Type another value if you do not want to use the default a Search Range Click Zero if you have aligned the images manually and don t want the Panorama Stitcher to search for similar areas A zero appears in the Horizontal and Vertical Search Range boxes Click Default if you aligned the images manually but decide to use the default search range values instead Rotation degrees Enter the number of degrees by which to rotate the image on the right a Vertical Stretch left side Enter a number of pixels the left side of the image on the right is stretched by the amount you specify Click Correlate You s
12. a location for the object file The object file is your QTVR object movie To save the object movie make sure there s an X in the checkbox next to the Object button 11 Click Settings The Object Maker Settings window opens with the Compression tab selected SS _ bject Maker Settings S5555 Compression Compression Settings Cinepak High 75 Compression Settings Compressor Best Depth v Quality 2 gt l T l Least Low Medium High Most If you want to change the type quality or depth of compression click the Settings button The Compression Settings window opens Some compression methods work better for making objects For details on selecting a compression method see Appendix A 12 Click the Object tab and adjust the object settings Object Maker Settings Object Playback File Horizontal Controls Wrap Vertical Controls _ Wrap _ Reverse Aeon LI Swap Controls L Animate View Frames LI Loop L Loop Back And Farth O Festart Each view Frame Speed _ Auto play Yiews LI Loop Back And Forth Auto play Speed Ho Scaleable Enable Translation Angle of View Mouse Scale Factor 180 0 Object Type Object LI Syne to Frame Rate Minimum ADY Making Objects 43 44 Chapter 5 Horizontal and vertical controls When you view your object in the playback window you control the horizontal and ver
13. final scene Using additional lights to illuminate and accent an interior scene gives you more control and provides higher quality results However adding lights generally is costlier and more time consuming Outdoor photography Lens flare can result from direct sunlight or bright lights at night and it s more likely to occur with a wide angle lens To avoid lens flare mask the lens from the sunlight by placing the tripod in a shaded area shielding the lens from direct light or shooting when there are clouds Choosing a lens The length of the lens used to capture a panoramic image affects the user s ability to pan up and down in the resulting QuickTime VR panorama as well as the detail of distant objects when zooming In Using a wide angle lens to capture a scene provides the user with the greatest zoom and vertical panning range A 14mm or 15mm lens provides the best overall view for many types of scenes but these are expensive and prone to lens flare An 18mm lens may be a better choice giving the user a better view of objects farther off in the distance For outdoor photography a 24mm or 28mm lens gives better resolution to small objects or points of interest near the horizon in the resulting QTVR panorama These lenses are also usually less expensive Determining the number of images The number of shots depends on your lens size orientation portrait or landscape and the amount of overlap between images It s a good i
14. first animation frame whenever the view is changed Frame Speed Enter the speed at which you want animations to play If you want animated views to play faster than the frames per second specified for views type a number greater than 1 To have them play slower type a number between 0 and 1 You may need to experiment with different values to get the desired result You specify the frames per second in the Frame Duration section described later Auto play Views Auto play Views Select to have the object movie play through all of the views in one row automatically when the user opens it Loop Back And Forth Select to have the object movie play from the first to the last view in arow and then backwards through the row Sync to Frame Rate Select if you want all of the frames of an animated view to play before the next view is shown Auto play Soeed Enter the speed at which you want the object movie to play automatically If you want the object movie to play faster than the rate you specified in Frame Duration type a number greater than 1 To have it play slower type a number between 0 and 1 You may need to experiment with different values to get the desired result The Frame Duration options are described later Scaleable Enable Translation Select to allow the user to move azoomed in object within the playback window Angle of View and Minimum AOV Enter values for the angle of view and minimum angle of view The am
15. for camera rotation should be over this point not the focal film plane Double spirit level Focal point of lens Light rays cross Pan tilt head at focal point Tripod Front view Photographic techniques This section provides guidelines for exposure considerations for indoor and outdoor photography and recommendations for determining how many images you need for panoramas What to shoot Images that have objects in the foreground middle ground and background result in pleasing panoramas that give the user a better perception of the depth of field Exposure You can easily and effectively capture images for a panorama using natural light and available light trom overhead desk and floor lamps When photographing aroom try to illuminate the room evenly by using all available lights You should shield the lens from direct light Be sure to identify exposure problems such as back lighting When calculating the exposure consider whether detail in shadows and highlights is important for your project Use manual rather than automatic exposure and select a setting based on the average meter reading for the scene Creating Source Material 84 82 Chapter 8 Indoor photography It can be difficult to ensure consistent lighting effects for indoor photography especially when there are windows in the scene You should take meter readings shoot test shots and experiment with lighting before you shoot the
16. frame of the object movie appears on the screen When you enter the frame duration the value for frames per second is calculated automatically Frames Per Second When you enter a value for frames per second the frame duration Is calculated automatically Making Objects 45 46 Chapter 5 13 Click the Playback tab and adjust the playback settings The playback settings determine the orientation viewing size and field of view of the object movie when the user opens it Object Maker Settings Compression Object Playback File Object Yiewing Size _ X Use Frame Size Width 0 Height 0 Default Pan Default Tilt Default Zoom D LOGE Default Yiew State Mouse Down View State Use Frame Size Select this option if you want the size of the playback window to be the same size as the images you use for the object If you do not select this option type the width and height in pixels of the playback window The Object Maker scales the object to fit the frame size you specify Default Pan f you want your object movie to open with a pan angle other than zero type a pan angle The pan angle is the horizontal distance in degrees from the starting view of the object Default Tilt f you want your object movie to open with a tilt angle other than zero type atilt angle The tilt angle is the distance in degrees above or below the starting view of the object Default Zoom If you w
17. in Chapter 6 Then remake the scene Tips and Troubleshooting 91 APPEN Compression Compression reduces the size of your media files and improves the interactive response time of your QTVR movies Compression methods are referred to as codecs because a method specifies a compression scheme as well as a decompression scheme Several compression methods are available in QuickTime VR Authoring Studio This appendix discusses those methods that are best to use with QTVR media files a Animation a Cinepak a Graphics m Photo JPEG a Video Choosing a compression method Each compression method has strengths and weaknesses Some methods are more appropriate for storing video than they are for storing still images Some compression methods introduce more distortion in the final product than others Some compress slowly and decompress quickly while others compress and decompress at the same rate Some methods can compress a file to one one hundredth of its original size while others decrease the file size very little When you choose a compression method consider the following the source material m the quality of the compressed image the file size of the compressed image the time it takes to compress and decompress an image 93 94 Appendix A Source material Compression methods are optimized for specific types of source material Video compression is a good choice when the source material is video If your sour
18. in on this object to remove the jitter Then you can remove the reference object from each frame Selecting and setting up the camera Using a video camera gives you greater control of lighting as you can preview your results before you capture the images With a video camera It s easier to make the background uniformly black because you can adjust the brightness contrast black level and gamma levels on the camera and digitizer board You can capture images directly from a video camera into the Object Maker window if you have an AV computer or a video digitizing board in your computer You can use a standard film camera to shoot objects but more postproduction time Is required to achieve the same results you can get with a video camera Ordering frames Capture the images in the order you want them to appear in the QTVR object Be sure to select aname for each image that reflects the sequence in which the images will be viewed This eliminates the need to reorder or rename frames afterward Note QuickTime VR Authoring Studio puts frames in alphanumeric order If you name a series of 24 files imagel image2 and so on through image24 your files will be out of order in the final object QuickTime VR Authoring Studio orders them as imagel image11 image12 through image19 then image2 image20 and so on For the images to be in sequential order you need to label them image001 image002 and so on Creating Source Material 85 CHAP
19. mm Landscape degrees If you did not use 35mm film choose Other from the Film pop up menu Then enter the film size If you used a digital or video camera check the user s manual that came with your camera to see if it lists a 35mm equivalent for your camera If not then follow the lens estimation procedure in the next section Click Calculate The vertical angles of view for portrait and landscape orientations appear Click Use next to Portrait or Landscape to indicate the appropriate orientation of the lens The Lens Calculator window closes The degree information for the orientation you selected is stored with the lens information Click Done The Edit Lenses window closes Your lens appears as a choice in the Lens pop up menu Estimating a lens Click Estimate in the Edit Lenses window The Lens Estimator window opens The first two images of your series appear If you want to use another pair of images for the estimation click Previous or Next until you reach the pair you want to use You should choose images that have detail but do not contain repeating patterns The pictures of the Company Store below have enough detail to be aligned properly A poor example would be two Images of window blinds The blinds consist of a repeating pattern of horizontal slats so the estimator could align the wrong slats Lens Estimator ertical Angle of iew Ce Enter estimated values for the beginning and end vert
20. object if necessary Use the crosshairs and guides in the Video window to be sure the object support is centered in the window Rotate the object 360 degrees and as you rotate it check to be sure the object remains in the field of view of the Video window You can move the guides in the Video window by dragging the guide markers In the Object Maker window select the row 1 column 1 view frame by clicking the camera icon in the lower left of the row 1 column 1 view frame Ry C1 E ta RICZ The shaded camera indicates the image will be captured into thisrow and column Note The shaded camera icon appears only when you capture images directly Click Capture Frame in the Capture Controls window The first image appears in row 1 column 1 Position the object or camera for the next image Move either the camera or the object by the number of degrees you specified in the Define Object window The one you move depends upon the type of setup you have If you are starting a new row you may need to move both the camera and the object Select the next view frame in the Object Maker window by clicking the camera icon If you click the checkbox labeled Auto select next cell after capture in the Capture Controls window you do not need to select the next view frame manually Click Capture Frame The second image appears in row 1 column 2 Repeat steps 9 10 and 11 until you have captured the correct number of images to fill t
21. values then rebuild the object The object slips under the pointer or I don t get the illusion of grabbing the object Cause The mouse scale factor is wrong Solution Open the Object Maker Settings window Click the Object tab and adjust the mouse scale factor The mouse scale factor determines the amount the object will rotate or move when the mouse is moved from side to side Try a scale factor of 180 Then rebuild the object The object movie plays too fast Cause The playback rate Is set too high Solution Open the Object Maker Settings window Click the Object tab and adjust either the frame duration or frames per second Then rebuild the object After use another tool to process my movie file that is the mov file my object no longer pans correctly or the views appear out of order Cause The frame rate you used to create the movie file in QuickTime VR Authoring Studio does not match the frame rate you used to process the movie file in your postproduction software Solution Make sure the software you use to do postproduction processing is set to the same frame rate you used to create your object movie in QuickTime VR Authoring Studio Scenes When I click a hot spot I don t get the results I expect Cause The destination is not set correctly Solution Use the Hot Spot Editor window in the Scene Maker tool to set the destination to the view you want to see See Defining Hot Spots and Setting Destinations
22. you define Click Build Project EE ees Build Project A progress window opens The elapsed time and the image being processed appear in the window Processing continues automatically until the project is complete Progress Processing source files frame 1 view 4 0f 36 Processing time depends on the number of QTVR media in the project the number and resolution of the source images the speed of your computer the amount of RAM available to QuickTime VR Authoring Studio and the compression methods you re using for objects panoramas and scenes When the processing is finished close the Project Manager window Choose Quit from the File menu if you are done using QuickTime VR Authoring Studio Changing source files and updating media If you change some of the source files used for any of the QTVR media in your project open the Project Manager document for that project then click Build Project The Project Manager rebuilds only those QTVR media whose source files have changed Maintaining different versions of media You can use folders to organize multiple versions of QTVR media For example you might create low resolution and high resolution versions of the same QTVR media if you plan to deliver the media over the Internet and on a CD You d use the low resolution version for the Internet where playback speed is an issue Project Manager The Company Store Create new vr ML High resolution version EE P
23. 2 1 or later MoviePlayer version 3 0 or later If you re playing the QTVR media over the Internet you also need a World Wide Web browser with the QuickTime plug in version 2 0 installed What s included with QuickTime VR Authoring Studio The QuickTime VR Authoring Studio package includes a CD ROM disc that contains the following m QuickTime VR Authoring Studio application program Lenses file that contains files for a variety of camera lenses You ll need this for stitching panoramas MoviePlayer 2 5 m QuickTime VR 2 0 1 a QuickTime 2 5 m QTVR Sample Source Material folder You ll use this as you complete the tutorials in Chapters 3 through 7 QTVRConverter You use this to convert QTVR 1 0 files to QTVR 2 0 files a Simpletext 1 4 QTVR Examples folder Installing QuickTime VR Authoring Studio Before you install QuickTime VR Authoring Studio be sure to have your QuickTime VR Authoring Studio serial number available You will not be able to use the application until you enter the serial number To install QuickTime VR Authoring Studio follow these steps Insert the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD into your CD ROM drive Open the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD icon then double click the Installer icon The Installer window opens Follow the onscreen installation instructions After the installation is complete double click the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio icon A dialog box appears Enter the seria
24. 47 correction settings 20 31 69 Correlate button 37 Crop option 28 decompression time 94 Default Pan setting 19 130 146 Default Tilt setting 19 30 46 Default View State setting 46 Default Zoom setting 19 130 146 Define Object window 40 55 Deskew option 28 destinations setting 65 68 91 digital camera 83 digitizing images 83 Display Images In Progress Window option 11 Display QuickTime VR Movie After Make Is Complete option 12 dual links between nodes 65 72 Edit Lenses window 33 34 equipment 80 81 84 97 estimating a lens 35 exposure 81 F files adding 75 76 aliases for 12 alphanumeric order of 42 compression for 93 96 flattening 20 31 47 69 88 naming 13 PICT files 26 27 60 88 preferences for 12 size of 94 96 source files 77 90 specifying output files 62 suffixes for 13 file settings 31 32 47 Files preferences 12 Fill option 28 film type of 34 80 Flatten To Data Fork option 20 131 47 69 88 flicker avoiding 90 folders naming 74 75 Frame Duration settings 45 frames animating view frames 144 153 54 keeping in memory 14 misaligned 85 ordering 85 preloading 14 G General preferences 11 Graphics compression method 94 95 96 help labels 11 horizontal controls 44 Horizontal Search Range option 37 Hot Spot Editor window 66 72 hot spots See also links blobs and 72 defining 62 55 68 description of 7 troubleshootin
25. CD select the Store Map The map appears in the Scene Maker window Scene Maker The Company Store Scene Output File j Hot Spots QTY RDisk The Company Store Scene hat Add Map QTYRDisk The Company Store Scene scene an Settings Make Scene Create Nodes The map shown above depicts the physical space of the Company Store The boxes and circles represent scene components Making QTVR Scenes 61 62 Chapter 6 Specifying output files If you want the hot spots file to have a different name or location from the one listed next to the Hot Spots button click Hot Spots In the dialog box that appears enter a name and location for the hot spots file Output File Hot Spots QTYRDisk The Company Store Scene hot QTYRDisk The Company Store Scene scene Settings Hot spots are locations in an object or panorama that the user can interact with When you create hot spots later in this chapter information about them Is saved in the hot spots file If you want the scene file to have a different name or location from the one listed next to the Scene button click Scene In the dialog box that appears enter a name and location for the scene file The scene file is your final QTVR scene Creating scene components The Scene Maker window has buttons that represent the different types of nodes you can put in a scene As you move the pointer over each button a label appears showing the type of node repr
26. CHAP Setting Up Your Software System requirements for using QuickTime VR Authoring Studio This section describes the hardware and software you need to use QuickTime VR Authoring Studio Minimum system configuration Mac OS based computer with a PowerPC processor 16MB RAM available for the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio application program 40 MB of space available on your hard disk CD ROM drive If you plan to create complex QTVR scenes or make high resolution panoramas and object movies you may need a system that exceeds the minimum requirements System requirements for playing QTVR media The QTVR media you create with QuickTime VR Authoring Studio can be played on any Mac OS or Windows computer either from a local disk or over the Internet using a World Wide Web browser Mac OS The computer must have a 68030 68040 or PowerPC processor In addition the computer should have the following software installed m QuickTime extension version 2 5 or later m QuickTime VR extension version 2 0 1 or later MoviePlayer version 2 5 or SimpleText 2 Chapter 1 If you re playing the QTVR media over the Internet you also need a World Wide Web browser with the QuickTime plug in version 2 0 installed Windows The computer must have a 486 or Pentium processor In addition the computer should have the following software installed m QuickTime for Windows version 3 0 or later m QuickTime VR components version
27. Open the Lens pop up menu and choose the lens you used to photograph your images If your lens does not appear in the menu choose Edit then click New Add the appropriate information For details on how to add anew lens see Adding a Lens later in this chapter If you are using the images from the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD choose 18mm Portrait Click Add Images HARA Add mages A dialog box appears Select the images you want to use for your panorama and click Open You can use any images that are in a format supported by QuickTime such as PICT TIFF JPEG and GIF Shortcut Instead of clicking Add Images you can drag the folder containing the images you want to use to the bottom section of the Panorama Stitcher window The images you select appear in the Panorama Stitcher window in alphanumeric order by filename If the file naming scheme you used does not result in the proper sequence of images for your panorama you need to rename your files before you add them to the Panorama Stitcher window 7 Click to select the checkbox labeled Images Wrapped if the images give a 360 degree view of the scene Images Wrapped If this option is selected the Panorama Stitcher connects the first image to the last image Do not wrap the images if you are creating a partial panorama The sample images on the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD form a 360 degree panorama 8 Click Image Alignment HAHH mage Alignment
28. The Image Alignment window opens Image Alignment Horizontal Alignment Specify In i Degrees Between mages Perica AGP oo Recalculate Overlap in Pixels Search Range 34 pixels Yertical Alignment Offset o pixels Search Range pixels 9 Enter the appropriate information in the Horizontal Alignment section Enter the number of degrees between each image For example if you captured 12 images for a 360 degree panorama each image is 30 degrees from the next The Panorama Stitcher calculates the amount of overlap in pixels based on the number of degrees between images and the length of lens you used to capture the images If you change the lens length or the degrees between images click Recalculate If you want the Panorama Stitcher to search for the best horizontal alignment enter a value in the box labeled Search Range The Panorama Stitcher looks for similarities between images within the pixel range you specify Stitching a Panorama From aSeries of Images 25 26 Chapter 4 10 11 12 13 14 If your images were not captured on a level plane enter the appropriate information in the Vertical Alignment section If you are not able to keep the camera absolutely level when you shoot your images adjacent images may be vertically misaligned You can estimate the vertical offset in pixels to compensate for the misalignment You can also enter a search range that the Pan
29. These settings determine how the panorama looks when it is first opened If you make any adjustments you want to save click Set Playback Settings then remake the panorama with the new settings Close the playback window then close the Panorama Stitcher window Choose Quit from the File menu if you are done using QuickTime VR Authoring Studio Adding a lens If the lens you used to shoot your panorama is not listed in the Lens pop up menu you can add it Follow these steps to add a lens Choose Edit from the Lens pop up menu The Edit Lenses window appears Edit Lenses 15mm Portrait Lens Name O a vale Focal Length mr 20mm Landscape 2Omm Portrait Vertical Angle of View degrees Simro Calculate Estimate 2omm Portrait QuickTake 150 Portrait Recommended degrees between images Default source image rotation Notes SO Lens File UTY Rois k Lenses Stitching a Panorama From a Series of Images 33 34 Chapter 4 Click New and type aname in the Lens Name box Lens Name 35 mm Portrait Enter the focal length of the lens Focal Length mim If you know the length of the lens used to capture the images click Calculate If you do not know the lens length complete the steps in the next section Estimating a Lens The Lens Calculator window opens Lens Calculator Focal Length Film 35mm iw Yertical Angle of Yiew Width sem mm Portrait degrees Height 24
30. VR Authoring Studio offers you the same easy to use graphical user interface that you enjoy in the Mac OS As a result you ll be working productively right away and will have more time to concentrate on creating compelling QTVR media create Internet savvy objects and panoramas QTVR media that you create on your Mac OS computer can be played on aMac OS or Windows computer that has Internet access Web browser software and the QuickTime plug in QTVR media does not require as much disk space as video so it can be delivered more quickly over the Internet than video can automate tasks You can achieve greater efficiency and productivity by using QuickTime VR Authoring Studio s Project Manager to automate common operations in QuickTime VR Authoring Studio such as creating objects and panoramas Once you set the Project Manager in motion you are free to do other tasks organize complex projects The Project Manager helps you organize the media resources you ll use for large projects such as creating a virtual space QTVR media types There are three types of QTVR media you can create with QuickTime VR Authoring Studio panoramas objects and scenes Panoramas A QTVR panorama lets you view a scene such as a room or an outdoor vista from a variety of angles A full panorama can be panned horizontally 360 degrees to provide the illusion that you are standing in the center of the panorama Several examples of panoramas are on the QuickT
31. VR media No programming is required Who should read this manual This manual provides the information you need to install and use QuickTime VR Authoring Studio This manual is for newcomers to multimedia users with some multimedia experience and experienced multimedia professionals who want to create QTVR media Users who want to produce CD ROM titles should investigate Macromedia Director with the QuickTime VR Xtra mTropolis or other multimedia authoring tools that can import QTVR media created with QuickTime VR Authoring Studio For more information There are many books that provide you with information on QuickTime and multimedia authoring How to Digitize Video Nels Johnson Fred Gault Mark Florence and Keith Weiskamp John Wiley amp Sons 1994 This book provides comprehensive yet practical guidelines for converting video to digital format Multimedia Demystified A Guide to the World of Multimedia from Apple Computer Inc Random House Electronic Publishing 1994 This book provides a comprehensive look at the markets media and organizations that make up the multimedia industry Much of the material is based on interviews with multimedia developers who have successfully moved from an idea to a completed product m QuickTime The Official Guide for Macintosh Users Judith L Stern and Robert A Lettieri Hayden Books 1995 The book and accompanying CD help users create edit and play QuickTime movies on a Mac OS
32. a film or digital camera images captured from a video camera or video media or 3D rendered graphics It s recommended that you learn the features of the Panorama Stitcher by using the source material provided on the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD Once you have mastered using the Panorama Stitcher see Chapter 8 Creating Source Material for tips on capturing or photographing images for panoramas Using the Panorama Stitcher To make a panorama from a series of images follow these steps Double click the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio icon Choose New from the File menu then select Panorama Stitcher A dialog box appears Type aname for your Panorama Stitcher document A Panorama Stitcher document is a record of your Panorama Stitcher session If you quit QuickTime VR Authoring Studio before you stitch the panorama you can open the document later to continue your work You can also open the Panorama Stitcher document to make changes to a panorama you ve already finished 23 24 Chapter 4 4 Click Save The Panorama Stitcher window appears Panorama Stitcher The Company Store Source mages Output Files Lens Save _ Se E OTVRDisk Project f The Company Store pict pi E Images wrapped USNmen E OE E e f The Company ee Pdi 30 0 deorees i i Stitch Fano ABBR HHBH x OTYRDIsk Project f The Company Store pano Add mages Image Alignment Rotate Sort Limes Oe
33. al When you use MoviePlayer to view your object you can see the copyright information by choosing Show Copyright from the Movie menu 15 Click OK Making Objects 47 16 Click Make Object CORP Make Object It takes a few minutes for the Object Maker to create the QTVR object Processing time depends on the number and resolution of the source images the speed of your computer the amount of RAM available to the Object Maker and the type of compression you selected When the process is finished a playback window opens 17 If you wish adjust the playback settings As you move the object the settings change in the Pan Tilt Zoom Width and Height boxes The playback settings determine how the object looks when it is first opened To save the new settings click Set Playback Settings then remake your object with the new settings 20th Anniversary Mac object Tilt foom Width Height If you move the object you can click Reset to CE ed o d move the object to the default playback view 18 Close the playback window then close the Object Maker window Choose Quit from the File menu if you are done using QuickTime VR Authoring Studio 48 Chapter 5 3 4 Capturing images directly You can capture images directly into the Object Maker window if you have a camera that can be attached to a computer and your computer has AV capability See the documentation that came with your camera for instructions on how
34. an digitize the images with a scanner or other standard input device or by having a PhotoCD created from your negatives Images from a digital camera can be used directly as long as they are in a standard QuickTime format Computer rendered images If you decide to build a QTVR panorama from computer generated images you can use an off the shelf rendering package to create a 360 degree rendered view of your scene Either create individual adjacent overlapping images or use a tool that allows you to render 360 degree panoramas directly Creating Source Material 83 84 Chapter 8 Capturing images for QTVR objects You can capture real world objects using a video film or digital camera For best results shoot the object frames in sequence using a coordinate system and a manual or motorized rig to ensure that all possible viewpoints you want are captured Motorized and manual rigs are available from a number of companies some are listed in Appendix B In the setup pictured below the object a portable computer is mounted on a support that can be rotated The camera is mounted on a motorized support An alternative is to mount the camera on a stationary support and place the object securely on a turntable or other solid support that can be rotated l l a Video film or eS a digital camera o Usea stable support and fix the object firmly to the support so it does not fall CO Tip An economical solution for shooting a
35. ant your object movie to open with a zoomed in view type the percentage of zoom Default View State and Mouse Down View State lf you create an object with more than one view state you can select the view state you want the user to see when the object opens You can also select the view state the user sees when the mouse button is pressed For more information see Creating Objects With View States later in this chapter 14 Click the File tab Object Maker Settings Compression Object Flatte ning X Flatten To Data Fork Preload X Preload X Cache hint Copyright Name Twentieth Anniversary Macintosh Copyright 1997 John Greenleigh Info i mages taken by John Greenleigh Studios San Francisco CA USA m Flattening f you plan to distribute your object to other users select the checkbox labeled Flatten To Data Fork A flattened file can be played independently of the source files you used to create the object If you do not flatten the file your object and the images you used to create the object must reside on the same hard disk Note Files must be flattened to play on Windows computers Preload Select to have frames of your object movie loaded before they are played a Cache hint Select to have each frame of the object movie kept in memory as long as possible when playing the object movie a Copyright Adding copyright information to your QTVR object is option
36. ases 12 aligning Images 25 26 136 37 90 alignment options 36 37 Animate View Frames settings 44 animating view frames 44 53 54 Animation compression method 94 95 96 Append View State command 51 Apple Web sites viii 99 application programs Adobe After Effects 185 190 Adobe Photoshop 87 90 Macromedia Director vil 71 motion control applications 14 mTropolis vil SimpleT ext 2 asymmetrical codec 94 authoring environments 98 Automatically Specify Output Files option 12 Auto option 29 Auto play Views settings 144 145 Auto Size option 28 backdrop 84 banding 82 Blend option 28 Blob button 71 blobs 71 72 blurred images 87 brightness adjusting 149 browser 1 5 6 9 71 Build Project button 76 C Cache hint option 13 14 47 camera capturing images directly with 14 49 50 capturing real world objects with 84 85 digital camera 83 guidelines for 80 camera rigs 97 can t find source PICTs message 88 Capture Controls window 49 capturing images 14 49 50 84 85 capturing panoramas 79 83 CD ROM discs QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD 2 3 7 troubleshooting 88 Cinepak compression method 94 95 96 codecs 92 94 96 color adjusting 49 columns 40 41 90 compression problems with 87 88 settings for 13 18 29 43 using with QTVR media files 93 196 Compression Settings window 18 29 computer generated images 83 contrast adjusting 49 99 copyright settings 21 31
37. based computer viii Preface m Virtual Reality Programming with QuickTime VR 2 0 Apple Computer Inc 1997 This book is for developers who want to to gain greater control over QuickTime VR panoramas and objects and to achieve special effects that are not possible with QuickTime VR Authoring Studio This book includes a CD that contains header files and libraries necessary to create applications using the QuickTime VR Manager The CD also contains sample code illustrating how to use the QuickTime VR API Virtual Tutor with QuickTime VR Apple Computer Inc 1997 The Virtual Tutor for QuickTime VR is a self paced hands on course that provides a comprehensive environment for learning the steps of the QTVR development process It is available on the World Wide Web at the following address http devworld apple com dewdevtraining QTVR_ Web For more information you can also check out the following Web sites m QuickTime VR Web site This site includes developer information QTVR demonstrations support information a worldwide service directory software updates and tips for creating QTVR content for the Internet You can find the site at the following address http www quicktimevr apple com Apple Media Program Web site The Apple Media Program provides multimedia marketing technical and business resources to its members For more information go to the Apple Media Program Web site located at the following address http
38. capturing your own images The Object Maker lets you m Make QTVR objects that can be grabbed moved and rotated by the user add animation to views within an object add view states to an object A view state Is an alternate set of images for an object make absolute objects that let the user see views that correspond to where the user clicks Using the Object Maker This section shows you how to make asimple QTVR object Later sections show you how to add view states and animation to an object and how to create an absolute object To make an object follow these steps Double click the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio icon Choose New from the File menu then select Object Maker A dialog box appears 39 3 Type a name for your Object Maker document An Object Maker document is a record of your Object Maker session If you quit QuickTime VR Authoring Studio before you make your QTVR object you can open the document later to continue your work You can also open the Object Maker document to make changes to an object you ve already finished 4 Click Save The Object Maker window appears Object Maker 20th Anniversary Mac Source Images Output Files Define object oRows O o apart save BEE OColumns O 0 apart AMIS Us See Cle MSIL Ea gt Object OTR Disk 20th Anniversary Mac abj Make Object Sort 5 Click Define object The Define Object window appears Define Ob
39. ce material is computer generated animation consider using Animation or Graphics compression Photo JPEG compression works well with any type of source material but is best for photographic stills video and computer generated images that do not have sharp edges Image quality Except for Animation at 100 percent quality all other compression methods provided in QuickTime VR Authoring Studio will introduce some distortion into the image If you are creating a panorama or object that the user can zoom in on choose a compression method that preserves enough image quality to allow the user to zoom in and still see detail You may want to experiment with different quality levels to see how a level affects the image File size Some compression methods have a higher compression ratio than others for a given image quality Although compression reduces file size you should consider other ways to reduce file size if size is a concern If your QTVR media will be viewed over the Internet you may want to reduce the resolution of the images in addition to compressing the file Compression and decompression time A compression method that takes the same amount of time to compress an Image as it does to decompress an image is referred to as a symmetrical codec When the compression and decompression times are different the method is called an asymmetrical codec Some methods that have fast decompression such as Cinepak take along time to compress Cin
40. cene opens Then choose Set Start Node from the Scene menu Click the Make Scene button in the Scene Maker window hs Make Scene It takes several minutes for the Scene Maker to create the QTVR scene Processing time depends on the number and resolution of the source images the speed of your computer the amount of RAM available to the Scene Maker the number of nodes in the scene and the type of compression you selected When the process is finished a playback window opens If you wish adjust the playback settings As you move the scene the settings change in the Pan Tilt Zoom Width and Height boxes These settings determine how the panorama looks when it Is first opened To save the new settings click Set Playback Settings then remake your scene with the new settings 1 Checking the links It is important to check each link in your scene to be sure it leads to the objects or locations that you specified in your initial plan Locate and click each hot spot If the hot spots do not behave the way you anticipated make the appropriate changes and make the scene again Once you ve verified that the links work the way you want them to choose Quit from the File menu Creating links to blobs and URLs Blob is a catch all term for a link to anything other than panoramas or objects created in QuickTime VR Authoring Studio Although you can create a link to a blob from within QuickTime VR Authoring Studio you must use a
41. checkbox next to the Pano button Making a Panorama From an Existing Panoramic Image 17 18 Chapter 3 10 9 Click Settings The Panorama Maker Settings window opens with the Compression tab selected Panorama Maker Settings Imaging Compression Tiles 4 Auto Horizontal i Wertical 24 Compression Settings Compressor m Compression I Best Depth T Settings Cinepak High 75 T l Low High Most Quality sss E Lelst l Medium If there is an X in the checkbox labeled Auto the Panorama Maker will calculate the optimal number of tiles to dice your panorama into You should use the Auto setting unless you understand the concept of tiling and want the Panorama Maker to use a specific dicing scheme You can find out more about tiling in Virtual Reality Programming with QuickTime VR 2 0 If you want to change the type depth or quality of compression click the Settings button The Compression Settings window opens For details on selecting a compression method see Appendix A 141 Click OK to close the Compression Settings window 12 Click the Playback tab and adjust the playback settings The playback settings determine the orientation viewing size and field of view of the panorama when the user opens it Panorama Maker Settings Panorama Viewing Size Width Height Default Pan DO de THe deerees Pan Range Start End Defau
42. dea to overlap the images by at least 50 percent in case one of the images does not turn out You can get good results by overlapping images by as little as 30 percent but if one image Is poor you will not be able to replace it Although it is possible to create a panorama from Images that overlap by as little as 1 percent you will not get a satisfactory image Tip Overlap images by at least 30 percent to avoid banding Banding describes vertical bands that appear in the final QTVR panorama due to different exposures between images When the images overlap by 30 percent or more the Panorama Stitcher tool blends the overlapping areas so the transition from one image to another appears as seamless as possible One way to estimate the number of images you need to capture to provide for at least 50 percent overlap is to look through the view finder of your camera and count how many images you need to make a 360 degree panorama without overlap Round that value to an integer and multiply by 2 You can use this method with any type of camera The following table lists the number of images you need to get 50 percent overlap with a variety of lenses if you re shooting a 360 degree panorama in portrait orientation using a 35mm film camera Lens mm Number of images 140r 15 12 18 or 20 12 22 or 24 18 21 18 35 20 42 24 50 28 Digitizing images To create a QTVR panorama from photographed panoramas you must first digitize the images You c
43. dobe After Effects Adobe Illustrator Adobe Photoshop and PostScript are trademarks of Adobe Systems Incorporated or its subsidiaries and may be registered in certain jurisdictions Helvetica is a registered trademark of Linotype Hell AG and or its subsidiaries PowerPC is a trademark of International Business Machines Corporation used under license therefrom Windows is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation Simultaneously published in the United States and Canada Other company and product names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective companies Mention of third party products is for informational purposes only and constitutes neither an endorsement nor a recommendation Apple assumes no responsibility with regard to the performance or use of these products Images of the Twentieth Anniversary Macintosh in Chapter 5 copyright 1997 John Greenleigh John Greenleigh Studios San Francisco CA USA Contents Preface vii 1 Setting Up Your Software 1 I System requirements for playing QTVR media 1 l 2 What s included with QuickTime VR Authoring Studio 2 Installing QuickTime VR Authoring Studio 3 2 introduction to QuickTime VR Authoring Studio 5 What you can do with QuickTime VR Authoring Studio 6 QTVRmediatypes 7 Panoramas 7 Objects 7 Scenes 7 Creating a QTVR scene 8 Panning the project 8 Creating source material 8 Checking the final product 9 How to get s
44. dow and remake the object Making Objects 57 CHAP Making QTVR Scenes This chapter shows you how to create a QTVR scene using the Scene Maker A QTVR scene Is a collection of media or nodes such as panoramas objects and links to World Wide Web pages The nodes are assembled to create a virtual environment that the user can interact with and explore An example of a scene is on the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD To create a scene you should already know how to use the Object Maker Panorama Maker and Panorama Stitcher tools You can create QTVR panoramas and objects within the Scene Maker or you can drag panoramas and objects you ve already created using QuickTime VR Authoring Studio directly into the Scene Maker window You use the Scene Maker s features to define hot spots that link the nodes within a scene Before you begin this chapter read Chapter 2 Introduction to QuickTime VR Authoring Studio for an overview of the scene authoring process Then learn the features of the Scene Maker tool by using the source material provided on the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD Once you have mastered using the Scene Maker see Chapter 8 Creating Source Material for guidelines on photographing or capturing your own images Using the Scene Maker There are several steps to creating a scene using the Scene Maker m Opening QuickTime VR Authoring Studio m Addingamap Specifying output files Creating scene componen
45. e down its ID number The ID number appears in the Hot Spot Editor window You ll need the ID number later when you use a programming tool or scripting language to define what action is taken when the user clicks the blob link Link Ta Type Hot Spot Color ID 20th Anniversary Mac obj Object Apple Web Site URL j Blob Undefined The Company Store Fanorama E Delete Link Set Destination Note The ID number is linked to the hot spot color If you change the hot spot color the ID number changes To change the color place the pointer over the hot spot color then press and hold the mouse button Select a color from the pop up palette that appears CHAP Managing Q TVR Projects This chapter shows you how to use the Project Manager to manage large QTVR projects The Project Manager lets you Organize media according to a system appropriate for your project Setup batch processes such as creating several scenes panoramas and objects store information about a file such as creation and modification dates or comments update QTVR media when source files are changed maintain different versions of media such as low and high resolution versions Using the Project Manager A QTVR project is a collection of QTVR media This section shows you how to use the Project Manager to set up and build a project that consists of a variety of QTVR media Building a project involves these steps opening QuickTime VR Auth
46. e of the node you re linking from A dialog box appears Click Save The Hot Spot Editor window closes automatically Place the pointer over the node you just set as a destination then press the mouse button and choose Edit Hot Spots from the pop up menu that appears If you are using the sample source material on the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD edit the hot spot for the Apple Icon Garden panorama The Hot Spot Editor window opens and a window containing an image of the node opens Define the hot spot in the node you re linking from by using the buttons labeled with geometric shapes Making QTVR Scenes 67 68 Chapter 6 10 11 12 13 Press the mouse button and drag the pointer over the area in the panorama that you want to define as a hot spot Then release the mouse button If you are using the sample source material on the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD drag the pointer over a door on one of the buildings Click Set Destination in the Hot Spot Editor window A window opens that displays an image of the destination node If you are using the sample source material on the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD the panorama of the Company Store is displayed in the window Use the scroll arrows to move the image until the view you want is showing then click Set Destination Close the Set Destination window then close the window containing the image of the node If you are using the sample source material on t
47. eb sites Apple Media Program Web site viii Apple QuickTime VR Web site viii 99 for authoring environment software 98 for equipment 97 Windows based computers flattened files and 20 31 47 69 system requirements for playing QTVR media 2 World Wide Web browser 1 5 6 9 71 World Wide Web pages 71 zooming blurred images and 87 compression and 94 objects and 46 panoramas and 19 30 Zoom Range setting 19 30 QuickTime VR del Studio Us sManua Apple Computer Inc 1997 Apple Computer Inc All rights reserved 1 Infinite Loop Cupertino CA 95014 2084 408 996 1010 http www apple com Under the copyright laws this manual may not be copied in whole or in part without the written consent of Apple Your rights to the software are governed by the accompanying software license agreement The Apple logo is a trademark of Apple Computer Inc registered in the U S and other countries Use of the keyboard Apple logo Option Shift K for commercial purposes without the prior written consent of Apple may constitute trademark infringement and unfair competition in violation of federal and state laws Every effort has been made to ensure that the information in this manual is accurate Apple is not responsible for printing or clerical errors Apple the Apple logo LaserWriter Mac Macintosh PowerBook and QuickTime are trademarks of Apple Computer Inc registered in the U S and other countries Adobe A
48. ed 56 Chapter5 Click Add Files A dialog box opens Select the images you want to use for your object then click OK Add the rock climbing files located on the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD The images you select appear in the Object Maker window Ep arc Lee a a Pm a M Hasi raru D dee ie ee CEE ER m y E n eer oe T i im m i dee When the user clicks the upper left part of the object this image is displayed Be sure the images are in the correct sequence Once the object is made the image in row 1 column 1 appears when the user clicks the lower right part of the object The images appear sequentially from row 1 column 1 through the last row last column as the user clicks from right to left and from the bottom to the top of the object Follow steps 8 though 11 in Using the Object Maker earlier in this chapter Click the Object tab and adjust the object settings Be sure to choose Absolute from the Object Type pop up menu Object Object Scene Drag only Absolute hes 7 Follow steps 13 though 18 in Using the Object Maker earlier in this chapter Once the absolute object is made you should check to be sure you see the views that correspond with the location of each mouse click If your object behaves the opposite of the way it should select the Reverse Horizontal Controls and the Reverse Vertical Controls options in the Object tab of the Object Maker Settings win
49. ee what the Panorama Stitcher calculates to be the best alignment between the two images If the images are not aligned properly after being correlated try one or both of the following Increase the horizontal and vertical search range then click Correlate a Check to see if one image looks rotated with respect to the other If so adjust the rotation then click Correlate Click OK The Pair Alignment window closes Stitching a Panorama From aSeries of Images 37 Getting image information Press and hold the arrow beneath an image as shown Images 12 A U Size width 384 Height 256 90 0 Stretch 0 0 Rotation Horizontal Overlap 152 Search Range 34 0 000 Correlation Vertical Offset 0 Search Range 40 0 000 Correlation The filename and location size and other information about the image appear in a pop up window 38 Chapter 4 CHAP Making Objects This chapter shows you how to create an object using the Object Maker The source material for an object can be images taken with a film or digital camera images captured from a video camera or video media or 3D rendered graphics It s recommended that you learn the features of the Object Maker by using the source material provided on the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD Once you have mastered using the Object Maker see Chapter 8 Creating Source Material for guidelines on photographing or
50. epak has a 192 to 1 compression decompression ratio You may want to choose a compression method with a fast compression time but lower quality results when you are previewing a panorama or object movie Later when you make the final product you can use a slower compression method that provides higher quality results Comparing compression methods The best way to assess the quality of a compression scheme for a specific file is to establish a basis for comparison by saving the file at the best quality level Then compress and save the file at the next best quality level and compare it with the previous quality level Continue compressing saving and comparing until you have reached the minimum level of acceptable quality for your project Repeat this process for each compression method Animation Animation compression is best for animation computer generated video and sequences of computer screen images It decompresses files faster than the Graphics compression method Cinepak Cinepak takes significantly longer to compress an image than to decompress it You use Cinepak when you need a high compression ratio and fast playback speed The ideal source material is video but it should be the cleanest uncompressed captured video source you can get Otherwise your results will be poor Cinepak compression is a good choice for images read from a CD Graphics Graphics compression is a good alternative to Animation compression when you
51. esented by that button Create Modes Panorama Stitcher These steps show you how to create a panorama from within Scene Maker then how to add a panorama and an object that were previously created using QuickTime VR Authoring Studio Creating a panorama within Scene Maker Click the Panorama Stitcher button The pointer changes to a circle Move the circle to alocation on the map and click An icon representing a panorama node appears and the circle changes back to an arrow The node s name Untitled appears just below it Tip If you double click anode button the pointer does not change back to an arrow after you add the node so you can add as many nodes as you like To change the pointer back to an arrow click the Select Nodes button piss lt 7 Type anew name for the panorama node If you are using the sample source material on the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD name the panorama The Company Store pano Place the pointer over the panorama node you just created then press and hold the mouse button A pop up menu appears Edit Hot Spots Open Make Edit Hot Soots Opens the Hot Spot Editor window you ll do this later a Open Opens the tool for the node in this case the Panorama Stitcher Make Processes the node In this case choosing this command would stitch a panorama if images had already been added with the Panorama Stitcher Choose Open The Panorama Stitcher window a
52. f effects if you use a camera that has interchangeable lens and filters For example you can use wide or ultra wide angle lenses to capture a range of environments from small rooms to outdoor expanses A rectilinear lens You should not use a wide angle lens with a fish eye distortion Wider lenses provide a greater vertical field of view in the resulting QuickTime VR panorama and require fewer exposures per panorama High speed color print film This type of film provides adequate detail as well as flexibility for varying light conditions Low speed films can limit flexibility under certain lighting conditions The benefits provided by a fine grain film generally are not noticeable in interactive media A good all around choice for panoramas is 200 ASA film It has a wide enough latitude to capture details and yet can be used under a variety of lighting conditions A bracket for mounting the camera to the pan tilt head in portrait orientation You can obtain a bracket from one of the companies listed in Appendix B A sturdy pan tilt head To make it easier to adjust it s a good idea to use ahead with axial bubble levels rather than circular bubble levels A sturdy tripod Remote shutter release cord Hand held incident light meter Double spirit level Plumb line for positioning the rig directly over node markers Note The focal or nodal point of the lens is where light rays actually cross within the barrel of the lens The axis
53. g 91 I J K Image Alignment button 25 Image Alignment window 25 Image Processing options 28 images aligning 25 26 36 37 90 appearing in progress window 11 blurred 87 capturing directly 14 49 50 capturing for QTVR objects 84 85 compression and 94 computer generated 83 cropping 28 determining number of 82 83 digitizing 83 getting information about 38 missing or destroyed 90 modifying 28 quality of 20 49 94 rotating 17 26 42 selecting for panorama 24 size of 28 sorting 26 types of 8 9 using to create panorama 15 B8 image settings 28 Image Size options 28 Images Wrapped option 25 imaging settings 20 31 indoor photography 82 installation requirements 1 installing QuickTime VR Authoring Studio 3 Internet media playback speed and 77 playing QTVR media over 2 6 88 94 95 testing scenes with browser 9 InternetConfig 71 jitter avoiding 85 90 L labels 11 lens adding 33 34 choosing type of 24 80 82 estimating 35 Lens Calculator window 34 Lens Estimator window 35 lighting 81 82 90 links See also hot spots to blobs 71 72 checking 71 creating 65 dual links 65 172 to URLs 71 72 Mac OS based computers system requirements for 1 2 Make Object button 148 Make Pano button 21 Make preferences 11 12 Make Scene button 70 maps adding 60 61 Motion Control preferences 14 motion settings 20 31 69 Mouse Down View State setting 46 Mo
54. g your QTVR media You can specify the location where the temporary files will be saved Aliases Select whether you want to use relative aliases and whether you want to include the full path name in the filenames for output files A relative alias records the location of a file relative to the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio document it is associated with Output Files Select the checkbox labeled Automatically Specify Output Files When Saving Documents if you do not want to name output files each time you create a scene object or panorama If you want to name the final QTVR file but don t care about the names of the intermediate files then select the checkbox labeled Only Specify Necessary Output Files Panoramas Preferences Panoramas Compression Motion Control Settings Cinepak High 75 Tiles Auto Files suffixes Tile file tile Panorama image file Panorama Node file Horizontal Vertical 24 Compression You can select a default compression method for making panoramas Details on selecting acompression method appropriate for panoramas are in Appendix A Tiles You can specify a tiling scheme if you do not want the Panorama Maker or the Panorama Stitcher tools to set the tiling scheme automatically For more information on tiling see Chapters 3 and 4 a Files suffixesif you do not wan
55. he number of rows and columns you defined earlier Creating objects with view states A view state is a specific set of images that are displayed for an object A view state can be triggered by a user action such as pressing the mouse button For example you could create two view states for the Twentieth Anniversary Macintosh one with the CD ROM drive door closed and another with the CD ROM drive door open When the user presses the mouse button they see the Macintosh with the CD ROM drive door open Otherwise the CD ROM door is closed You can use the Object Maker to create objects with two or more view states View State 1 is displayed when the mouse button is up and View State 2 is displayed when the mouse button is down Creating objects with two view states To create an object with two view states do the following Add image files for the first view state Follow the instructions earlier in this chapter for defining your object and adding images Add only those images associated with the first view state Choose Append View State from the Object menu Object Define Object Add Files Capture Rotate Sort Open Animation Show Thumbnails Append Liew State a Remove View State Move View State Movie File Object File Settings Make Object View State 2 appears in the pop up menu in the lower left corner of the Object Maker window You can switch from View State 2 to View State 1 by choos
56. he QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD define hot spots and set destinations for the dual link between the Company Store panorama and the Twentieth Anniversary Macintosh You are now ready to make the final scene In amore complicated QTVR scene you might define several hot spots in each panorama or on each object Hot spots can link to World Wide Web addresses and anumber of other types of media For information on linking to other types of media see Creating Links to Blobs and URLs later in this chapter Adjusting scene settings Click Settings The Scene Maker Settings window opens with the Playback tab selected Scene Maker Settings viewing Size Width Height Panorama maging Static Quality Correction Motion Quality Correction 2 Enter the width and height in pixels of the scene in the playback window The playback window is what the user sees when your QTVR scene opens 3 Choose quality and correction levels for panoramic imaging The Panoramic Imaging settings determine the quality and speed of the panorama during playback They do not affect the quality of the stored panorama Static settings affect the panoramic image when it is not moving Motion settings affect the panoramic image while it is being moved by the viewer The quality settings determine the general display quality of the panorama The lower the quality settings the faster the responsiveness to the user I
57. ical angle of view then enter a step value in the Step box The Panorama Stitcher uses the values you enter to establish a search range Within that range it searches for similar areas between the two images The beginning vertical angle of view is the starting value For each search the Lens Estimator advances the number of degrees specified in the Step box Click Estimate A progress window appears When the calculation is complete the Lens Estimator window closes The estimated vertical angle of view appears in the Edit Lenses window Click Done in the Edit Lenses window The Edit Lenses window closes Your lens appears as a choice in the Lens pop up menu Stitching a Panorama From aSeries of Images 35 Aligning images The Panorama Stitcher has a Pair Alignment feature that lets you adjust alignment between side by side images Use this feature only if the Panorama Stitcher does not automatically align images correctly Once you have opened a Panorama Stitcher document and added images to the Panorama Stitcher window follow these steps Click the triangle between the two images you want to align Rotate is Sort E E A Cm 12 S The Pair Alignment window appears Pair Alignment Align Images 004 005 LI Use Defaults Horiz Overlap pixels Horiz Search Range Rotation degrees a 0 2 i Vertical Stretch Vertical Offset i pixels Vertical Search Range Cleft sided 2 0 Drag Outline
58. ime lf you save the PICT file and you later decide to remake your panorama the Panorama Stitcher skips the stitching step so processing time is much shorter To retouch the image If you want to make changes to the image you can change the PICT file then remake the panorama 10 diagnose problems lf your panorama does not look the way you think it should the PICT file may help you determine the problem If you want the tile movie file to have a different name or location from the one listed next to the Tile button click Tile In the dialog box that appears enter aname and location for the tile movie file The tile movie is an intermediate step in the creation of a panorama To make the tile movie the Panorama Stitcher creates a PICT image then compresses it and divides it into equal sized sections called tiles You can view a tile movie using a standard QuickTime player Be sure to click the checkbox next to the Tile button if you want to save the tile movie There are two reasons you may want to save the tile movie T0 save time lf you decide to remake the panorama later and you saved the tile movie the Panorama Stitcher does not have to repeat the compression step loplay the panorama from your hard disk lIf you don t flatten the panoramic movie file see step 24 you must save the tile movie to be able to view your panorama If you want your panorama to have a different name or location from the one listed next to
59. ime VR Authoring Studio CD ROM disc You view a QTVR panorama by pressing the mouse button and dragging the pointer over the image in the direction you want to view You can also zoom In on parts of the image for a closer look by clicking the zoom button in the lower left area of the MoviePlayer playback window Objects A QTVR object lets you view a three dimensional object such as a teacup a statue or a dinosaur bone from a variety of angles Several examples of objects are on the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD ROM disc You can rotate a QTVR object by pressing the mouse button and dragging the pointer over the image in the direction you want to rotate it You can also zoom in on parts of the image for a closer look by clicking the zoom button in the lower left area of the MoviePlayer playback window Scenes A QTVR scene is a collection of QTVR panoramas objects and other media Each media element in a scene is called anode A scene resembles a panorama but unlike a simple panorama you can interact with parts of the scene Scenes have hot spots areas that are linked to other media For example a hot spot in a museum scene could link to another room in the museum or it could allow you to manipulate one of the objects in the museum Hot spots can also link to World Wide Web sites and a variety of other media Introduction to QuickTime VR Authoring Studio 7 Chapter 2 Creating a QTVR scene Creating a QTVR scene involves fou
60. ing f you plan to distribute your panorama to other users be sure the checkbox labeled Flatten To Data Fork is selected Panoramic movies that are not flattened will not play unless the tile movie file is in the same location as the panoramic movie file Note Files must be flattened to play on Windows computers a Copyright Adding copyright information to your QTVR panorama is optional When you use MoviePlayer to view your panorama you can see the copyright information by choosing Show Copyright from the Movie menu Stitching a Panorama From a Seriesof Images 31 32 Chapter 4 25 26 Stitch Settings Playback F Flatteni ng X Flatten To Data Fork Copyright Name The Company Store Copyright 1997 Apple Computer Info fA panorama of the main part of The Company Store shot by the OTYR Team Click OK The Stitch Settings window closes Click Stitch Pano Stitch Pano It takes a few minutes for the Panorama Stitcher to create the panorama Processing time depends on the number and resolution of the source images the speed of your computer the amount of RAM available to the Panorama Stitcher and the type of compression method you chose When the process is finished a playback window opens 27 The Company Store pano Pan Tilt Foam 59 6 Width 320 Height 240 io SY Using this window you can view the panorama and adjust the playback settings
61. ing the desired state from the View State pop up menu Yi By State 2 E View State 1 View State 2 Making Objects 54 52 Chapter 5 vn oO OF A Add image files for the second view state Be sure View State 2 appears in the View State pop up menu then add files as you did for View State 1 Note View State 2 must contain the same number of rows and columns as View State 1 Click Settings then click the Playback tab Choose View State 2 from the Mouse Down View State pop up menu Click OK Click Make Object Creating objects with more than two view states It is possible to use the Object Maker to make objects that have more than two view states but you cannot play back more than two view states from within QuickTime VR Authoring Studio or using MoviePlayer You need to use a programming tool to access the other view states For information on making custom applications that can display objects with more than two view states consult Virtual Reality Programming with QuickTime VR 2 0 Animating view frames You can animate a view in your object by adding multiple images or frames that play in sequence when that view appears To see an example of an animated object open the PowerBook 3400 object on your QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD The view in row 1 column 1 has an animation that creates the illusion of the QTVR logo spinning on the screen Animation requires more frames and more disk space so you need
62. ion Before you build QTVR media click the File tab in the Settings window and click the checkbox labeled Flatten To Data Fork Then rebuild your QTVR panorama object or scene I have to keep swapping CDs while my scene or project is being built Cause Your source material resides on two or more CDs Solution Copy just the images you need for your scene or project from your CDs to one location such as your hard disk or a mass storage device Use these images to build your scene or project Media specific problems Panoramas I see something that looks like stair steps at the top and bottom of the panorama Cause The camera was not level when you captured your images Solution 1 To work with images that were captured with an off level camera you may need to rotate the images to the approximate angle at the time of capture Try to make the horizon in the panorama Images a level line from one image to the next rather than an upward or downward slope If the sequence steps upward try stitching the images with a clockwise rotation angle of 1 degree If the sequence steps downward try rotating the images 1 degree counterclockwise Try different values until the stepping Is eliminated Solution 2 Use the Pair Alignment feature of the Panorama Stitcher tool See Chapter 4 for instructions on how to align images when stitching a panorama The panorama looks distorted or the pixels look abnormally large or small in either height or wid
63. itcher to calculate the tilt range automatically Otherwise enter values to specify the tilt angles for the top and bottom of the panorama Default Zoom If you want your panorama to open with a zoomed in view type the percentage of zoom Zoom Range Enter the minimum and maximum percentage of zoom for your panorama 23 Click the Imaging tab and adjust the Imaging settings 24 Stitch Settings Static Quality Correction Motion Quality Correction Imaging settings determine the quality and speed of the image during playback They do not affect the quality of the stored panorama Static settings affect the panoramic image when it is not moving Motion settings affect the panoramic image while It is being moved by the viewer The quality settings determine the general display quality of the panorama The lower the quality settings the faster the responsiveness to the user In most cases you should choose the Normal quality setting for motion and the High quality setting for static The correction settings determine how much the image is processed to make it look correct on the screen You should usually choose Full correction when the image is a true panorama You can choose None when the image Is planar such as a map Note You should use the same correction settings for both static and motion to avoid discontinuity between viewing the moving and the static image Click the File tab Flatten
64. ject Rows Degrees Apart Columns Degrees Apart X Center object vertically around O degrees Tilt Origin 30 0 Fee S9 degrees Pan Origin Pe do THe degrees 6 Enter the number of rows and columns in your object and the degrees separating each row and column Then click OK Row refers to the number of images in the vertical plane Column refers to the number of images in the horizontal plane 40 Chapter 5 Click Add Files A dialog box opens Select the images you want to use for your object then click Done Shortcut Instead of clicking Add Files you can drag the folder containing your images directly to the bottom section of the Object Maker window Note You can capture images directly into the Object Maker window through a camera connected to your computer For detailed information on how to capture images from within QuickTime VR Authoring Studio see Capturing Images Directly later in this chapter The images you select appear in the Object Maker window You can use the scroll bars on the right and bottom sides of the window to see images that are not visible in the window Object Maker 20th Anniversary Mac Source Images Output Files Define object Z Rows 20 0 apart Save ze 36 Columns 10 0 apart OTVRDisk 20th Anniversary Mac mov CS eh OTYRDisk 20th Anniversary Mac obj Make Object Rotate aA sort R C Rae RZE R32 R33 R3 C4 eal Pee eS OO
65. l number that came with the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio You only need to enter the serial number the first time you use the program Setting Up Your Software 3 CHAP Introduction to QuickTime VR Authoring Studio QuickTime VR Authoring Studio is a set of authoring tools that lets you create QTVR panoramas objects and scenes With its powerful and easy to use graphical user interface QuickTime VR Authoring Studio lets users quickly produce professional quality media that can be played back with MoviePlayer on Mac OS or Windows computers and over the Internet using a World Wide Web browser with the QuickTime plug in QuickTime VR Authoring Studio s five authoring tools are Panorama Maker for converting a rendered image or a single panoramic image into a QTVR panorama Panorama Stitcher for stitching together a series of images into a single QTVR panorama Object Maker for making QTVR objects Scene Maker for creating virtual reality scenes that allow users to move through the scene and select destinations or manipulate objects Project Manager for managing complex projects and automating processing tasks 6 Chapter 2 What you can do with QuickTime VR Authoring Studio QuickTime VR Authoring Studio has several features that help you create QTVR media easily and efficiently Using these features you can take advantage of the easy to use graphical user interface With its menus windows and dialog boxes QuickTime
66. lt Tilt Pf PAG de fot ee Tilt Range EX Auto Top 49 0 Default Zoom fis OOE Zoom Range in Max Panorama Viewing Size Type the width and height in pixels of the playback window Default Pan If you want your panorama to open with a pan angle other than zero type a pan angle The pan angle is the horizontal distance in degrees from the starting point of the panorama Pan Range lf the panorama covers a full 360 degrees enter 0 degrees for Start and 360 degrees for End If the panorama is less than 360 degrees enter the values that specify the scope of the panorama For example if the panorama covers 210 degrees of the horizon enter 0 degrees for Start and 210 degrees for End a Default Tilt If you want your panorama to open with a tilt angle other than zero type atilt angle The tilt angle is the distance in degrees above or below the horizon of the panorama a TiltRange Click the checkbox labeled Auto if you want the Panorama Maker to calculate the tilt range automatically Otherwise enter values to specify the tilt angles for the top and bottom of the panorama Default Zoom f you want your panorama to open with azoomed in view type the percentage of zoom Zoom Range Enter the minimum and maximum zoom angle for your panorama Making a Panorama From an Existing Panoramic Image 19 20 Chapter 3 13 14 Click the Imaging tab and adjust the imaging settings Pan
67. mages taken with a digital camera images captured through a video camera images taken with a film camera then converted to digital form using a flatbed or film scanner images contained on a PhotoCD images created with a rendering program Some of the techniques and equipment used to photograph or capture images for aQTVR scene are different from the techniques used for standard photography Chapter 8 contains guidelines for creating high quality source material and describes some of the special setups you can use to photograph objects and panoramas Using a QuickTime VR Authoring Studio tool You can use the Scene Maker or Project Manager to create a QTVR scene You can drag panoramas and objects created with the Object Maker Panorama Stitcher or Panorama Maker directly into the Scene Maker window Checking the final product Once you ve created the scene you should check the hot spots to be sure each hot spot links to the appropriate destination and to the correct view for that destination You should also test the scene on the system your audience Is likely to use If you plan to make the QTVR scene viewable on the Internet be sure to test the scene using a World Wide Web browser with the QuickTime plug in version 2 0 or later How to get started on your first QTVR project Install the software For instructions see Chapter 1 Setting Up Your Software Learn to use QuickTime VR Authoring Studio s five authoring tools
68. mpression Settings window Click the Playback tab and adjust the playback settings The playback settings determine the orientation viewing size and field of view of the panorama when the user opens it Stitching a Panorama From a Series of Images 29 30 Chapter 4 Stitch Settings Playback Imaging File Panorama Viewing Size Width Height Default Pan DO do THe degrees Pan Range X Auto Start 0 0 End 360 1 Default Tilt ORME ER te et ee Tilt Range X Auto Top Bottom Default Zoom fds 908 zoom Range Min Max Panorama Viewing Sze Type the width and height in pixels of the playback window Default Pan If you want your panorama to open with a pan angle other than zero type a pan angle The pan angle is the horizontal distance in degrees from the starting point of the panorama Pan Range If the panoramic image covers a full 360 degrees enter 0 degrees for Start and 360 degrees for End If the panorama is less than 360 degrees enter the values that correctly specify the scope of the panorama For example if the panorama covers 210 degrees of the horizon enter 0 degrees for Start and 210 degrees for End Default Tilt If you want your panorama to open with a tilt angle other than zero type a tilt angle The tilt angle is the distance in degrees above or below the horizon of the panorama Tilt Range Click the checkbox labeled Auto if you want the Panorama St
69. n 28 Show Copyright command 21 31 47 Index 103 104 Index Show Help Labels option 11 SimpleText program 2 Sort buttons 26 source material changing source files 77 compression and 94 creating 79 85 missing or destroyed images 90 types of 8 9 23 39 static settings 20 31 69 stitching a panorama 23 38 Stitch Pano button 32 Stitch Settings window 27 32 28 Stretch option 28 symmetrical codec 94 system requirements 1 2 T techniques photographic 81 85 temporary files 12 tile movies 17 27 Tiles setting 28 tiling 113 29 tilt angle 119 30 Tilt Range setting 19 130 troubleshooting 87 91 compression settings 87 88 flicker 90 general problems 87 88 jitter 85 90 media specific problems 89 91 objects 90 91 panoramas 88 89 90 PICT files 27 88 problems playing QTVR media 88 scenes 91 U Uniform Resource Locators URLs 71 72 updating media 77 URL button 71 URLs Uniform Resource Locators 71 72 Use Defaults option 37 Use Frame Size option 46 Use motion control application option 14 Use Temporary Memory When Necessary option 12 vV version management media 77 vertical controls 44 Vertical Search Range option 37 Vertical Stretch left side option 137 video camera 85 Video compression method 95 96 Video window 49 view frames 44 53 54 view states 51 52 91 W X Y n Wait for acknowledgments from application option 14 W
70. n a label that identifies the button appears i Panorama Stitcher Click the Panorama Stitcher button to add a panorama to the project A panorama stitcher icon named untitled 1 appears Creation and modification dates are added automatically Type a name for the panorama ae untitled 1 6 26 97 11 39 4M 6 26 97 11 39 AM You can add as many panoramas as you like to the project A diamond in the Make column indicates that the item needs to be made Any time you change one of the settings for aQTVR item that has already been made a diamond appears The next time you build the project this item will be updated Note If you change the source files a diamond does not appear A diamond appears only when you make a change from within QuickTime VR Authoring Studio Click the Notes column to add acomment about the panorama 8711797 11 24 4M 8711797 11 27 4M Panorama of the main part of the store i Click the Object Maker button if you want to add an object to the project then click Notes to add a comment You can add as many objects as you like to the project Click the Scene Maker button if you want to add a scene to the project then click Notes to add acomment You can add as many scenes as you like to the project Click the Panorama Maker button if you want to add a panorama created from a panoramic image to the project then click Notes to add a comment You can add as many panoramas as you like to the project
71. n most cases you should choose the Normal quality setting for motion and the High quality setting for static The correction settings determine how much the image is processed to make it look correct on the screen You should usually choose Full correction when the image is a true panorama You can choose None when the image is planar such as a map Note You should use the same correction settings for both static and motion to avoid discontinuity between viewing the moving and the static image 4 Click the File tab If you plan to distribute your QTVR scene to other users be sure the checkbox labeled Flatten To Data Fork Is selected A flattened file can be played independently of the source files used to create the scene If you don t flatten the file the source files must reside in the same location as the scene file Note Files must be flattened to play on Windows computers Adding copyright information to your QTVR scene Is optional Scene Maker Settings Playback Flatteni ng X Flatten To Data Fork Copyright Name The Company Store Scene Copyright 1997 Apple Computer Info The objects in this scene are available for sale in The Company Store Scene elements shot by the OTVR Team Making QTVR Scenes 69 70 Chapter 6 Processing the scene Define the starting node for the scene Click the node in the Scene Maker window that represents the object or panorama you want the user to see when the s
72. n object that has one row is to place it ona lazy Susan Photographic techniques This section covers some of the issues you should consider before you begin to photograph your objects Backdrop It s a good idea to use a backdrop when photographing objects A black or white backdrop helps create the illusion that the object is floating in space and that the user is picking up and manipulating the object rather than just walking around it If the object is too dark to contrast well against a black backdrop use another solid color evenly lit Then you can change the background color using an image processing program Supporting the object Place the object on a support as pictured previously Use as small but solid a support as possible so that it does not stand out in the resulting movie Also it s a good idea to use a support that is the same color as the backdrop Including an object to eliminate jitter Jitter describes unwanted motion of your object in the final QTVR object due to misalignment of frames Frames are misaligned in the scanning process when you convert images to digital format This is less likely to occur when you use a digital video or still camera If you use a film camera to capture Images include a small reference object in the photographic field that will not move from frame to frame After you digitize your images you Can use a software program such as Adobe After Effects to key
73. n release the mouse button The shape you selected appears in the panorama The shape does not appear in the final QTVR scene It s best to make a hot spot that approximates the shape of the object you want the user to interact with You use the three buttons on the left to define the areas the user can interact with You use the three buttons on the right to modify the areas of interaction For example if you want the user to interact with just the round table in the image above you first use the filled circle to define the area around the table Then you use unfilled shapes to delete the areas that should not respond to the user such as the computer keyboard If you are using the sample source material on the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD move the Company Store panorama until you see the front door Then click the filled rectangle button in the Hot Spot Editor window and drag the pointer over the door The door leads to the Apple Icon Garden located outside the Company Store Click Set Destination in the Hot Spot Editor window A window opens that displays an image of the destination node Tilt Zoom Set Destination h Press and hold the mouse button towards the edge of the image to move the image until the view you want is showing then click Set Destination You should select a view that fits well with the view from which the user will be linked Close the Set Destination window then close the window containing the imag
74. need a high amount of compression and aren t as concerned about the decompression speed It is best for computer generated animation and some video It works well if your QTVR media is played from aCD or over the Internet It is a better alternative for the Internet than animated GIFs Graphics is the best to use for images dithered down to 8 bits Photo JPEG Regardless of the type of QTVR media Photo JPEG results in the highest quality image for any amount of compression If you re playing your QTVR media over the Internet use Photo JPEG set to 25 40 percent quality This produces the smallest files for a given quality level while maintaining good playback speed Photo JPEG takes longer to decompress than most other methods For panoramas this may cause a visual stutter as the user pans For objects the user may see sluggish movement If you use Photo JPEG and see these problems you may want to try Video compression at 50 75 percent quality or Cinepak compression at 75 100 percent quality Video Video compression plays back fast while maintaining decent picture quality It is a good codec to use when you are checking edits you ve done on QTVR media Compression 95 96 Appendix A The following table compares the codecs most often used for QTVR media Comp Ideal Source Decomp Comp Comments Method Material Speed Ratio Animation Computer generated Fast Fast Lowest Poor compression animation ratio Cinepak Video
75. object As you click different locations a colored cube appears where you click There are 36 images in this object arranged in a 6 row by 6 column grid Each click calls up one view of the object With other object types views of an object are presented in a linear sequence to give the illusion of smooth rotation The views of absolute objects can be accessed in any order Follow these steps to make your version of the rock climber Double click the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio icon Choose New from the File menu then select Object Maker In the dialog box that appears type a name for your Object Maker document and click Save The Object Maker window appears Click Define object Enter the number of rows and columns in your object and the degrees separating each row and column Then click OK Define Object Rows Degrees Apart 4 Columns Degrees Apart X Center object vertically around O degrees Tilt Origin 90 0 s 829 Be degrees Pan Origin UG de THe deoress The number of rows and columns defines how many images are in the object For the rock climber example enter 3 rows and 6 columns The value for degrees apart roughly corresponds to how far the user must move the pointer for a click to show a different view For the rock climber example enter 60 degrees for the rows and 60 degrees for the columns Making Objects 55 When the user clicks the lower right part of the object this image is display
76. ode appears in the Scene Maker window eUth Anniversary Mac obj Tip As you add more components to your scene you may want to see alist of the components rather than the icons and links that appear in the Scene Maker window To see a list click the Scene List button in the bottom left corner of the Scene Maker window Click the Scene List button to see a list view of the components in your scene Creating links Click the Set Dual Links button Set Links Set dual links Dual links let the user move back and forth between nodes in a scene One way links let the user move from one node to the next for example in a game Place the pointer over anode Press and hold the mouse button drag the pointer to another node and then let go of the mouse button A dual link between the two nodes appears If you are using the sample source material on the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD create a dual link between the Company Store panorama and the Apple Icon Garden panorama Then create a dual link between the Company Store panorama and the Twentieth Anniversary Macintosh object Note When you double click the arrow that connects two nodes in the Scene Maker window a Link Info dialog box appears You can enter comments and other information about the link in this box Defining hot spots and setting destinations Once you have defined alink you must define a hot spot the area in the scene that when clicked takes the use
77. of the stitched image be determined by the size of the source images If you want to specify the size be sure the Auto Size checkbox is not selected Then enter values in pixels in the Height and Width boxes Important f yOu are specifying the size you should check the Tiles setting in the Compression tab Height must be a multiple of 4 times the number of vertical tiles Width must be a multiple of 4 times the number of horizontal tiles If you use the default tiling scheme of 24 vertical tiles and 1 horizontal tile height must be divisible by 96 and width must be divisible by 4 19 20 21 22 Click the Compression tab Stitch Settings Compression 5y Playback Tiles Auto Horizontal fi Vertical 24 Compression Settings Compressor po Settings ci nepak High 75 j Best Depth es Mediurn High Mast If there is an X in the checkbox labeled Auto the Panorama Stitcher will calculate the optimal number of tiles to dice your panorama into You should use the Auto setting unless you understand the concept of tiling and want the Panorama Stitcher to use a specific dicing scheme You can find out more about tiling in Virtual Reality Programming with QuickTime VR 2 0 If you want to change the type depth or quality of compression click the Settings button The Compression Settings window opens For details on selecting a compression method see Appendix A Click OK to close the Co
78. optional When you use MoviePlayer to view your panorama you can see the copyright information by choosing Show Copyright from the Movie menu Panorama Maker Settings Playback Imaging Flattening X Flatten To Data Fork L Copyright Name Mars Landscape Copyright image courtesy of NASA Info View of the Mars landscape 15 Click OK The Panorama Maker Settings window closes 16 Click Make Pano Make Pana It takes a few minutes for the Panorama Maker to create the panorama When it is done a playback window opens Making a Panorama From an Existing Panoramic Image 21 22 Chapter 3 17 Mars Landscape pano Tilt Zoom 6 9 Width Height x w yi l fs e l E ie i s SEO o a Using this window you can view the panorama and adjust the playback settings These settings determine how the panorama looks when it is first opened If you make any adjustments you want to save click Set Playback Settings then remake the panorama with the new settings Close the playback window then close the Panorama Maker window Choose Quit from the File menu if you are done using QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CH AP Stitching a Panorame From a Series of Images This chapter shows you how to create a panorama from multiple images The source material for a stitched panorama can be images taken with
79. orama Stitcher uses to align the image Note If your images do not align properly see Aligning Images later in this chapter for information on how to use the Pair Alignment feature of the Panorama Stitcher Click OK Check to be sure the images are oriented properly and in the correct order Click each image you want to rotate then click one of the rotation arrows to rotate the image counterclockwise or clockwise Rotate Click one of the Sort buttons if you want to change the order of the images Sort You can sort your images in alphanumeric or reverse alphanumeric order Note You can also change the order of images by dragging the image you want to move to a new position in the series of images If you want the PICT file to have a different name or location from the one listed next to the PICT button click PICT In the dialog box that appears enter a name and location for the PICT file Output Files Save Set x PICT OTY RDisk The Company Store pict x Tile aTYRDisk The Company Store tile x OTYRDIsk The Company Store pano The PICT file is an intermediate step in the creation of a panorama To create the PICT file the Panorama Stitcher stitches your images into one file then stores it in the location you specify If you want to save the PICT file for later use click the checkbox next to the PICT button 15 16 17 There are three reasons you may want to save the PICT file 10 save t
80. orama Maker Settings Static Quality Correction Motion Quality Correction Imaging settings determine the quality and speed of the image during playback They do not affect the quality of the stored panorama Static settings affect the panoramic image when it is not moving Motion settings affect the panoramic image while it is being moved by the viewer The quality settings determine the general display quality of the panorama The lower the quality settings the faster the responsiveness to the user In most cases you should choose the Normal quality setting for motion and the High quality setting for static The correction settings determine how much the image is processed to make it look correct on the screen You should usually choose Full correction when the image is a true panorama You can choose None when the image Is planar such as a map Note You should use the same correction settings for both static and motion to avoid discontinuity between viewing the moving and the static image Click the File tab Flattening f you plan to distribute your panorama to other users be sure the checkbox labeled Flatten To Data Fork is selected Panoramic movies that are not flattened will not play unless the tile movie file is in the same location as the panoramic movie file Note Files must be flattened to play on Windows computers a Copyright Adding copyright information to your QTVR panorama is
81. oring Studio naming QTVR media and folders that are in the project adding files and setting preferences for each QTVR object panorama or scene in the project a building the project Opening QuickTime VR Authoring Studio 14 Double click the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio icon 2 Choose New from the File menu then select Project Manager A dialog box appears 3 Type a name for your Project Manager document 73 74 Chapter 7 A Project Manager document is a record of your Project Manager session If you quit QuickTime VR Authoring Studio before you build a QTVR project you can open the document later to continue your work You can also open the Project Manager document to make changes to a project you ve already finished Click Save The Project Manager window appears The top of the window is divided into two sections You create QTVR media and folders using the buttons in the Create new section and you build the final project by clicking the Build Project button Project Manager The Company Store Create new Naming QTVR media and folders The buttons in the Create new section of the Project Manager window represent the kinds of media you can add to a project The first four buttons represent the Panorama Stitcher Panorama Maker Object Maker and Scene Maker tools The fifth button lets you define a folder to organize the media and source files for your project As you move the pointer over each butto
82. ou want to animate the screen of a PowerBook 3400 you only need to animate those views that show all or part of the PowerBook screen Follow steps 8 through 18 in Using the Object Maker earlier in this chapter When you open the Object Maker Settings window to the Object tab be sure to click the checkbox labeled Animate View Frames If you select the Auto play Views option you may want to click the checkbox labeled Sync to Frame Rate When this option is checked all the animation frames of a view will play before the next view Is displayed X Animate View Frames E Loop Loop Back And Forth Restart Each view Frame Speed X Auto play Views LI Loop Back And Forth X Sync to Frame Rate Auto play Speed Creating absolute objects The view a user sees of an absolute object depends upon where on the object the user clicks Because of the spatial relationship between where the user clicks and what the user sees absolute objects are used in different ways from all other object types that is object scene and drag only Take alook at the absolute objects on the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD There are two examples a rock climber and a color grid Open the rock climber object and click several different locations Each time you click the climber appears in a different location on the climbing wall There are 18 images in the object arranged in a 3 row by 6 column grid Open the 6 x 6
83. ount the user can zoom is determined by the scaling factor The scaling factor is the angle of view divided by the minimum AOV By default you can allow the user to zoom by a factor of 8 to 1 Mouse Scale Factor Mouse Scale Factor Enter the number of degrees the object will pan when the mouse is dragged the width of the playback window Object Type The object type defines how a user controls the playback of a QTVR object Object The user presses and holds the mouse button to drag an object When the pointer is near the edge of the playback window the object movie plays automatically Select this type for objects that in reality would be small enough for the user to pick up Scene The controls operate similar to a joystick The user presses and holds the mouse button to rotate the object The user cannot drag the object Drag only The user presses and holds the mouse button to drag the object The user cannot make the object play automatically Absolute The user clicks the mouse button at various parts of the object to display different views of the object Absolute objects can be viewed in different ways from other object types For more information see Creating Absolute Objects later in this chapter Frame Duration To set the playback speed for the object open the Frame Duration pop up menu and enter a value for frame duration or for frames per second Frame Duration The number of one six hundredths of a second one
84. owerBook 1400 hi res 22 Back Room hi res BE Main Section hi res Et 20th Anniversary Mac hi res ka CL Low resolution wersion EE PowerBook 1400 10 res w3 Main Section lo res ee Back Foom Jo res Et 20th Anniversary Mac lo res Last Modified Notes 6 26 97 11 44 AM ef26 97 11 44 AM 8 26797 11 44 AM ef26 97 11 44 AM 8 26797 11 42 AM 8 26797 11 43 AM ef26 97 11 42 AM 6 26 97 11 43 AM 5 26797 11 45 AM 726797 11 46 4M 8 26 97 11 45 AM 2 26 97 11 45 AM 6 26 97 11 46 M 3 26 97 11 46 AM 2 26 97 11 46 AM 8 26797 11 45 AM For distribution on CO QTVE logo plays on the screen Storage area scene Panorama of main part of store CD door opens and closes For distribution over the web QTVE logo plays on the screen Panorama of main part of store Storage area scene CO door opens and closes Managing QTVR Projects 77 CHAP Creating Source Material This chapter provides basic guidelines and tips for creating high quality source material using analog or digital photography or videography The guidelines are provided to help you get started and should not be considered absolute do s and don ts Depending on the effect you want for your project you can get excellent results by not following these guidelines You can create QuickTime VR panoramas objects and scenes either from real world spaces and objects that you photograph or from computer rendered images The quality of your final product depend
85. ppears Create the panorama If you are using the sample source material on the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD use the images provided for the Company Store panorama Follow the steps for stitching a panorama described in Chapter 4 Be sure to save the PICT tile movie and panorama files in the same location as your Scene Maker document Close the Panorama Stitcher window after the panorama has been stitched Making QTVR Scenes 63 64 Chapter 6 Adding previously created QTVR media You can add objects and panoramas that you created previously using QuickTime VR Authoring Studio You can also add QTVR media created with other software applications as long as the media are QTVR Version 2 0 or later You can use the QTVRConverter included on the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD to convert QTVR version 1 0 media to QTRV version 2 0 media Drag a panorama file created using QuickTime VR Authoring Studio directly into the Scene Maker window If you are using the sample source material on the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD drag the Apple Icon Garden pano icon into the Scene Maker window A panorama node appears in the Scene Maker window Apple Icon Garden pang Drag an object file created using QuickTime VR Authoring Studio directly into the Scene Maker window If you are using the sample source material on the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD drag the 20th Anniversary Mac obj icon into the Scene Maker window An object n
86. programming tool or scripting language to define what action is taken when the user clicks a blob For example you could import a QTVR scene with a blob link into Macromedia Director From within Macromedia Director you define what action Director is to take when the user clicks the blob link URL is an abbreviation for Uniform Resource Locator You can use a URL link to specify the address of a World Wide Web page When the user clicks a URL link their default World Wide Web browser opens and connects to the URL you specified For the URL link to work properly the user must have a connection to the Internet set up and the following installed QuickTime VR extension version 2 1 m QuickTime extension version 3 0 a InternetConfig version 1 3 To create a link to a blob or URL follow these steps Click the Blob or URL button in the Scene Maker window Making QTVR Scenes 71 72 Chapter 6 2 Create a one way link from a panorama or object in the scene to the blob or URL node Two links are shown below one to a blob and another to a URL Note You cannot create a dual link to a blob or URL Apple Web Site Blob The Company Store Place the pointer over the node that is linked to the blob or URL then press and hold the mouse button A pop up menu appears Choose Edit Hot Spots Follow the steps described earlier in this chapter for defining a hot spot in a panorama or object If you are creating a link to a blob writ
87. r steps planning the project creating source material using a QuickTime VR Authoring Studio tool checking the final product Planning the project During the planning stage you determine the type of experience you want to deliver to your audience For example will you use real world images or computer generated images Will you Include many panoramas within a scene for navigational freedom or only a few Will you include QTVR objects that can be picked up and manipulated Will you include links to Web pages to which users can go for additional information Often your decisions involve a trade off between creative preferences and resource limitations If you plan to develop a real world scene from photographic or video images you may want to do some preliminary steps including the following Draw afloor plan to depict the layout of the scene and the location of each node Mark the locations of the nodes on the floor plan with pins stickers or other materials to facilitate the photography process Create a scene log or notebook in which you and others involved with the photo shoot and postproduction can keep track of production details Create a storyboard for each scene Build a database that will allow you to track your project through its completion The time you invest in planning your project will pay off in the subsequent stages of development Creating source material Source material can take a number of forms i
88. r to the panorama or other object to which it is linked If the link is to a QTVR panorama or object you must also set the destination the view that Is displayed when the panorama or object appears Place the pointer over one of the linked nodes in the scene then press and hold the mouse button Choose Edit Hot Spots from the pop up menu that appears If you are using the sample source material on the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD edit the hot spot for the Company Store panorama Two windows open the Hot Spot Editor and a window containing an image of the node you re linking from The Hot Spot Editor window contains a list of the nodes in the scene to which you ve created links from this node Making QTVR Scenes 65 Chapter 6 The Company tore pano Pree katy Link To Type Hot Spot Color ID Apple Icon Garden pana Panorama The Company Store Fanorama D Set Destination Choose a destination to link to by clicking one of the nodes listed in the Hot Spot Editor window If you are using the sample source material on the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD select the Apple Icon Garden panorama Define the hot spot in the node you re linking from dat pet ae Pet a To define the hot spot click one of the buttons labeled with a geometric shape in the Hot Spot Editor window Then press the mouse button and drag the pointer over the area in the panorama window that you want to define as a hot spot The
89. rama Stitcher 123 88 description of 7 file suffixes for 13 preferences 13 renaming 17 selecting images for 24 size of 19 130 troubleshooting 88 89 90 viewing 22 33 zooming in on 19 30 Panorama Stitcher adding a lens in 33 34 aligning images in 36 37 creating a panorama with 23 38 estimating a lens in 35 getting image information in 38 troubleshooting 90 Panorama Stitcher button 62 74 Panorama Stitcher window 10 24 Panorama Viewing Size setting 19 30 Pan Range setting 19 30 PhotoCD 87 photographic equipment guidelines for 80 81 84 object and camera rigs 97 photographic techniques 81 85 Photo JPEG compression method 94 95 96 PICT files can t find source PICTs message 88 maps and 60 naming 26 saving 26 27 pixels distorted 89 overlap in 25 126 removing 28 planning a project 8 playback 20 31 91 playback settings Object Maker 46 Panorama Maker 19 22 Panorama Stitcher 29 30 Scene Maker 68 69 playback window 21 22 32 33 48 playing panorama from hard disk 17 playing QTVR media system requirements for 1 2 troubleshooting 88 91 preferences 11 14 75 76 Preload option 14 47 problems See troubleshooting processing scenes 70 production services 98 progress window 76 Project Manager 73 7 Project Manager window 74 projects building 76 77 getting started on 9 managing with Project Manager 73 77 planning 8 Q QTVR media adding previously c
90. reated media 64 compression and 93 96 maintaining different versions of 77 naming 744775 system requirements for playing 1 2 types of 7 updating 77 QTVR objects See objects QTVR projects See projects QTVR scenes See scenes quality settings 20 131 169 QuickTime extension 1 2 171 QuickTime for Windows 2 QuickTime plug in 2 5 9 QuickTime virtual reality See QTVR QuickTime VR Authoring Studio description of 5 14 installing 3 interface fundamentals 10 opening 60 73 74 package contents 2 quitting 22 33 48 setting preferences for 11 14 75 76 setting up 1 3 system requirements for 1 QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD 2 3 7 QuickTime VR components 2 QuickTime VR extension 1 2 71 Quit command 22 33 48 relative aliases 12 renaming panoramas 17 27 renaming tile movies 17 27 rotating images 17 26 42 90 rotation arrows 17 26 42 Rotation degrees option 37 rows 40 41 90 S saving tile movies 17 Scaleable settings 45 Scene List button 64 Scene Maker 59 72 Scene Maker Settings window 66 Scene Maker window 60 scenes adjusting scene settings 68 69 creating 8 9 creating scene components 62 164 creating with Scene Maker 59 72 description of 7 processing 70 troubleshooting 88 91 Search Range option 37 Select Application button 14 Select Nodes button 63 serial number 3 Set Dual Links button 65 setting up QuickTime VR Authoring Studio 1 B Sharpen optio
91. rial You save output files by clicking the You define locations and checkbox next to the file you want to names for output files here save You can save intermediate files The number and type of files aswell asfinal QTVR media files depend on the tool 5 Panbrama Stitcher HZ You define source Source Images Output Files This area imageshere The Lens ee arse containsa number and type of alignment TENEIS button gt mages Wrapped i buttons that appear 30 0 degrees Ei associated depend on the tool ABER ABS Pano J d with a Image Alignment process such Fotate Sort as stitching a panorama or creating a scene p_timages e a GE You use the Rotate mages used in panoramas and objects and Sort buttons to are displayed in this part of the move images in window Icons for scene nodes and the bottom part Project Manager elements appear in of the window this area 10 Chapter 2 Setting QuickTime VR Authoring Studio preferences You can change QuickTime VR Authoring Studio s default preferences by choosing Preferences from the Edit menu The Preferences window has six tabs Click a tab to set the preferences related to that topic Preferences i Motion Control Preferences Panoramas Objects Motion Control Appearance Show Help Labels Show Help Labels lf this option is selected labels appear when you place the pointer over buttons in
92. s on the quality of the source material that you use If you plan to capture your material with photographic film you should already be familiar with basic photographic techniques including the use of lighting You must also be able to convert your film or slides to digital format using a scanner If you plan to use a digital or video camera you should be familiar with techniques for digital photography or videography as well as lighting techniques applicable to these media Capturing panoramas A panoramic photograph represents the view that you see when you stand in a single spot and turn full circle With QuickTime VR Authoring Studio you can create a panoramic view by taking a series of overlapping shots using a camera and a tripod with a pan tilt head To shoot a panorama position the tripod at a single spot called the node marker After taking the first shot rotate the camera a calculated number of degrees to the next position and take the next shot Repeat these steps until you have rotated full circle 79 80 Chapter 8 Equipment guidelines For best results it s recommended that you use the following equipment to capture photographic images A film camera with manual lens focus adjustments and motor driven film advance Use the camera in portrait orientation for a greater vertical field of view Alternatively you can use a digital camera or a video camera You have better exposure control and can achieve a variety o
93. t to use the default file suffixes shown type new file suffixes in the Panorama image file Panorama Node file and Tile file boxes These file types are explained in Chapter 4 Objects Preferences Objects Compression Motion Control Settings Cinepak High 75 Files suffixes Movie file mov Object file obj Preload Preload X Cache hint Compression You can select a default compression method for making objects Details on selecting acompression method appropriate for objects are in Appendix A a Files suffixesif you do not want to use the default file suffixes shown type new file suffixes in the Movie file and Object file boxes These file types are explained in Chapter 5 Introduction to QuickTime VR Authoring Studio 13 Preload Select to have frames of your object movie loaded before they are played a Cache hint Select to have each frame of the object movie kept in memory as long as possible when playing the object movie Motion Control Preferences u Motion Control S Use motion control application Select Application Wait for acknowledgments from application Wait na more than eo seconds for an acknowledgment Use motion control application lf you have a camera attached to your computer you can cap
94. tarted on your first QTVR project 9 Fundamentals of the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio mene Setting QuickTime VR Authoring Studio preferences 1 10 11 Files 12 Getting image information 38 Using the Object Maker 39 i Creating objects with view states 51 51 52 53 55 59 0 6 iv Contents Creating scene components 62 Creating links 65 Defining hot spots and setting destinations 6 Adjusting scene setings 68 Checking the links 71 Creating links to blobs and URLS 71 Using the Project Manager 73 Opening QuickTime VR Authoring Studio 73 Wang OTVR meda and folders 7 Aang fles and setting preferences 75 Building the project 76 Changing source fles and updating media 77 Maintaining diferent versions of media 77 Capturing panoramas 79 Equipment guidelines 80 Computerrenderedimages 83 Capturing images for QTVR objects Photographic techniques 84 General problems 87 Panoramas 80 90 91 10 8l 84 89 Contents v Compression 93 94 Image quality 94 Filesize 94 7 5 5 95 93 94 97 98 99 vi Contents PREF Welcome QuickTime VR Authoring Studio is a set of QuickTime virtual reality QTVR authoring tools that let you create panoramas objects and scenes and manage QTVR projects Using QuickTime VR Authoring Studio you can quickly and easily produce professional quality QT
95. th Cause You did not correctly calculate the vertical angle of view Solution Use the lens calculator to figure the vertical angle of view and redo the stitching process For more information see Adding a Lens in Chapter 4 I see rectangular bands at regular intervals in the panorama Cause You didn t take your images with enough overlap between them and the lighting or exposure was uneven from frame to frame Solution 1 Select Blend in the Image tab in the Stitch Settings window then restitch the panorama Solution 2 Reshoot the source material with 50 percent overlap Use alight meter and supplemental lighting to correct for frame to frame differences in lighting Solution 3 Turn off auto exposure Select a manual setting based on the average meter reading for the scene Tips and Troubleshooting 89 90 Chapter 9 One of my source images is missing or has been destroyed Solution 1 If you captured the source images with at least 50 percent overlap you can manually align the two photos that have image information for the missing image by using the Pair Alignment feature of the Panorama Stitcher See Aligning Images in Chapter 4 Solution 2 Reshoot only the missing image As the lighting and alignment for the image may not match the other images you may need to make adjustments to the color and brightness of the image using software such as Adobe Photoshop Then you may need to use the Pair Alignment feat
96. the tool windows Make Preferences Motion Control Default Make Settings X Display Images In Progress Window Display QuickTime YR Movie After Make Is Complete L Use Temporay Memory When Necessary aa a a Display Images In Progress Window Select this option if you want the images in your QTVR media project to appear in a progress window as the images are being processed Selecting this option can increase processing time Introduction to QuickTime VR Authoring Studio 11 12 Chapter 2 a Display QuickTime VR Movie After Make ls Complete f this option is selected a playback window appears automatically after an object panorama or scene is created a Use Temporary Memory When Necessary You may need to select this option if you are making high resolution QTVR media or media that contains a lot of source images If this option is selected QuickTime VR Authoring Studio uses some of your hard disk space as virtual memory Files Preferences Objects Motion Control Temporary Files _ Temporary Files Disk Startup Disk Aliases X Use Relative Aliases In New Documents L Use Server and Zone Mames in Path Names Output Files 4 Automatically Specify Output Files When Saving Documents LI Only Specify Necessary Output Files Temporary Files The QuickTime VR Authoring Studio tools create intermediate files while processin
97. tical motion by using the mouse By default the object rotates or moves in the direction the mouse is moved Horizontal Controls Wrap Select if the object rotates 360 degrees horizontally Horizontal Controls Reverse If you select this option the object rotates or moves in the opposite direction from the direction the mouse Is moved Vertical Controls Wrap Select if the object rotates 360 degrees vertically Vertical Controls Reverse tf you select this option the object rotates or moves in the opposite direction from the direction the mouse Is moved Swap Controls Select if you want the vertical control to operate the horizontal motion of the object and vice versa Animate View Frames Each image in an object movie is a view With the Object Maker you can add animation to one or more views of your object For information on how to include animation in your object see Animating View Frames later in this chapter The following settings determine how animation appears in the object movie Animate View Frames Select if you want to add animation to one or more views Loop Select to have animated views play continuously After the last frame of the animation is shown the animation begins again with the first frame Loop Back And Forth Select to have animated views play from the first to the last frame then backwards then forwards and so on Restart Each View Select to have animated views start over on the
98. to connect it to your computer Then follow these steps Define the number of rows and columns in your object as described earlier in this chapter The images you capture are added sequentially starting with the first row first column followed by the first row second column and ending with the last row last column Click Capture in the Object Maker window The Capture Controls and Video windows appear Move the guides by dragging the guide markers Alignment Frame 3 of 12 E Guides Column 3 240 x Crosshairs Capture Frame a see OF L Append captured frame to cell X Auto select next cell after capture we Video Settings Digitizer Built in Format S video Signal NTSC Size 1 2 Size 320x 240 Hue i Use the crosshairs to center your object in the Video window saturation j Brightness H Contrast i Sharpness m Click Folder in the Capture Controls window then enter a folder name Your images are captured into this folder Position the camera and object for the first image Your image should appear in the Video window If it does not check to see that the camera is connected to your computer and turned on Making Objects 49 50 Chapter 5 5 6 10 11 12 Use the controls in the Capture Controls window to adjust the brightness color and contrast of the Image Check to be sure the object is centered in the Video window make adjustments to the
99. to plan accordingly You may need to use a compression method with a high compression ratio To add animation to one view in your object first shoot multiple frames of that view with a variation in each frame For example to make the animation of the QTVR logo spinning as in the example on your CD you d shoot each successive frame with the logo in a different position but the PowerBook always facing the same direction This section shows you how to animate one view of an object Before following these instructions open the Object Maker window and add the images for the views of your object Double click the view you want to animate A window for that view opens The view appears in the window and is labeled Frame 1 Object Maker PowerBook 3400 Row 1 Column 1 Click Add Files A dialog box opens Select the images you want to add then click Done The images appear in the view window in alphanumeric order by filename If the images are not in the correct sequence for the animation you can select each image that is out of order and drag it to the correct location Making Objects 53 54 Chapter 5 E Object Maker PowerBook 3400 Row 1 Column 1 E Add Files Fa Frame 4 Ly Choose Close from the File menu to close the view window If you want to animate other views repeat steps 1 through 4 You don t need to animate every view For example if y
100. ts a Creating links Defining hot spots and setting destinations m Adjusting scene settings Processing the scene a Checking the links 59 60 Chapter 6 Opening QuickTime VR Authoring Studio Double click the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio icon Choose New from the File menu then select Scene Maker A dialog box appears Type aname for your Scene Maker document A Scene Maker document is a record of your Scene Maker session If you quit QuickTime VR Authoring Studio before you make the final scene you can open the document later to continue your work You can also open the Scene Maker document to make changes to a scene you ve already finished Click Save The Scene Maker window appears Scene Maker The Company Store Scene Output File Hot Spots QTYRDisk The Company Store Scene hot Add Map QTYRDisk The Company Store Scene scene Adding a map A map is a backdrop that appears in the Scene Maker window and helps you to lay out and keep track of the nodes and links in the scene It is the floor plan of your virtual space Adding a map is optional but highly recommended You can make a map with any drawing program or you can draw a map of the space on paper then scan it into your computer Maps must be in PICT format Click Add Map A dialog box opens Select a map file for your scene If you are using the material provided on the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio
101. ture images directly into the Object Maker window See Capturing Images Directly in Chapter 5 for more information You can use a motion control application to control the movement of the turntable the object is mounted on or to control the movement of the camera Select Application lf you click this button a dialog box appears that lets you select a motion control application a Wait for acknowledgments from application f this option is selected QuickTime VR Authoring Studio waits a specified amount of time for the motion control application to send a signal before capturing each image This assures the object is not moving when the image is captured 14 Chapter 2 CHAP Making a Panorama From an Existing Panoramic Image You can create a QTVR panorama in one of two ways using QuickTime VR Authoring Studio m by first creating a single panoramic image with a 3D rendering or CAD application or a panoramic camera and then converting the image to a QTVR panorama using the Panorama Maker by capturing a series of images and then stitching the images together using the Panorama Stitcher This chapter shows you how to use the Panorama Maker It s recommended that you learn the features of the Panorama Maker by using the panoramic image provided on the QuickTime VR Authoring Studio CD Once you have mastered using the Panorama Maker see Chapter 8 Creating Source Material for tips on creating your own Images 15
102. ure in the Panorama Stitcher I added the same picture twice Solution Select the image in the Panorama Stitcher window press the Delete key then rebuild the panorama The Panorama Stitcher moves the images after I align them manually Cause The search range is set to a value greater than 0 After you align the images the Panorama Stitcher finds an optimal alignment based on the search range Solution Set the search range to zero then align the images manually Objects The object jitters as it rotates Cause When you digitized the negatives or slides slight errors were introduced that resulted in misalignment of frames Solution Reshoot the images and include a small reference object in the photographic field that will not move from frame to frame Once you ve digitized the images use software such as Adobe After Effects to key in on the object to remove jitter Once the jitter is eliminated you Can digitally remove the reference object The object appears to flicker as it rotates Cause When you photographed the object the lighting was not even across the photographic field Solution Use a light meter to check lighting conditions You may need to use four lights spaced at 90 degree intervals and a solid background that reflects light evenly The object movie gets stuck on a bottom view Cause The values in the Columns and Rows boxes in the Define Object window may not be correct Solution Correct the
103. use Scale Factor settings 45 91 movie file 42 MoviePlayer 2 movies 90 91 multimedia production services 99 naming files 12 naming panoramas 17 naming QTVR media and folders 74 75 naming tile movies 17 27 node marker 79 nodes 7 65 O Object Maker capturing images directly with 49 50 compression and 43 creating a simple object with 139 149 creating objects with 39 157 creating objects with view states 51 52 Object Maker Settings window 43 Object Maker window 40 object movies 90 91 object rigs 97 objects animating 53 54 capturing images for 84 85 compression for 13 creating absolute objects 55 57 creating a simple object 39 49 Index 101 creating with Object Maker 39 57 creating with view states 51 52 description of 7 file suffixes for 13 supporting 85 troubleshooting 88 90 91 zooming in on 46 Objects preferences 13 14 Object Type settings 45 Only Specify Necessary Output Files option 12 opening QuickTime VR Authoring Studio 60 73 74 ordering frames 85 ordering images 26 outdoor photography 82 output files 12 62 P Pair Alignment feature 36 37 89 Pair Alignment window 36 panning settings for 19 130 troubleshooting 91 Panorama Maker 15 22 Panorama Maker Settings window 18 Panorama Maker window 16 panoramas capturing 79 83 compression for 13 18 creating within Scene Maker 162 163 creating with Panorama Maker 15 22 creating with Pano
104. www amp apple com Apple Computer Inc 1 Infinite Loop Cupertino California 95014 2084 408 996 1010 U97600 084A htto www apple com Printed in U S A

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