About the
VRML 2.0 Sourcebook CD-ROM

Welcome to the VRML 2.0 Sourcebook CD-ROM! This CD-ROM contains the full VRML text for all examples from the VRML 2.0 Sourcebook, plus 400 MBytes of software, VRML objects, texture images, and sounds. This wealth of information for VRML world builders is organized into three groups of Web pages.

Online Book Examples

VRML text for all 200+ book examples, including texture images, sounds, and program scripts

Software, Objects, Images, and Sounds

Product freeware, shareware, try-outs, and demos from over 20 vendors, including VRML browsers, authoring applications, file format converters, and libraries of VRML objects, texture images, and sounds

Additional Documentation

Notes, tips, and tricks for using the examples and software on this CD-ROM, useful Web links for further information and documentation, and annotated Java and JavaScript API descriptions

You can access all of this information from this CD-ROM's VRML 2.0 Sourcebook home page.

Macintosh, Windows, and UNIX Archives

This CD-ROM can be read on Macintosh, Windows, and UNIX systems, and contains identical content for each one. Software files are archived or compressed in the conventional manner for each system:

Macintosh

Software for the Macintosh is archived in StuffIt archives with a .sit file name extension. To use the software, unarchive the files to your hard disk using StuffIt, StuffIt Expander, or an equivalent application. In most cases, the unarchived files include a standard Macintosh Installer application. Double-click the Installer icon to install the application.

StuffIt, StuffIt Expander, and other Macintosh archive applications are available from your local software store, or from the Web. Aladdin Systems, the makers of StuffIt, provide a downloadable version of StuffIt Expander at http://www.aladdinsys.com.

Windows

Software for PCs running Windows 3.x, Windows 95, or Windows NT is often archived in Zip archives with a .zip file name extension. To use the software, unarchive the files to your hard disk using pkzip, WinZip, or an equivalent application. In most cases, the unarchived files include a standard Windows Setup.exe setup wizard. Run the setup wizard to install the application.

Where possible, Windows applications on this CD-ROM have already been unarchived, saving you time and hard disk space. For these applications, a Setup.exe setup wizard is already available on the CD-ROM. Run the setup wizard from the CD-ROM to install the application.

Winzip and other Windows archive applications are available from your local software store, or from the Web. Nico Mak Computing, the makers of WinZip, provide a downloadable version of WinZip at http://www.winzip.com.

UNIX

Software for HP, SGI, and Sun workstations running flavors of UNIX is archived in Tar archives with a .tar file name extension. Often these archives are further compressed using either gzip or compress. You can unarchive these files to your hard disk using the standard gunzip and uncompress utilities, respectively. Depending on the software, you may need your system's root password to complete the installation process.

The online book examples and the VRML object samples from object library vendors are provided in three versions, one each for the Macintosh, Windows, and UNIX. These three versions provide identical content and differ only in their treatment of carriage-return characters within text documents. This is necessary to conform to the different Macintosh, Windows, and UNIX conventions.

Long File Names

Some of the files contained on this CD-ROM use file names that extend beyond the 8.3 file-naming limits of older versions of Windows. In order to access these files from early versions of Windows, you need long-file-name support. Windows 95, Windows NT, and later support long file names and have no trouble accessing all files on this CD-ROM. Similarly, Macintosh and UNIX systems have no trouble accessing the long file names used on portions of this CD-ROM.