Description of Virtual Reality Modeling Language

This article provides an overview of Virtual Reality Modeling Language (VRML).

NOTE: VRML was originally called Virtual Reality Markup Language. The terms are interchangeable.

VRML is a modeling language for specifying interactive animation. Text descriptions of geometries are downloaded and those geometries are created locally.

VRML allows Web developers to create three-dimensional (3-D) space and 3-D objects in full color with special texture, animation, and lighting effects. This means you can move in three dimensions on a VRML Web page as you do with a video game or flight simulator.

Capabilities and Qualities of VRML

• Platform independence. The same VRML code is easily transported to UNIX, Macintosh, and Windows.
• Extensibility. Extensions to VRML use objects that have the ability to describe themselves. Objects that are not included in standard VRML can provide a description that VRML can interpret as required.
• Efficiency. VRML has the ability to work well over slow-speed connections, because the geometries are downloaded as ordinary text.
• Selective refinement. VRML has the ability to add greater detail only to the portion of the scene that requires it.
• 3-D hyperlinks. You can view these when you move the mouse pointer over certain VRML objects. The objects become selected and can be activated by clicking. They are similar to text and image hyperlinks in that you can link objects in 3-D VRML scenes to other VRML files or Web pages.
• Texture mapping. You can apply images to the surfaces of 3-D objects to give them texture and realistic detail.