3Dwalkthroughs.com in Montreal Day 2

Members of 3Dwalkthroughs.com spent the day walking outside the area of the Montreal Jazz Festival and was very impressed with the surrounding neighborhoods. The architecture was very similar to what we experienced when we visited London last summer. Even though many of the restaurants and outdoor cafe's were outside of the area sponsored by the Festival, many had live Jazz musicians.

As you can see from the montage of pictures above, there were very cool brownstone apartments interspersed with spacious loft buildings. The entire downtown area was also surrounded by a bike/rollerblading/running path.

During the day we dusted off our rollerblades and did a little exploring. The highlighted off the awkward skate was finding a converted Formula 1 track that is now the home of hundreds of bikers and rollerbladers. It is totally smooth so the risk of getting hurt was somewhat diminished. The danger returned however when we tried to skate back...the moral here is it is safer to walk in Montreal if you are not a good rollerblader.

3Dwalkthroughs.com at the Montreal Jazz Festival 2008

3Dwalkthroughs.com is lucky to have booked a trip to Montreal during the first few days of their annual Jazz Festival. Based on the crowd during the day when we arrived, we were not expecting what we experienced when we went back at night.

The streets were flooded with people listening to music on one of the many stages that had live jazz musicians doing their thing. All the streets surrounding the festival were closed and there were many activities available for kids as well as adults.

Here are some of the features of the festival taken directly from the Montreal Jazz Festival's Website- 3,000 artists from 30 countries

- More than 650 concerts, including 450 free outdoor performances

- Close to 2.5 million peaceful festivalgoers, including 34% of tourists and excursionists

- 400 accredited journalists

- 10 free outdoor stages

- 10 concert halls

The attached picture was taken from on top of a landing and was focused on the crowd surrounding the main stage. One thing we noticed was that as crowded as the Festival area was, the vibe was very peaceful even though you were allowed to drink on the street...and drink we did.

Fitspott Friday Update (June 27, 2008) Live from Montreal

A few members of 3Dwalkthroughs.com are currently in Montreal, Canada, for the beginning of Montreal's famous Jazz Festival. We decided to make the trip this year for 3 main reasons:

1) A few meetings regarding potential new 3D Walkthrough projects
2) The Jazz Festival
3) Promotion of Fitspott

This week we are actively starting to roll out some the initial marketing efforts of Fitspott and thought it would be a good idea to visit Canada as they are one of our main target markets after the United States. We have also been adding many ideas to our phase 2 folder which will get started immediately after our Phase 1 launch is complete and fully tested.

Canada has a huge fitness movement and would not require many adjustments to what we have already planned for the United States market. We have stopped by a few of the downtown health clubs and the response has been extremely positive... ... especially after we described some of the features of Fitspott.

Stay tuned over the next few days as we report on some of the impresive architecture of this developing city along with other feedback we receive on Fitspott.

Renault Launches 3D Auto Showroom

3Dwalkthroughs.com came across a story out of Paris about car maker Renault, and the interesting upgrade they made to their website. As part of their website upgrade they launched “Renault Universe”, the first completely 3D automotive website: www.univers.renault.fr

Renault Universe is a 3D virtual showroom that will allow people to view available automobiles in great detail before visiting a dealership.

Launched on June 17, Renault Universe enables users to browse a virtual 3D world promoting the brand and its products. The virtual universe comprises several areas: a showroom with a specific visual and sound environment for each model, an area on vehicle finance, and areas devoted to special events, Renault Used Cars and the dealer network.

Users will appreciate the extensive range and the variety of products as they browse through the vehicles. For example, in the Clio universe, they can use the discovery function to switch between Clio, Clio Estate, and Clio Campus. After rotating the vehicle 360°, visitors can watch a demo of functionalities, storage compartments, and a broad selection of accessories. All the technical information about the vehicles can be found in a separate section: versions, trim levels, engine types, and prices. Current promotional offers will be on the site as well. Users can also click to watch videos, including the latest Renault commercials.

Source: The AutoChannel.com

Let's see how many other automobile companies follow suit. With over 12 million users on Renault's website every year, their upgraded website will be a good case study for the rest of the industry.

Mobile Phones with 3D Holographic Screens By 2010?

3Dwalkthroughs.com just came across a brief post on the Scotsman.com news website about and Indian company that predicts they will have mobile phones with holographic screens, capable of showing and capturing 3D images, on the market by 2010.

The company, Infosys has patented the handsets and said the phones will be able to receive 3D movies and pictures. Using a mathematical process the technology is said to turn ordinary photos into 3D holograms.

Source: Scotsman.com News

Once this technology is launched and perfected we assume it will also be integrated into 3D mobile games as well. We have come across a lot of articles recently discussing various companies that are focused on the evolving mobile gaming market.

Yanko Design - 3Dwalkthroughs.com Loves This Site!

Every day 3Dwalkthroughs.com scours the internet doing research for the various projects we are involved with. In addition to searching for specific information we also visit a few select sites to help give us inspiration when we get into a "brain rut".

I must say one of the most fascinating sites we visit often is Yanko Design. Almost every day we find something on the site that makes us say "how cool is that?". If you are even mildly interested in innovative new technology and product design, it is worth subscribing to the Yanko Design site feed.

About Yanko Design
Yanko Design is a web magazine dedicated to introducing the best modern international design, covering from industrial design, concepts, technology, interior design, architecture, exhibition and fashion. It’s about the cutting edge and the classic, the new and the rediscovered. It’s all about the best.

Yankodesign.com reaches a rapidly expanding audience of approximately 360,000+ unique users, viewing 2 million pageviews each month with 8,000+ total daily newsletter subscribers making it the world’s most popular & influential online design magazine.

Image and Text Source:Yanko Design Website

Torey Pines - US Open Golf Course Modeled in 3D

A couple weeks ago, 3Dwalkthroughs.com posted a story about a company called 3Dgolfcourse that is using their technology in combination with Virtual Earth to model golf courses in 3D.

I just came across a YouTube video of one of their works. The 3D animation is of Torey Pines golf course in La Jolla, California. This was the recent home of the US Open. For those of you that do not read the news, this was one of the most fiercely battled US open tournaments in history. The winner was of course Tiger Woods but not by much.

To see the entire presentation including the 3D Walkthrough you can go here >>>

You can definitely see how viewing a course before actually visiting the location can be a huge advantage as players can better plan their strategies.

Determining the Price of a Custom 3D Walkthrough

One of the most difficult part of the sales process for 3Dwalkthroughs.com is quoting a price for a 3D Walkthrough without knowing all of the details of the project.

It is not uncommon for a client to give us a very brief description of a major 3D Walkthrough project and then expect to get an accurate quote. If we respond with a range that is too broad the client can get frustrated, and consequently if we do not give a quote at all it can produce the same result.

Many variables go into the pricing of a Custom 3D Walkthrough including: The number of exterior and interior areas to be modeled, whether or not we need to model the surrounding environment, the level of detail, the level of post production effects required, interactivity requirements, length of presentation and more.

While there are many variables, we pride ourselves on strategic planning to meet almost any budget. In other words we can strategize the most cost effective solution to stay within your budget while still meeting your goals.

We welcome the opportunity to partner on solutions with even the most modest of budgets.

Fitspott Friday Update (June 20, 2008)

3Dwalkthroughs.com and the rest of the fitspott team are pumped about this weeks developments. After a lot of back and forth we have decided to incorporate a drag and drop modular format.

Basically, this means that any one of our members will be able to choose which modules they want to appear on the page and will be able to move the modules around by simply dragging and dropping them where they want. (think iGoogle)

The logic behind developing this type of functionality is two-fold:
1) We want our users to have clean looking pages with only their relevant content available. Each member will have their own opinion about which modules are important. We want to make sure they have the flexibility to engage these modules and place them where they see fit.

2) We want to encourage outside developers to create additional modules which can be integrated into the Fitspott site. We are confident that our platform will attract a large community with unique ideas and functionality that will help to promote exponential growth of our platform.

In the upcoming week we hope to start rolling out some of our initial marketing efforts.
Check back on next week for an update on our progress.

Meez Nation - Social Entertainment Community Launches 3D Virtual World

3Dwalkthroughs.com came across an article on AppScout.com describing the launch of Meez Nation. Meez nation is a 3D Virtual world that was developed to support and engage Meez's community of more than 7 million users.

Meez is a a social entertainment community that allows users to create their own 3D animated avatars to socialize and play games.

"The number one request from our community of more than 7 million users has been to add a virtual world," says Sean Ryan, CEO of Meez. "Meez Nation is a significant addition to our already potent mix of 3D avatars, a virtual economy and casual games. It will significantly boost user involvement and brand engagement on Meez."

Source:AppScout.com

With Meez Nation, you can jump into existing spaces and room, or even design your own personal 3D space and invite friends over.

We enjoy seeing companies leverage their communities to launch new products and platforms. It is a business model we hope to follow in the near future.

As a side not AppScout.com is a pretty interesting site if you are interested in finding new killer applications.

LiberoVision - TV Quality 3D Replays

3Dwalkthroughs.com came across a really interesting technology that offers 3D replays in real TV quality. The technology allows sporting events to be analyzed from views not captured by the TV cameras.

Swiss based, LiberVision has developed a technology called DiscoverEye that offers the following benefits to media outlets:
- Virtual replays indistinguishable from TV cameras
- Eye-catching content for your highlights and analysis program
- No additional infrastructure required in the stadium

Source: LiberVision Website

The 3D technology, known in the US as Axis, is being used by ESPN to spice up the coverage of low-scoring European soccer games. Axis allows the announcer to replay a game situation from a players viewpoint. The announcer can even take the same play and position the camera from the perspective of a defender or goalie.

"Using the conventional, physical camera streams, the «magic eye» computes new images from new angles and puts them together to full flights in 3D space with hardly any loss in image quality." - LiberoVision press release

You can check out samples of Axis on LiberoVison's website.

The June "This has absolutely nothing to do with 3D Post"

Every once in a while 3Dwalkthroughs.com come across an interesting website, application or gadget that is worth mentioning, even though it does not necessarily have anything to do with 3D.

As an avid reader, I am constantly making the trek from my office to the local bookstore to pick up my latest subway read. Well, it looks like I will have to spend an extra 15 minutes on the treadmill as that walk will no longer be necessary.

This Sunday I was fortunate enough to get the Amazon Kindle as a gift from a friend. For those of you that have not heard of the Kindle before, it is basically a wireless tablet that allow you to download whole books, magazines, documents, blogs, periodicals etc. in less than 60 seconds. Once it is downloaded you can read the document on the display that looks and reads like real paper.

The downside is that any hopes of saving money with this device is out of the question. I already see 15 books that I want to download put in the on-deck circle. For any one that enjoys reading I definitely recommend spending the money. Even better, hinting that you want it as a gift.

Here are the features of the Kindle taken directly from Amazon's Website:
- Revolutionary electronic-paper display provides a sharp, high-resolution screen that looks and reads like real paper.
- Simple to use: no computer, no cables, no syncing.
- Wireless connectivity enables you to shop the Kindle Store directly from your Kindle—whether you’re in the back of a taxi, at the airport, or in bed.
- Buy a book and it is auto-delivered wirelessly in less than one minute.
- More than 130,000 books available, including more than 98 of 112 current New York Times® Best Sellers.
- New York Times® Best Sellers and New Releases $9.99, unless marked otherwise.
- Free book samples. Download and read first chapters for free before you decide to buy.
- Top U.S. newspapers including The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and Washington Post; top magazines including TIME, Atlantic Monthly, and Forbes—all auto-delivered wirelessly.
- Top international newspapers from France, Germany, and Ireland; Le Monde, Frankfurter Allgemeine, and The Irish Times—all auto-delivered wirelessly.
- More than 300 top blogs from the worlds of business, technology, sports, entertainment, and politics, including BoingBoing, Slashdot, TechCrunch, ESPN's Bill Simmons, The Onion, Michelle Malkin, and The Huffington Post—all updated wirelessly throughout the day.
- Lighter and thinner than a typical paperback; weighs only 10.3 ounces.
Holds over 200 titles.
-Long battery life. Leave wireless on and recharge approximately every other day. - Turn wireless off and read for a week or more before recharging. Fully recharges in 2hours.
- Unlike WiFi, Kindle utilizes the same high-speed data network (EVDO) as advanced cell phones—so you never have to locate a hotspot.
- No monthly wireless bills, service plans, or commitments—we take care of the wireless delivery so you can simply click, buy, and read.
- Includes free wireless access to the planet's most exhaustive and up-to-date encyclopedia—Wikipedia.org.
- Email your Word documents and pictures (.JPG, .GIF, .BMP, .PNG) to Kindle for easy on-the-go viewing.
- Included in the box: Kindle wireless reader, Book cover, Power adapter, USB 2.0 cable

Source: Amazon Website

Creating 3D Floor Plans and 3D Renderings From 2D Floor Plans

3Dwalkthroughs.com has been receiving a large number of inquiries about building custom 3D Floor Plans and 3D Floor Plans using only 2D Floor Plans...it can be done. The main drawback of creating these assets without having the CAD files is the lack of accuracy as it relates to the actual building specs. If this is the case, the finished 3D asset needs to have a clear disclaimer stating that it may vary from the actual product.

With that being said, 3D Floor Plans and 3D Renderings created strictly from 2D Floor Plans can still be very effective sales tools. If the CAD files are not used, we always try to get our clients to focus more on the accuracy of the interior finishings. Whether this means delivering reference pictures, tile samples, carpet swatches, etc., utilzing more accurate finishing details can help to narrow the gap created by a lack of CAD files.

For more information about what can be done with or without complete architectural files, please feel free to contact us. A sales representative will get back to you within 24 hours.

mydeco - Cool 3D Floor Planner Tool

3Dwalkthroughs.com is often asked if we know of any easy to use 3D Floor Plan tools that allow users to move the furniture around themselves. Up until now we only knew of one company that was offering such a tool. Well, we just came across a company based in Victoria England that is about to heat things up a bit.

The company called mydeco and was founded in February 2007 by Brent Hoberman. Brent co-founded lastminute.com with Martha Lane Fox in 1998.

The software is interesting as it does not require any download to utilize. mydeco is definitely worth checking out as it is very easy to use and the 3D results are the best we've seen with this type of software.


About mydeco
mydeco brings together the widest possible range of products from high street stores to niche retailers, thousands of inspiring looks to fit your budget, expert designers on hand for advice, and simple 3D tools to help you plan your room before you even open a tin of paint. You can also join our community to share ideas, swap decorating tips and show off your designs. It's the total home package.

Source: mydeco website

Fitspott.com Friday Update (June 13th 2008)

Today ends a monumnetal week for 3Dwalkthroughs.com and the rest of the fitspott team. We have finalized all design elements of the site and have set a tentative launch date for September 1st. Our initial launch will include releasing a password protected version to those who signed up for the free beta launch of the site.

In addition to finalizing the design elements for our launch, we also began doing the legwork on our latest initiative...the Fitspott Apple App. Without giving away too many details of our planned application, we can only say that it will allow any one with a new iPhone to interact with many of the features of the Fitspott site. This includes the ability to search for trainers, health clubs and more from anywhere.

As the entire application is being architected to work seamlessly with our web based Fitspott platform, we are giving our best effort to try and launch our Apple App simultaneous with the launch of the rest of the site.

Modaris 3D Fit - Using 3D Technology To Improve The Efficiency in Clothing Design

Several months ago 3Dwalkthroughs.com posted months ago about a company that is using 3D techology to improve efficiency within the fashion industry. The technology developed by a French company, Lectra, is called Modaris 3D Fit. Recently Lectra announced a significant upgrade to their product which they claim makes their product the highest performance virtual 3D prototyping solution on the market.

About Modaris 3D Fit

Modaris 3D Fit is a significant advance in CAD technology. By allowing garment fitting to be verified and validating styles and collections, this 3D virtual prototyping solution, the most powerful on the market, will reduce the number of physical prototypes needed and facilitate exchanges within the business (between pattern designers, stylists, developers, sales and marketing teams), and between order givers and sub-contractors regardless of how many there are and where they are located.

Combined with Lectra's modeling solutions, Modaris and PGS, the market's reference products, Modaris 3D Fit will enable apparel industry professionals to manage the continual growth in collections and the ever increasing personalization of models. This innovative solution complements Lectra's product offering in terms of designing, developing and producing products as well as product life cycle management (PLM).

Image and Content Source: Lectra Website

Wii Fit Supply Shortage - 3D Virtual New Years

3Dwalkthroughs.com just read on article on Wired.com about the shortage of Wii consoles as well as their new popular game, Wii Fit. For those of you that live under a rock, Wii Fit is a balance board that works in conjunction with the applications that were developed for the board.

It's an innovative peripheral for Wii that's simple, fun, and it's a great way to get you off of the couch and into the action. The Wii Balance Board is more than just a scale —it can read your real-life movements and bring them to life on screen, just like the Wii Remote™ controller. Realistically snowboard down a mountain or walk a tight rope—it's just one more way to get into the game.

Source: Wii Fit website

According to the article the author was in NYC for the Webby Awards and went to a flagship store expecting there to be Wii Fit applications in stock...no luck.

The shortage of the Wii Fit game is no suprise as the same things occured in Europe, where the game was launched first.

I cannot help but wonder if the rush on this 3D virtual exercise device can be likened to the huge boom in gym memberships immediately following New Years Eve. It will be interesting to see if Wii Fit can help people extend the success of their resolutions beyond the traditional 3-4 weeks...it will if Fitspot has anything to say about it.

Apple Launches Their New 3G IPhone

Last night, Steve Jobs unveiled Apples newest version of the iPhone. The new 3G iPhone has a lot of pretty interesting upgrades but the coolest part is that this is just the beginning. Part of the launch of their new phone includes the opening of Apple's new app store.

The app store will allow iPhone users to purchase and download applications in every category, from games to business, education to entertainment, finance to health and fitness, productivity to social networking. These applications have been designed to take advantage of iPhone technologies such as Multi-Touch, the accelerometer, wireless, and GPS. And some are even free. You’ll download them wirelessly and be able to use them right away.

Image and Content Source: apple.com website


3Dwalkthroughs.com is looking forward to picking up a 3G iphone and applying the new technology updgrades to showcase our 3D Walkthroughs, 3D Renderings and 3D Floor Plans. We are also feverishly trying to determine the best way to integrate the new health and fitness application into the upcoming Fitspott platform...we will keep you posted

Google Earth and Walt Disney Resorts Team Up to Create Disney in 3D

Google Earth and Walt Disney Resorts have teamed up to create Disney in 3D. The 3D tour includes 3D views of all four Theme Parks and over 20 Disney Resort hotels, you can zoom down Main Street, USA®, fly around Cinderella Castle, explore Spaceship Earth and climb the Tree of Life.

This tour will transform how you plan your Disney vacation, offering attraction descriptions, videos and photos, and links to menus, event calendars, and tickets and reservations.

Source: Disney 3D Website

"This is the most detailed 3D rendering undertaken within Google Earth to date,” said Jay Rasulo, chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts.“The work done here will provide a professional counterpart to the wealth of Disney images and 3D models from around the world contributed by thousands of volunteers. The difference Walt Disney World Resort in 3D provides is one of scope and interaction.”

Source: The Tech Herald
Image Source: AshuGarg/Flickr.

3Dwalkthroughs.com spent some time this morning sufing around 3D Disney and must say that it is a pretty cool way of checking out the park without actually being there. The site definitely takes advantage of Googles recent 3D upgrade.

Does the same lesson apply to 3D Walkthroughs, 3D Floor Plans and 3D Renderings?

An article in the Real Estate Section of today's NY Times discusses the dangers of renovating a home using too specific of a style if. In other words, if you are looking to sell your home and your renovation choices are "way out there" you might be significantly reducing the number of potential interested buyers.

According to the article, when it comes to being too “specific,” for instance, it’s not just the koi pond in the foyer that can cause problems later. Something as simple as color choice can, in the blink of a buyer’s eye, transform a triple-mint property into “someone else’s renovation” that few buyers want to pay for.

Source: NY Times

I cannot help but wonder if this same priciple holds true for the sales and marketing of new development projects. 3Dwalkthroughs.com is often asked to make 10 million changes in order to capture the specific interior design vision of the developer. Is creating a highly specific 3D Walkthrough, 3D Rendering or 3D Floor Plan the the right way to go, or are developers limiting the number of potential buyers?

We believe if developers are to create very specific 3D assets, they must have very clear disclaimers and notifications regarding the flexibility the buyer has in customizing their new unit. Being clear that the 3D assets are just representations of what a unit "could" look like can help prevent losing potential buyers.

The full article can be found here>>

Blog For Google Warehouse (June 2008)

At the beginning of every month 3Dwalkthroughs.com selects our favorite 3D model from Greg Rose's blog which highlights new 3D building models as they are added to Google's 3D Warehouse. We are a few days late this month as we had other fish to fry but here it is anyway.

Our monthly selection is based on impressive: architecture, level of detail, level of realism etc. For the month of June 2008 we have chosen The Grand Casino Luzern created by poldi.

About The Grand Casino Luzern
The Grand Casino appeal – introduction Experience that tingle down the spine as you play to win, the pleasure of wining and dining and the thrill of hot party nights – all under one roof, here at the Grand Casino Luzern. Immerse yourself in the fascinating, fun and exhilarating world of gaming. We look forward to seeing you soon! Experience more Top entertainment and a stylish ambience in an idyllic setting await you here. The Grand Jeu offers endless Poker and Roulette excitement, whilst the Jackpot Casino is bursting with a vast selection of classic and up-to-the-minute slot machines just waiting to be discovered. Indulge your passion for Mediterranean specialities at the Restaurant Olivo while enjoying the idyllic views! And if dancing and music are your thing, you’ll never be short of events, parties and concerts at the Casineum.

Here is a link to the Grand Casino Luzern website

Fitspott.com Friday Update (June 6th)

For this Friday's Fitspott update, 3Dwalkthroughs.com thought it would be a good idea to post about a topic that affects every company and also happens to be one of the biggest motivations behind the creation of Fitspott.

The topic we are referring to is corporate fitness. We are very enthusiastic about corporate fitness as we understand first hand the benefits of promoting a healthy liefestyle to our employees. We expect this demographic to be a major component of the Fitspott platform.

Corporate Fitness has transformed from a luxury offered by a few companies in the early 90's to a mainstream perk offered by mainstream corporate America. Study after study details the benefits that a healthy employee has on the bottom line.
Some of these benefits include: Decreased absenteeism, More energetic employees, Reduced health care costs, Increased employee satisfaction and Higher productivity.

To enhance the effectiveness of corporate fitness programs, Fitspott will be offering corporations our FREE robust platform. The platform will allow their employees to stay connected and inspired from anywhere with an internet connection.

The corporate fitness (organization) segment of the Fitspott platform will provide the following benefits:
- Employees/employers can stay connected from anywhere with an internet connection
- Employees can learn of new programs and events
- Employees/Employers can share every form of media conceivable
- Employees/Employers can track progress
- Employers can broadcast their own internet programs
- Employees/Employers can communicate with the site from mobile devices
- Employers can run outside tournaments
- and much much more.

On another note, we have added 4 catch phrases which describe our goal and help to support our tagline...the spott where fitness and life collide.

Promotion. Motivation. Commerce. Community.

Check back next week for the latest update.

Interactive 3D Products

Over the past few months, 3Dwalkthroughs.com has received quite a large number of incoming requests regarding the creation of interactive 3D presentations. Of all the inquiries, not one of the presentation requirements were the same.

The main difference in requirements of all of these clients, was which portion of the 3D presentation was required to be interactive, the 3D Walkthrough, 3D Rendering, 3D Floor Plan or all. In addition to the difference of the specific components that were to be interactive, the interface housing these components were also going to be markedly different.

It has become clear to us that offering only one type of interactive product will simply not work in today's cometitive market. The process for designing the architecture for an interactive presentation requires a very detailed storyboard and wireframe similar to a multi-level website.

We enjoy being able to combine the efforts of 3DWalkthroughs.com and Launchsight Solutions to strategize the best way to exceed the goals of our new incoming clients. Look for some updates to our website in the next few weeks which highlight some of these new projects.

Paralyzed Man Takes a Walk in a 3D Virtual World

3Dwalkthroughs.com just came across a feel good story about a paralyzed man that was able to use a Brain Controlled Interface to take a walk in the 3D Virtual World Second Life.

Researchers led by Jun'ichi Ushiba of the Keio University created a brain-computer interface (BCI) that let the 41-year-old patient operate a PC using only his thoughts.

Previous BCI studies have had patients simply move cursors around a display. Ushiba took it further by letting the unnamed patient, crippled by a progressive muscle condition for most of his life, take control of an avatar, or virtual person, in the popular online environment.

The youtube video of this technology in action can be seen here>>

Source: Foxnews.com

The implications of this technology are amazing. Giving paralyzed individuals the ability to move around freely, albeit in a 3D virtual environment, is a very good demonstration of a "Real Life" positive benefit that can be derived from 3D virtual world platforms. We will check back to stay on top of any future developments of this amazing BCI technology.

3Dgolfcourse.com - 3D Technology To Help Golfers Preview Course

A strategic partnership in La Jolla California has developed a 3D technology that can help golfers preview the course and strategize their game plan before stepping a foot on the green. The technology was created within the research and development teams of Pacific GIS and Terra Imaging.

Much like property developers use the 3D assets of 3Dwalkthroughs.com to show potential buyers what they are getting before it is built, 3D Golf Course will allow golfers to see a golf course in fine detail right from their computer.

About 3D Golf Course
Introducing RECON-GC, our new geo-intelligent, GPS golf cart navigation system. Within the RECON - GC™ environment, each hole can be viewed, navigated and identified at the touch of the screen. Options for the golfer are unlimited. The golfer has the ability to view the entire course in a map ("top view") perspective and more importantly, the golfer can toggle to a 3D layout (3 Dimensional [x, y, z]).

This new 3D perspective view allows the golfer to assess, strategize and commit to the planned golf approach while using, geo-specific, true imagery... and the highest possible range accuracies.

We use aerial photography and high-resolution satellite imagery to model each of our 3D Golf Course™ projects. Our decision to use geospecific imagery vs. artist drawings was simple. We did not want "false landscape" creations or artist renditions. This was a simple choice for us,we wanted the best, we wanted aerial photogrammetry (engineering certified aerial photography) of each golf course and we wanted highest possible topographic accuracies and 3D terrain models.

Source: 3Dgolfcourse.com website

For many of the male golfers we know, 3Dgolfcourse.com is going to make them very happy...not sure if it will have the same effect on their wives.