What is it?

Asg2x3d converts SmoothTeddy models into the popular file formats X3D and/or VRML.
Both X3D and VRML are standards for 3D graphics on the web.
This means you can now view and share your favorite SmoothTeddy models using a web browser!
You can also further modify or integrate your models into even bigger 3D worlds,
since many professional 3D CAD applications (e.g. 3D Studio Max) can import VRML.

How does is work?

Asg2x3d is a XSL stylesheet which is run through the Saxon XSLT Processor to produce X3D and VRML files.
The resulting files comply to their respective specifications, which you can read about here.
The included binary asg2x3d.jar contains code to handle the transformations and image textures used in SmoothTeddy models.

Where can I get it?

There are two packagings of the converter available. To download right-click and save the file to disk.

1. The minimal package only contains the asg2x3d.xsl stylesheet, the batch file xform.bat plus required binaries and sources.
   It assumes you already downloaded the Saxon XSLT Processor and put saxon7.jar into the asg2x3d directory.
   The X3dToVrml97.xslt stylesheet to translate the X3D into VRML is also missing; thus you can only transform ASG to X3D.
2. The full package contains everything you need to run the converter, including Saxon v7.8 and X3dToVrml97.xslt plus one sample ASG model.

How do I use it?

Here's a quick start guide on how to use the converter:

• If you haven't got one already, install a Java runtime (v1.4 or higher), as it is required tu run the XSLT processor
• Download the converter (see above) and unzip it so it resides in it's own directory
• Optional: if you downloaded the minimal package, get the Saxon XSLT Processor (version 7.x) and put saxon7.jar in your installation directory
• Optional: if you downloaded the minimal package and want to convert to VRML, get the X3dToVrml97.xslt stylesheet and put it in your installation directory
• Model, paint and save using SmoothTeddy, then unzip the resulting file. It should contain one file called root.xml
• Copy this file in your installation directory (you'll probably want to rename it to a more useful filename...)
• Call xform.bat from a command line and specify the filename (without .xml extension) as parameter (e.g. "xform teddy")

How can I view/edit the result?

The conversion process creates two files: <filename>.x3d and <filename>.wrl.

To view the X3D file you may use the Xj3D toolkit or the BS Contact VRML plugin.
To edit use X3D-Edit or any text editor ;-)
(Remark: On the X3D-Edit website you can also find the latest version of the X3dToVrml97.xslt stylesheet, which is used by the asg2x3d converter to translate X3D to VRML)

For VRML files you may choose from a number of viewers which plug into your web browser and many stand-alone applications:

• BS Contact VRML is a good VRML plugin which also supports X3D
• Cortona is a very good VRML plugin
• Cosmo Player is an older but still very popular VRML plugin (alternative download)
• there also exist some viewers for VRML for Linux
• GLView is a good stand-alone viewer for VRML
• many free or professional 3D CAD tools offer support for loading, editing, saving and viewing VRML files