For the second installment of “My First Time With Papervision3D” I brought a very good friend of mine and long time Flex developer Gabor Wraight.
Daily Papervision3D: Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your role on the team?
Gabor Wraight: I’m a freelance Flash and Flex Developer based in Munich, Germany. My role on the team is the developer position. I work a lot for agencies and I’m the part that puts it all together.
Daily: What was the deciding factor to choose Papervision3D?
Gabor: Well, it was the first 3D engine for Flash I discovered. I can remember the first example I saw, a video carousel. This blew my mind and I had to get my hands on it.
Daily: What were the main obstacles you found when you first started?
Gabor: At first, if you’re new to 3D it’s a bit tricky to get primitives interactive. I entered a whole new world, where a primitive needs a material and this then dispatches events. This became a lot easier with the release of Great White. As soon as you get used to it, you love it.
Daily: How did Papervision3D influence your normal workflow?
Gabor: A lot. I use pv3D in almost every job. I don’t want to overuse it, but clients love the possibilities. It took some time to figure out the best way of integrating pv3D in the frameworks I
use. But after a few experiments and chats with friends, I think I’ve implemented it quite well.
Daily: What did you love the most about Papervision3D?
Gabor: What a question, 3D! This whole new 3D world gives us developers amazing possibilities. Just think about what you’ve seen so far. Developers get the possibility to build sexy intuitive Uis.
Daily: How steep was the learning curve?
Gabor: It went pretty well. At first I struggled a bit, because I was completely new to 3D.
As soon as you get used to it, sky’s the limit.
Daily: Will you be using PV3D again in your projects? Why?
Gabor: Of course. Most of my clients by now know about pv3D and they love it. Also when I’m in meetings, I sometimes find elements of the job, which could be done in 3D. I show an example and 3D we go!
Daily: Did you have any influence in the decision to use PV3D, and how did your manager react?
Gabor: I chose it myself, because there is no manager. I have some clients I had to convince about the possibilities. In the end, convincing was easy.
Daily: What tips would give to other first timers?
Gabor: Be sure about what pv3D version you are using. 2.0 is quite a bit different to 1.5. Check out the appropriate tutorials for your version. Try to think 3D. Do not render when it’s not necessary. Get an overview of the available materials.
Daily: If you could ask for any feature to be built into the engine what would it be?
Gabor: I can’t really think of any major features that are missing. Great White brought us the effect layer, which is awesome. We are able to use collada files, apply physics…
If you search the web for pv3D examples, you’ll find so many different examples of an implementation. All we need are good UI designers, who start thinking 3D.
I really have to thank the pv3D Team for their work. They made my job more interesting and I’m having big fun working with the engine.
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[...] Read the interview here [...]