[x3d-public] CSS bindings for <x3d> ...</x3d>

[Joe D Williams]

> X3dom has some css support.

Thanks, I'm having another look.

https://x3dom.org/x3dom/example/x3dom_cssTrans.html

is a fine example of a style-based animation as an alternative to 
direct dom scripting.

Maybe examples of this adding animation on and off and showing how 
animation would be done in x3d using touchsensor, timer, routes, and 
interpolator, and then also by trying to code this animation using a 
DOM script. To me, this example tells a lot about a basic reason for 
css - that is to simplfy basic scene initialization and scene 
interactions.

It also shows some thinking that says, Hey, let's not spend time 
putting stuff for keyframe animation in the html nodes or html dom, 
let's put basic controls in css instead. I guess this is a major 
statement about development of authoring resources for css and html 
and dom.

All Best,
Joe

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Andreas Plesch" <andreasplesch at gmail.com>
To: "Joe D Williams" <joedwil at earthlink.net>
Cc: "x3dom mlist" <x3dom-users at lists.sourceforge.net>; "X3D Graphics
public mailing list" <x3d-public at web3d.org>
Sent: Sunday, February 05, 2017 2:21 PM
Subject: Re: CSS bindings for <x3d> ...</x3d>


> SVG does have styles and there are good examples how styling can be
> useful
> there.
>
> So X3D also would probably benefit from accepting a layer of field
> value
> reassignment from style sheets to enable reuse.
>
> An example would be a flower group where petal shape appearance
> colors
> could be styled.
>
> A second flower could have a different id or class and could be
> styled
> differently.
>
> This brings up that there is overlap between reuse by styling and
> reuse by
> protos.
>
> There are probably nodes and fields which shouldn't be subject to
> styling.
>
> X3dom has some css support.
>
> Andreas
>
> On Feb 5, 2017 10:05 AM, "Joe D Williams" <joedwil at earthlink.net>
> wrote:
>
>> >From what I can see <x3d> continues to ignore use of css selectors
>> >as
>> an optional author tool with <x3d> user code. We have a connection
>> with the document <script> but not with document <style>.
>>
>> As for css, I trust that every html author will expect to be able
>> to
>> define an opening scene that is easily changed using css style api.
>>
>> Since the <x3d> elements are available in the dom, and are
>> accesible
>> by dom api, then of course I ought to be able to realtime style
>> basic
>> elements of a scene using css, and control some or all features of
>> the
>> scene by changing live css user code, or by changing the node
>> @class
>> attribute.
>>
>> Yes, the above is now for a long time 'native' to css for html5. To
>> me, coverage of css is basic because it is NOW the actual minimum
>> requirement for a conforming html/css/svg/mathml/dom w3c browser.
>> To add x3d to that list, <x3d> gotta have <style>.
>>
>> Yes, live, cascading style is so fundamental to operation of the
>> dom,
>> that css even provides script-free animation techniques. Some of
>> these
>> expose some  <x3d> features, like keyframe interpolation. Just like
>> X3D, implementation of style animation "in" the browser makes
>> performance of this "built-in" stuff kill conventional html dom
>> scripting for similar effects
>>
>> So, style by class in html hosted content is so basic because its
>> case
>> is so true -
>> Authors can use it to distinguish style from content.
>>
>> This remains true and to the extent that lines between content and
>> style cross. Most of the crossover is actually under control of the
>> author because the dom and css properties of the elements overlap.
>> This gives some suthor flexibility, allowing style to convy content
>> and vice-versa.
>>
>> Perhaps the greatest contribution of this melding of html and x3d
>> is
>> that Finally, yes FFinally, X3D gets some "Style" which thus far
>> mostly forbidden territory even considering the fact that X3D since
>> inception has included the heretofore unused class attribute. Up to
>> now there has been no great press for css in .x3d - let's face it,
>> css
>> didn't have much back then except fataastic potential to offer our
>> DAG, but .x3d is now facing up to <x3d> in <html> so a New Higher
>> level of X3D htmlization and domification is near.
>>
>> The only problem is, whatever the x3d elements chosen, the
>> community
>> must define what @class attributes can be controlled by css. For
>> example can you apply the css @hover on a shape or a geometry or
>> does
>> it matter?
>>
>> Of course I want css for my list of initializeOnly fields!
>> Why, because it very easy to author using 'style' sheets instead of
>> building the opening scene in a script that reads a list to
>> generate
>> the opening scene.
>> In <x3d> is there any such thing as the 'initializeOnly' field?
>> Of course I want css control of any node attribute I can reach with
>> html dom script.
>> Actually, for simple stuff I don't want get into scripting the html
>> dom; I'd rather script the css dom.
>>
>> It is easy to see how a player that does <x3d> can implement a
>> reasonable set of css properties for the x3d nodes and fields that
>> need them. I mean look, html dom and html allowed the css to be
>> domified and cacadiatied thus allowing intimate relationships,
>> deeply
>> changing realtime yet carefully sequenced, directly with some
>> exposed
>> and some internal dom events using very stimulating cascading
>> interfaces.
>>
>> Is it a complication or an advantage that fields of X3D XML nodes
>> are
>> attributes and so are candidates for <style> treatment?
>>
>> So, certainly this will get some thought and work, but I stand with
>> the idea of looking at it from the standpoint of what the
>> experienced
>> html/dom/css designer/author/user is going to expect.
>>
>> For the most part, these authors and their authoring aids depend on
>> DOM and CSS.
>>
>> <x3d> without total dom and total css integratable with html5 is
>> not
>> really a complete standards-track package.
>>
>> Thanks and Best,
>> Joe
>>
>>
>>
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