[x3d-public] X3D minutes 8 JAN 2021: ballot in progress, 2021 specification planning

Fri Jan 8 11:02:38 PST 2021

Attendees: Anita Havele, Vince Marchetti, Nicholas Polys, Dick Puk, Don Brutzman.

X3D Weekly Meeting, 09-1000 Pacific time, Friday 18 DEC 2020.

This week we have a feedback and discussion session regarding X3D4 Working Draft 3 ballot, now in progress.

[0.1] Web3D Teleconference Information
       https://www.web3d.org/member/teleconference-information

> Please use the following link for all Web3D Consortium Meetings.
>
> Join URL: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81634670698?pwd=a1VPeU5tN01rc21Oa3hScUlHK0Rxdz09
Confirmed that no Web3D Consortium member-only information is in these minutes.

Prior minutes:

[0.2] X3D minutes 18 DEC 2020: X3D4 review, ballot in progress, CSS class/style naming collisions, issue resolution continues
       http://web3d.org/pipermail/x3d-public_web3d.org/2020-December/014295.html

Previous problem continuing to get pursued: Web3D Comments form needs to have a selection for 4.0.  (Tricky problem, this omission only manifests on certain selection combinations on prior menu selections.) Trouble report submitted.

[0.3] Web3D Standards Comment Form
       https://www.web3d.org/content/web3d-standards-comment-form

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1. Ballot sent to Web3D members, all comments welcome

X3Dv4 Public Working Draft

[1.0]	X3Dv4 Public Working Draft
      	https://www.web3d.org/x3dv4-public-working-draft

Public version of X3D4 Architecture (working draft 3) includes all markup for additions/changes/deletions.

[1.1]	X3D4 Public Working Draft Specification third release
      	https://www.web3d.org/specifications/X3Dv4Draft/ISO-IEC19775-1v4-WD3/

Private member version is pristine, with editing markup automagically removed from the HTML pages using an XML-based publication stylesheet.

These online documents will remain unchanged during the ballot period.

Specification documents are maintained as part of our member-only github version control.  Account permission requests are welcome.

[2.2]	Github version control: Web3DConsortium / X3D
      	https://github.com/Web3DConsortium/X3D

X3D Specification editors (Dick and yours truly) expect to steadily continue with issue resolution.  As ever: technical-tradeoff discussions occur on x3d-public list, with summarized technical details collected in Mantis.

[1.3]	Web3D Consortium Mantis Issue Tracker
      	https://www.web3d.org/member-only/mantis/

All specific ballot comments will be recorded and resolved (or marked as deferred) shortly after the 30-day ballot period closes.

Decision point: if approved by Web3D Consortium Board of Directors in January 2020, following editors review and application of comments, the X3D4 Architecture Committee Draft (CD) will be submitted to ISO IEC/JTC 1/SC 24 for international review and disposition.

Dick and I will use a new CSS style 'X3D4Resolution' to identify any post-ballot changes to X3D working draft.  We also have a category to that effect in Mantis, so if appropriate we'll use it.  There are maybe a few dozen that are close to finish and only need final refinements/review, there are others that get deferred to X3D 4.1.

We have some feedback from Khronos already, perhaps more to follow during the ballot period.

In general, post ballot and post decision by Web3D Board:

a. All comments will be considered by working group and editors,
b. All dispositions and deferrals will be properly noted, in draft spec if appropriate and in Mantis.

Upon submission of pristine corrected, that will reset what is our top version in github.  That gives full history of progress (aiding implementers and authors) plus reset us for the New Year.

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2. Spec Editors Planning 2021

TODO add link to most recent minutes...

[2.1]	X3D Graphics Standards Relationships
      	https://www.web3d.org/specifications/X3dSpecificationRelationships.png

a. Primary next step: align ISO/IEC 19775-2 Scene Access Interface (SAI) with 19775-1 X3D4 Architecture.

The SAI is the generic interface implemented by all of the corresponding programming languages.

Mostly OK already.  Will check for completeness, consistency, correctness.

[2.2]	X3D Abstract : Scene Access Interface (SAI) version 3.3
      	https://www.web3d.org/documents/specifications/19775-2/V3.3/index.html

Call for comment: what other SAI methods might be needed?

- For example: exposure to view matrix, transformation matrix, utility methods in X3DOM/X_ITE, etc.

Already noted: our legacy focus has (obviously) been on client side, it is interesting to note that server side (and cloud computing) can be considered from a compatibility perspective.  Can we run SAI headless, hooked up to other things?  This is not foreseen as any kind of significant design change, rather simply alignment of what we have already.

b. Open issue: whether to include X3DUOM as an informative reference.  More discussion to follow.

[2.3]	X3D Unified Object Model (X3DUOM)
      	https://www.web3d.org/specifications/X3DUOM.html

c. Discussion of file encodings.  Straightforward.

d. Discussion of programming-language APIs.

- 19775-3/4/5 for C, C++, C# binding.  Document should be straightforward but getting additional champions(s) for implementations is a shared need.  Alignment with major existing APIs (e.g. Unity3D) is especially valuable.
- 19775-6 noted maturity of implementation and multiple uses already, should be straightforward.

Something to think about: sorting numerically in priority order ECMAScript, Java (as is), then python, C#, C++, C

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3. HTML X3D Guidelines feedback

Thanks to Andreas Plesch for great emails, we will consider his points next week.

[3.1]	[x3d-public] L.3.1 Re: Annex L HTML authoring guidelines for X3D4; naming Script versus X3DScript
     	http://web3d.org/pipermail/x3d-public_web3d.org/2020-December/014276.html

[3.2]	http://web3d.org/pipermail/x3d-public_web3d.org/2020-December/014328.html

[3.3]	http://web3d.org/pipermail/x3d-public_web3d.org/2020-December/014327.html

[3.4]	http://web3d.org/pipermail/x3d-public_web3d.org/2021-January/014345.html

[3.5]	http://web3d.org/pipermail/x3d-public_web3d.org/2021-January/014352.html

Continued dialog on email list welcome.  We will review next week, all comments and insight are welcome.

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4. Join!

There has been no better time to be a Web3D Consortium Member, much value continues to steadily emerge.

[4.0]	Join the Web3D Consortium
      	https://www.web3d.org/join

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Hoping everyone is personally "staying safe" as we progress into a new year.

all the best, Don
-- 
Don Brutzman  Naval Postgraduate School, Code USW/Br       brutzman at nps.edu
Watkins 270,  MOVES Institute, Monterey CA 93943-5000 USA   +1.831.656.2149
X3D graphics, virtual worlds, navy robotics http://faculty.nps.edu/brutzman