[x3d-public] event tracing

Joe D Williams joedwil at earthlink.net
Thu Nov 17 12:10:44 PST 2016


http://www.web3d.org/documents/specifications/19775-2/V3.3/Part02/servRef.html#UpdateControl

"The timestamp of events generated at the call to EndUpdate are 
implementation dependent but should be consistent with the time within 
the current world."
...
"Once BeginUpdate has been called, it may be called any number of 
times, but only a single EndUpdate call is needed to release the 
buffered events into the scene graph. "

yes about efficiency and most important, ordering of events. External 
events are converted to internal events at the convenience of the 
playback engine. There are only certain external commands that are 
required to be executed immediately. Likewise, whatever human 
interaction engine has to wait for the scene to be complete before 
putting it up there to play with. So, the challenge is on both sides. 
Compose the complete frame faster than the interactor update rate, 
then speed up the interactor.

I think ideally, for sure all events expected by the author for that 
frame should be there. But mostly, it is to keep internal events from 
interupting browser housekeeping chores, like figuring out when to 
actually go ahead - all is good, this is the new frame.

So, it seems like every node, as well as the the root scene, might 
have beginupdate endupdate cycle because there are some times it 
probably does not want to interrupt a node doing it's main process. 
Internally, the processing model for #X3D includes the ability of the 
author to group related events into a single timestamp and thus 
essentially a single event cascade. The author does that because every 
picture should be complete. The 'external' also can tell the 
'internal' to group events into a single time stamp using 
begin/endupdate.

> ... cobweb_dom to collect the
> potentially multiple mutations observed by the DOM mutation observer 
> into a
> single batch

I am sure that is the intent of the SAI design. There are in fact some 
rules, like I think I remember that the external is not allowed to 
send MF items one at a time, it must be the complete field(?).  Mainly 
that the X3D processing model may take some time to make the current 
frame. During that time, she mostly may not care about most classes of 
events. The she wakes up again and asks what time it is and what has 
happened and what wants to happen since she went to sleep to make the 
current frame.

> These functions do not seem to
> be used internally by cobweb.

Internally, the default must be to somehow accumulate events until it 
is ready to work on the next frame.

This meeting of X3D and DOM is very interesting. It is very easy for 
an author to flog the x3d internal processing model from the inside 
and from the outside. What is the desired <x3d> 'internal' processing 
model? Is it different than the 'internal processing model described 
in the X3D spec. How does the <x3d> in html 'internal' processing 
model line up with

http://www.web3d.org/documents/specifications/19775-1/V3.3/Part01/concepts.html#ExecutionModel

In the diagram, you described processing flows between 
functionalities. Do we need to define what is actually going on 
internally to show sequence of what is happening to produce the <x3d> 
scene? I think yes.

The "post-event processing" seems real important to understand. Not 
sure how this works with the 'external' DOM and scene processing run 
from an 'internal' model complsed by a set of scripts. Is there some 
"pre-event processing" that takes place, and maybe some 
post-post-processing?

Thanks and Best,
Joe


abstract
http://www.hypermultimedia.com/x3d/Quick/SAIABSDEFS.htm
ecma
http://www.hypermultimedia.com/x3d/Quick/SAIDEFS.htm




----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Andreas Plesch" <andreasplesch at gmail.com>
To: "Joe D Williams" <joedwil at earthlink.net>
Cc: "Don Brutzman" <brutzman at nps.edu>; "X3D Graphics public mailing 
list" <x3d-public at web3d.org>
Sent: Wednesday, November 16, 2016 11:30 AM
Subject: Re: [x3d-public] event tracing


> Joe,
>
> thanks for bringing up .begin/endUpdate(); . I understood it more 
> like an
> optional mechanism for bundling (input) events into batches which 
> can then
> be processed by the x3d browser in a single cascade and perhaps 
> therefore
> more efficiently. I thought about using it for cobweb_dom to collect 
> the
> potentially multiple mutations observed by the DOM mutation observer 
> into a
> single batch since cobweb seems to have those SAI functions:
>
> https://github.com/create3000/cobweb/blob/master/cobweb.js/
> cobweb/Browser/X3DBrowser.js#L606
>
> At first glance, however, the code looks more like enable/disable 
> any
> updates, so I am not sure if it would work. These functions do not 
> seem to
> be used internally by cobweb.
>
> The basic flow for cobweb and cobweb_dom into the x3d browser is, 
> (using
> Background as example):
>
> BackgroundElementDomObject.setAttribute('skyColor','0 0 1') -> 
> mutation
> observer: 'look, a mutation, let's do something' -> cobweb_dom: find 
> x3d
> node and field corresponding to BackgroundElement and skyColor -> 
> parse '0
> 0 1' into SFColor -> send input event to x3d browser (cobweb) using
> .addEvent() -> cobweb just treats it as an internal event, so I do 
> not
> think it triggers a new cascade unless there is none -> cascade -> 
> picked
> up at next traversal for new frame
>
> With beginUpdate() cobweb should buffer all received events until
> endUpdate() and then dispatch them in the order received I believe. 
> Not
> sure if there is such a buffer. It looks more like all event after
> endUpdate() are ignored and evaporate but I may be wrong.
>
> For x3dom I am less sure but it would be possible to find out:
>
> BackgroundElementDomObject.setAttribute('skyColor','0 0 1') -> 
> mutation
> event (similar to mutation observer but deprecated) handler directly 
> to (no
> events) -> x3domBackgroundNode.fieldChanged(), change value of field
> including parsing -> routing somehow, either now cascade-like or at 
> next
> traversal -> change picked up at next traversal for new frame.
>
> So quite similar, just no explicit use of x3d events, more like
> directOutput for x3d scripts.
>
> -Andreas
>
>
> On Wed, Nov 16, 2016 at 1:15 PM, Joe D Williams 
> <joedwil at earthlink.net>
> wrote:
>
>> This is similar to events caused by external SAI actions which 
>> happen when
>>> they happen. The SAI spec. says somewhere that those SAI events 
>>> need to
>>> trigger a fresh cascade. cobweb_dom and cobweb may currently sort 
>>> such
>>> events into the event stream of the current cascade (or perhaps 
>>> next
>>> scheduled cascade) as is being described for asynchronous scripts 
>>> but I am
>>> not sure.
>>>
>>
>> Maybe old and settled, but the way I have seen #X3D work is that an 
>> event
>> from 'external' source is gated by the beginUpdate();  and 
>> endUpdate();
>> 'external' SAI functions. Unless you declare beginUpdate(); events 
>> are
>> accepted and converted to 'internal' events' at the the X3D browser
>> convenience. If you declare beginUpdate(); any 'external' SAI 
>> events are
>> buffered then, when the endUpdate(); is received the buffered 
>> events have
>> the same time stamp and are processed as 'internal' events.
>>
>> So far, when using DOM events to control the <x3d> beginUPdate and
>> endUpdate are not mentioned, that I have seen, even when scripting 
>> an
>> Inline from the DOM.
>>
>> Thanks Again,
>> Joe
>>
>>
>>
>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Andreas Plesch" <
>> andreasplesch at gmail.com>
>> To: "Don Brutzman" <brutzman at nps.edu>
>> Cc: "X3D Graphics public mailing list" <x3d-public at web3d.org>
>> Sent: Thursday, November 03, 2016 1:18 PM
>> Subject: Re: [x3d-public] event tracing
>>
>>
>> On Thu, Nov 3, 2016 at 12:45 PM, Don Brutzman <brutzman at nps.edu> 
>> wrote:
>>>
>>> Very interesting.  Wondering, do you think this might lead to 
>>> violations
>>>> of the loop-breaking rule for events?
>>>>
>>>>
>>> Not quite sure what you may refer to. The logging is just logging, 
>>> nothing
>>> else. When I mentioned seemingly variable processing times for the 
>>> same
>>> event, I was referring to the same event repeated in different 
>>> cascades
>>> (x3d timestamps).
>>>
>>>
>>> Essentially, the rule says that all event values generated during 
>>> a given
>>>> event cascade (i.e. between frame draws) are checked.  If two 
>>>> events are
>>>> both produced by the same source into the same ROUTE, then 
>>>> duplication
>>>> (likely a loop) has occurred.  Such recurrences are dropped to 
>>>> avoid
>>>> infinite loops.
>>>>
>>>> I've always assumed that this means the duplicate events have the 
>>>> same
>>>> timestamp, thinking for typical implementations that is probably 
>>>> what
>>>> occurs.
>>>>
>>>> However, if the check is performed by each individual ROUTE, 
>>>> which can
>>>> tell if a redraw has occurred since last receiving an eventOut 
>>>> value,
>>>> perhaps strict comparison of timestamp values isn't necessary?
>>>>
>>>>
>>> not sure.
>>>
>>>
>>> Key references:
>>>> ...
>>>>
>>>> 29.2.7 Asynchronous scripts
>>>> http://www.web3d.org/documents/specifications/19775-1/V3.3/
>>>> Part01/components/scripting.html#Asynchronousscripts
>>>>
>>>> "Some languages supported by X3D browsers may allow Script nodes 
>>>> to
>>>> spontaneously generate events, allowing users to create Script 
>>>> nodes that
>>>> function like new X3DSensorNode nodes. In these cases, the Script 
>>>> is
>>>> generating the initial events that causes the event cascade, and 
>>>> the
>>>> scripting language and/or the browser shall determine an 
>>>> appropriate
>>>> timestamp for that initial event. Such events are then sorted 
>>>> into the
>>>> event stream and processed like any other event, following all of 
>>>> the
>>>> same
>>>> rules including those for looping."
>>>>
>>>>
>>> This is similar to events caused by external SAI actions which 
>>> happen when
>>> they happen. The SAI spec. says somewhere that those SAI events 
>>> need to
>>> trigger a fresh cascade. cobweb_dom and cobweb may currently sort 
>>> such
>>> events into the event stream of the current cascade (or perhaps 
>>> next
>>> scheduled cascade) as is being described for asynchronous scripts 
>>> but I am
>>> not sure.
>>>
>>> One could start to think about testing a loop producing 
>>> (malicious) ROUTE
>>> or script. The loop could be produced just internally and also 
>>> somehow by
>>> involving the DOM integration (but any DOM action caused by a x3d 
>>> event of
>>> the current cascade should always affect/trigger a later cascade). 
>>> Is
>>> there a loop example somewhere ?
>>>
>>> -Andreas
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> ===========================================
>>>>
>>>> On 11/3/2016 6:32 AM, Andreas Plesch wrote:
>>>>
>>>> On Mon, Oct 31, 2016 at 6:54 PM, Don Brutzman <brutzman at nps.edu 
>>>> <mailto:
>>>>> brutzman at nps.edu>> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>     Tres cool, thank you for this information Andreas.
>>>>>
>>>>>     Trace performance of your teapot widgets is absolutely 
>>>>> tremendous,
>>>>> even while printing trace values on the screen (historically a 
>>>>> bog on
>>>>> performance).  No discernible change in perceived 
>>>>> responsiveness,
>>>>> with/without firebug tracing, even when i interactively try to 
>>>>> provoke
>>>>> sluggishness (running good old Windows 7 firefox).
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> I slightly updated the event logging to use performance.now 
>>>>> rather than
>>>>> event.timeStamp which is consistent across browsers and to also 
>>>>> report
>>>>> the
>>>>> difference between the x3d timestamp and the time of logging 
>>>>> which
>>>>> should
>>>>> happen just after dispatching of the DOM event and before 
>>>>> drawing to the
>>>>> webgl canvas. The x3d timestamp is created at the beginning of
>>>>> processing
>>>>> of x3d events for each cascade, I believe. This difference 
>>>>> varies
>>>>> considerably, about between 2 ms and 20 ms, even for repeats of 
>>>>> the same
>>>>> events. Chrome shows a little less difference on average. So I 
>>>>> am not
>>>>> sure
>>>>> how accurate these timings are in relation to when things really 
>>>>> happen
>>>>> and
>>>>> what external factors influence these.
>>>>>
>>>>> https://andreasplesch.github.io/cobweb_dom/tests/interactive
>>>>> Transformations.xhtml
>>>>>
>>>>> -Andreas
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>> 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/brutzma
>>>> n
>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> --
>>> Andreas Plesch
>>> 39 Barbara Rd.
>>> Waltham, MA 02453
>>>
>>>
>>
>> ------------------------------------------------------------
>> --------------------
>>
>>
>> _______________________________________________
>>> x3d-public mailing list
>>> x3d-public at web3d.org
>>> http://web3d.org/mailman/listinfo/x3d-public_web3d.org
>>>
>>>
>>
>
>
> -- 
> Andreas Plesch
> 39 Barbara Rd.
> Waltham, MA 02453
> 




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