virtual tour software

Forum Moderators: not2easy

Message Too Old, No Replies

virtual tour software

for a real estate website

newnewbie1

1:18 am on Aug 19, 2003 (gmt 0)

Hi!

What's the best way to create a virtual tour for a real estate website? I'd like to have button controls, where you can zoom in, and go left, right, up & down. Can anybody make any recommendations?

THX!

Mardi_Gras

1:34 am on Aug 19, 2003 (gmt 0)

I use IPIX. Its the only solution I've ever used, so I can't compare it to any other products that may be available...

d_fused

4:00 am on Aug 19, 2003 (gmt 0)

I'd like to have button controls, where you can zoom in, and go left, right, up & down. Can anybody make any recommendations?

You may want to give pixaround a try.

Another options is using quicktime (Arc Soft's Panorama Maker), or even Flash.

I vote for IPIX, though.

4crests

4:16 am on Aug 19, 2003 (gmt 0)

I have pixaround, and it works pretty good. However, I know I enjoy the IPIX ones better when I see them on the web.

mivox

4:21 am on Aug 19, 2003 (gmt 0)

The best walkthroughs I've seen were done with QuickTime VR, but IPIX isn't bad. QTVR has less "fish eye" distortion in the images, but I think IPIX might be less expensive to get into...

Not sure, but I just got my tripod for the new digital camera I'm getting this week, so I may need to find excuses to play with my new toys... hehehe

d_fused

4:29 am on Aug 19, 2003 (gmt 0)

Not sure, but I just got my tripod for the new digital camera I'm getting this week, so I may need to find excuses to play with my new toys... hehehe

On a side note:
Make sure you brought it to the PubConf. I would love to see a PubConf5 VR tour...

mivox

6:09 pm on Aug 19, 2003 (gmt 0)

Hehehe... I don't think I could get everyone to stop moving long enough for a good panorama. But I guess I could slow down the shutter speed so you just saw some ghostly people-smears moving between the clusters of conversation.

Careful. If I start getting all "artsy" before the conference, something awful could happen. I don't want to contemplate the hospital bills if I were suddenly overtaken by the desire to take photos from foot-level pointing upwards, or something strange like that.

(I've never seen a crowd photo taken from the floor looking up... hmmm... hehehehe)

rcjordan

6:20 pm on Aug 19, 2003 (gmt 0)

Not that I'd worry about it for JohnQ (yet), but Ipix requires ActiveX.

katandr

1:26 pm on Sep 3, 2003 (gmt 0)

Hi!
I like very much 3DPhotoBuilder software
rather good software and reasonable price
I was recommened to use this software by my brother who was also a virtual tour disigner as me
I used this software and rather happy with it
if you know other good software I please let me know

[edited by: mivox at 9:16 pm (utc) on Sep. 3, 2003]
[edit reason] removed site URL [/edit]

TallTroll

1:51 pm on Sep 3, 2003 (gmt 0)

>> Not that I'd worry about it for JohnQ (yet), but Ipix requires ActiveX.

That only applies to the plug-in version, AFAIK. The Java version (which is better for the web anyway) only requires a Java enabled v4+ browser

edit_g

2:20 pm on Sep 3, 2003 (gmt 0)

IPix is the way forward - but the keys can be quite expensive.

katandr

2:30 pm on Sep 3, 2003 (gmt 0)

I like viewer for 3D panorama by anything3d.com
It has control buttons, hotspots, zoom in/out
the only thing that i does not like is that the purchased version can be used only at one domain
but freeware version can be used as many times as you want but it goes with this company logo

mivox

9:04 pm on Sep 3, 2003 (gmt 0)

IPix is the way forward

I don't understand why everyone loves ipix so much... that fisheye lens look just drives me batty everytime I see an ipix panorama.

edit_g

9:09 pm on Sep 3, 2003 (gmt 0)

I don't understand why everyone loves ipix so much... that fisheye lens look just drives me batty everytime I see an ipix panorama.

It might be that I used to have a digital slr, a tripod, a fisheye lens and more Ipix keys than I could count (if you've ever paid for one, you'll know why you HAVE to use them...) :)

But really - they're good for real estate. You can get a decent impression of what things are like and I don't think your average punter would notice the fisheye thing.

mivox

9:20 pm on Sep 3, 2003 (gmt 0)

Well the 'key' thing really wouldn't be an issue in a professional situation... Either you directly bill the client for the cost of the key, or you factor it into your prices. But that distortion just does my head in... hehehe.

Yidaki

1:00 pm on Sep 7, 2003 (gmt 0)

>IPIX

You're probably not interested in software politics but it's worth to read a bit what the company behind IPIX did in the past:

Google for No IPIX [google.com]

Allthouh the story is somewhat outdated i for one rarely forget what a company did in the past and therefor - as a professional panographer - still don't do/use IPIX but QTVR instead.

btw: if you need good quality panos, you shouldn't start with software research but with shooting a lot of photos. ;)

Chuma

1:07 am on Sep 9, 2003 (gmt 0)

I haven't used it in years, but there is also some software on the market called PhotoVista for making panoramas.

After using it to make about 400 panoramas (and putting the "hot spots" in manually to the VRML file it used), I swore I wouldn't do it again (it was a college project.)

Some of the software comes with different options that allow you to use it on web pages or as a plug-in for a program like Director if you want to make a CD presentation.

Thanks.

mivox

8:14 pm on Sep 9, 2003 (gmt 0)

Found a freeware panorama package: PanoTools [home.no.net]

Haven't had a chance to play with it yet, but it sounds like it will do QT compatible files, as well as having a freeware Java viewer that supports hotspots...

Looks very interesting, and if it doesn't work out for what you (or I) need, at least you're not out any money. ;) Love that freeware!