The Z Axis

Happy Birthday Jaime

2009-05-31T19:06:00.000-07:00

It was my niece Jaime's 5th birthday this weekend. My sister Sharon and my brother-in-law Mark organized a great party for all the kids and the adults. While the kids played and painted bird houses on the "messy bus", the adults drank wine and mingled. I also managed to sneak in a few pictures and a video of the event and captured it in the 3D Scene below.

Note: I used the "Scrapbook" premium template for this 3D Scene as it has over 20 photo slots. Click on the images in the scene to view them larger. Create your own 3D Scenes here.

We've launched My 3D Scenes on Facebook

2009-05-19T16:36:00.000-07:00

After an initial launch on Friendster last month, today we launched the service on Facebook. See a scene I've created with my Facebook account below. It only takes a few minutes to create one of these and personalize it with your own pictures and videos.

More on 3D Scenes

2009-04-21T13:15:00.000-07:00

Following up on my last post, Virtual Worlds News wrote a nice article about the recent launch of our 3D Scenes application.

We're also excited to see users embed 3D Scenes on their blogs and web pages to display and share their photos and videos. A great example can be found on Constance Pappalardo's blog. A visual artist, Constance is using 3D Scenes to promote and merchandise her artwork in a new and highly engaging way. Make sure to click on the televisions in the scene to view her fabulous Animoto videos.

Finally, we're working closely with interactive agencies and directly with brands to showcase how 3D Scenes can be used to create effective and engaging advertising campaigns. Here's an example of a 3D Scene that we've customized for the home furniture retailer, Pier 1. Make sure to click on the items in the scene (desk, candles, chair, rug, wall panels, etc.) to link to additional information on Pier 1's website and on the laptop and television to view one of Pier 1's signature commercials.

Introducing 3D Scenes

2009-04-15T09:05:00.000-07:00

Well, it's been quite some time since our last blog post. While we can blame the holidays, the darkness of winter and the global economic recession, the real reason for our long blog hiatus is that we have been busy these past several months working on our latest application.

Well the wait is over. We're really excited to finally be able to tell you about and show you our new 3D Scenes application. 3D Scenes offers users a brand new way to view, interact and share their personal media, including photos and YouTube videos, in a rich, immersive 3D environment. Significantly, 3D Scenes is a Flash based app and therefore doesn't require any proprietary plug-ins or lengthy downloads -- it just works!

So how does it work? Users of 3D Scenes can select from a wide range of fun and thematic 3D templates such as Fashionista, Gothic Princess, Surf's Up, Soho Gallery and Medieval Times, point and click to add their photos and videos and then post their personalized 3D Scene on their social networking profile page or embed it on their web page or blog. A quick intro video of the app can be viewed here.

We're especially excited to announce that we have partnered with Friendster, one of the top global social networks, for the initial launch of 3D Scenes. Friendster's 85 million users can now enhance their profile pages by creating amazing 3D Scenes. The Friendster deployment of 3D Scenes can be found here. By the way, within the first week of launch, 3D Scenes is already the second most popular app on Friendster's global network!

Ok, so what if you don't have a Friendster account? No problem. We're launching a Facebook version of 3D Scenes within the next couple of weeks and we expect to be on other major social networks very soon.

Before signing off, we'd like to thank a couple of our partners, Paypal and Zong who are providing the payment systems for the purchase of premium templates and virtual goods on 3D Scenes. We'll be adding more payment options soon, including OfferPal, and new templates and features so keep coming back often to check us out.

Finally, I thought I'd leave you with one of my 3D Scenes which features my profile picture on Friendster (I know it's dark, but I like it) and celebrates one of the great comedy troupes and movies of all time: Monty Python and The Holy Grail. Click on the photos and videos in the scene to get a closer look.

SceneCaster: A Cost Effective Marketing Solution for The Times

2008-10-16T14:46:00.000-07:00

We've been busy this past month preparing for our next major release, which is scheduled for early November. This new release will significantly enhance and expand (hint, hint) the overall user experience on our sites and will also create new and more effective advertising and commerce opportunities for our brand partners. Enough said for now. Check back in a few weeks to experience the new SceneCaster first hand.

On a more sober note, it's clear that this coming year will be a difficult one for businesses and consumers in North America and around the world. The financial credit crisis and a looming recession is forcing companies to adjust to the new economic realities by reducing expenses and becoming more capital efficient.

In these tough times, retailers, brands and advertisers are seeking cost effective sales and marketing solutions. This is where SceneCaster comes in. As a recent article in Stores magazine notes, SceneCaster "takes much of the cost and time out of creating physical spaces and allows retailers to create an unlimited variety of showrooms stocked with their products".

Reducing costs though is only one part of the equation. SceneCaster is also helping retailers like SmartFurniture increase sales. As TJ Gentle, President of SmartFurniture, notes: "[SceneCaster] gives us a pure online way of helping people so they can see what it will really look like. It provides us with a lot more sales opportunities."

In the coming weeks, we will be launching a new program designed to provide companies both large and small with a cost effective solution to market and sell their products online using SceneCaster's immersive 3D Web application. As Stores magazine suggests, "online retailers may find that the ability to mix and match products in a virtual environment translates into instant sales."

Our new 3D viewer is available

2008-08-25T16:45:00.001-07:00

We launched our new 3D viewer on Friday and already our most creative users are saving out their best scenes in interactive 3D mode. I'm highlighting one of Lesley Bergen's masterpieces: The Grand Hotel. Click and drag on the view below to look around. Click on the elevator door or on the blue panel next to the back door to get taken to different areas. Click on the camera icons below the view window to see the scene from different virtual cameras.

Will Web 3D Change Future of Shopping and Socializing - We Think So!

2008-08-05T12:50:00.000-07:00

The Industry Standard posted a great article today titled: "Will Web3D change shopping and socializing?"

The article notes that: "Web3D is poised to change not only how users interact with the Web, but how businesses interact with consumers and with each other." Matthew Busse, the author of the article, highlights SceneCaster as one of the leading companies that is focusing on utilizing Web3D technology as a way to enhance user engagement and provide brands with a more contextual and immersive way to market and sell their products online. As Matthew says: "By allowing users to fill their 3D spaces with objects that link to real-world products, SceneCaster provides businesses with an immersive, interactive environment to showcase their products."

It's great to see industry observers like Matthew take notice of the impact of Web3D on the future of online commerce and social interactions. This year has seen an explosion of interest and activity in this space with reports from Forrester and Gartner heralding the 3D Web as the "next major wave of the Internet".

Of course, we believe that the Industry Standard, Forrester, Gartner and VC firms such as Kleiner Perkins that are investing in this space are right: that the 3D Web will change how users interact and engage online and how brands sell and market their products. Our focus continues to be on mainstreaming the 3D Web by lowering the barriers to adoption through new product releases like our Immersiv 3D Viewer and by offering brands a highly contextual and immersive platform to advertise and showcase their products.

Finally, to respond to Matthew's opening question: "Will these new 3D applications catch on?", the proof is in the pudding. In the past six months, we've added nearly 1.5 million net new users and SceneCaster is currently ranked in 99th percentile of all Facebook applications. So, yes, some of these new 3D applications are catching on...in a big way!

SceneCaster Video from AlwaysOn Hollywood

2008-07-29T07:39:00.001-07:00

The video from our presentation at the AlwaysOn Hollywood conference is now available on the AlwaysOn website. Go check it out.

We were honoured to be invited to present at this prestigious event in sunny Los Angeles. It was also an opportunity for us to demo for the very first time our Immersiv 3D Viewer.

Scheduled for release next month, the Immersiv 3D Viewer will enable users to enjoy an immersive 3D experience in their browser, with no plug-in or download required. In addition, this new viewer allows for the playback of YouTube videos, inclusion of user uploaded photos, 3D models and custom textures and the ability to embed the viewer on any web page or blog. For more details, see my interview with VirtualWorldsNews.

SceneCaster Selected by IDC Canada as One of the Top Ten Web 2.0 Companies

2008-07-29T07:01:00.000-07:00

IDC Canada recently named SceneCaster as one of the "Top 10 Web 2.0 Companies to Watch". The IDC study, "10 Canadian Web 2.0 Companies to Watch", focuses on companies that "have the potential to make an impact in the information and communication technology (ICT) market".

IDC considered several criteria in its selection process, including: clarity of vision; development of partner ecosystem; strength of customer base; understanding of and ability to navigate competitive environments; and, overall market growth trajectory.

We're thrilled to be recognized by IDC as one of the leading Web 2.0 companies. We also congratulate the other companies named in the study, including: AdHack, dthree Inc., Octopz, Overlay.TV, PlanetEye, Ramius, Standout Jobs, Tomoye and Tungle.

SceneCaster Selected by Industry Standard to Top 10 List of Web Services That Will Succeed

2008-03-31T13:51:00.000-07:00

We're pleased to announce that the Industry Standard, a well respected technology journal and website that covers emerging technologies and companies, has selected SceneCaster as one of the top "10 'Net Services that Will Succeed". In selecting their top 10 list, the Industry Standard focused on services that "operate under the radar and prove themselves over time by creating compelling, unique products and sustainable business models."

In support of their selection of SceneCaster to the top 10 list, the Industry Standard commented that, "user generated 3D content is getting bigger, and SceneCaster is well positioned to capitalize on this trend." We're flattered to have been selected though we continue to be focused on improving and extending the SceneCaster 3D experience to our global user base and to our brand sponsors and partners.

The full article can be viewed here: http://www.thestandard.com/news/2008/03/27/opinion-10-net-services-will-succeed-and-10-will-probably-fail and the SceneCaster selection review can be read here: http://www.thestandard.com/news/2008/03/27/scenecaster-setting-and-sharing-3d-scenes-easy-way.

SceneWeaver technology is now live on SceneCaster

2008-03-26T12:14:00.000-07:00

We've now gone live with our SceneWeaver technology. Basically we are offering 3 new features:

You can now add links to objects in your scenes. These links can be to other scenes or to any page on the web. Follow this link for instructions on how to set a link.
You can embed your scenes in any web page or blog that allows you to insert JavaScript. See the example below to get a sense of what this looks like in blogger. To embed scenes, go to the scene description page (that's where you're taken when you click on the thumbnail of a scene in any of searches on SceneCaster).
Your scenes can now be viewed in our Universal Viewer without requiring a download. That means that anyone can view your scenes and interact with them on any standards compatible browser.

=Alain

A new dawn is near...

2008-03-11T20:31:00.000-07:00

A little while ago Alain posted the DEMO '08 video announcing SceneWeaver technology and how we're going to be integrating it into the SceneCaster exprience. Well we've been grinding away for the past couple months implementing these great new features and we're a-l-m-o-s-t ready to release it. This is without a doubt, our biggest release ever and you can expect some major improvements in all areas. We've been playing with a near complete version internally and I guarantee you that this will change the way you think about SceneCaster and 3D on the net. In a matter of days you'll be able to experience it for yourself and I can't wait to see what you do with it.
Stay tuned...

DemoCamp Toronto presentation tonight

2008-02-25T20:38:00.000-08:00

We did a presentation at DemoCamp Toronto tonight. There was a hefty turnout (you couldn't sign up to attend last week because all available places had been taken) and the demo went well. Looked like about 400 people to me. We got a lot of questions after showing the upcoming version of SceneCaster. Final testing is underway and we expect to be releasing it in the next few weeks!

=Alain

Unbelievable growth over the past month!

2008-02-12T16:43:00.001-08:00

Last month, on January 11th, I announced that we had reached a total of 150,000 FaceBook users. We're now a month later and we've grown even more! In fact we've just today crossed the milestone of 300,000 users on FaceBook! We've DOUBLED in number of FaceBook users in one month! We'd like to thank all of our user community for the wonderful scenes you are building with our software. That, more than anything else, is driving other users to try SceneCaster out. Please continue designing creative scenes and driving more users to SceneCaster. When, a month from now, we release the SceneWeaver technology that we announced at DEMO 2008 two weeks ago, you'll be able to embed your 3D creations anywhere on the web and link to anything you can imagine. We're excited to see what you do with this and expect that you'll knock our socks off with your creative concepts!

=Alain

DEMO '08 video

2008-01-31T21:26:00.000-08:00

Here's the DEMO 08 video embedded.

=Alain

Video On Line And Some Great Write Ups

2008-01-30T10:19:00.000-08:00

The video of our DEMO 2008 presentation is now available on line We had a major scare when the stage WiFi system stopped working just as we were about to get on stage. Luckily, it came back up very quickly.

We're already seeing some great press coverage. My favorite quote so far is from the 3Dwalkthroughs blog: "3Dwalkthroughs.com believes we will look back on SceneWeaver in a few years as the application that helped us take the first big step towards a completely 3D internet." Here are a few links:

=Alain

We've just announced SceneWeaver

2008-01-29T21:27:00.000-08:00

The SceneCaster team is attending DEMO 2008 where we're announcing our new SceneWeaver technology that we'll be releasing at the end of February. SceneWeaver extends the reach of SceneCaster in three ways:

You will now be able to add links to objects. These links can be to another scene, a specific camera in your scene or any web page on the internet.
We are adding the ability to embed your scene in any web page or blog on the internet. You can see an example of this below.
We are making these scenes universally available so that viewers can interact with them whether or not they have a plug in. The software automatically detects if you have the plug in or not, and adapts its behavior accordingly. In the example below you can see what this looks like for someone who doesn't have our plug in.

We'll be making this technology available to all SceneCaster users at the end of February.

=Alain

A new review and a new look

2008-01-19T07:55:00.000-08:00

We've spotted another SceneCaster review in the blogosphere. Natalie's Blog writes about her SceneCaster experience after discovering the service through FaceBook. She also shows a snapshot of a wonderful scene that she's designed, depicting a hotel room. She links the picture to her scene description page on scenecaster.com Thanks Natalie!

We've updated the look of this blog with a new template design. We had used one of the standard blogger templates to start this off and now felt that it was high time to get around to actually designing something more in line with the SceneCaster experience.

=Alain

150K FaceBook users and counting...

2008-01-11T22:40:00.000-08:00

On December 26th I announced that we had hit the milestone of 100,000 FaceBook users. Today, I am happy to announce that we're 50% higher than that and have now crossed the milestone of 150,000 current FaceBook users (that means that 150,000 FaceBook users currently have the SceneCaster app installed!).

We're awfully proud of that and would like to thank all of you who are actively building SceneCaster scenes. You're the ones who are driving others to participate in the SceneCaster experience!

In a little over two weeks we will be at the DEMO 2008 conference in Palm Springs where we will be announcing the new features of our upcoming release. We hope to excite you and entice you all to create ever more interesting 3D scenes with our technology!

I will be posting a description of all of the new features live during my talk at DEMO 2008 on this blog on January 29th. Stay tuned for the announcements. We feel certain that you'll be excited by what we announce!

=Alain

Great SceneCaster review at online-tech-tips.com

2008-01-05T15:25:00.000-08:00

We're all excited about the glowing review that Aseem Kishore has posted about SceneCaster in his technology blog. To quote his blog "Overall, it’s probably the best 3D sketching and environment creation app I have used which is SIMPLE yet creates realistic scenes." Thanks Aseem! You can follow this link to read the full post.

=Alain

Happy New Year!

2008-01-04T17:50:00.000-08:00

In my last post on December 26th we celebrated the first one hundred thousand SceneCaster users on FaceBook. Today we have crossed yet another milestone. We just went over 130 thousand SceneCaster users on FaceBook today. It took us roughly ten days to add 30% more users. We're totally impressed by what you are all doing with the software. We're pumped and we're excited about what you are creating. But we're not expecting to simply rest on our laurels based on our initial growth.

We've been invited back to the DEMO conference at the end of January and can't wait to show you all, at that point, what we have been busily working on at SceneCaster HQ since DEMO Fall 2007. We hope to amaze you and inspire you to new levels of 3D creativity that have never before been available on the web. Keep watching this blog to see what we launch at the end of January. We firmly expect to knock your socks off, both in terms of ease of creation possibilities and breadth of reach.

=Alain

The first 100K

2007-12-26T15:42:00.000-08:00

On Christmas Eve we achieved a significant milestone. SceneCaster is now installed on over 100,000 FaceBook accounts. What a way to help the SceneCaster team celebrate the holidays! We would really like to thank all of you who have signed up for SceneCaster and especially those of you who have been actively pushing it and giving us feedback. Your suggestions and comments help us make the product ever better. We've taken all of your requests into account to help craft the feature set of our next release. We expect that you'll be very excited by what we deliver.

The number of users keeps on growing steadily and we are constantly amazed at the creativity that goes into the many scenes that we see you creating!

We're looking forward to a very exciting year in 2008 and hope to amaze you with the next release of SceneCaster!

Our favorite pass time right now at SceneCaster HQ is to pore over our growth curves to try to predict when we will go past the 1 million user mark! If you're feeling adventurous, feel free to add your guess to the comments here! As a basis for your guess, you should know that we went from a handful of users at launch on September 25th (mostly the SceneCaster staff), to over 100,000 users three months later on December 24th. A hint for those of you who might be mathematically inclined: the running assumption that most people are making is that this should be some form of geometric progression (you get new users proportionally to the number you currently have).

Happy Holidays to all and have a wonderful New Year in full 3D!

=Alain

Apologies for the outage on December 12

2007-12-12T16:09:00.000-08:00

At half past midnight Eastern time on December 12th, our site started generating server side errors that prevented users from being able to use our service. Unfortunately the outage wasn't a full outage. The web site was operational, but would serve up error messages instead of fulfilling user requests. As a result, our monitoring system, that, at the time, simply tested to see if it got a response from the web server, did not send a page to our network staff to let them know that there was an issue at hand that needed to be taken care of immediately. This incident only got resolved when our staff came to the office in the morning and noticed the issue. It was quickly fixed after that, but left tens of thousands of you stranded in the interim.

That's not the experience that we would want you to have when using SceneCaster and we are taking concrete steps to make sure that this scenario can not occur again in the future. More specifically, we have now set up monitoring that checks the content that the web service returns rather than simply making sure that it returns something.

We understand that many of you were frustrated, especially the new users that had just signed up for the service, and would like to apologize to all of you who experienced difficulties using SceneCaster as a result of this outage. We're putting the necessary changes in place in our processes to make sure that you never have to experience similar circumstances in the future.

=Alain

SceneCaster earns the #1 spot on FaceBook

2007-12-10T11:36:00.001-08:00

This past Saturday SceneCaster was the #1 Most Active application on all of Facebook. This ranking is judged by having the most daily active users as a percentage of the total user base, and having over 10K users. SceneCaster took the top slot with 80% daily active users. Read more about our growth in this article.
Thanks for making us #1!

Stability release, upcoming feature release, a new Facebook group and plenty of new holiday objects

2007-12-07T19:58:00.000-08:00

It's been quite a while since my last post. We're going gangbusters here at SceneCaster HQ, getting ready for the launch of our next release, scheduled for end of January. Two days ago we deployed a stability release to address many of the issues that you have raised since we launched at the end of September. We're busily at work on the next version which will be a feature release. We'll be posting more info on what is new when we get closer to the release.

Given the time of year and the success that we had with our Halloween collection, we've also released a holiday collection with all sorts of objects that you might use to make 3D greeting cards to send to your friends for the holidays. How about sharing what you build with me (use the share link at the scene description page) and I'll post about the holiday scenes that I find most interesting!

Michael, our eminent Scene Master, has started up a facebook group where you can learn directly from the Master. He's accessible and he's open to your questions! He's also posting "How To" videos there to show you how to do the more difficult operations with SceneCaster. You can visit Michael at our FaceBook group page.

Jonathan should be posting about the fact that we are number 1 on the Most Active list of FaceBook apps today. We want to say thank you to all of our users because what that means is that you are using it a lot!

=Alain