MetaStream
Vadim Abadjev, Miguel del Rosario, Alexei Lebedev, Alexander Migdal, Victor Paskhaver · 1999
Elaborate 3-D computer graphics scenes containing highly detailed geometric models are rapidly emerging as the "next frontier" requirement for Internet-based applications.In the past, such models have been represented by single, fixed resolution complex triangular meshes which place rigorous demands upon transmission bandwidth, storage capacity and rendering time.In order to accommodate and foster the transmission of 3-D data across the Internet, streamability, scalability and compression are required.This paper describes MetaStreamTM (MTS), a framework for the storage of multiresomtion 3-D models including associated geometry and texture data.By providing an efficient representation for progressively structured, compressed geometry and texture information while simultaneously preserving appearance attributes, MTS is able to overcome many of the hurdles associated with the practical use of streamable computer graphics and, we believe, represents an enabling technology for graphics over the Internet.Metacreations and Intel have agreed on joint research and development of the MTS file format for 3-D graphics developers, and Microsoft has included MTS in its DirectX 6 and ChromeffectsTM interactive media technology.