Google street view

  • I notice that in Google street view if you double-click the image the view immediately moves to that point and centers the view. This is good.

    Any way to easily implement this ? I think the more commonality there is between high-res panoramas and Google street view, the easier they will be to sell.

  • no, he means that looktohotspot is a feature that *could work* like google street view, except.. google uses some kind of (lasers?) cameras or something that make hotspots of all the panorama making it a big hotspot per say.

    so looktohotspot could probably work on this but I don't know if it will work exactly as streetview...

    but since you can't even double click in krpano... I don't think its going to be possible to 100% emulate this :)

    (hahaha I've edited this post about 10 times... I need some sleep *wacko* )

  • Thanks Shanti, but this would mean creating multiple hotspots ?

    Maybe this is ancient history, but why not double-click ? The biggest weakness in panorama tours by far is the non-standard controls. I think Google is the key.

  • There was a post talking about double-click, and Klaus trying to implement it, but in my opinion, panoramas have *standard* controls, they are just not *google's* standard* controls, panorama player have used the same controls ever since I discovered panoramas about 6 years ago, google is the one that changed, I for once, HATE the drag controls that google uses I think it really cuts the experience in half when you have to click like 10 times to rotate, I do like the new feature in google streets thou :)

    hopefully Klaus can implement the double click to zoom at least :)

  • Well, I agree that the drag is bad in Google, but the double-click to move and center the view is excellent.

    And whatever Google does *is* the standard. Street view is good promotion for panorama photography.

    Have you looked at panoramas as used in the real estate industry ? Absolutely awful, and every one of them has different way of presenting them. That's really what I mean: a video is obvious - you press play. Panoramas aren't obvious to many people. I have watched people completely fail to understand the "click and drag" effect on screen even after I have explained it !

  • Have you looked at panoramas as used in the real estate industry ? Absolutely awful, and every one of them has different way of presenting them.

    The panoramas in the real estate industry are right up there with their photography. *thumbdown* And people pay them how much to "market" their property???

    Phil

  • I don't agree on the Google IS the standard part... but I do agree that Google changes the standards for their own convenience, and then everyone follows, but I really think if you explain your panorama and have easy to use controls you should have no problem with clients, but in the other hand, I have seen clients that just don't get it no matter what, I am sure they wouldn't get Google either.

    Real state panoramas should not even be called panoramas, they are so awful, and that's because agents don't give a damn on this, and I know I used to work on a real estate company (not related to photo or panoramas :P ) but Google street panoramas are not far from awful too (well the latest generation have better quality).

    hopefully the pano makers/viewers/etc won't follow Google street view, as their controls are just pretty lame EXCEPT for the double click.

  • getting a double click to work in krpano is one challenge.

    The real problem is setting up your pano so that an "event" (single or double click) moves you in the correct direction... to the appropriate "next" or "previous" pano.

    If you are using icons... it's simple... click icon A, you go that direction, click icon B and go the other way (which in the case of icons, most people now understand that while on the web, single clicks on icons is the standard).

    Without using icons, I think you could setup two large transparent hotspots... one on each half of the pano and set the correct events. But, then you will run across the problem of when you click to move the pano... you'll be clicking one of the hotspots. Might work around it by changing the control functions to just follow the mouse... saving the clicks for the hotspots.

    Interesting scenario.

  • I think the experience from Street View is the best.
    Double click and their "smart hotspot" are crucial to make a real immersive experience.
    I love the way google shows a circle in perspective if you are over the street, or an oriented square if you are over a building, that's really helps to make the 3D illusion.
    And google interprets our double clicks, orienting the view and zooming the image if we are clicking a building or changing the pano if we click over the street (even they made a "pseudo blending" so we don't feel the "break" of changing the pano).
    Is there a way to make something similar to Google Street View?
    I think they are combining the LIDAR information to make their smart hotspot. But maybe we could define manually where is the street (or floor) and where are the walls, so our mouse can show with a circle (or square) in perspective according with the real 3D of the scene.
    That's would a really big step for KRPano

  • google's way is doable to copy with a bit of javascript:

    in the head of your html:

    and in krpano you have to add

    Code
    <events
     onxmlcomplete="js(set_events())"
    />


    because else the browser will try to set the doubleclick event, while krpano isnt loaded.

  • btw you cant compare krpano with google. Google has lasers and mapping data, building a pseudo 3d environment with photos mapped to the environment, they have long/lat coordinates and a bearing (where the north is at). 99,999% of the users here just have a spherical/cubic image. Or maybe a couple of images, but not of every street from every angle. Which would mean you have to "define" by hand where you have a photo.

    you can build upon krpano to do all that. Krpano is very modular. But krpano shouldnt be made towards that goal because that would mean, to make a tour to work, you should provide all that data.

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