Does Anyone Have Wikipedia Experience?

[dbawel]

Hello BJS community,

I wrote and submitted the first Wikipedia article for babylon.js late last year. I've submitted it to Wikipedia twice now, and the last time they had reviewed it and I was told it should only be a week or two and it would be approved and posted. Even today, when I look at my submission online, it is still pending. I've communicated with several advisors for Wikipedia the past 3 months since they changed their submission tools, but no one has been able to truly assist as of yet. I believe I got caught in the middle of their switching the submission methods - which is why I've submitted twice now. But I don't believe I should submit again as I'm sure this would certainly cause problems, as Wikipedia is the most understaffed and difficult website to deal with - although we all respect what they do only through limited donations and funds.

It has been over 4 months now, and advisors have notified me that the waiting list is not more than 4 to 6 weeks. If there is anyone in this community who has sucessfully posted a Wikipedia page and might be able to assist me in submitting and following up, it would be greatly appriciated by the whole community - since it then opens the door to others to add to my first article, and to also post their own articles about babylon.js in their native languages. As you might know, the first page on any topic is the most difficult to have reviewed and approved. DK is the only one yet to read the article, and I believe we need the world to be able to research and understand what babylon.js is, the people who created it, and the history of it's genesis.

Thanks,

DB

[jerome]

seems so painful :-(

 

[Vousk-prod.]

Maybe three.js made a substancial donation

[dbawel]

Ha ha... funny guys! It truly is a very painful experience to publish and post onto Wikipedia - technically and operationaly much more complicated than Github, and then you must go through the approval process which is a relative process which varies from advisor to advisor. I thought and still hope that someone passing through this forum might have had experience and sucess in posting on Wikipedia - but I'm not waiting regardless - I'm acively looking for a solid advisor right now, and hopefully can locate one in the next few days. This is how Wikipedia works these days - to post any article, a user must have an advisor who is working for free to assist - which I have found to be a very flawed system.

In the meantime, I should post the article here to allow babylon.js users to read and to perhaps better understand the genesis of BJS and how it fits into the WebGL community. Posting here also provides everyone with information they can use when newbies ask "why babylon?" It is also valuable to know where the framework came from, as it reflects the mindset and process used to develop it, as well as it's potential - considering it began as a game engine for the most part, and is incredibly powerful in its ability to run efficiently and expand quickly and easily.

So below is the article, with the exception of a couple of graphic elements which I can provide if anyone requests. However, these elements don't provide much more info unless you are a complete newbie to babylon.js. 

Quote

 

Babylon.js : An open source framework for authoring 3D using WebGL

 

Overview:

 

Babylon.js is an open source JavaScript framework for the building and rendering of 2D and 3D elements used for the creation of games and interactive multimedia on the internet.  Through the adoption of new web standards such as HTML5 and WebGL, these standards have provided babylon.js the necessary components for the highest quality and consistency in the rendering of 3D graphics within most mainstream browsers, and across a wide variety of display devices without the need for a plugin to process and render.

 

 

History:

 

WebGL

WebGL was developed in part by Vladimir Vukicevic while working for Mozilla.  In 2006, he began working on a prototype OpenGL 3D context for the <canvas> HTML element which he named Canvas 3D¹.  His work led to the creation of a royalty free standard API for OpenGL and OpenGL ES 2.0 capabilities², led by the Khronos Group which introduced the WebGL specification.

 

Five years later in March of 2011, the first official version 1.0 of WebGL was released, and almost immediately Apple, Google, Mozilla, and Opera threw in their support for this new specification³.  However, due to security concerns in light of a brand new API, Microsoft wouldn’t announce its official support of WebGL until June of 2013.

 

Babylon and Babylon.js

The person who is considered the “Father” of Babylon and babylon.js is David Catuhe who began writing his first 3D engine in 1994 - programming in the C development language through a Dos command prompt.  He named his engine z3d, and ported it to Glide for 3dfx hardware rendering before OpenGL existed.  Once DirectX was released in 1995, David began developing a completely new engine using C++, and in 1998 released the Nova graphics engine. 

 

Eight more versions of Nova were released until 2010, when David began working on the first version of Babylon for rendering 3D on the web using XNA and Silverlight 5.  And after years of industry fighting between the mainstream software companies to determine who would own the standard for rendering on the web, HTML5 and WebGL were finally adopted by most of these companies and a new age of cooperation was born.  It was at this time in 2013 when David Catuhe along with David Rousset decided to port the Babylon engine to JavaScript and WebGL, and babylon.js was released in August of that year. 

 

 

Babylon.js Features:

 

The following is a general list of supported features and operations within the babylon.js framework⁴.

(As of Version 2.0)

 

·         Complete scene graph with lights, cameras, materials and meshes

·         Collisions engine

·         Physics engine (thanks to oimo.js)

·         Scene picking

·         Antialiasing

·         Animations engine

·         Audio engine

·         Particles Systems

·         Sprites and 2D layers

 

Optimizations engines:

·         Frustum clipping

·         Sub-meshes clipping

·         Hardware scaling

·         Selection octrees

·         Offline mode via Indexed DB (Assets are saved locally to prevent reloading them)

·         Incremental loading

·         Binary compressed format

·         Hardware accelerated instances

·         Level of details (LOD)

·         Automatic scene optimizer

·         Debug layer to help you optimize and debug scenes

·         SIMD.js support

·         Collisions can be offloaded on web workers

 

Standard material is a per pixel material that supports:

·         Diffuse lightning and texture

·         Ambient lightning and texture

·         Specular lightning

·         Opacity texture

·         Reflection texture (Spherical, planar, cubic and projection)

·         Mirror texture

·         Emissive texture

·         Specular texture

·         Bump texture

·         Fresnel term for diffuse, opacity, emissive and reflection

·         Up to 4 lights (points, directionals, spots, hemispherics)

·         Custom materials

·         Custom shaders

·         Skybox

·         Vertex color

·         Bones (Animations and shadows are supported)

·         Procedural textures

·         Special FX

·         Fog

·         Alpha blending

·         Alpha testing

·         Bill boarding

·         Full screen mode

·         Shadow Maps and Variance Shadow Maps (with support for blurred shadows)

·         Rendering layers

·         Post-processes (blur, refraction, black'n'white, fxaa, customs...)

·         SSAO

·         Volumetric Light Scattering

·         Depth of field and lens effects

·         Lens flares

·         Multi-views

 

Textures:

·         Render target textures

·         Dynamic textures (canvas)

·         Video textures

·         Compressed (DDS) textures

·         TGA textures

 

Cameras (Perspective and orthographic):

·         Arc rotate camera

·         Free camera

·         Touch camera

·         Anaglyph camera

·         Virtual Joysticks camera

·         Stereoscopic camera

·         Gamepad camera

·         VR Device Orientation camera

·         WebVR camera

·         Follow camera

 

Meshes:

·         Mesh cloning

·         Dynamic meshes

·         Height maps

·         Constructive solid geometries

·         Parametric shapes (Ribbon, tube, etc.)

·         Hardware instances

 

Import/Export:

·         Babylon scene file can be converted from .OBJ, .FBX

·         Exporter for Blender

·         Exporter for Cheetah3d

·         Exporter for 3ds Max

·         Exporter for Unity 5

·         STL importer

·         Assets manager

 

Usage:

 

The following is a basic Babylon.js scene file copied from the BabylonJS documentation site and is color coded with a brief explanation to follow^5.

 

           <EXAMPLE SCRIPT GOES HERE>

The External Includes - Red Section

'Includes' is not necessarily the best term to describe the red section of the big picture. Three external Javascript files are being included into this scene.

The first external include is hand.minified-1.2.js (often simply called hand.js) - a small Javascript framework that assists the Babylon.js cameras.

The next is cannon.js - an optional physics 'engine' that allows WebGL shapes (meshes) to act like real life objects.

After that comes oimo.js - a different physics 'engine' that performs a similar function to cannon.js, but is generally faster although it lacks some of the more advanced features present in cannon.js.

Most important, though, is the Babylon.js framework, where your scene to be rendered is defined.

Each of these includes are JavaSCRIPT files, and so they are included-in by using HTML <SCRIPT> elements/tags. The shown 'src' (source location) of these files is at the Babylon.js web site folders.

The CSS Styles - Blue Section

Notice the blue section of the big picture. That is the CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) styles used to present the scene's web page, and adjust its WebGL canvas to be centered and filled-out nicely in your browser.

The Internal Include - Green Section

Here is the fifth HTML SCRIPT element/tag in the big picture scene file. We used 4 SCRIPT elements/tags to do the external includes. This one is an INTERNAL include. Notice that it has no 'src' URL. That is because it is a section of Javascript code that you will be writing directly into this document.

You could 'externalize' the entire green section, and possibly place it into a file called... 'myJavascript.js'... maybe in a folder called 'jsfolder'. Then you could remove the green section, and add one more EXTERNAL INCLUDE script element/tag that might look like this:

<script src="./jsfolder/myJavascript.js"></script>

You need not concern yourself with that, at this point. Externalizing your Javascript is often done when you have written LOTS of Javascript code. Externalizing your code into separate files helps your project be organized, but it is not necessary this early in your webGL adventures.

The JS code you see inside the green section... will be talked about soon. Mainly, I would like you to study the big picture, and see how the single HTML file method of creating Babylon.js scenes... is structured. I want you to try to visualize and somewhat memorize... this scene file's 'layout'.

The createScene() Function - Purple Section

The purple section of the big picture... is the createScene() 'function'... a Javascript 'function'. It is the most important section of a 'single HTML file' Babylon.js scene. You are not required to use a createScene() function in your Javascript code, but please do.

Inside the createScene() function (the purple section)... we will be doing the actual Babylon.js commands and directives that cause webGL to happen. The rest of the big picture sections... are simply helpers and preparations... for the main java script purple section... the createScene() function.

 

 

Games and Demos:

Please visit the BabylonJS homepage below for the latest content developed using the Babylon.js framework:

http://www.babylonjs.com/

 

 

Download the BabylonJS Framework:

As Babylon.js is an open source 3D engine for the web, it is free to download at:

https://github.com/BabylonJS/Babylon.js

Simply download the zip file and unzip it to the folder of your choice.  There is no registration or additional software needed.  The ZIP file will also include many example scripts and scenes in which to learn from.

 

 

BabylonJS Community:

There are many resources at the homepage http://www.babylonjs.com/

and at GitHub https://github.com/BabylonJS/Babylon.js - and please visit the

HTML5 Game Developers Forum at http://www.html5gamedevs.com/forum/16-babylonjs/

for news, information, help, and discussions.

 

References:

1.       State of the Art WebGL and other Technologies for hardware accelerated 3D in Browsers

http://jonathangrupp.com/images/webgl/WebGL.SotA.JonathanGrupp.pdf

Retrieved June 1, 2015

 

2.       De opkomst van WebGL

http://www.students.science.uu.nl/~3685632/content/history.html

Retrieved June 1, 2015              

 

3.       De opkomst van WebGL

http://www.students.science.uu.nl/~3685632/content/history.html

Retrieved June 1, 2015

 

4.       List of Babylon.js v2.0 features

https://github.com/BabylonJS/Babylon.js

Retrieved June 1, 2015

 

5.       BabylonJS documentation site

http://doc.babylonjs.com/page.php?p=22621

Retrieved June 1, 2015

 

Please keep in mind that this is the first version to be published, and once online I will continue to update at least twice a year - with the first revision due June 2016. This is mentioned as I'm sure some of you will note that there is progress in the framework since I wrote this article a few months ago. However, it's necessary to publish and post the article first and foremost, before worrying about revisions, and this is the version of the article which has already been submitted. So once again, I would ask if anyone has any experience with publishing to Wikipedia, I welcome your input.

Cheers,

DB

[JohnK]

Bumping this up again. Still no sign of BabylonJS in wikipedia. Perhaps some of the newer members have experience of submitting to wikipedia.

[V!nc3r]

I think you could have no hesitation to "copy-paste" the three.js wikipedia article design.

Here are my 2 cents of your text above, maybe these little details disturb wikipedia admins ? :

• some wording maybe sound like BJS promotion (for example : "Please visit")
• in history section, don't talk about webGL history (just said that BJS use webGL, and link the webGL article)
• as for the colored section, i think it sounds like a tutorial

Note that I have no experience in posting to wikipedia, so maybe my advices aren't so good ^^

[Nabroski]

you involved in this project, kind of, only 3th party persons can write on wiki.
i could not write a Wikipedia article about me, also my father.
<Please visit the BabylonJS homepage below for the latest content developed using the Babylon.js framework:> no way, sounds like an advertisement. 

I would recommend to post in little peaces, maybe change a little thing a week.  

Only=>
Overview:

History

WebGL

just to get started. 

Good Luck

[V!nc3r]

I think i will try to create a page. For my comfort i will start by an fr-article, but it can be then translate.

I will try that during the next (around) ten days.

[jerome]

Nice idea 

Maybe the french moderator will be faster. No need in the beginning to do a long article. Once it exists it can be updated, improved, etc. The creatin first step seems to be the hardest gap.

If an article exists in one language, it is more easily approved then as a translation than a first creation.

Maybe the easiest way would be to write a first article in a language that has not many articles/moderators so it is quickly approved and then translate it to english 

[V!nc3r]

So if someone know Setswana, let's go

[V!nc3r]

Is someone has articles (independent from BJS developpers) which can be used as neutral reference ?

[V!nc3r]

"Croisons les doigts"

https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babylon.js

[jerome]

for the missing sources : there 4 articles in the computer pro french magazine "programmez!"

http://www.programmez.com/search/node/babylonjs

 

http://www.programmez.com/magazine/article/realiser-un-jeu-3d-avec-babylonjs

http://www.programmez.com/magazine/article/la-3d-sur-le-web-avec-babylonjs

http://www.programmez.com/magazine/article/sous-le-capot-dun-moteur-3d-babylonjs

http://www.programmez.com/magazine/article/3d-temps-reel-sur-mobile-ou-le-recours-aux-meilleures-astuces

+ many international conf documentations ... if someone could please gather the links here

[georage]

On 3/11/2016 at 4:35 PM, dbawel said:

Through the adoption of new web standards such as HTML5 and WebGL, these standards have provided babylon.js the necessary components for the highest quality and consistency in the rendering of 3D graphics within most mainstream browsers, and across a wide variety of display devices without the need for a plugin to process and render.

Seems a little like marketing at times. Might want to tone it down. 

[dbawel]

@georage - Good advice. I FINALLY got through the complete review process, and that was basically what WP advised - not to mention that they want hard copy resources - no website resources. So if you or ANYONE wants to contribute and finally get the WP page online, message me or respond here and I certainly welcome anyone who knows babylon.js and the history of the framework (which at the very least, the page it is all factual) and to help get this online asap. Once online, we can then grow the article and welcome others to contribute.

Also thank each and all of you for the info you provided including @V!nc3r - and of course @jerome and @Nabroski as well as others - as I hadn't seen or reviewed your additional posts prior to today.

Cheers,

DB

[jerome]

some news about the french attempt ?

[jerome]

I just added some more links in the article

[V!nc3r]

Sorry I was in holidays last week, I will check the article in the next days. It seems that there is now enough links to disable the banner.

[ViBe]

Hi, it seems to work now. The banner has disappeared.

GOOD JOB !!!

[V!nc3r]

Yes, I ask the guy who have put the banner, and he was agreed to remove it.

But he clarify :

Quote

Despite, acceptability seems to be "close to boundary" (i don't know if this a clean traduction), and I don't see other article which mention BJS on others wikipedia.

Malgré tout, l'admissibilité me semble toujours assez limite, et je ne vois d'ailleurs pas d'articles à ce sujet sur les autres WP

 

[V!nc3r]

I'm about to upload BJS logo on wikipedia, but i need two informations :

• date of creation (if possible)
• creator (is it Michel Rousseau ?)

[edit] like three.js logo, i will submit with creator : babylonjs.com), correct me if i'm wrong[/edit]

[GameMonetize]

Date of creation: June, 27, 2013 (here is the official post: https://www.eternalcoding.com/?p=323)

 

Creators: David Rousset, Michel Rousseau and myself

[V!nc3r]

Is this logo under Apache licence too ?

[V!nc3r]

I tried to launch english traduction but... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Content_translation_tool

Quote

The English Wikipedia community has restricted article creation by the WMF's semi-automatic content translation tool to extended confirmed users. This access is automatically applied to editors who have been registered for at least 30 days and have made at least 500 edits to the English Wikipedia.

 

[GameMonetize]

Logo and everything in bjs is under Apache Licence