Mobile Preview for 3dVista

Purpose and Intended Audience

If you are a user of «3dVista» this live «Mobile Preview» utility is for you.

If you are interested in speed up your workflow for testing the appearance of the mobile skin in a real device, this utility is for you. Or simply know how your desktop skin would be on a mobile device, you are at the right place.

If you want to see it in action, watch this demo video

This is the simplified page. For a more detailed information, click on this link.

Requirements for Live Mobile Preview for 3dVista

The utility has been written in Python (v3.10) language. It must be installed in your computer. You can download it from python.org/downloads. It is available for Windows and MacOS. Any version of Python 3 lower than 3.10 will not work.

DO NOT INSTALL VERSION 3.13.0. There is a bug which impact in this application. When version 3.13.1 is released, it will be tested for such bug.

Separate Windows and MacOS installation instructions are given hereafter.

Download Python version 3.12 installer package. Currently latest in such series is 3.12.7. Documentation for this version can be found here.

Download this «Mobile Preview 3dVista» utility from download section. It is the same for Windows and MacOS.

This is the simplified page. For a more detailed information, click on this link.

Windows

Installation

Python version 3.10 or greater (up to 3.12) must be installed in your computer. If not, proceed with section «Python Installation«. Remenber, do not install Python version 3.13.0.

Python Installation

Select «Add python to PATH» then select «Install Now» in installer wizard. Later, follow default installation options.

This is a reference image, you should read somthing like «3.12»

Mobile Preview 3dvista Installation

Unzip the file obtained in the download section. Any folder is valid, but please, be organized, and put it where you normally use for your portable applications.

Unzip it and you will see these files.

Double-click on «install_venv.bat«

A window shall appear with a similar output like this:

The important part is that under «Package» and «Version» you can read «mobile-preview-3dvista» and the current version downloaded.

You can safely ignore messages about «pip».

A new folder has been created, and also two shortcuts, a blue and yellow ones.

Don’t rename or move to another location this main installation folder. Internal relative paths will not work.
To move to another location, installation process must be repeated. The copy and overwrite the user key (.userkeypair.shz, .userkeypublic.shz) files , and also the license request (.licreq.shz) and token files (.lictoc.shz).

Activation

To use «Mobile Preview 3dVista» a license is needed. It it bounded to a given computer, and a email. Licenses must be requested for each computer.

Start the program by running the blue shortcut «mp3dv_RUN«.

In this first execution, two important files have been generated automatically. DON’T DELETE THEM. They are used for license management. Without them, the program will not work.

After installation, the only available options are for license activation.

First, enter your email in the «License» section.
Then press «Request License» button. A license request file has been generated in the installation folder. As the license is associated to the email and generating computer, the input field and request button are disabled. The status is updated.

Now a license request file has been generated.

To obtain the license token file, send an email to «[email protected]» attaching two files.

• MobilePreview3dVista__<YourUserName>__<YourHostName>.userkeypublic.shz
• MobilePreview3dVista__v-<##>__<YourEmail>__<YourHostName>.licreq.shz

Upon reception of the email with the token file, download it and save to the same folder where the license request file is.

When the program starts again using the blue shortcut «mp3dv_RUN«, it will detect it, and unlock full functionallity, as seen in interface example.

The license request and token are only valid for the computer that generated the request. To use it on a different computer, a new license request/token must be used. In this new computer, another set of files with user keys (not licenses) will appear.

Usage of Mobile Preview for 3Dvista

The first time it is used after license is active, a minor configuration might be needed.

Location of 3dVista cache

The predefined folders for «tdv.show/Local Store» is searched to locate the internal cache where tours are stored when 3dVista «Preview» button is pressed. If no tours are listed, press «Browse» button to locate such cache folder. A tooltip gives a hint where to search for it. The new folder is saved for subsequent executions.

Then press «Search» button to fill in the list with tour names and project image.

Location of Web Server

By default «Python internal» web server is used, which need no configuration adjustment. If no extrange issue arise, use keep on using this one.

URL (Own local IP address)

Verify the local IP address shown is the one assigned to your computer. Look for it at the bottom of the window.

The proposed PORT may be changed, and it will be used in subsequent executions. It must not be used by any other program.

Using Mobile Preview

Work as usual with «3dVista», which shows previews into desktop internet browser. When you want to watch the tour appearance on a real mobile device, use this «Mobile Preview»

During startup, a scan of 3dVista cache is made, so it make take a while until the list of tours is shown.

Having an active license, lets you select a tour from the list. The title, creation and modification dates are shown, and the list can be sorted by these columns, ascending or descending, by clicking on the column title.

Selecting a row will show at the right panel the same thumbnail that 3dVista shows.

When a tour is selected, the «Run» button at the botton left will be enabled. Press it and the interface will be freezed.

From this moment, the selected web server is started.

Take note of the URL (IP and PORT) and write it on your mobile device. You will see the current cache 3dVista has generated by the last «Preview» button click for such tour.

You can minimize «Mobile Preview 3dVista» and the web server keeps running.

Work in your tour with 3dVista project as usual, and every time you press on «Preview«, when the desktop web browser tab is opened, you can refresh your mobile device and navigate the tour as it has been published.

If you want to «Mobile Preview» on a different tour, close this application, run it again selecting the new tour.

MacOS

Installation

Python Installation

This is an excerpt from python.org install instructions for MacOS.

DO NOT INSTALL VERSION 3.13.0. There is a bug which impact in this application. When version 3.13.1 is released, it will be tested for such bug.

Use this link to download version 3.12. installer package. Currently latest version in this serie is 3.12.7.

Double-click on the downloaded installer package file.

This is a reference image. You should read something like «3.12.7».

Click on «Continue» button in the Welcome page.

Click on «Continue» button in the Information page.

«Agree» the license agreement.

Click on «Install» button.

Install will begin the install process by asking permission to install new software. A macOS user name with Administrator privilege is needed as the installed Python will be available to all users of the Mac.

When the installation is complete, the Summary window will appear.

Now a set of certificates are needed. Click on

If Successfully installed certifi and update complete appears in the terminal window, the installation is complete. Close this terminal window and the installer window.

Mobile Preview 3dVista Installation

Unzip the file obtained in the download section. Any folder is valid, but please, be organized, and put it where you normally use for your portable applications.

Unzip it and you will see these files.

Launch «install_simple.command».

It will install «mobile-preview-3dvista» package in your python library. Note that also needed dependencies will also be installed in the global python library.

In Finder, right-click your file and select «Open with» and then «Other…».

Here you select the application you want the file to execute into, in this case it would be Terminal. To be able to select terminal you need to switch from «Recommended Applications» to «All Applications». (The Terminal.app application can be found in the Utilities folder)

After clicking OK you should be able to execute you script by simply double-clicking it.

A «Terminal» window shall appear with an similar output like this:

You can safely ignore messages about «pip».

To start the application launch «mp3dv_start.py».

To run your python script from the Finder, you can either:

• Drag it to Python Launcher.
• Select Python Launcher as the default application to open your script (or any .py script) through the Finder Info window and double-click it. Python Launcher has various preferences to control how your script is launched. Option-dragging allows you to change these for one invocation, or use its Preferences menu to change things globally.

Activation

The activation process in MacOS is identical to the activation in Windows platform. But for MacOS no shortcut is generated, so launch «mp3dv_start.py».

Read section Windows «Activation«.

Usage of Mobile Preview for 3dVista

The usage in MacOS is identical to the usage in Windows platform, except the launch method.

Read section Windows «Activation«

Disclaimer

Certificates are not currently supported, so only HTTP, (no HTTPS) protocol can be used. Some functions of your mobile will be limited, for example, the gyrospcope.

Download

Download zip file (installer binaries) for «Mobile Preview 3dVista»:

Demo of Mobile Preview for 3dVista

Usage example

Interface