3D Graphics and animation are becoming more and more widely used in Flash. In an e-learning context this becomes especially useful where examining and interacting with 3D models has a specific learning objective, especially in the sciences, such as models of molecules.

OK, I admit it: There’s no educational purpose to this particular example of 3D in Flash.

Papervision3D is a 3D graphics engine for Flash. It allows you to create 3D objects and environments and manipulate them in real-time in Flash. You can easily create complex 3D objects and environments in your favourite 3D authoring software and export them as COLLADA files, or download 3rd party COLLADA files for Flash to use.

The example below is a 3D interactive globe. It’s simply a bitmap image of the earth wrapped around a sphere, so don’t expect Google Earth! Feel free to play with it and leave any comments. Please note that the image file may take a few seconds to download.