GIST produces 3-D books

So says Reuters:

At South Korea's Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology, researchers used 3-D technology to animate two children's books of Korean folk tales, complete with writhing dragons and heroes bounding over mountains.

Pictures in the books have cues that trigger the 3-D animation for readers wearing computer-screen goggles. As the reader turns and tilts the book, the 3-D animation moves accordingly.

"It took us about three years to develop the software for this," said Kim Sang-cheol, the team leader of the project.

Kim said the technology could be used for any type of book and sees it eventually being used for images displayed over smart phones or at museums to enhance exhibits.

But those waiting for 3-D books may have to wait long.

"It will take a while to market this technology to the general public," Kim said. He was not sure of the eventual price but thinks it will be affordable enough to be mass marketed.

Two observations: First, I think the porn or manhwa/manga industries will find a way to bring this to market sooner rather than later (and the national, metropolitan, or provincial governments might also work to give it a boost).

Second, let's hope it's not running on ActiveX.