WebGL 1.0 spec finalized, everyone but Microsoft supports it

webgl demo


The Khronos Group has finally put its stamp on the WebGL 1.0 spec, and that's good news for those of you running Firefox, Opera, Chrome, Safari, and any other up-to-date WebKit browsers. If you're an Internet Explorer user, however, you're still not invited to the party.

Microsoft, with IE9 only being available for Windows Vista and 7, is perfectly content with IE9's DirectX-based hardware acceleration. It will be interesting to see what happens with the mobile version of IE9, too -- if HTML5 and WebGL apps take off, Microsoft (and Nokia) will want to support them.

Mozilla's Jay Sullivan doesn't appear worried though, saying 'Between Firefox and Chrome, people will build stuff.' You can, of course, add WebGL support to Internet Explorer yourself -- by installing Google Chrome Frame, though admittedly that brings a whole lot more functionality than browser-based 3D.

If you've got a compatible browser and want to see what WebGL 1.0 can do, head on over to the Khronos Group demo site or check out Google's previous demo offerings!