Making offline usage possible

Hi.

More and more clients are asking how to use the model offline. Is there, or will there be a way, to make this possible? Even if this is a bit complicated :slightly_smiling_face:

Thank you.

Hello,

This is what Shapespark application does, so it is technically possible, but we haven’t yet investigated the simplest way of doing it without installing Shapespark.

You would need to run some HTTP server on a local computer that would allow to open the scenes in a browser from http://localhost address (for example with Shapespark application running you can open the scenes in any browser by going to http://localhost:5000).

Are your clients interested in running scenes offline on Windows machines, or also other systems? Mobile devices can be especially tricky to setup. I’m guessing that asking the clients to load the model when they have the internet connection and keep the browser running to show the model offline is not good enough option?

Loading the model in the browser and having it at the ready for offline use is definitely a great workaround. But having an .exe/.dmg would be very beneficial for clients. If it also created an app for popular mobile devices like Android or iOS, that would be pretty exciting too since I know that’s the next question a client is going to ask me, but I imagine that’s a big task and not a high priority.

We usually use Enscape for .exe walkthroughs, but Enscape is incredibly dense and not well optimized for older equipment and weak machines. Shapespark is an absolutely a step-up since its so light and well optimized. It would be cool to have a standalone version for clients so I would definitely give this idea an upvote.

1 Like

Wojciech also told me once that it can be a problem when the browser on the mobile device is closed after you opened the model. So not the safest way if you want to impress some clients.

Running the models in a shapespark-app would definitely a big step ahead. I like this idea alot.

This seems to be less of a problem now than it used to be. By problem I mean the OS and browser may decide to unload some of the existing browser tabs to free up space when you launch some large app or open a complex web page. However, with 2GB of RAM on mobile devices becoming common the risk of such a situation is decreasing.

But in general, yes, I am aware there are use cases where having an offline app would help.

@jan / Is there a description how to setup the HTTP Server for local usage with Shapespark? My client has a Windows machine.

@tim maybe you could create a Shapespark account for your client and we would switch it from trial to commercial providing the client would use the desktop app for viewing only?

Sure. That would be an option.
Maybe you could develop a simple offlineviewer for the near future by just restricting the software with read only permission (like sketchup viewer). And later find a way to create a better more independent solution with self executing files without the need of a viewer?

I will send you a private message to you with the account details later.

Thank you for your support.

@jan Hello, we want to do this with our 100+ clients. Provide them with an offline Version of their project. Is this possible now? To do a Offline Installer just to see one or max two projects? Maybe something that runs off a flash drive?. @Multitaskr_Capital

We still don’t have client downloadable offline viewer and don’t have near future plans to develop such a viewer.

Please check this " Scenes Transformed into Standalone EXE and Android APK for Offline Exploration (Apartment Customization) - Showcase - Shapespark Community"