FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT VRX

What is a virtual tour?
What is an interactive map?
What technology is used to serve VRX Studios' virtual tours?
Why are virtual tours and interactive maps being used?
Why should virtual tours be used?
How should virtual tours and interactive maps be used?
What makes VRX Studios products unique?

What is a virtual tour?
A virtual tour is a series of digital images that are stitched together to make a complete 360° panoramic image. This image is then displayed through a viewer window. The final virtual tour slowly pans the entire 360° of the image, creating an immersive effect that makes the viewer feel like they are actually in each location! At any time, viewers can take control of their experience by clicking on an image and dragging it left or right. VRX's new virtual tours, created after December 2004, allow viewers to zoom in and out as well as go full screen. VRX added these new features to increase the amount of information that is available to consumers to help them make confident booking decisions.

VRX is the world leader in producing high quality, web-friendly 360° virtual tours. VRX has achieved this market leading position due to its uncompromising commitment to quality and usability and its relentless pursuit of innovation. Each VRX virtual tour goes through three extensive iterations of quality control. In addition to VRX's strict quality assurance measures, each VRX hotel image is certified by the hotel client before it is finalized for distribution.

VRX is obsessed with quality and eliminates any shimmering, bright spots, colour variances, stitch marks, over and under exposed areas, and blurriness from all of its images. The final virtual tour is compressed using a special compression format that reduces the file size, decreases download time, and improves the overall clarity of the final image.

What is an interactive map?
An interactive map is an illustration of an area, region, or hotel that is populated with blue camera icons (i.e. small illustrations of a camera). When these camera icons are clicked, they link to virtual tours or other related content. VRX's interactive maps visually and geographically organize VRX's visual content and allow users to get a feel for the layout of the area, region, or hotel. Maps also help users locate a location such as a beach or lobby in relation to other locations on an illustrated map.

What technology is used to serve VRX Studios' virtual tours?
Through it partnership with ISeeMedia, VRX employs a dynamic, interactive image server platform called IS5E that maintains tight security of VRX's archive while enabling viewers to access crystal clear, flicker free, fast loading images at any time, from anywhere in the world with Internet access.

In addition to the IS5E platform, VRX uses a proprietary version of ISeeMedia's Java Viewer, which enables users to pan each of VRX's panoramic images 360° in either direction. This creates an immersive effect known as a virtual tour. The Java applet required to view the images is downloaded automatically when a viewer loads their first image, at the start of each user session. The Java applet remains in the user's cache until the Internet session is completed. No installation or manual download is necessary for 96% of Internet users as their computers come preloaded with the Java Virtual Machine which is required to launch the Java applet. The Java applet works with any Java 1.1 compliant web browser such as Netscape® Netscape Communicator 4.01 or higher, or Internet Explorer® 4.0 or higher.

Why are virtual tours and interactive maps being used?
VRX's clients use VRX's virtual tours and interactive maps to attract new customers, educate, compel, and retain existing customers, and increase their number of bookings - both on and offline.

VRX's virtual tours and interactive maps are proven tools that help increase consumer confidence during the booking process and increase consumer satisfaction during their vacations. Virtual Tours are an effective marketing and sales tool. They can communicate the essence, beauty or detail of a location or destination much more effectively than text or static images.

Why should virtual tours be used?
A recent study by Pew Internet shows that 45% of adult Internet users visited virtual tours of vacation locations, online.

How should virtual tours and interactive maps be used?
Virtual tours and interactive maps should always be used to support text content about a subject. For example, if a travel website recommends a particular hotel or tourist attraction, virtual tours and interactive maps are powerful tools to further inform and educate customers. Visual content such as virtual tours and interactive maps are an effective way to engage viewers, build their purchasing confidence, and establish customer loyalty.

What makes VRX Studios products unique?
Quality. Quality. Quality - VRX produces the highest quality, web-friendly virtual tours, in the world - period. Each of VRX's images is subjected to rigorous quality control measures to ensure that each of the thousands of images that VRX produces every month meets VRX's aggressive quality standards.

In addition to Quality, the following qualities make VRX's products unique:

Format - VRX photographers use wide angle instead of fisheye lenses to shoot each virtual tour. This eliminates the distortion that can be seen in other virtual tours. In addition, VRX's virtual tours are 360° x 90° versus 360° x 360°. This format improves the usability of VRX images and reduces their file sizes - and their download times.

Technology - The Java platform used by VRX enables over 96% of Internet users to view its dynamic content without downloading any additional software and improves the picture quality of each image.

Interactivity - VRX is the only company in the world to offer fully integrated interactive visual content solutions that combine the utility of interactive maps and the power of high quality, web-friendly 360° virtual tours. Together, these technologies create a unique, user-friendly, and powerful online experience that enables travel consumers to make informed, educated travel decisions.

Service - VRX handles all aspects of using virtual tours and interactive maps: hosting, archiving, online distribution, and ongoing content maintenance.