Explore the Taj Mahal -- online Virtual Tour
Explore the Taj Mahal is a free, online virtual tour of the most beautiful building in the world. The Website tour includes 360-degree panoramas, mini-movies, narration, maps, music, full text for the hearing-impaired, and downloadable MS Word files (with pictures) for non-commercial use by schools.
London (PRWEB) June 17, 2005 -- Web Surfers can now take a free online,
Virtual Tour of the exquisite Taj Mahal monument in India from the comfort of
their own armchairs at Explore the Taj Mahal --- http://www.taj-mahal.net
Technological advances by the
Armchair Travel Company have now made it possible for tourists, teachers,
historians and students to take an interactive, "virtual tour" around the Most
Beautiful Building in the World, as if they were there. They will be able to see
and hear everything about the site, its gardens and history by simply connecting
to our website.
Explore the Taj Mahal, which has been just been opened as
a completely free-entry website to the general public by the Armchair Travel
Company Ltd., is the third in a series of 'World Heritage Explorer series' web
sites. The London-based company has employed a technique it has developed over
ten years called Virtual Travel ®, based on proprietary photographic techniques,
Macromedia Flash, and the Java PTviewer Panoramic Display Engine. The site
displays 360° panoramic views, movies, narration and music to create a
photo-real, interactive tour. The site also includes a full set of Microsoft
Word files, including pictures, for use by schools, teachers and
students.
Upon entering the grounds of the Taj Mahal ( http://www.taj-mahal.net ),
'virtual visitors' can look around by panning left and right on the small pano.
Having spotted something of interest they can click to open a window with a much
larger and higher quality panorama, and then zoom in and pan around for closer
looks, for example: To view the inlaid semi-precious stones on the dome itself.
An easy-to-follow map also ensures that, unlike the real tourist, they
can jump around the gardens and monument at the click of a button. There are
even exclusive 360° panoramic views taken from the roof and in the crypt of the
monument - these areas are off-limits to tourists at the site itself. All of the
panoramas have descriptive narration, music and MS Word files with
pictures.
William Beckett from Armchair Travel said, "If a user wanted to
see and hear everything on the website, it would take over two hours to view it
all, thus making this the most comprehensive guided tour of an historic site yet
produced on the world-wide web. This site should make this monument available to
a wide range of virtual visitors who would otherwise never be able to see its
splendor. Armchair Travel's "World Heritage Explorer" programs will help
alleviate the burden for access to internationally important sites, such the Taj
Mahal, while producing income for preservation through donations. Many of the
most famous monuments are threatened with closure to prevent the damage caused
by admitting yet more tourists."
Four hundred years of the monument's
history are brought to life, with the key figures in the story of the Taj Mahal
being presented in 25 specially produced movies (suitable for both broadband and
dialup connection). These include video essays on the main features of the
monument, such as its dome, the crypt cenotaphs, Islamic inscriptions and art,
etc, and especially those features not visible to most tourists. The Website is
now available in English, French, Hindi and Japanese.
William Donelson
from Armchair Travel said: "As the uptake of broadband in the home expands,
people will increasingly look to the world wide web for entertainment as well as
information, and travel seems likely to prove one of the most popular subjects.
Armchair Travel are at the forefront of this new
technology."
Contact:
Further details are available from - William
Beckett – (44) 207-386-5454 – Armchair Travel Co Ltd. 21 Queens Gate Place,
London SW7 5NY, England. http://www.armchair-travel.com
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Source : http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/6/prweb252009.htm