Visual3D Installation

Summary

Visual3D is a Windows PC based application for Win 7, 8, or 10 (not XP). It doesn't use network drives and licensing is PC-centric, meaning it is not installed on a server. When you purchase Visual3D you are e-mailed information about downloading the software, including a userid and password to access the customer section of the C-Motion web site. You download the installation file and license key file from the web, and then install them on your PC. When you start Visual3D for the first time, the license will automatically activate over the Internet. (Manual options exist for PC's without Internet access.) Licenses are locked to a PC, so to unlock the license (deactivate it) you do Help->Deactivate in Visual3D.

Visual3D Hardware Requirements

Visual3D runs under Microsoft Windows Win7/Win8/Win10. It is provided in both 64-bit and 32-bit application format. Windows XP and earlier versions are not supported and won't run modern code. Visual3D will run on a Mac ONLY where Windows is installed in a VM such as Parallels, VirtualBox, or VMWare (or dual boot to Windows with Bootcamp). There is no iPad or dedicated MAC or Linux version. It needs OpenGL for graphics (all cards support it). It runs on any kind of processor, and it runs best with lots of memory (8GB or more is better). It doesn't use network drives and licensing is PC-centric, meaning not installed on a server because you install and the license activates over the Internet. (You select Help -> Deactivate in Visual3D to free up the license.) There have not been any reported problems when running Visual3D on a PC via a remote desktop application (Microsoft or Citrix). For file storage, most mocap system create C3D files, and Visual3D opens several of them at a time and stores a consolidated copy in its own .cmz compressed format. Multiple cmz files saved in a directory make up a library, and another product, Inspect3D, can be used for data mining the data. Legal Info We do not recommend storing patient identifying data in mocap files, but if it happens, you can encrypt sections of the CMZ file for HIPPA. C-Motion is not a data provider, per GDPR. It does not not provide services related to processing any personal data. C-Motion products, by their nature, provide graphics and graphing capabilities that do not lend themselves well to operation by the blind. However, these are Microsoft Windows applications and they fully support Windows Accessibility functions. A VPAT form is available if required.

Downloading and Access

All C-Motion software is downloaded over the Internet. The software is digitally signed and verified as C-Motion products. 1. When a customer purchases the software an account is created on the C-Motion web site. The userid and password are sent to the customer contact administrator’s e-mail address (as provided by the customer) at the time of purchase. 2. Log into the C-Motion web site and you will be taken to the downloads page. There are links to download the software, license keys, and any plug-ins that may be available. Any software purchased from C-Motion will be on this web page. 3. Download the software installation file and the license key file. Also on the downloads page is a list of which computers have Visual3D installed. This is for IT license tracking and support. Save the installation file and license key file. Web downloads for updates and new versions are enabled only for customers under support. Support is free for the first year and is optional after that, but it must be paid for in following years. Visual3D will run forever, even without support, unless it is a temporary (i.e. Student, Evaluation, or Training) version. Note: The same installation file and license file are used for every PC at a customer location. The number of licenses purchased is stored on the C-Motion server, and each available license is activated (used up) and locked to a PC.

Installing Visual3D

Launch the downloaded installer: You can do this from the browser download result, or from Windows Explorer you can double-click on the installation file. It has a file name similar to: Visual3D_Setup_x64_2020.06.01.exe The installer will ask some questions: 1. Accept the EULA; 2. What Matlab version do you want to support (if any); 3. Where is the License Key file (a Browse button) so that it can be placed in the proper location on the PC If there are plug-ins available that you want to install (such as real-time streaming from a mocap system) they are installed from their own installation files. When launched for the first time, Visual3D will automatically try to activate the license it installed. (see the next section) VERSIONS: Visual3D Professional comes with a permanent license (departmental) that will work forever. There are also temporary versions of Visual3D that will expire. - Student versions expire in one year - Evaluation versions expire in 30-60 days - Training versions expire in one month The newer versions of Visual3D (2020.03.01 and later) install to the "C:\Program Files\Visual3D" directory. The older version 6 files went to "C:\Program Files\Visual3D v6" so this will let you keep the older version around if needed (they share the same license key).

Licensing and Activation

Visual3D will automatically activate its license over the Internet when Visual3D is started for the first time on a PC. This locks the license to the PC. If the Internet is not available, Visual3D pops us a message with a security token and other information needed to activate the license manually. You can e-mail that information to support@c-motion.com, or use the activation form on the downloads page (carefully). To activate the software, a special activation code is provided by the C-Motion servers. The activation code is then stored in the local user registry. Activated licenses are listed on the web downloads page for easy site management. NOTE: If you see Free CMO Reader in the Visual3D title bar, it means that the software cannot be activated. That is because either: The license file is invalid, All licenses are in use, or The license file was not installed properly. NOTE: If all the licenses are in use, then you either need to purchase additional licenses, or deactivate an old license.

License Deactivation

In Visual3D, you free up a license (unlocking it from the PC) by doing Help->Deactivate from the menu bar. The license is then available for use on another PC. Deactivating a license also deletes the license file, so Visual3D can only be restored by reinstalling it. Licenses do not need to be deactivated when updating Visual3D on the same PC. As mentioned above, activation codes are stored in the user registry on the PC. The deactivation process removes the code and then tells our database about it. If you do not deactivate a license our database will never know, and so according to the database, the license is still in use.

Moving or Replacing Visual3D to a new PC

A Visual3D license is unlocked/deactivated by selecting Help->Deactivate from the Visual3D menu bar. This is true for both permanent and temporary Visual3D licenses. Please deactivate a Visual3D license before installing a new OS, decommissioning a PC, swapping drives, or when leaving a lab when graduating, or if leaving for a new job. Once deactivated, a license goes back into the pool of available customer licenses and can be used on any new or different PC. As mentioned above, activation codes are stored in the user registry on the PC. The deactivation process removes the code and then tells our database about it. If you do not deactivate a license our database will never know, and so according to the database, the license is still in use.

Support Policies

Visual3D comes with one year of technical support services included for free when Visual3D is purchased. A paid support agreement provides continued: 1) Access to expert level technical support advice about using Visual3D, and 2) Access to the web site downloads for updates and new versions of Visual3D. The best way to get support is to e-mail support@c-motion.com and attach the pipelines, cmz, or c3d file causing the problem. Support questions are answered by the programmers who write Visual3D, but they are not in one office (or country) so phone access isn't very viable. If you need to send a .cmz file to support@c-motion.com, please follow the guidelines here. C-Motion’s paid support is $1250 USD per year per and is for the entire lab, regardless of how many licenses were purchased. If support expires, it has no effect on Visual3D. You can reactivate expired support for an additional fee. The support agreement is renewed every year based on the original purchase date. A 10% discount is offered for multiple years of support when purchased at one time. A lifetime support option is also available. Maintaining support is a requirement for getting the temporary Student version licenses. A policy document is available on the regular web site here.

If you have problems with Visual3D, the trouble shooting page is here.