Web-based Geographic Information System (GIS) combined with Visual Reality (VR) techniques is an emerging platform to handle geospatial and attributes information. The platform has potential to display contents (e.g., artifacts) of digital archive and the application of the platform is an ideal way to provide a student-centered constructivist learning environment.
For an instance of initiates to the platform development, this research aims to determine the feasibility of VR techniques and the possibility of the techniques implementation to integrate a web-based Virtual Environment (VE) for digital archive and education in surveying and mapping profession. In order to achieve this aim the VR techniques of photogrammetric 3D modeling, panoramic VR modeling and web-based VE modeling were implemented and integrated to confirm the applicability and viability of the VE platform for representation and visualization.
Case studies are presented to illustrate how VR and web-based VE modeling have been integrated to extend traditional forms of representation and why the products from the integration could be used to enrich contents of educational archive in surveying and mapping. Perceived benefits of doing so are indicated by further works which have been raising awareness of Web VRGIS techniques across the spectrum of digital archive, education and surveying disciplines.