How to rotate at any angle?

Question

So I see normally for the rotation it's based on X, Y, and Z, by choosing one of them.. I also saw somewhere where you can specify the angle for the cam, but that's about it.. I want to be able to manipulate a 3d object at any angle :)

Answer 1

For that you need to rotate the camera rather than the object.
You will need to use a recent build of Java8 (b77+) for that and a machine that can run the 3D stuff in it (currently only a Windows machine).
From: https://wikis.oracle.com/display/OpenJDK/3D+Features
There is some code for specifying a movable camera:
// Create a camera and add it to the Scene
Camera camera = new PerspectiveCamera();
scene.setCamera(camera);
// Add camera to scene graph (so it can move)
Group cameraGroup = new Group();
cameraGroup.getChildren().add(camera);
root.getChildren().add(cameraGroup);
// Rotate the camera
camera.rotate(45);
// Move the cameraGroup (camera moves with it)
cameraGroup.setTranslateZ(-75);I haven't tried it, but in JavaFX 8 the camera is just another node.
I think if you apply a RotateTransition to the camera you could animate rotating it around (like turning your head to see change your field of view).
Similarly, if you instead applied a PathTransition to the group containing the camera, then that would simulate you walking in a circle, but looking in a constant direction.
If you applied an appropriate RotateTransition to both the camera and a PathTransition to the group containing the camera and you did it at the right proportional values, then you could ensure that the as the camera was rotating around the object, it was always facing inward tangentally to the path the group is following so that it is always looking at the object being walked around.
http://docs.oracle.com/javafx/2/api/javafx/animation/RotateTransition.html
For some inspiration look at Uluk's answer here which demonstrate animation around a circular path.
http://stackoverflow.com/questions/14171856/javafx-2-circle-path-for-animation
http://stackoverflow.com/questions/14182704/javafx-2-animation-scale-node-depending-pathtransition-duration/14182917#14182917
But in the second example, you put it in 3D and rotate the camera instead of scaling the node.