The STL, or Standard Triangle Language, file format has been around since the '80s and is supported by most modern 3D modeling applications. In particular, the STL format has become something of a standard format within the area of 3D printing, despite the rise of more modern formats such as 3MF.
STL files come in two flavors: binary or text format. The text format is human-readable, making it easy to perform manual edits, but can lead to very large file sizes. As you can imagine, the binary format is much more compact and represents the majority of the STL files you are likely to encounter.
The format itself is very simple; the 3D model is represented by a sequential list of triangles, with each triangle defined with 3 points consisting of their X, Y, and Z positions, along with an additional vector that contains the face normal (the direction the face is pointing). There is an additional attribute block for each triangle; however, this is largely unused and thus unsupported.
STL Converter Capabilities
When converting 3D model or mesh files using our STL converter, we will attempt to convert color materials into a suitable format for use in the converted file.
| Extension | X3D |
| Full Name | Extensible 3D Graphics |
| Type | 3D Model |
| Mime Type | model/x3d+xml |
| Format | Text |
| Opens With | Blender, MeshLab |
The X3D format is similar to the older WRL 3D modeling format, updated with more features and using a more modern XML file structure. It is designed for describing website virtual worlds.
As it was designed to be the successor to the WRL format, the X3D format supports most of the same capabilities, such as 3D mesh definitions via elements such as the IndexedFaceSet, which comprises geometrical vertices, faces, normals, texture coordinates, and more.
Due to the use of XML to store 3D information, files can grow quite large with complex 3D models. Support for X3D has been mixed, with some 3D editing applications building in access to the format and others mostly ignoring it in favor of other formats such as FBX and GLB.
X3D Converter Capabilities
When converting your STL to X3D, our tool will attempt to accurately convert any color or material information.
