YouTube videos to offer 3-D option

The YouTube Internet video site says it is testing a feature to allow users viewing video clips to convert them to 3-D format. Writing in a blog post, YouTube said users can click "Edit Info" on a video's page and select "3-D Video" to convert a two-dimension clip into 3-D, the Los Angeles Times reported Wednesday. However, users will still need 3-D glasses to view the clips on most devices. YouTube said it creates the 3-D video by measuring color and motion and combining two sets of images, the original and one it creates, to mimic the way a human eye perceives depth in the real world. Engineers at YouTube owner Google said they had noted a steep rise in uploads from a new crop of 3-D-capable cellphones and camcorders. The 3-D output can be viewed on a variety of devices including PCs, televisions and cellphone screens with differing and sometimes incompatible technologies. "We wanted to make the barriers evaporate," Jonathan Huang, YouTube's product manager for 3-D, told The New York Times.