which begs the question... how do I get the sphere image in the first place?

No, I get that HDRshop can resample the images to the format this other flash tool would use, but the point is that I can't get the maya image (mental ray) in the first place.

To my knowledge,...

Thanks gster, but I think you misunderstand my intended end product. The pano I'm trying to output is a full 360 degress, not a single band or distorted sphere reflection. To clarify, have a look at...

My lead and I have been struggling with this for a few days now. We've been tasked with creating a QTVR-like (note, NOT QTVR) 360 panorama for a client. The intended target is for interweb use via a...