Basics Mac OS X notes
Setting up the mouse
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Choose
> System Preferences, then click Keyboard & Mouse. -
Click Mouse.
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Set the left click to Primary Button.
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Set the right click to Secondary Button (by default it is also set to Primary Button).
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Set the middle button/wheel to Button 3.
Hardware requirements
Houdini for OS X will only run on 64bit Intel macs running OS X 10.5.
Menu bar
The menu bar on OS X isn’t part of the main Houdini window. It is integrated into the desktop title bar like other Mac applications.
Install location
By default, Houdini installs in a Houdini folder inside the Applications folder. You can launch the applications from within the Houdini folder or you can drag the icons into the OS X Dock for easy access.
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Application directory:
/Applications/Houdini 9.5.xx -
$HFS/bin directory:
/Library/Frameworks/Houdini.framework/Versions/9.5.xx/Resources/bin
Keyboard and hotkeys
The ⌘ key is used the same way the Ctrl key on a standard PC keyboard. Additionally, the two delete keys on the Mac keyboard are mapped to the same functionality as the Backspace and Del keys on a standard PC keyboard. Specifically, the large delete key (where backspace is on a PC) deletes the object rather than pulling up the Tab menu.
All existing Ctrl hotkeys have been remapped to the ⌘ key.
MPlay file browser
The functionality is the same but the menu options for opening single frames or multiple frames are slightly modified from the Windows/Linux versions. They open a more standard OS X file browser.
Houdini file browser
When you open the file browser on the Mac it brings up a Mac window. To switch to the Houdini window use the environment variable: HOUDINI_USE_NATIVE_FILE_CHOOSER.
You should put this in ~/Library/Preferences/houdini/X.X/houdini.env so it is picked up when you run from the Dock.
Limitations
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There is currently no GLSL support.
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There is currently no embedded help pane.