Hi,
Does there exist a converter for importing Google Earth .kml files into Houdini? Or even better, GIS .shp shapefiles? How about DEM heightfield files? I'm actually trying to avoid Google Earth, if you can't tell!

Thanks,

– Antoine

There seems to be a lot of programs out there that convert DEM files into images … eg. http://www.geocities.com/bob_franke/pov/povutil.htm [geocities.com]

There are tools out there which intersect OpenGL calls and rip the geometry, textures and lights to files readable by several apps, if it'll help you.

A 2 second search for “capture geometry from opengl” yielded:
http://www.deep-shadows.com/hax/3DRipperDX.htm [deep-shadows.com]

Perhaps you can rip from Google Earth and suck the result into Houdini?

Cheers,
Jason