Hello,
IMO Houdini is very powerful engine as a 3d fx and animation tool, but the user interface very very poor in the design, i guess the designer want to put everything at the screen !! even the buttons design seems like accounting system (maybe worst), i suppose any application runs for arts has to be Comfortable to the eye, look at Softimage it's not powerful as Houdini but very very nice and functional user interface, buttons and menus are designed and grouped together very nicely , so if the ppl who takes care of Houdini want more customers they should re-design the whole interface, this is my opinion and i hope no one get upset from me :)
thank you

There's a nice ‘softer’ colour scheme you might like called ‘slate’.

Download from here:
http://forums.odforce.net/index.php?/topic/18089-houdini-theme/page__hl__cool#entry109726 [forums.odforce.net]

Kai's Power Tools was the gold standard non-accountant looking software SI looks very formal in comparison.

https://www.google.co.nz/search?q=KPT+3&rlz=1C5CHFA_enNZ504NZ505&espv=210&es_sm=119&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=vguUUo6ZLILilAWAwYD4BA&ved=0CEIQsAQ&biw=826&bih=558#facrc=_&imgrc=JZuVOV_gRH6qPM%3A%3BzzNtaPFenejP7M%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fdesigner-info.com%252FImages%252Fpkpt3.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fdesigner-info.com%252FWriting%252Fkais_power_tools_3.htm%3B300%3B225 [google.co.nz]

hydi
…i guess the designer want to put everything at the screen… look at Softimage…

You should see Maya

Start working more with Houdini and you will see that its UI is really nice.

hydi
this is my opinion and i hope no one get upset from me

Why then do it in such big letters and bold? I'm not upset about it, but a little annoyed.

On the topic: I think Houdini's interface hits a sweet spot between very functional and nice looking. This is not to say it cannot be improved.
SI in comparison looks like a toy. Seriously, what's up with that humongous arrow on the right to enter selection mode?

-dennis

Yes ,The Houdini's interface maybe is little complex and hard to work Against other 3D softwares like Maya.
I working with Maya for about 10 years and Houdini for 5 years.(And I think Maya's Interface is cool too ! )


Houdini is complate Node-Based software and every tools is node on it ,So it's not has too many menu and windows for using tools like Maya or etc …,

So this is a little strange for guys who worked with other 3D softwares like Maya.

But it is just for start and after you will familiar to Houdini completly , You can work with it even faster and better than Maya .

I am more comfortable with Houdini's interface than Maya right now !

Of course I think working with materials and rendering process or some of the animation operation is so easy in Maya ,But at the first .

Yes once you start getting the hang of houdini you find the interface to be pretty frickin good - in my opinion. It's clean and minimal and ordered.

maybe you like this interface:
http://houdinicreationdesk.ipage.com/index.html [houdinicreationdesk.ipage.com]

it's slick and simple :-)

I'd be happy with the ‘soviet UI’ if it were faster…

http://www.sidefx.com/components/com_forum/files/prisms_6_468.jpg [sidefx.com]

The shelf icons are very cool too! Definitely worth setting the Global UI Size in General User Interface to to High DPI to see them nice and clearly. Check out the Organic Tissue squid!

As someone who was in graphic design, personally I've always thought the Houdini icons were top notch.

I must confess I am surprised, being very critical myself about UI/UX houdini does not strike me as a bad design or bad UX…

My only big issue is that custom UI and advanced authoring is simply not there, something I am aware they know and surely enough will be addressed.

Houdini's interface is only confusing until you know it…then once you are comfortable in it, it is awesome. As a long time Maya user, I prefer the Houdini interface hands down.

The main thing for me to jump over to houdini is the nice and clean UI!! No Menues scattering over the interface. All is just behind TAB-key.

yep, houdini is very much wyiwyg
every thing is really there at your eyes, nothing is hidden, if you come from maya,
then… will be hard to get use to. but you dont have hidden panels, linking parms is very easy , just drag and drop, houdini coding even auto completes for you. arrenging your scene in subnet is super clear, forget layout. thats things are nested inside nulls of nulls and opening takes forever,

here you can even arrenge your icons to look like a character, and guess what? now you dont need schematic view.

I am a graphic and interface designer. And i completly disagree with a topic starter, the ui and interface are actualy better then in most competitor products, for example: maya, 3d max, softimage. Probably only Cinema4d or Modo has better interface. The problem only with a lack of quick ways of doing many things or presets, so you have to construct from the ground.