pezetko

MartybNz

OneBigTree
I have a wish for H15:
A simple method to keep the normal SOP automatically at the end of the network with the viewport flag on, so I can see my angle based normals -

Perhaps a new shader, ‘Cusped’ could be added below the Scene level, Display As menu.

Unfortunately that wouldn't helped and it would induce another confusion when objects are exported.

This display mode have nothing common with actual normals on the object.
See this example after exporting to the Maya:


I can imagine plenty of beginners that would be confused why their normals aren't exported correctly out of houdini while they can see them correctly with this “cusped” display mode. And even harder to convince them why they are wrong.

Well, others applications somehow manage to provide proper object display in the viewport. In fact maya has the most elaborate viewport of all of them and a lot of what it shows has nothing to do with what gets rendered or exported. The viewports purpose is mainly to provide an approximation of what the final scene or object should look like before it is rendered or even finished. It is so much more that a Dataview as it seems to be perceived by the “simguys”.

I really don't care how it's done. I just know we need it for modelling, for rapid prototyping, for our supervisor and clients who want to get an impression of the look as early as possible and so on. I think “Better Viewport” is the most requested feature in all 3d programs and there is a reason for it.

There could be, for example, and I suggested that when I submitted the rfe for it, a switch saying: “use display cusping for rendering (and export)”
Those are all minor technicalities, that can be handled by an outstanding team like sidefx and user who are capable of learning houdini, don't you think?

halfdan

pezetko
Cusped display mode with auto cusping and auto-recomputation by given angle threshold…

That's precisely the plan under consideration.

pezetko
But please don't do unnecessary (slow) recomputation of normals in other modes

It will be an optional object-level property. Most likely turned off by default, unless starting with shelf-created primitives. We're acutely aware of speed requirements, hence why it wasn't introduced in H14.

pezetko
IMHO for Houdini it's impossible to compete with other modeling tools without those features and even with them it would be very hard to compete…

And neither do we intend to. We just want it to get to a stage where it's not embarrassing. Everything else is gravy.

I just read this. This sounds exactly like the optimal solution to me.
As for competing: this is not a race, this is only about what is necessary.
Like every car needs a steering wheel, no matter how fast it can go or what shape it has or what engine powers it. Simple as that.
And doing it right is the best philosophy of all.

Why hotkey “R” for swapping input doesn't work?
Why “SHIFT+R”?

RFE: Reset zoom level to 1 for the network editor.

Every node based editor has this feature (Max Material Editor, ShaderFX, Substance Designer, etc). It would be cool if SESI exposed this trivial function as it's available in the HDK AFAIK.

PradeepBarua
Why hotkey “R” for swapping input doesn't work?
Why “SHIFT+R”?

The hotkey changes, where a modifier key was added, happened to try and reduce destructive network changes by accidentally hitting a key. In the case of R, I've seen users hit R, and switch some Merge or VOP inputs, and didn't realize it for a while.

I've learned that, if I hit a hotkey based on muscle memory, and it doesn't do anything, start trying shift/ctrl/alt with that key, and see what happens.

goldleaf
The hotkey changes, where a modifier key was added, happened to try and reduce destructive network changes by accidentally hitting a key. In the case of R, I've seen users hit R, and switch some Merge or VOP inputs, and didn't realize it for a while.

Plus, reorder inputs wouldn't always undo correctly, making its place as a naked hotkey even more terrorizing.

halfdan

goldleaf
The hotkey changes, where a modifier key was added, happened to try and reduce destructive network changes by accidentally hitting a key. In the case of R, I've seen users hit R, and switch some Merge or VOP inputs, and didn't realize it for a while.

Plus, reorder inputs wouldn't always undo correctly, making its place as a naked hotkey even more terrorizing.

That's right halfdan! I forgot some of those operations weren't undo-friendly!

halfdan

goldleaf
The hotkey changes, where a modifier key was added, happened to try and reduce destructive network changes by accidentally hitting a key. In the case of R, I've seen users hit R, and switch some Merge or VOP inputs, and didn't realize it for a while.

Plus, reorder inputs wouldn't always undo correctly, making its place as a naked hotkey even more terrorizing.

Many times the user had no idea that they accidentally reordered the inputs and merrily went along their way, leaving their network in a bad state. Undo only works if you know that something happened

Where exactly can I log RFEs? In the support section I can only log bugs.
I would like to log some RFEs because my wishlist is still veeeery long

You can use that Submit Bug or RFE page to log RFEs as well. Odd that it doesn't have a Bug/RFE selection, but you can preface the summary with “RFE:” and someone here will switch it to an RFE.

I would like to suggest in H15 a far better way of handling different formats.

I try to import FBX and it does not work properly. (There is only one geometry inside) I'm getting number of errors <internal> Warning(572): Invalid range specification, the scene is completely corrupted. Old 3dsmax opens it properly. Beside this, working with .obj is also not as smooth as with different packages. Some pople suggested a better way of reading multiple geometry groups (elements etc.). I think that working with imported obj's into Houdini is very tiring however H14 is much much better than H13 with this

Other topics:
As we are talking about geometry group it will be great to have an option to isolate (detach) one part of it and convert it to second geometry. (Maybe there is a way now, sorry if I'm wrong).

Thanks to new improved UV tools in H14 however there is a plenty of room to make it a little bit better

Dominik Kosik
I try to import FBX and it does not work properly. (There is only one geometry inside) I'm getting number of errors <internal> Warning(572): Invalid range specification

Best would be to send that fbx file with additional info (what software (including version) was used for exporting) to the support.

Dominik Kosik
Other topics:
As we are talking about geometry group it will be great to have an option to isolate (detach) one part of it and convert it to second geometry. (Maybe there is a way now, sorry if I'm wrong).

Modify Shelf (Toolbar) -> Extract button (It creates new Object with Object merge sop where you can specify to import only certain groups. Then delete (blast) that group on original object.)

Thank you, I will check your solution.

Unfortunately I have no idea what software was used for creating such fbx, probably it was some CAD software, however when I exported again from 3ds 2011 the result was even worse.

I try to avoid fbx as much as I can but not every software supports alebmbic, sometimes we get something from the clients an we need to bother with this.

All in all we can talk about H15 and leave fbx as offtopic.

Houdini have a good HOM node event system.

So, we must have global event system, like scriptJobs in Maya.

With events enums like this:

1. SelectionChanged

2. Save\Open Scene and etc…

3. SnapPositionActivated. When you move mouse to snapped position (before move geo to it)

4. StateChanged

5. SelectionStateChanged. When selection state options (and change components type also) changed.

6. UndoPreformed

7. RedoPerformed

8. HighlightedChanged. When prehighlighted component (under cursor) changed

9. And others



Personally I dont like AD innovations in Maya, but I like Alias|Wavefront Maya scriptJob feature.





PS:

I must be crazy, but it's very simple to implement this also in 14.0.* with Qt :shock:

For example you (guys from dev team) can emit Qt signal when this trivial simple events occurs.



In my (user) scripts I can simply connect this signals with callbacks.

IMO it is very simple and modern

I really want to see Houdini and Substance work together.

Procedural geometry + procedural Texturing seems like a match made in heaven.

Kfinla
I really want to see Houdini and Substance work together.

Procedural geometry + procedural Texturing seems like a match made in heaven.

+1

Just to showcase how interesting would be to have Substance support..

http://www.cgchannel.com/2015/02/allegorithmic-launches-substance-database-2-0/ [cgchannel.com]

If you are a user on their forums, I recommend posting there your +1s too

Here's one I just thought of…

What about a new display mode for network wires that uses some sort of pathfinding algorithm to go around nodes and other wires in the network display?

Would be fun to watch the wires change their paths as nodes are moved around.

But it might also be useful to help declutter messy networks like VOP networks.

Here are a few from me:

- an real edge component type instead of this p2-34 p38-34. This is a mess to edit
- while we are on the topic of editing groups: drag & drop for assigning and editing groups (as an optinal way)
- rightclicking on the lines showing dependency links just shows what nodes are connected, for example: Source: box1 Depependent: sphere1. This information is hardly usefull because the line already shows me that these two nodes have dependency, I don't need a RMB menu that tells me exactly the same. What would be much more interessting is what parameters are actually linked and the expression that links them. Since MMB is already established as analyzing information in the network editor, I suggest MMB on the dependency line should bring up the familiar black infodisplay, showing all the parameters that are linked and the related expressions.
Same goes for references to and from external nodes. Currently there's just a pink or greenish rectangle indicating that there is a connection to an external node. It doesn't tell you to which node(s), which parameter(s) and what expression links them. As mentioned above MMB on that rectangle could show these informations.

halfdan
Bear in mind that the SI modelling toolkit has barely been touched since XSI 6.0. It doesn't touch ZBrush when it comes to organic modelling – and neither was it intended to – and it's quite behind the times when it comes to re-topo work.

Well, nothing beats ZBrush concerning organic modeling. Nothing I know…so that's quite an unfair comparison.

McNistor
To me XSI level is way above basic (even tip of the spear depending whom you're asking) when it comes to “traditional” poly modeling. I thought we were all talking about that, not sculpting, retopo and whatnot, but obviously I was mistaken. My bad, carry on… Smile

Reading this I suggest to first focus on a solid (traditional) modeling toolkit, before introducing fancy sculpting and retopo features.