yeah, same problem here in 18.5.596 on macOS 11.4 - very sad. OI have 4 displays. 3x normal and 1x 4K with scaling, but I can't use all 4 displays, only the main one SIDEFX please fix this!

Yes, that worked great. Thank you again twod.

Hi Twod, thanks for an answer. But on my MAC OS X I can't find this path. I can find $HFS/houdini which is in fact MySystemDisk/Users/Teri/Library/Preferences/houdini/15.0
Is that the correct path?

Hi guys, is it possible to have in computer for Houdini for example one GPU Nvidia Quadro just for monitor and viewport and second GPU AMD for hidden openCL help with simulations? I saw some discussion about GPUs, but didn't find an answer to my question.
I tried that alreday, but there is no ability to select on which GPU I want to use openCL for simulations. It always pick my old Quadro and ignoring the AMD card. There is only enable or disable checkbock. So is it possible?
Thank you very much…

HIP scene with textures included.

Hi, I can't find a way, how to repeat texture in Principle shader. On my cube object my square texture shows corect, but when my cube is 2x longer, the texture is stretched, even in settings is set to “repeat”. Can anyone please help me to solve this I think trivial question? I am including the hip file in the next post.
Thanks a lot.

I tried that as I wrote. I have Cam1 -> View tab -> ticked Enable Background Image -> and set the Background image path to my blabla.mov file. Also just to be sure in viewport -> D for Display options -> Background tab -> ticked Display Background Image. And nothing. No video in viewport or render…

Hello, I saw some older tutorial about How to import tracking data into Houdini 10 https://vimeo.com/17870587, [vimeo.com] run created PFTrack script, all is imported ok. But I can't get to see a background movie for my camera even if I have under viewport options enabled bg inages and also loaded bg movie in camera node under view tab. On Camera node > Edit parameters - there is no option to add a View Roto.
How are you doing to see backgroung camera movie in viewport and render?
Thanks for an answer…

By the way is there anywhere description of all available inputs and outputs of these nodes? “ref_clr” is quite easy to think it is reflection color, but there is a lot of strange named inputs and outputs so man don't kniw what each one means.

Hi Srecko, Yes, thats it. I din't know how to put a file to the ref_ctr. So simple, just add a texture node a connect it Thanks a lot.

In RenderMan shader the mosaic picture was placed to the refractions but I can't find the way how to put an image map to refractions in Houdini. I am attaching the sample scene with light fog, box and window, probably someone can help please…

Hi everybody, I switched to Houdini from Maya and RenderMan. Some times ago I did one scene, where a light comes through the mosaic window and casting color rays through little fog. I am trying to achieve that in Houdini but have no luck. I tried portal light, geometry light but it is behave little strange. In attachment I post a reslut from Maya and RenderMan and want to do the same in Houdini.
Can anybody please help me how to do that? Thanks a lot. Teresa

And here are all scene and comp files for testing. Hope it will help someone… Just replace my env image with some of yours.
Big thanks to Doudini for pointing me the right direction

Final comp result:

So finally I've figured that all out. It is in fact simple. Just using 2 takes, one for separating the shadows under the car, second for the beaty pass of my car. One ROP network, inside 3 render nodes - first for shadow pass (with extra pass direct_shadow), second for the beauty pass of the car and third just an environment background. There is no need to use shadow_matte material. For my floor plane alias shadows catcher I used a built-in Material Builder, tweaked the shader little bit to be close to the env asphalt. Rendered and then comp in Nuke. In Nuke I have two ways how to comp it, (1) first using the shadow material defined in Houdini and (2) second using constant or anything you want. In Nuke you have free hands.

Yes, it would be nice to have a possibility to see the result of shadows in preview render immediately without need to comping it, like for example RenderMan, V-Ray etc. offers.

If you wanna test it yourself, I attached the whole scene, images, renders and Nuke comp file into one zip in the next post.

Only one problem I still didn't solved - in my beauty pass of the car alone without the floor plane and environment, the environment is still visible in the windows and it should not be there.

I have modified the “Main” because I just wanted to prepare the base scene for you, so you can do miracles

Yes yes yes, thank you very much! Now it looks it is doing what I want. But why is it so complicated?
I made a short composition of your renders in Nuke because Nuke I understand better than comp in Houdini. Your solution is clean, I like it.

I am now diging through your scene to understand all you did so I can replicate it in the future. One small question, where did you get or how exactly did you created your “v_shadowmatte1” material?

Can I ask your for text detail of all steps what to do exactly? I saw a lot of posts over other forums as well asking for the same thing. You can make it as a base step by step tutorial for all others. I know it take some time to do it, bu tit can help a lot of people.

Thanks again very much…

And my scene is here. I inscluded the environment image to the environment light so update it.

Hi Doudini, your English is good, don't worry
I tried your scene, the shadow is nicely cutout, but the problem will be with the compositioning when using Environment light with image background. I used your scene, slightly modified and I am posting it in next post. And please look at it and test it (use Cam1) and please let me know how to do the result look like on my next picture. All I want is to achieve result as on my render from Maya and RenderMan I did now - see this image:

Hi, I have found now your older post about a shadow catcher in Houdini. Did you solve that already? I am facing the same problem now.
Thanks for an answer.
Teresa

Doudini, thanks for answer. Where do I get the “ShadowCol (1,0,0,) and ”bind1 (shadow)“? In the shadow_matte are few different nodes. Under TAB I found binf node, but it is ”bind1(parm)"… I don't get it, why it is so complicated…

The video you sent me a link to, it is not quite right. I don't want to define floor material like him, I just need to catch shadows. And the problem with the solution in the video is, that it is working only when his teapot is way above the shadow plane, because his shadows are full and not cutout - see my first - in the holdout_shadows pass the original sphere has cut out hole in the floor shadow - that is correct. Do you know what I mean? And his solution is working only woth separate background image and will not work when using for example environment with image background.

In other words it must be some easier solution, all renderers have it quite easy…