How to reference the result of a variable in parameter fields?

[magneto]

Hi,

It seems like this is changed in 12.5 where if you use a variable inside a parameter, you can't see the result using the value mode. For example if you have something like this:

The results will look like this:

So in other parameters if I refer to these parameters, they all end up as 0 as well. What's the current way to deal with these now?

I could use the variables directly in the actual parameters but that makes expressions much longer and harder to read and maintain, since this is a simplified example.

Or should I be using expressions instead, i.e. point, prim, vertex, etc? Are they immune to this problem?

Thanks

[kgoossens]

It was a bug in the older versions that you could reference to Variables. It feels a bit strange over here but you should always use expressions if you want their values to be viewed or referenced.

if you try a ch("../) you'll see it will not work either.

[magneto]

Thanks I thought you would reply

Is there a way to know which variables would work and which ones wouldn't? Because variables like $PT, $PR, etc can't be replaced with expressions AFAIK. When I referenced parameters that contained $PT, $PR, etc, those worked. I assume they made an exception for these since there is no expression to get the current point, primitive, etc?

I will have to be more careful from now on then, because I noticed some of my tools weren't working.

Also how feasible it is to automatically replace these variables with the appropriate expression behind the scenes? Unless I am missing something this should work right?

[kgoossens]

Is there a way to know which variables would work and which ones wouldn't? Because variables like $PT, $PR, etc can't be replaced with expressions AFAIK. When I referenced parameters that contained $PT, $PR, etc, those worked. I assume they made an exception for these since there is no expression to get the current point, primitive, etc.

True but it is especially in those cases that showing a value or making a channel reference would not really work. E.g using $PT what value should be shown in the parameter in this case, unless you have one point?

I don't know if you could change it automatically. In principle you could try to make a python dump of the graphs and then in a text editor replace the variables automatically perhaps?

[magneto]

Thanks, sorry I meant it was working not in the sense of showing the values but working correctly. For example referencing the parameter that has $NPT will fail, unless you replace it with npoints(). For $PT, you don't have to do anything.

As for automatic changing, I meant SESI doing it behind the scenes before cooking without actually changing the variables typed