Houdini 18 Wishlist

[Alexey Vanzhula]

1. Integrate Solids++ library

2. Improve viewport render - AA, AO, PBR, etc.

3. More polygon tools

Edited November 2, 2018 by Alexey Vanzhula

[Tesla's fan]

1:  A set of tools can decompose and solve large (sparse) matrix in vex. The best is support GPU accelerate.

2:  native scipy library.

3: sparse field in dop.

4: GPU mantra.

5: automatic topology.

6: Introduce achievements based on machine learning

Thank you very much

Edited March 8, 2019 by Tesla's fan

[Midphase]

Perhaps I'm optimistic in saying that I hope they bring this out in 17.5 maybe in the first quarter of 2019, but I'm really eager for them to let the cat out of the bag regarding the hinted-at GPU renderer. Redshift sometimes requires me to jump through a number of hoops to get things to look the way they're supposed to in Houdini. If a Mantra GPU engine is even remotely in the same speed ballpark as Redshift, I would probably go back to Mantra!

[fatboYYY]

Hire @Alexey Vanzhula for modeling tools

More serious (the other one is still kind of a wish):
- Since Houdini will be using USD as core, integrate HydraGL (or something similar) as the new Viewport. Integrate a good translation of Mantra Shaders to GL.
- Put emphasis on modeling and the flow of using it when modifying geometry (as you guys mentioned so often in the H17 presentation)
- Rework of the file browser
- Rework the script editor in Wrangles, Expression Editor, HDA Module, etc.
- Keep going on the UI overhaul. I see you new sliders! (The response you got in H16 should be a good motivator)
- Explore options to enhance handles in the viewport
- Embrace a workflow on how to use USD, but don't restrict (the industry is all over the place on this unfortunately)
- Bit of a spring cleaning, getting rid of very annoying bugs. Also get old, easy features in. Get the low hanging fruit!

All of this has to happen eventually. You guys have done so well that the Houdini Hype train is already rolling without breaks. So you don't really need any more hype generators (like Vellum) right now, so it would be cool to get features like this next!

<3 you sidefx devs/tds/interns/comms/producers and all others!

Edit:
- If you DO want hype, how about MLOPs (Machine Learning OPerators)?   Make use of an open source ML framework (Pytorch seems to take off currently) and wrap it up in a nice context.  

Edited October 4, 2018 by fatboYYY

[Nicholas Ralabate]

I would like SESI to unify the different ways to "SELECT ALL".  I never know if I am supposed to tap "A", "N", "SHIFT-N" or "CTRL-A".  

I wish it would be like Blender where no matter what context you are in "A" toggles between "SELECT ALL" and "SELECT NONE"

I would also like to see a Vulkan viewport so the GLROP (or I guess VKROP) would have access to the hardware intersection accelerator in the new AMD/NVIDIA/INTEL cards.  If I supersample enough, like render at 128K for a 2K target, a hardware rasterized render isn't all that bad for lower budget mograph productions.  I can live with the current IBL approximations to indirect lighting, but actual raytraced reflections and refractions using the upcoming Vulkan version of RTX would be so much nicer than screenspace approximations.

The whole point is speed, the GLROP is currently way faster than even Redshift... it just looks dumpy.

Edited October 4, 2018 by xxyxxy
Add Vulkan ramble

[Mandrake0]

10 hours ago, xxyxxy said:

I would like SESI to unify the different ways to "SELECT ALL".  I never know if I am supposed to tap "A", "N", "SHIFT-N" or "CTRL-A".  

I wish it would be like Blender where no matter what context you are in "A" toggles between "SELECT ALL" and "SELECT NONE"

I would also like to see a Vulkan viewport so the GLROP (or I guess VKROP) would have access to the hardware intersection accelerator in the new AMD/NVIDIA/INTEL cards.  If I supersample enough, like render at 128K for a 2K target, a hardware rasterized render isn't all that bad for lower budget mograph productions.  I can live with the current IBL approximations to indirect lighting, but actual raytraced reflections and refractions using the upcoming Vulkan version of RTX would be so much nicer than screenspace approximations.

The whole point is speed, the GLROP is currently way faster than even Redshift... it just looks dumpy.

The move from opengl to vulkan is a huge task and it takes years. SESI knows what's the best for houdini we only see some benchmarks and SESI has 30 years of knowlege in graphics development. 

 

[sebkaine]

- Better svg / font / text tools 

- Better UI for basic deformer Twist / Bend / Wire ...

- listing and preview of shaders from external renderers in the material palette

- glsl context were we can control all the viewport shaders with a nodal network like ShaderFx

- Ability to work with a glsl PBR shader in the viewport without being forced to use a mantra shader 

- ability to export the glsl PBR shader to UE or Unity

- new UI paradigm for task requiring manual interactivity with the viewport like modeling / sculpting / uv layout

- COPS on steroid + UI enhancement of all CC tools Hue Curves / Curves / Histo 

- Faster Mantra / Faster Bake

 

Edited October 4, 2018 by sebkaine

[Alexey Vanzhula]

Ability to change tool settings (for example switching topobuild modes) with python. It will open a door to user defined tools with an extra interactivity

Edited October 6, 2018 by Alexey Vanzhula

[bobc4d]

I'll bring one over from Cinema4D we always wanted:  the "make it pretty" button  

one I would like to see is what we had in C4D, camera mapping: where you could take a photo seamlessly integrate it into Houdini and then apply FX so it looks like it was all part of one scene. for instance, a photo of my house with a UFO parked in garage or rising up behind it.

[Lutojar]

On 07.10.2018 at 5:14 PM, bobc4d said:

I'll bring one over from Cinema4D we always wanted:  the "make it pretty" button  

one I would like to see is what we had in C4D, camera mapping: where you could take a photo seamlessly integrate it into Houdini and then apply FX so it looks like it was all part of one scene. for instance, a photo of my house with a UFO parked in garage or rising up behind it.

I could share asset that does exactly that

[bobc4d]

2 hours ago, Lutojar said:

I could share asset that does exactly that

sure thing.  thanks.

[CinnamonMetal]

Oh common, already H18.  What about H52. 

[neokovago]

an escape button, which stop the cooking INSTANTLY. sometimes i (and i know others as well) switch up the copy node inputs and run out of ram.

[wyz]

A preference or option for geometry nodes to be created at object level with or without a file node inside it.  Also maybe just make it a basic button on the "create" shelf that does it for you.

 

[LaidlawFX]

19 hours ago, wyz said:

A preference or option for geometry nodes to be created at object level with or without a file node inside it.  Also maybe just make it a basic button on the "create" shelf that does it for you.

 

Welcome to the forum. And surprises await for you very soon. 

[kiryha]

Nobody ever wanted to see line numbers in Python Source Editor?

[Thomas Helzle]

I'll just repeat my H15.5, H16, H16.5, H17 number one wish then: Finally get the built in VEX editor up to snuff. Make it a real code editor. Pretty Please :-)

The most important improvement for me would be showing the parameters of a function right there in the editor, but many other things from editors like Code, Komodo Edit etc. would also make Houdini much better to code in.

Thanks and Cheers,

Tom

[alksndr]

I haven't been using Houdini for FX for a while so my suggestions will be more oriented to the non simulation aspects-

Going fullscreen on the viewport makes a more advanced HUD parameter list pop up - something that we can manually move around and place close to our object. Takes up way less space than a full parameter window and this would mean we can work in fullscreen completely and not worry about nodes.

Should be able to MMB twice to constrain movement to an axis, blender does this and its way faster to not have to go and click on the axis handle every time you want to move something. I mean really on the modeling side, just copying blender in every way would be great

Presets! I honestly feel like it would not even require payment (although, even better if there's monetary incentive) for the wonderful community sidefx has to get a bunch of artists from here and give them 1-2 months to create all kinds of realistic presets that are all kind of built in a unified logical way. Have a couple of judges and simply implement all these presets into H. I'm talking a nice sparks setup, fire from Cd, fire from moving object, smoke, various transforming effects, various cloth sims, etc etc. 

[joe03]

Houdini already showed their commitment about animation aspect... Next big thing, I think is, to focus on hybrid animation workflow (keyframe animation on top of mocap data). That way Houdini will finally make Maya obsolete. That is at least, my hope so I can dump Autodesk, once and for all.

[pepepotamo]

Love the new H17. Lost of improvements also in the UI.

I would like to seen a viewport isolation button as other DCC apps there. Now the "viewport isolator" node feels a bit clumsy... Too many clics to just "isolate selected" on the viewport.