cherm Posted December 6, 2007 Share Posted December 6, 2007 Hi all, I just thought I put this topic here to learn more about what other Houdini users (from Art background) think about scripting and programming when using Houdini and any other 3D packages. I come from Art background myself with zero knowledge about scripting and programming. Did you guys find it hard to learn Houdini at the first place and now? cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andz Posted December 6, 2007 Share Posted December 6, 2007 Hi all,I just thought I put this topic here to learn more about what other Houdini users (from Art background) think about scripting and programming when using Houdini and any other 3D packages. I come from Art background myself with zero knowledge about scripting and programming. Did you guys find it hard to learn Houdini at the first place and now? cheers I still have some places in houdini that is just a brick wall. Really high to climb. But I'm from the days that I had to code my own graphics (2D) because my computer didn't have programs heheh. Software like Photoshop and 3DStudio came later on, but I always felt tied up in them, having to deal with the tools they way they were. So to me, it feels really nice to have such a strong software where I'm able to code/customize my own drawing tools. By the way, I say that my background is in painting and illustration, but I had early access to computers since the 80s when I was around 8... so I've always exercised both sides of my brain . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cherm Posted December 6, 2007 Author Share Posted December 6, 2007 I still have some places in houdini that is just a brick wall. Really high to climb. But I'm from the days that I had to code my own graphics (2D) because my computer didn't have programs heheh.Software like Photoshop and 3DStudio came later on, but I always felt tied up in them, having to deal with the tools they way they were. So to me, it feels really nice to have such a strong software where I'm able to code/customize my own drawing tools. By the way, I say that my background is in painting and illustration, but I had early access to computers since the 80s when I was around 8... so I've always exercised both sides of my brain . That's cool. I'm an 80s kid as well, but I didn't have any access to computers back then. The first time I had the access was the early 90's, but I didn't pay much attention to it. At that time I thought I was gonna paint till I died. I wish I had a time machine..... Anyway, I really want to know more about scripting, but I get dizzy whenever I look at lines full of numbers and texts.... . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andz Posted December 6, 2007 Share Posted December 6, 2007 I wish I had a time machine..... Anyway, I really want to know more about scripting, but I get dizzy whenever I look at lines full of numbers and texts.... . Is never to late my friend. I'm starting college this year hehe. Mathematics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cherm Posted December 6, 2007 Author Share Posted December 6, 2007 dope!. well, I just got my MA, and it's gonna be a big while till I get back in college again. By the way, I'm really stupid at Maths,......so that makes it twice as hard for me to learn Houdini??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michael Posted December 6, 2007 Share Posted December 6, 2007 I have zero fine art skills (painting/illustration etc)...and zero programming skills... when I used Maya I found it difficult to get past a certain point because of the mel requirements...but the amount of scripting that I've had to do in Houdini (the most being writing an auto rig system) hasn't been too bad...just a little slow where I really fall down is in VEX/VOPs - I just don't get it at all...I look at vex code or vop networks and a kind of humming starts in my head building to a kind of deafening silence - very much like the opening of Saving Private Ryan... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cherm Posted December 6, 2007 Author Share Posted December 6, 2007 I have zero fine art skills (painting/illustration etc)...and zero programming skills...when I used Maya I found it difficult to get past a certain point because of the mel requirements...but the amount of scripting that I've had to do in Houdini (the most being writing an auto rig system) hasn't been too bad...just a little slow where I really fall down is in VEX/VOPs - I just don't get it at all...I look at vex code or vop networks and a kind of humming starts in my head building to a kind of deafening silence - very much like the opening of Saving Private Ryan... Gosh! Finally, I found someone working in the industry feeling the same way I've been. I just don't get VEX/VOPs at all either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andz Posted December 6, 2007 Share Posted December 6, 2007 By the way, I'm really stupid at Maths,......so that makes it twice as hard for me to learn Houdini??? I don't think so. I think the "hard" part is forgeting how other 3d software works, because Houdini is different from them. But to use its procedural capabilities I think you'd have to have some "logical" way of thinking. Don't forget that you're "allowed" to do simple polygon modeling pushing and pulling verts around in Houdini. That is how I started (my first houdini scene). Only after being a bit comfortable that I started playing with procedurality (procedural city) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cherm Posted December 6, 2007 Author Share Posted December 6, 2007 I don't think so. I think the "hard" part is forgeting how other 3d software works, because Houdini is different from them.But to use its procedural capabilities I think you'd have to have some "logical" way of thinking. Don't forget that you're "allowed" to do simple polygon modeling pushing and pulling verts around in Houdini. That is how I started (my first houdini scene). Only after being a bit comfortable that I started playing with procedurality (procedural city) The thing is I have been using Houdini for a year already, but I'm feeling that I know so little. I think without a knowledge of scripting and programming might make it slower to learn.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cherm Posted December 7, 2007 Author Share Posted December 7, 2007 Thanks for all the thoughts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tamis Posted December 9, 2007 Share Posted December 9, 2007 I have been using houdini for like 3 months now and i can do basic vex... and it all looked scary at start but luckely i work with realy talented people altho all of them use maya exept for one dude who is actualy one of the most experianced houdini users out there. and i must say that the only reason that i learned and now being able to pick up stuff faster is because i learned the theory's behind it. what is a vector ? what is a directional vector ? what is a normal ? what is noise ? what is 3dimentional noise, what is a dimention ????? the concepts ar realy not that hard to grasp the thing is is that the papers that explain these sorts of things that ar available online ar not very easy to interpetate. and thats were alot of people at work stept in(wel ofcorse i asked them all sorts of things driving them nuts) they would explain me in a more dumbed down monkey kind of level (just the way i like it ) the best thing to do is to go to wiki pedia and surch for terms. if you want to i can post some hit words for you to look up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt_K Posted December 9, 2007 Share Posted December 9, 2007 Hi Cherm, I come from a strong art background, and I am certainly no maths genius, yet I find Houdini is inspiring me to delve back into maths, to open up the creative possibilities. I have been using Houdini Apprentice on and off for about a year now, and find I'm becoming quite addicted! At first I was really unsure that I could get into Houdini, especially with the amount of stuff that's done using math and expressions. But, with a bit of perserverance, I have found that stuff like expressions in Houdini have become much easier to use - indispensible in fact - and in many respects a lot of fun! Mastering VEX is certainly a daunting task, but I am starting to feel that as I grasp the basic concepts, I can see the myriad of possibilities that open up through VEX and VOPS. I still have a loooong way to go with VEX/VOPS, but I'm going to stick with it and hopefully end up with a really good tool to aid my creative pursuits! As an artist, having creative freedom is really important to me, and as I get more familiar with and more proficient in Houdini, I am starting to see it as a real artists tool - the procedualism, Takes, CHOPS and things like channel referencing can really allow for a lot of experimentation! I sincerely hope that you can stick with it and get to grips with VEX and VOPS - because if I can end up doing it, anyone can! All the best, Matt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stu Posted December 10, 2007 Share Posted December 10, 2007 I come from a fine arts background and I live in VEX/VOPs - stick with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cherm Posted December 10, 2007 Author Share Posted December 10, 2007 I have been using houdini for like 3 months now and i can do basic vex...and it all looked scary at start but luckely i work with realy talented people altho all of them use maya exept for one dude who is actualy one of the most experianced houdini users out there. and i must say that the only reason that i learned and now being able to pick up stuff faster is because i learned the theory's behind it. what is a vector ? what is a directional vector ? what is a normal ? what is noise ? what is 3dimentional noise, what is a dimention ????? the concepts ar realy not that hard to grasp the thing is is that the papers that explain these sorts of things that ar available online ar not very easy to interpetate. and thats were alot of people at work stept in(wel ofcorse i asked them all sorts of things driving them nuts) they would explain me in a more dumbed down monkey kind of level (just the way i like it ) the best thing to do is to go to wiki pedia and surch for terms. if you want to i can post some hit words for you to look up. Thanks Tamis. really apprecitate it if you can post them for me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cherm Posted December 10, 2007 Author Share Posted December 10, 2007 (edited) Hi Cherm,I come from a strong art background, and I am certainly no maths genius, yet I find Houdini is inspiring me to delve back into maths, to open up the creative possibilities. I have been using Houdini Apprentice on and off for about a year now, and find I'm becoming quite addicted! At first I was really unsure that I could get into Houdini, especially with the amount of stuff that's done using math and expressions. But, with a bit of perserverance, I have found that stuff like expressions in Houdini have become much easier to use - indispensible in fact - and in many respects a lot of fun! Mastering VEX is certainly a daunting task, but I am starting to feel that as I grasp the basic concepts, I can see the myriad of possibilities that open up through VEX and VOPS. I still have a loooong way to go with VEX/VOPS, but I'm going to stick with it and hopefully end up with a really good tool to aid my creative pursuits! As an artist, having creative freedom is really important to me, and as I get more familiar with and more proficient in Houdini, I am starting to see it as a real artists tool - the procedualism, Takes, CHOPS and things like channel referencing can really allow for a lot of experimentation! I sincerely hope that you can stick with it and get to grips with VEX and VOPS - because if I can end up doing it, anyone can! All the best, Matt. All the best to you too, Matt. I'm starting to feel that I can do it. Edited December 10, 2007 by cherm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark Posted December 11, 2007 Share Posted December 11, 2007 hey my job is a programmer and i dont understand houdini half the time. i think you need a fair bit of depth in a few diverse areas (to be a generalist anyway) and i feel in my case i really lack the mathematics knowledge - even though i have high school maths and tertiary statistics. having said that i took the advice above and looked up some maths concepts on wikipedia - and actually understood some of it - why didnt i do this before??? i found these useful and would welcome others' findings: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Normal_vector http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cartesian_coordinate_system http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Normalized_vector i still start to twitch when i see the greek letters but at least im learning some concepts. Just to properly understand what P, N, s, t etc. are will help me a lot in VOPS cheers! Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cherm Posted December 11, 2007 Author Share Posted December 11, 2007 (edited) hey my job is a programmer and i dont understand houdini half the time. i think you need a fair bit of depth in a few diverse areas (to be a generalist anyway) and i feel in my case i really lack the mathematics knowledge - even though i have high school maths and tertiary statistics.having said that i took the advice above and looked up some maths concepts on wikipedia - and actually understood some of it - why didnt i do this before??? i found these useful and would welcome others' findings: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Normal_vector http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cartesian_coordinate_system http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Normalized_vector i still start to twitch when i see the greek letters but at least im learning some concepts. Just to properly understand what P, N, s, t etc. are will help me a lot in VOPS cheers! Mark Thanks Mark. very helpful for me. I will take my time to learn it (might take up to 10 years...hehe). I totally agree with you on specializing in a few areas, which I'm trying to do now. It's quite hard for one to learn and be good at everything at once. anyways, thanks once again. Edited December 11, 2007 by cherm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andrewlowell Posted December 12, 2007 Share Posted December 12, 2007 (edited) The danger in working with scripting or math in Houdini is that you might think it is more fun than artistic stuff / pretty glows / etc (almost anyway). Seriously, art and science are similar in almost every way except for the end result. There is tons of creativity that goes into writing scripts or coming up with an efficient solution. Houdini actually let's the user be very interactive with the mathematical process, so I would say at least explore what looks interesting with an open mind. Edited December 12, 2007 by andrewlowell Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cherm Posted December 12, 2007 Author Share Posted December 12, 2007 The danger in working with scripting or math in Houdini is that you might think it is more fun than artistic stuff / pretty glows / etc (almost anyway).Seriously, art and science are similar in almost every way except for the end result. There is tons of creativity that goes into writing scripts or coming up with an efficient solution. Houdini actually let's the user be very interactive with the mathematical process, so I would say at least explore what looks interesting with an open mind. nice thought Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tamis Posted December 12, 2007 Share Posted December 12, 2007 i'm at work now so i'l post some stuff when i get home Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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