The plug-in is installed with an installer wizard on Windows 32-bit, Windows 64-bit and Mac OSX 64-bit platforms, and a shell script on Linux 64-bit platform, so you will not have to manually copy files.
The installers ask you to select the location where to install the files from the following three options:
- Houdini folder: all files will be copied to the Houdini installation folder, so the plug-in acts like the installed environment (accessible for every user, etc.). If you want to keep the Houdini installation clean, you can select the HOME folder option.
- HOME folder: all files will be copied to the user’s home folder, which means, the plug-in will be available only for this user. Some files (for example SOHO overrides) overwrite the original settings, so you have to set the Houdini installation folder during the installation, thus the installer can include the original settings. The installer contains some executables which need to be on the PATH , thus the installer adds the HOME/bin folder to the PATH.
- Custom folder: you can set any other folder to copy the files to.
The installer copies the following files to the selected location:
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plug-in is installed to the program folder by default, in subfolders named by the plug-in version number and Houdini version number. This has two benefits:
- the Houdini install folder remains clean, no files are modified
- more builds of the plug-in can be installed at the same time
To make the plug-in available in Houdini, the following environment variables have to be defined:
HOUDINI_PATH have to point to the plugin installation folder. Use the & symbol to include the default houdini paths. For example in the Windows command line:
Code Block set HOUDINI_PATH=^&;c:\Program Files (x86)\Next Limit\Maxwell for Houdini\v1.3.0\H12.1.125
PATH have to point to the bin folder of the plugin install. For example in the Windows command line:
Code Block set PATH=%PATH%;c:\Program Files (x86)\Next Limit\Maxwell for Houdini\v1.3.0\H12.1.125\bin
The installers set the environment variables automatically if you choose this option, or you can create a script which sets the variables and starts Houdini.
The plug-in consist of the following files:
Plug-in binary
- houdini\dso\ROP_Maxwell.dll (.so on Linux, .dylib on OSX)
IPR binaries
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- bin\ MaxwellIPRMaxwell_IPR (.exe bin\ MaxwellIPRHandler.exeon Windows)
Dialog windows
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- houdini\config\Applications\maxwell\maxwell_settings.ui
- houdini\config\Applications\maxwell\maxwell_texture.ui
Icons
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- houdini\config\Icons\material\*
- houdini\config\Icons\maxwell_camera.png
- houdini\config\Icons\maxwell_grass.png
- houdini\config\Icons\maxwell_render_hda.png
- houdini\config\Icons\ROP_maxwell_render.png
- houdini\config\Icons\SHOP_maxwell_bsdf.png
- houdini\config\Icons\SHOP_maxwell_coating.png
- houdini\config\Icons\SHOP_maxwell_displacement.png
- houdini\config\Icons\SHOP_maxwell_emitter.png
- houdini\config\Icons\SHOP_maxwell_layer.png
- houdini\config\Icons\SHOP_maxwell_layers.png
- houdini\config\Icons\SHOP_maxwell_material.png
- houdini\config\Icons\SOP_maxwell_environment.png
Material gallery
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- houdini\gallery\maxwell_material.gal
Digital Assets
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- houdini\otls\OPmaxwellcam.otl
- houdini\otls\OPmaxwellcamp.otl
- houdini\otls\OPmaxwellenv.otl
- houdini\otls\OPmaxwellgrass.otl
- houdini\otls\OPmaxwellmaterial.otl
- houdini\otls\OPmaxwellobjp.otl
- houdini\otls\OPmaxwellrender.otl
Python scripts
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- houdini\soho\maxwell_render.py
- houdini\python2.6libs\maxwell.py
- houdini\python2.6libs\maxwell_ipr.py
Shelf
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- toolbar\maxwell
- toolbar\MaxwellRenderTools
Menu extension
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- \houdini\MainMenuMaster
The plug-in modifies the following files if they are already exist:
- \houdini\MainMenuMaster
SOHO overrides:
- \houdini\soho\overrides\RenderViewer
- \houdini\soho\overrides\ViewportCameraRender
- \houdini\soho\overrides\ViewportRender
built for the latest Houdini production builds. If you need a build for an older Houdini version, please contact the Maxwell Render support.
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The installer mechanism has changed in version 1.3.0 and the plug-in conflicts with older releases. The installer automatically detects if an older version of the plug-in is installed and removes it before the installation starts. |
Installer for Windows
The Windows installer wizard auto-detects the path of the Houdini installation folder or your home folder. asks about the install location which is in the Program Files directory by default, the target Houdini version and the environment variable settings.
After a successful install Houdini recognizes you should see the „Maxwell Render” group in the obj network TAB menu and the Maxwell Render shelf. You can check the plug-in automatically and a new group with the name of “Maxwell Render” is visible in the obj network TAB menuversion by typing the maxwell_plugin_version hscript command, or get the Mawell ROP node info and check the path of the defining otl.
The plug-in can be uninstalled through the Add or Remove Programs in the Control Panel.
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The Mac OSX build of the plug-in requires OSX version 10.5 or above. The installer copies the above listed resource files and the plug-in binary files to the /LibraryApplications/FrameworksNextLimit/Houdini.Framework/VersionsMaxwellForHoudini/[plugin_version]/[Houdini_version]/Resources folder by default and prompts to the admin password if needed. The folder can be changed in the installer. The installer sets the environment variables in the ~/.profile file.
After a successful install Houdini recognizes the plug-in automatically and a new group with name “Maxwell Render” is visible you should see the „Maxwell Render” group in the obj network TAB menu .
The and the Maxwell Render shelf. You can check the plug-in version by typing the maxwell_plugin_version hscript command, or get the Mawell ROP node info and check the path of the defining otl.
If the plug-in is not recognized, you have to activate the environment variables with reloading the profile (source ~/.profile command or have to log out and log in again).
The plug-in can be uninstalled with the uninstall.sh script which is located in the /Applications/NextLimit/MaxwellForHoudini plug-in installation folder. The uninstaller removes all installed files and the additional lines from the modified filesrestores the environment variables.
Installer for Linux
The plug-in ships with a shell script called install.sh which will copy the resource files and plug-in binary files to the /opt/hfs[/NextLimit/MaxwellForHoudini/[plugin_version]/[Houdini_version] folder by default. To change the Houdini installation folder, you have to edit the script file. The installer asks about adding the environment variables to the ~/.profile file.
After a successful install you should see the „Maxwell Render” group in the obj network TAB menu and the Maxwell Render shelf. You can check the plug-in version by typing the maxwell_plugin_version hscript command, or get the Mawell ROP node info and check the path of the defining otl.
If the plug-in is not recognized, you have to activate the environment variables with reloading the profile (source ~/.profile command or have to log out and log in again).
The plug-in can be uninstalled with the uninstall.sh script which is located in the /opt/NextLimit/MaxwellForHoudini plug-in installation folder. The uninstaller removes all installed files and the additional lines from the modified filesrestores the environment variables.
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The LD_LIBRARY_PATH should contain the /opt/hfs[version]/dsolib folder to run the IPR process properly. If it’s not set, you can create a wrapper to the IPR executable:
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