RW - Node

This part of "Node Params" contains everything that has to do with an emitter’s representation and orientation in the viewport. The settings under "Node" depend on the preferences for your 3D software package. There you have to determine which axis serves as a height axis. For some programs it is the Y axis, others use the Z axis.

Simulation

This setting offers three options to choose from – the default is “Active”. This means that the node can contribute to the currently opened scene, while “Inactive” disables the selected item. “Cache” is a very clever feature. It allows you to read already-simulated waves and use them for further interactions. In this case you will not have to calculate the fluid again and again in case of changes.

Position

This setting consists of a trio of values. Each value represents one direction in space: X, Y, and Z. You can often find a certain notation for this trio: [ X,Y,Z ]. A position is always related to the scenes origin which is located at [ 0,0,0 ]. For this reason, it is also allowed to enter negative values. Zero is, of course, valid as well! The unit for position values is metres [m].

Rotation

Rotation works exactly the same way as position. Again, there is a trio of values indicating the rotation settings in degrees [deg] for each axis. By default, an object has no initial rotation.

Scale

This parameter determines the expansion of an object in 3D space. In the same way as with “Position” and “Rotation” you have to specify scale with three values. Here, the unit is metres [m].

Shear

This is an feature which makes it possible to deform an object's basic geometry, but does not work in combination with RealWave meshes. "Shear" values are measured in metres [m].

Parent to

With this setting you can attach the current object to an animated (keys or dynamics) item. The object will perform exactly the same movements as the parent body and follow its animation path. When you click on the hyphen, RealFlow will open a new window with all suited nodes.

Color

This is the basic colour which will be used to display the grid. If a RealWave node is selected, RealFlow displays a colour range for an attribute adjusted under “Display”. If the wave mesh is not selected, you will see it in grey by default. You can choose any available colour or RGB value from your operating system’s colour browser.