sj_pc
Current Version: 3
sj_pc is a small set of shaders allowing
to write and read
point clouds. It's provided for both Softimage and Maya (vesion 2011 and
above).
It does not have all the
subtleties of a real point cloud system like you could find in renderman, but
it's very flexible and easy to use.
You can control the density of the cloud, and
also edit it in Softimage or Maya.
Download:Softimage Maya
There are 3 shaders:
sj_pc_write to write the cloud to pdc or mental ray map
format, or to convert from pdc to map.
sj_pc_tag to mark the objects for
writing.
sj_pc_read to read the map files and interpolate the
information stored in the map.
Doc:
1. Writing the cloud
2. Rendering the cloud
3.
Editing the cloud
4. Examples
You can also download the Softimage examples scenes used in the
doc.
For viewing and editing the clouds in Softimage, you will also need the pdc import/export plugin.
Bugs (logged as I receive them):
1. The shaders
crash Soft/Maya 2010 and lower. Ok, that's stated in the doc, 2011 and above
only.
2. Softimage: Ice strands are not traced by sj_pc_write. Fixed in
V2.
3. Maya: sj_pc_read crashes. Fix: in
the Shading Group hosting sj_pc_read, set mental ray->Custom
Shaders->Export with Shading Engine off.
4. Fg and
alpha were not evaluated while writing/reading. Fixed in
V3.