Alexey Vanzhula releases DM 1.5 for Houdini
Developer Alexey Vanzhula has released DM 1.5 for Houdini, the latest version of his hard surface modeling toolkit, adding Modeler, a “brand new classic modelling environment”.
According to Vanzula, the new feature makes it possible to “really model in Houdini like in other … programs”.
A useful hard surface and Boolean modelling toolkit for Houdini
First released last year under the name Direct Modeling HDA, DM is designed to streamline hard surface modelling workflows inside Houdini.
The add-on includes SoftBoolean, a real-time Boolean modeling system, and a library of geometric components from which users can build up models.
New Modeler environment makes polygon modelling in Houdini more similar to other DCC apps
To that, DM 1.5 introduces Modeler, a new “clasic modelling environment” designed to enable artists to model inside Houdini in a way more similar to other DCC applications.
There isn’t much more written information than that, but the video above shows the UI and key tools.
You can also see a 23-minute modelling timelapse recorded by beta user Werner Ziemerink, which shows the new workflows in action during the creation of an aerial drone.
New customisable menu system, plus UI and workflow improvements
Other changes include a menu system, enabling users to create their own custom menus – you can see the changes possible in the video above – via “simple Python syntax”.
Vanzhula has also now opened the Python code for the application.
In addition, the UI has been updated, with icons for all of the tools and HDAs. The new menu system should also scale better to HiDPI displays. You can find a full list of changes via the links below.
Pricing and availability
DM 1.5 is available for Houdini 17.5 only. It costs $100.
Download DM 1.5 for Houdini from Alexey Vanzhula’s Gumroad store