Getting all visibility.viewvis parameters

Posted on February 28, 2013 by xsisupport

From a discussion on the mailing list today, a few of the different ways to get every instance of a specific parameter, and some [crude] timing of the different methods.

I was also glad to see confirmation that using wildcards like “*.visibility” pick up everything (because I’ve never got any variation of “*#3dobject” to pick up all objects).

si = Application
import time
from win32com.client import Dispatch as disp
from win32com.client import constants as c


t = time.clock()
oObj = disp("XSI.Collection")
oObj.Items = "*.visibility"
for o in oObj:
	v = o.viewvis.Value
print 'XSICollection.Items  : count=%s, time=%s' % ( oObj.Count, time.clock() - t )


t = time.clock()
oObj.Items = "*.visibility.viewvis"
for o in oObj:
	v = o.Value
print 'XSICollection.Items  : count=%s, time=%s' % ( oObj.Count, time.clock() - t )



t = time.clock()
items = si.ActiveSceneRoot.FindChildren2()
for obj in items:
    vis = obj.GetPropertyFromName2("Visibility")
    v = vis.viewvis.value
print 'GetPropertyFromName2 : count=%s, time=%s' % ( items.Count, time.clock() - t )


t = time.clock()
items = si.ActiveSceneRoot.FindChildren2()
for obj in items:
    v = obj.Properties('visibility').Parameters('viewvis').Value   
print 'Properties.Parameters: count=%s, time=%s' % ( items.Count, time.clock() - t )


t = time.clock()
items = si.ActiveSceneRoot.FindChildren2()
for item in items:
    si.Tag(item.fullname + '.visibility.viewvis', c.siTag1)
print 'Tag()                : count=%s, time=%s' % ( items.Count, time.clock() - t )

t = time.clock()
items = si.ActiveSceneRoot.FindChildren2()
for item in items:
	p = item.Properties( "Visibility" ).Parameters( "viewvis" )
	p.Tags = c.siTag1
print 'Parameter.Tag        : count=%s, time=%s' % ( items.Count, time.clock() - t )


t = time.clock()
val = si.ActiveSceneRoot.TaggedParameters(c.siTag1, False)
for v in val:
    v = v.value
print 'TaggedParameters     : count=%s, time=%s' % ( items.Count, time.clock() - t )

Notice how turning off command logging speeds up those two commands:

# XSICollection.Items  : count=4367, time=1.18428964264
# XSICollection.Items  : count=4367, time=1.00415073153
# GetPropertyFromName2 : count=4367, time=2.07334397855
# Properties.Parameters: count=4367, time=4.38064481075
# Tag()                : count=4367, time=20.6681847681
# Parameter.Tag        : count=4367, time=5.11316244631
# TaggedParameters     : count=4367, time=0.705648810261
Application.SetValue("preferences.scripting.cmdlog", False, "")
# XSICollection.Items  : count=4367, time=1.16849869148
# XSICollection.Items  : count=4367, time=0.988541493731
# GetPropertyFromName2 : count=4367, time=2.03344763365
# Properties.Parameters: count=4367, time=4.33773781962
# Tag()                : count=4367, time=7.47015675041
# Parameter.Tag        : count=4367, time=4.99573667863
# TaggedParameters     : count=4367, time=0.687065751859

Use Global Coordinates for Display

Posted on February 27, 2013 by xsisupport

Sometimes it can be useful to turn on Use Global Coordinates for Display. Because otherwise you’re going to be looking at points in local space, and that can mess up your thinking.

Here’s a simple example to show the difference. Purple is global, light green is local. As you can see, the purple points match up with the actual coordinates.

Now here’s a better example of the usefulness of Use Global Coordinates for Display. Red is local (and misleading). Yellow is global. Imagine you’re doing all kinds of coordinate system conversions in a complicated tree, and then you decide to show values as points. If you’re not careful, like me sometimes, you end up doubting everything you’ve done and pulling it all apart.

Getting selected text from the script history

Posted on February 26, 2013 by xsisupport

Here’s how to get the selection from the script history. This is how the Repeat command works.

def GetScriptHistoryView():
	oLayout = Application.Desktop.ActiveLayout

	# See if the script history is a view of it's own
	oViews = oLayout.Views.Filter( "Script History" )
	if oViews.Count == 0:
		oViews = oLayout.Views.Filter( "Script Editor" )

	return oViews(0)

oLog = GetScriptHistoryView()
text = oLog.GetAttributeValue( "historyline" ) if oLog else "<Nothing>"
print text

Get from PolygonIndex to PointPosition with PolygonToVertices

Posted on February 25, 2013 by xsisupport

Here’s one way to take a PolygonIndex and get the corresponding point positions. I’m sure I’ve showed this in other ICE trees, but I always forget, so I’m posting this so I’ll be able to find it next time I want it 🙂

Screenshots of the week

Posted on February 24, 2013 by xsisupport

Linkedin to me: “Picture yourself at Autodesk”

Ouch, linkedin…it’s only been six months. BTW, that picture of me? Taken at Autodesk, in the 90 Queen office.

Testing if a point is inside a cone
by Alok

One Thousand Ksoids Project
by myshli

Of you who do not use iron beams
(object selection using the material)

Saturday Snippet: Selecting a range of polygons by polygon index

Posted on February 23, 2013 by xsisupport

Given a selected polygon, add the next 5 polygons to the selection. For example, if polygon 22 is selected, then add polygons 23,24,25,26, and 27 to the selection.

You can do this without using any loops, by using a string expression for the polygon components.

Here’s some JScript that shows two ways to do it. Method 1 uses a string expression. Method 2 is a loop, which can either use the Polygons collection or a string expression.

var o = Selection(0).SubComponent.Parent3DObject
var p = Selection(0).SubComponent.ComponentCollection(0)
var LAST = o.ActivePrimitive.Geometry.Polygons.Count;

// Method 1
// SelectGeometryComponents("grid.poly[22-27]", null, null);

var sPoly = ".poly["+p.Index+"-"+Math.min( p.Index+5,LAST-1 )+"]"
//SelectGeometryComponents( o.FullName + sPoly );
//Selection.SetAsText( o.FullName + sPoly  );

// Method 2
//for ( var i = p.Index+1 ; i < Math.min( p.Index+5,LAST ) ; i++ )
//{
//	ToggleSelection( o.ActivePrimitive.Geometry.Polygons(i) );
// -or-
//	ToggleSelection( o.FullName + ".poly["+i+"]" )
//}

Here’s some Python that does something similar but different:

si = Application
o = si.Selection(0).SubComponent.Parent3DObject
p = si.Selection(0).SubComponent.ComponentCollection(0)
LAST = o.ActivePrimitive.Geometry.Polygons.Count

s = ".poly[%s-%s]" % ( p.Index, min( p.Index+5,LAST-1 ) )
si.SelectGeometryComponents( s )

Friday Flashback #108

Posted on February 22, 2013 by xsisupport

Hmmm…last Friday was the 19th anniversary of the Microsoft purchase of Softimage (15 Feb 1994). I really missed it on that one. Now I’ll have to wait for the 20th anniversary; hopefully I’ll still be doing Friday Flashbacks this time next year.

Anyways, on to this week’s flashback…From Jurassic Park (1993) to Gladiator (2001), a “representative sample” of motion pictures created with Softimage products.

TITLE	CUSTOMER	YEAR
Gladiator	Mill Film	2001
Jurassic Park 3	Industrial Light & Magic	2001
Moulin Rouge		2001
The Mummy Returns		2001
Shadows	Mitch Levine Director	2000
Star Wars: Episode 1 The Phantom Menace	Industrial Light & Magic	2000
X-MEN	Pacific Ocean Post	2000
Fight Club	Pixel Liberation Front & BUF	1999
Forces of Nature	Dreamworks Pictures	1999
Galaxy Quest	Industrial Light & Magic	1999
Stuart Little	Centropolis FX	1999
The Mummy		1999
Antz	Pacific Data Images & Dreamworks Pictures	1998
Babe: Pig in the City	Animal Logic	1998
Deep Impact	Industrial Light & Magic	1998
Deep Rising	Industrial Light & Magic	1998
Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas	Peerless Camera	1998
Flubber	Industrial Light & Magic	1998
Godzilla	Centropolis	1998
Jack Frost	Industrial Light & Magic and Warner Bros	1998
Jurassic Park 2	Industrial Light & Magic	1998
Lost in Space	Framestore	1998
Matrix	Animal Logic	1998
Meet Joe Black	Industrial Light & Magic	1998
My Favorite Martian	Tippett Studio	1998
Prince of Egypt	Dreamworks Pictures	1998
Saving Private Ryan	Industrial Light & Magic	1998
Small Soldiers	Industrial Light & Magic	1998
Snake Eyes	Industrial Light & Magic	1998
Species II	Digital Magic & Transfer	1998
Sphere	Cinesite	1998
The Borrowers	Framestore	1998
The Thin Red Line	Animal Logic	1998
What Dreams May Come	Pacific Ocean Post	1998
A Simple Wish	Blue Sky	1997
Air Force One	Cinesite	1997
Alien Resurrection	Blue Sky – VIFX	1997
An American Werewolf in Paris	Santa Barbara Studios	1997
Anastasia	Fox Animation Studio	1997
Batman and Robin	BUF Compagnie	1997
Contact	Sony Pictures Imageworks and Weta Ltd.	1997
Men in Black	Industrial Light & Magic	1997
Mortal Kombat:Annihilation	The Digital Magic	1997
Spawn	Industrial Light & Magic	1997
Speed 2	Industrial Light & Magic	1997
Starship Troopers	Tippett Studio	1997
Star Wars Trilogy	Industrial Light & Magic	1997
The Edge	Peerless Camera	1997
The Fifth Element	Digital Domain	1997
The Lost World	Industrial Light & Magic	1997
The Relic	VIFX	1997
Titanic	Digital Domain	1997
101Dalmations	Industrial Light & Magic	1996
12 Monkeys	Peerless Camera	1996
Dragonheart	Industrial Light & Magic	1996
Eraser	Mass Illusion	1996
Joe’s Apartment	Blue Sky	1996
Mars Attack!	Industrial Light & Magic	1996
Mission Impossible	Industrial Light & Magic	1996
Space Jam	Industrial Light & Magic	1996
Star Trek:First Contact	Industrial Light & Magic	1996
Surviving Picasso	Peerless Camera	1996
T2-3D	Digital Domain	1996
The Adventures ofPinocchio	MediaLab	1996
The Frighteners	Weta Ltd.	1996
The Island of Dr. Moreau	Digital Domain	1996
Balto	Amblimation	1995
Casper	Industrial Light & Magic	1995
Judge Dredd		1995
Jumanji	Industrial Light & Magic	1995
La Cite des Enfants Perdus	BUF Compagnie	1995
Star Trek:Generations	Industrial Light & Magic	1994
The Flinstones	Industrial Light & Magic	1994
The Mask	Industrial Light & Magic	1994
The Shadow	R/Greenberg & Associates	1994
Death Becomes Her	Industrial Light & Magic	1993
Jurassic Park	Industrial Light & Magic	1993