This feature is still under development. The current functionality is unfinished and subject to change, and may have thin or no documentation. Please bear this in mind when using it.

In Houdini 20.5, several updates have been made to the APEX toolset to ensure that graph evaluation is well-defined, self-contained, and non-ambiguous.

New Requirements / Updates

Notes

int ports have been replaced with bool ports where appropriate

As a result, many graphs that were previously compilable will now fail. To resolve the graph compilation errors, use the new Add Missing APEX Convert Nodes button on the APEX Edit Graph SOP.

In-place ports must have an input wire

Use the new Add Missing In-Place Input Connections button on the APEX Edit Graph SOP to automatically add connections for unconnected in-place input ports.

Output ports cannot be connected to more than one in-place input port

Instead of connecting an output port to multiple in-place input ports, the graph nodes should be connected in sequence to avoid ambiguity in the execution order.

Wires cannot be connected from a port in one scope (for example, within a ForEach or If block) to a port in another scope

Wires must be routed through the block Begin and End graph nodes.

Node parameter types must match the data type of their corresponding ports

If the node parameter types don’t match their corresponding port types, the graph will still compile and run, but this will be reported as an error.

If you specify node parameter values through the APEX network view node parameter window, the node parameter and port types will match. However, node parameter values could also be set up through less-restrictive means using Python or SOPs (like the Attribute Wrangle SOP), which opens up the possibility of the node parameter and port types getting out of sync.

KineFX

Preparing character inputs

Rigging with rig components

Rigging with APEX graphs

Building graphs with APEX Script

Animating in the viewport

Technical Animation

Deformation

Animation Retargeting

Pre-H20

Panes

Appendix