Softimage ice & Cinema 4d Xpresso

[xsisoft]

Softimage ice & Cinema 4d Xpresso


softimage ice

ICE Interactive Creative Environment
On July 7, 2008 the Softimage, Co. announced Softimage|XSI 7,[5] which introduced the ICE (Interactive Creative Environment) architecture. ICE is a visual programming platform that allows users to extend the capabilities of Softimage quickly and intuitively using a node-based dataflow diagram. This enables artists to create complex 3D effects and tools without scripting. Among the main uses for ICE are procedural modeling, deformation, rigging and particle simulation. It can also be used to control scene attributes without the need to write expressions, for example to add camera wiggle or make a light pulsate. ICE is a parallel processing engine that takes advantage of multi-core CPUs, giving users highly scalable performance.

ICE represents Softimage functionality using a collection of nodes, each with its own specific capabilities. Users can connect nodes together, visually representing the data flow, to create powerful tools and effects. Softimage ships with several hundred nodes; among them are both low level nodes, such as Multiply or Boolean, as well as a number of high level nodes called compounds. Compounds serve as "wrapper nodes" to collapse ICE graphs into a single node. Softimage allows users to add custom compounds to its main menu system for easy reusability.

The screenshot on the right shows an example of a simple geometry deformation ICE graph. In a practical scenario, one would collapse the graph into a compound and expose important parameters, for instance the deformation intensity. After adding the tool to the user interface it can easily be applied to other objects. Compounds can also be shared between installations because their entire functionality is stored in XML files.

The graph-based approach of ICE allows for the creation of effects previously attainable only through the use of scripting and/or compiled code. Due to its visual nature and interactivity, it is very accessible for users with no programming experience. Many free and commercial ICE tools have been made available by users and 3rd party developers. Softimage contains an ICE-based fluid and physics simulator called Lagoa as well as an ICE-based version of the Syflex cloth simulator.


Cinema 4d Xpresso
Xpresso - node programming system. The system is based on a graphical interface. It is a set of nodes (nodes) with input and output ports. Nodes are separate functions. Ports of nodes can be interconnected, which leads to a sequential miscalculation of functions. New nodes can be created like plugins with C ++. Xpresso expressions are assigned to objects using the Xpresso tag, which contains the Xpresso node manager. Among the nodes there are both basic programming nodes and special nodes for working with Thinking Particles, Dynamics, Hair and MoGraph. There is also a separate Python node where you can create code in the appropriate language and thereby extend the capabilities of Xpresso.

https://www.maxon.net/en/products/cinema-4d/overview/

who worked, your opinions

[Mathaeus]

Not comparable. Functionally, Xpresso is closer to XSI expressions, or plain connecting between nodes in Maya, you'll use it for linking single parameters in scene and such. While Xpresso is able to deal with multiple elements at once, you don't want to build custom deformations or particle clouds with it, because of horrible performance with any high number, let's say more than few hundreds or so. It's bad with a lot of serial (one-after-another) executions as well, even with small numbers, so not good idea to use it for rigging, if you want a real time playback.
Closest thing to ICE is of course Houdini, and that's literally everything comparable to ICE, since Fabric engine is EOL. Next thing could be Blender's Animaton Nodes addon, by organization very close to ICE, stronger and faster than xPresso, but also not competitor to ICE or Houdini VOPs when it comes to performance.

[xsisoft]

Mathaeus thank! and respect!

[xsisoft]

seemingly in the same vein Xpresso

Grasshopper 3D ( Rhinoceros 3D)(cad)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grasshopper_3D

Modo with assembly =procedural.

[xsisoft]

"Fabric engine is EOL"

so sorry, as with Softimage

My personal opinion, is that developers need to blender (so that their products are not closed again)

[FXDude]

C4d's new shader node editor looks really good! .. (first one to seem to match XSI actually)

But there would seem to need quite a bit more (structural) changes in regard to rigging, collaborative work, and other things for c4d to be considered in VFX shops,

and Xpresso, even with perhaps a similar eventual new node editor UI, as Matheus alluded to, would also need considerable deep changes to match something like ICE.

Otherwise they seem to be the only ones that most-seriously put a high priority on user-experience (which doesn't need to equate to low flexibility, XSI is proof of that),
and despite that I used Maya at work ( and open to use Houdini ), it's personally my biggest gripe with both of them (and Blender for that matter)
and I would be very happy if these C4d core improvements would come to pass enough for it to make it's way in different segments, other than mostly motion-graphics!