[PD] Touch101

[Ben Bogart - FMPM/F1999]

Hello All,

I just wanted to write a few thoughts on some software I saw demoed last 
week. The software is touch101 from devivative. (www.derivativeinc.com) 
The software is made for realtime 3D visualization for entertainment 
(music accompanyment) and is based on Sidefx houdini. Houdini (and 
Touch101) both use a network/node based interface for modeling. with 
Touch101 you can use MIDI signals to control any of the availible 
parameters. I have to say its some pretty neat software. The only 
advantage I can see it having over GEM is that it can manipulate geometry 
directly and so doing modeling as well as rendering in real time. But 
there is no live video support (pix_video). I saw it running on an 
inspiron 8100 with the Nvidia GO and it was *slow* not even close to the 
render speeds I've been getting with GEM and my geforce2. 

In order to get to the point I want to thank the PD and GEM developers, 
users and maintainers for thier work. GEM is an amazing tool that blows 
me away the more I use it. And to see that it has 90% of the 
functionality of a $1200 US commercial package simply makes me proud. 

I'll be teaching a pd/GEM workshop at my University in the next 2 weeks 
and hope that the students love the software as much as I do.

Thanks to the Community.
Ben Bogart



B. Bogart
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