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Overview
The Houdini Object Model (HOM) is an application programming interface (API) that lets you get information from and control Houdini using the Python scripting language. HOM replaces the functionality of Houdini’s previous scripting solutions, the expression language and HScript.
In Python, the hou package is the top of a hierarchy of modules, functions,
and classes that define the HOM. The hou module is automatically imported
when you are writing expressions in the parameter editor
and in the hython command-line shell.
Which Python?
Mac
On Mac OS X, Houdini uses the system’s Python.
Windows
On Windows, Houdini uses the version of Python installed with Houdini.
Linux
On Linux, Houdini does not look at $PATH when trying to search and load the Python library. Instead it searches all the paths in $LD_LIBRARY_PATH, then /lib, and then /usr/lib. If it can’t find a suitable Python library in the system, it uses the one in $HFS. If your Python library is not in a standard location, you should add its directory path to $LD_LIBRARY_PATH.
Subtopics
Getting started
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You can write parameter expressions in Python instead of the default Hscript expression language.
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Various places in Houdini where you can customize behavior using Python scripting.
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How to write Python scripts for shelf tools.
Next steps
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These examples demonstrate simple uses of the Houdini’s Python scripting API.
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You can use HOM to store and retrieve arbitrary data on individual nodes.
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Scripting Houdini from web pages
HTML pages viewed in the embedded browser can use a special JavaScript object to interact with Houdini.
Reference
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Module containing all the sub-modules, classes, and functions to access Houdini.
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Utility functions for extracting information from Alembic files.
