I am a proficient Houdini user now learning Touch Designer. I know that there is a lot of Touch specific behaviour that unique and awesome in this software (and I’m loving learning it, especially CHOPS that doesn’t crash constantly). I was wondering if anyone had figured out any common Houdini procedural functionality implementations into Touch that they’d like to share?
I am especially interested in procedural geometry manipulation, specifically any sort of VOP SOP (Houdini) equivalent functionality in Touch. At present I’m looking into the Script SOP (Touch), and am digging through the docs to try and give myself a similar functionality for use with a COPY SOP
e.g. copy stamp expressions, switching copy geometry, generating and manipulating arbitrary attributes on geometry based upon P, time, noise functions, pattern functions, etc.
I’m specifically talking about SOPS right now and not what I can get in shader because I want to manipulate this data, then do a COPY, then manipulate it some more, etc.
As I figure it out I’ll add operator/code snippets to this thread.
Example of a Houdini VOP (vector operator) below.
Hi Gabe,
Great to see you here.
From my point of view\experience
Generally speaking Touch still have difficulty to implement advance sop concepts from Houdini,to run on 60 FPS and I think I cant really expect them to close the even little of the gap in functionality in the near future.
Sops operators in touch using the CPU,one core as far as I understand,every change in them takes lots of work force,CHOP’s and DAT’s also use the same core…
So Im -try- to use nodes that are meant to be proceed by the GPU. as TOP's and some COMPs.
For example :
*I`m always try to find ways to achieve what i want using
instancing before jumping into copy sop.
*I prefer to create my 3D geometry in Houdini and add the functionality in touch.
while change the parameters in COMP`s level.
(Geometry node transformation more efficient then transform sop node)
*variables will be change on chop level and not on sop level,adding noise to points position take more cpu then adding noise to chop.
Basically I`m try not to use sop nodes if possible and limit the use to less
points\primitives as possible per sop node if i have no choice.
I`m also asked your questions in different way in the past,rodberry called for better sop management in touch and we even vote for Houdini plugin 
,I know the guys in derivative doing great job and hope we will see changes in the near future.
If someone can add and correct me I will glad to hear.
Barak
Certainly there is a lot of Houdini’s heritage here, but I share barakooda’s thoughts - namely, that most of the cool fast stuff is going to be about exploiting your GPU. Unfortunately sops run on the CPU.
GLSL is basically your VEX if you want to quickly move around your geometry, color it etc… unfortunately, no VOPs or any other node based solution. (GLSL node based editor RFE anyone?)
Also, you’ll want to really start looking at performance monitor and node cook times. I usually sketch something out, then, if it’s a hog, think about how to tackle speeding up that part of the process. Many many things, will simply be out of reach - and your design will have to take a turn if it wants to stay 60fps.
Visually speaking, if you see data moving between the ‘noodles’ between OP connections while playing - that means cooking is occurring, and you’ll want to stop that as much as possible.