Houdini Preferences

To improve responsiveness and other settings enhancing the modeling process in Houdini, you can follow the steps below:

• Open Houdini Preferences window (Ctrl+,)
• If you are using a stylus, it is recommended to increase the Click option in the Dead Zones section under the General User Interface tab. This setting helps prevent accidental cursor movements during stylus clicks. For example, in 4K resolution (3840x2160), a good value would be 10.
• In the 3D Viewports tab, change the Renderer option from Vulkan to OpenGL. Since the Vulkan viewport has lower performance, it is recommended to model in OpenGL mode.
• To change the default handle alignment, set the desired value in the Handles/Defaults/Transform tab. By default, the Component mode is active. A more convenient option would be Object mode. After making this change, Houdini will always start in this mode.
• In the Handles/Preferences tab, there are two options that improve interaction with handles:
  • Handle Scale – adjusts the size of handles.
  • Pick Distance – defines the distance (in pixels) from which the handle is grabbed. Increasing this value can reduce the number of accidental misses when trying to grab the handle axis.
• In the Objects and Geometry tab, there is the Geometry Pick Distance option. Increasing this value makes it easier to select components without needing to position the cursor very precisely.
• It's very important to disable the Echo Hotkey Commands option in the Notifications tab. If this option is enabled, using shelf tools with hotkeys becomes less responsive, and the geometry may flicker during interaction.

Viewport Display Options

By default, geometry display quality in Houdini may not be very high, but it can be improved through viewport settings:

• Open the Display Options window by clicking the button located in the bottom right corner of the scene viewer.
• First, for more convenient work, adjust the size of points by setting the Point marker size option in the Guides tab.
• In the Geometry tab, you can change the thickness of edges using the Wire width option, as well as their transparency with the Wire Blend option.
• The most important settings for the default material are located in two tabs:
  • Lights, under the Headlight section.
  • Material, under the Simple Material section.

Adjusting these can improve model display and make the modeling process more comfortable.