Side Effects Software
(http://www.sidefx.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1449&Itemid=322)
has released Houdini 10 for Mac OS X 10.5 (“Leopard”). Its an update
of the software used by film, broadcast and game development
facilities to create visual effects, digital characters, fully CG
feature films and more.

With the release of Houdini 10, the Mac version of the software —
built for 64-bit OS X — performs as well or better than Houdini on
other platforms, according to Kim Davidson, president, Side Effects
Software. Houdini uses a node-based workflow similar to that found in
a number of other digital media packages designed for the Mac.

Its feature set includes 3D modeling, rigging, animation, particle
effects, dynamics, compositing, integrated rendering, and more. In
addition to professional versions of the software — Houdini Master
for visual effects and Houdini Escape for Modeling, Lighting and
Animation — artists can download Houdini Apprentice, a free personal
learning edition with watermarks and limited render resolutions or
Houdini Apprentice HD an US$99 version that removes the watermarks
and boosts the render resolutions to HD quality.

With the release of Houdini 10, Side Effects has expanded the
software’s feature list to include the Pyro FX toolset ,which enables
visual effects artists to create high-quality smoke and fire. Pyro FX
comes with several pre-made effects such as Billowy Smoke and
Fireball. Additionally, Houdini’s cloth solver can now be used to
simulate the crumpling and tearing of elastic-like surfaces and those
which can be dented.

Houdini 10 also includes support for viewport display and final
rendering of Stereoscopic 3D content. For lighting artists there’s
the progressive Interactive Photorealistic Rendering (IPR) feature
with a workflow that now supports both raytracing and physically
based rendering (PBR), providing instant feedback whenever a scene
changes. Finally the new MotionFX toolset gives users access to the
procedural power of Houdini’s CHOPS (channel operators) animation
toolset.