Soft_material

DEPRECATED. This shader is unsupported, but it may still get installed with Softimage to provide compatibility with older scenes that use it. It is recommended that you replace unsupported shaders in your scenes with equivalent shaders from the current Softimage shader library.

Shader type: Material

Applied only to objects imported from SOFTIMAGE|3D that have had a material applied to them. Although you can edit its material properties, you cannot use it to build render trees.

Name	The shader's name. Enter any name you like, or leave the default.

Material: Colors Property Page

Controls the color of a material under different lighting conditions, as well as the shading model and rate of specular decay. The Colors property page is available in the soft_material property editor.

Shading Model	Defines how an object reacts to light in terms of shading. With all of these models, you can also apply reflectivity, transparency, refraction, and texture.
Constant	Considers the object as being evenly lit. Only the diffuse color is used. The result is an object whose surface appears to have no shading at all, like a paper cut out.
Lambert	Uses two areas of illumination, ambient and diffuse, to deal with the intensity of reflected light. The result is a smoothly shaded object using a minimum of polygons. The object's surface appears as a dull matte finish with diffuse and ambient illumination, like an egg or a ping-pong ball.
Phong	Uses three areas of illumination: ambient, diffuse, and specular. The result is a smoothly shaded object with diffuse and ambient areas of illumination on its surface, and a specular highlight so that the object appears shiny like a billiard ball. This is the default shading model.
Blinn	Uses four characteristics: ambient, diffusion, specularity, and refractive index. This produces virtually identical results to the Phong shading model, except that the shape of the specular highlight reflects the actual lighting more accurately when there is a high angle of incidence between the camera and the light, which is useful for rough or sharp edges. The specular highlight also appears brighter.
Ambient Color	Defines color values on the object surface area that is shaded with ambient light, an indirect overall illumination. Color values, ranging from 0 to 1, can be set numerically with the Color sliders or with the Palette. This parameter is active on objects shaded with the Lambert, Blinn, or Phong shading models.
Diffuse Color	Defines color on the surface area of the object that is diffusely illuminated by the light sources. Color values, ranging from 0 to 1, can be set numerically with the Color sliders or with the Palette. Diffuse color must be defined for all shading models.
Specular Color	Defines color values for the specular highlight on a Phong- or Blinn-shaded object. Color values, ranging from 0 to 1, can be set numerically with the Color sliders or with the Palette. Values can exceed 1, going as far as 10 000 in certain situations (such as when reflectivity or transparency are applied).
Specular Decay	Controls the size of the specular highlights on Phong- and Blinn-shaded models. Values range from 0 to 300. The default is 50.

Material: Rays Property Page

Controls how light rays behave when they strike the material. The Rays property page is available in the soft_material property editor.

Reflectivity	Controls the reflectivity of the object. Values range from 0 to 1, with 0 being non-reflective and 1 being completely reflective (mirror). If reflectivity is assigned, it is necessary to overcompensate by drastically raising the Shine values. If an object's material is fully reflective, its other material attributes are not visible at all, so reflectivity should always be set to a value less than 1.
Transparency	Controls the transparency of the object. Values range from 0 to 1, with 1 being completely transparent. For a transparent material such as glass, a value of 0.9 is realistic. If transparency is assigned, it may be necessary to overcompensate the Shine values.
Refractive Index	Controls the bending of light rays through a transparent material. Different physical materials have different values; e.g., water (1.33), ice (1.31), quartz (1.54), diamond (2.42), and glass (1.46 to 1.96, depending on the type of glass, with 1.5 being a typical value). The default is 1, which is the refractive index of air and allows light rays to pass straight through a transparent material without distortion.

Material: Texture Property Page

Controls the basic 2D texture controls: the image file and how it is mapped to the surface. The Texture page is available in the soft_material property editor.

Name Text Box	Click Select beside the 2D Texture text box to open the database browser. You can browse through a library of source 2D texture files, either inside or outside the database. To load a texture file, double-click on its file name: the browser closes and the picture is displayed with its file name listed in the 2D Texture text box. You can change the name of the file in this text box. This is useful for making edits to the parameters and saving it with a new name. You cannot load a 2D texture file if its associated picture file has been removed.
Prev and Next buttons	Moves you through the picture files in a sequence. You can edit the previous or next file in the sequence by clicking these buttons.
Projection	Displays the currently selected mapping method. Its drop-down menu shows the following eight available projection methods: XY, XZ, YZ, Spherical, and Cylindrical Coordinates: These coordinates can be considered as a projection of the texture on the objects. The XY, XZ, or YZ, cylindrical, and spherical coordinates are considered to be the support from where the texture is projected. They refer to the object's center orientation. The more perpendicular a surface is to the projection plane, the more stretched the texture is on it. UV Coordinates: Used on patch and NURBS surface objects only. It works like a rubber skin stretched over the surface of the object. Each picture-file pixel corresponds exactly to a particular triangle on the object's surface. This process is known as parameterization. As a result, any distortion from stretching appears more natural. Raytraced Reflection Map: Displays the reflection map and the raytraced reflection of surrounding objects on a reflective object. The reflection map is mapped spherically onto the object. The reflections of surrounding objects take precedence over reflection maps. Non-Raytraced Refl. Map: Shows the reflection map on the reflective object but switches off the raytracing process. It is an efficient way to simulate reflective objects; since the raytracing is disabled, surrounding objects are not reflected.
Picture	Click Select beside the Picture File Name text box to open the database browser. You can browse through a library of source picture files, either inside or outside the database. To load a picture file, double-click on its file name. The browser closes and the picture is displayed with its file name listed in the Picture File Name text box. If you make changes you want to keep, you must save the picture file with a 2D texture file. This is because a picture file is simply an image with no parameter information; its accompanying 2D texture file contains all this information. When you save a setup of parameters as a texture file, the loaded picture file is also saved as a parameter of the setup. Picture files are unique because they can be stored in a database other than the database where your scene is located. When 2D texture files are read from a scene, the necessary picture files are searched in the following places, in this order: The explicit path stored in the texture file. The PICTURES chapter of the database from where the scene is currently being read. The PICTURES chapter of all system databases. The explicit path from the scene elements.
Static	Specifies that the 2D texture is based on a still image. It uses the same picture file associated with a texture map through the sequence (no animation is created). This is the default. For Static use, the picture file should be listed without its .pic extension in the Picture File Name text box.
Sequence	Specifies that the 2D texture is based on a moving sequence. It uses a sequence of previously rendered picture files as the texture map. Softimage synchronizes the picture file frame numbers with the corresponding texture numbers. For sequence animation, the picture files must have the same name and frame number corresponding to each frame of the sequence. You specify the frame number in the Frame text box. For example, if you use an animated sequence of a bouncing ball, the sequence has one name, and each frame is numbered sequentially. Enter the name of the sequence and select the Sequence option. Map the picture sequence onto the front of the object (scaling and positioning the map to fit). The frame numbers of the picture are synchronized with the frame numbers of the scene to create an animated image on the object. The texture file name you enter in the 2D Texture text box should not contain the frame number extension or the .pic extension.
Script	Uses a list of picture files for the substitution process. The picture files must be created in a script file using a text editor. Each picture file must be entered on a separate line with or without the .pic extension. The script files are located in a directory called /PICTURES in the path from where Softimage is executed. Enter the script file name in the Picture File Name text box with or without the .pic extension. Make sure that name of the script file is simple: no spaces, periods, special characters, etc. that may not let the operating system read the file. You should specify the explicit path name (starting with the root directory) pointing to the pictures. As the sequence is rendered, Softimage calls the picture file name on the line corresponding to the current rendering frame. The main advantage of using Script is that it lets you control each frame so that cycling, reversing, looping, and other effects are possible.
Frame	The Frame text box is available when the Sequence or Script options are selected. The current frame number in the Frame text box is the default, but you can enter any frame number and then click the text box to load another texture file in the sequence or script list. The picture associated with the newly loaded texture file is displayed in the display box.
Scale U and V	Sets the size of the texture map on the object's global or local object's surface. The default setting is 1; the texture map covers the entire surface of the object's global or current local material. A lower value reduces the texture map on the material's surface; the object's global or current local material appears where there is no map. A higher value enlarges the texture map on the material's surface so that only a part of the texture map is visible. You can scale the texture map in U and V to stretch or shrink the texture map. A negative value flips the texture map.
Offset U and V	Controls the position of the texture map on the object's global or current local material surface. Click Preview to render the object in a test window and view the results. The default setting is 0; the texture map is located at the origin of the UV coordinates. With a Scale value of 1, the texture fits exactly on the global or current local material. A higher offset value moves the texture map in one direction; a lower value moves it in the opposite direction. With a scale value of 1 and an offset value of 0.5 in U, half of the texture map is visible on one half of the object's global or local material, its other half showing the object's global or local current material. Negative values are accepted.
Repeat U and V	Lets you repeat the picture file in the texture map to create a wallpaper-like pattern. The default setting is 1; a repeat value of 2 in U and V creates a pattern of four pictures on the texture map. If you want a smooth transition between the repeated pictures, the picture file must be carefully created to avoid seams.
Tiling	Four tiling options are available when using Repeat. The tiling patterns are based on four repetitions. The first option repeats the picture file as is, the second mirrors the picture horizontally, the third mirrors it vertically, and the last combines horizontal and vertical mirroring.
Swap UV	Exchanges the U and V directions of the texture coordinates. The texture map is rotated and flipped.
Pixel Interpolation	Used when individual pixels of a picture file become visible because its resolution cannot match the magnification imposed by the size of the object or its distance from the camera. This option calculates intermediate values between pixels so that the pixel patterns become less visible. This process tends to soften the picture as it is magnified.
Local	Specifies that the implicit projection is evaluated in object space. Useful for applying textures to hierarchies and groups.
Global	Specifies that the implicit projection is evaluated in world space. Useful when applying textures to hierarchies and groups.
Crop	Defines the portion of the picture file used as the texture map.
Pixel	Measures the area to be cropped in pixel coordinates.
Percent	Measures the area to be cropped in percentage coordinates.

Material: Texture Blend Property Page

Controls how the 2D texture is blended with the material color, as well as other advanced options. Available in the soft_material property editor.

Blending	Controls the blending of the picture file and the current material on the object's areas of illumination. Without Mask: Uniformly blends the picture file with the object's current material. The ratio of picture to material visibility is controlled using the Overall slider. Alpha Channel Mask: Uses the alpha channel (transparency) of the picture file as a blending factor. The picture file is blended with the object's current material, according to the different alpha-channel values of the picture pixels. Where the alpha channel-value is high (white), the color of the picture file is visible; where the alpha-channel value is low (black), the object's current material is visible. RGB Intensity Mask: Uses the RGB color intensity of the picture file as a blending factor. The picture file is blended with the object's current material according to the different RGB intensity values of the picture pixels. Where the RGB intensity is high (white), the color of the picture file is visible; on low intensity pixels (black), the object's current material is visible.
Component	Sets which component of the 2D texture picture file is affected.
None	Does not use any components to blend the texture.
Alpha Channel	Uses the alpha channel (transparency) of the picture file to create effects on the object.
RGB Intensity	Uses the intensity determined by the RGB values of the picture file to determine the color of the transmitted rays.
Transparency	Controls how the 2D texture affects the transparency of the material. Values range from -1 to 1. At -1, a white picture file pixel is opaque and a black pixel is transparent. At 1, the effect is reversed. At 0, no transparency is visible. You can determine which component of the 2D texture picture file affects transparency.
Reflectivity	Controls how the 2D texture affects the reflectivity of the material. Values range from -1 to 1. At -1, a white picture file pixel is non-reflective and a black pixel is completely reflective. At 1, the effect is reversed. At 0, no reflectivity is visible. You can set which component of the 2D texture picture file affects reflectivity.
Roughness	Often referred to as bump mapping, Roughness lets you control the roughness effect created by the 2D texture. Values range from -20 to 20. A greater value (positive or negative) generates a more pronounced roughness effect (negative values create valleys instead of mountains). At 0, there is no roughness. If you're using mental ray rendering software, adjust the degree to which your object's geometry is modified. Bump mapping moves the normals of an object, which affects the object's shading to create the illusion of roughness. The object's geometry is not affected. You can determine which component of the 2D texture picture file affects roughness.
Ambient	Controls the intensity of the picture file on the object's ambient area of illumination. Values range from above 0 to 1. At 0, the picture file is replaced by the object's material (global or current local).
Diffuse	Controls the intensity of the picture file on the object's diffuse area of illumination. Values range from above 0 to 1. At 0, the picture file is replaced by the object's material (global or current local).
Specular	Controls the intensity of the picture file on the object's specular area of illumination. Values range from above 0 to 1; the value may be set higher to compensate for reflectivity or transparency. At 0, the picture file is replaced by the object's material (global or current local).
Overall	Controls the amount of blending between the picture file and the object's current material. Values range from 0 to 1; at 0, only the material is visible; at 1, only the picture file is visible.
Prev. and Next buttons	Moves you through the picture files in a sequence. You can edit the previous or next file in the sequence by clicking these buttons.