On Episode 11 of the View Dependent Podcast, we had the pleasure of hosting developers David Rhodes and Ruben Diaz, who took us through some of the groundbreaking functionalities of GSOPs 2.0. The episode concluded with an exciting note: early access to GSOPs 2.0 was on its way. As it turns out, the wait was shorter than expected—Rhodes and Diaz have now officially released the "Early Access" of GSOPs 2.0!
GSOPs, an open-source project developed on the side by Rhodes and Diaz, has quickly become a standout tool for rapid prototyping, testing, and refining both creative and procedural 3D workflows in Houdini. This early-access preview builds on the foundation of GSOPs 1.0, combining the power of Houdini's proceduralism with the high fidelity rendering of the Radiance Field method, 3D Gaussian Splatting in a single, streamlined package. Additionally, a major addition is the inclusion of WYSIWYG workflows to manipulate data.
Best of all, GSOPs is available as a free plugin, inviting both hobbyists and experts to explore its extensive capabilities.
As Radiance Field methods like Gaussian Splatting gain traction for tasks such as synthetic data generation and novel view synthesis, GSOPs serves as a streamlined solution for isolating objects, removing artifacts, deforming and animating splats, and even performing statistical analyses. GSOPs 2.0 offers creators and researchers alike the chance to explore these capabilities in a pre-release version, designed to gather insights and feedback from the community as development progresses.
This versatility allows for practical applications across industries and offers a playground for experimentation within Houdini’s established ecosystem. While GSOPs 2.0 will retain the core functionality of its predecessor, it introduces several updates and new features to enhance flexibility and ease of use:
[UPDATED] gaussian_splats_generate_training_data: Generate synthetic data suitable for training gaussian splat models. Added png image support for Alpha-masked training in Postshot and NerfStudio/Gsplat, as well as COLMAP txt export for improved debugging.
[UPDATED] gaussian_splats_transform: Translate, rotate, and scale splats. New and improved user experience and support for splat scaling!
[NEW] gaussian_splats_hald_clut: Apply color adjustment to splats based on Hald Color Look-Up Tables.
[NEW] GSplat Source: Converts point geometry (as defined by gaussian_splats_import) into "GSplat" primitives, enabling their rendering in the viewport.
While GSOPs 2.0 Early Access provides a glimpse into the full capabilities of the eventual release, it’s still a professional-grade prototyping tool. Known issues and areas for improvement exist, and the user experience is not yet fully optimized. Users should keep in mind that this version is aimed at providing an early testing ground, with feedback channels open for those interested in contributing to GSOPs' ongoing development.
For those interested in contributing or simply exploring GSOPs' capabilities, the project is freely available on GitHub. Support can also be found in the GSOPs’ Discord. The toolkit is supported on Houdini 20.5, and installation instructions are included, guiding users from cloning the repository to setting up GSOPs within Houdini. With extensive help cards, example scenes, and a supportive community, GSOPs is designed to be accessible and extendable.
