Mode

Sets the visibility of the particle simulation as follows:

• Live allows you to play a simulation continuously for quick editing and tweaking. You can then view the effect of any modifications in real time. As soon as you skip forward, the simulation is computed from the current frame, for all of the intermediate frames.

If you want to see the effects of motion blur on the particles or do final rendering, switch to Standard Caching or Standard No Caching.

• Standard No Caching is the default. It doesn’t cache any PTP files, and calculates the particle animation only when you click the Simulate button or go to a different frame (either by clicking the Play button below the timeline or moving the playback cursor).

• Standard Caching is the same as Standard No Caching except that it caches one PTP file per frame. These PTP files are saved in the folder you specify on the Output page. Caching PTP files allows you to scrub the simulation and get the correct state, play the simulation backwards, and play PTP files in the Particle Player (see Playing PTP Files in the Particle Player [ Particles ]) for previewing.

For information on these modes, see Choosing the Way Particle Simulations Are Played Back [ Particles ].

Mute Cloud

Mutes the simulation and temporarily freezes the particle cloud in its current shape (no particle simulation is calculated). This is useful for setting parameters and moving back and forth on the timeline without having to wait for the particle simulation to update

Simulate

Recalculates the simulation from the first frame up to the current frame.

Source Time

Sets the time reference for the simulation:

- Global (default) determines the simulation’s time relative to the scene. All the animated values of the source are read in the scene’s global time. This let you build a simulation between frames n and m by animating the source parameters between frames n and m.

- Local determines the simulation’s time relative to the source. All the animated values of the source are read in local time. Local time extends from frame 1 up to frame 1 + Duration in global time. This lets you build up simulation libraries and offset them as you like without losing any of the source’s animation.

Source - Start and End

The Start and End frames of the simulation source are calculated depending on the Duration. These frames are where the source animation is read from in the scene’s global time. These values are for display only and cannot be changed.

- When the Source Time is local, Start = 1 and End = 1 + Duration value.

- When the Source Time is global, Start = Global Result Start (which is the Offset value) and End = Start + Duration.

Duration

The duration, in frames, of the particle simulation.

Time Reference - Offset

The number of frames by which you want to offset the start of the simulation.

With Local time, an Offset affects the place where the simulation is being played, but does not affect the source itself. This means that whatever the offset, the animation on the source is always read between frame 1 and 1+ Duration in the scene’s global time.

Global Result - Start and End

Display at which frames in the scene the simulation will be played. These values are for display only and cannot be changed.

Copy from Scene

Copies the scene’s first and last frame defined for the timeline to the simulation. This changes the Offset and Duration so that the simulation is played throughout the scene’s timespan.

Copy to Scene

Copies the Global Result > Start and End frames to the scene timeline’s first and last frame.

Particles %

Specifies how much of the total particle simulation will be generated.

Seed

Adds an overall variation to all Var parameter values in the simulation. This means that any of the Emission or PType parameters whose Var parameters have values other than zero are modified by this Seed value.

See Particle Variance and Seed Parameters for more information.

Fuzzy Force Distribution

Applies the forces for a specific amount of time on a per-particle basis at each update cycle. This helps eliminate the problem of stratified particles when large forces are applied to the cloud.

Output Sequence

The file name and location of the particle animation PTP files that allow you to play back a simulation. PTP files are saved when you play the simulation in Standard Caching mode. The default folder for this sequence is c:\temp. By default, the name is Particles plus an instance-counter number. If Usr is on, the path is displayed as you entered it. If Res is on, the resolved path is displayed.

Clean Cached Files

When on, all the PTP files that were recorded and cached for playback are erased each time you exit, PTP files record the position of your particles at each frame in the animated scene.

Iterations

The number of times a particle’s position is calculated per interval.

Interframes

The number of times a particle’s position is calculated per frame.