SuperTools

SuperTools are compound nodes where the internal structure of nodes is dynamically created using Python scripting.

This means that the internal nodes can be created and deleted depending on the user's actions, as well as modifications to the connections between nodes and any input or output ports. The UI that a SuperTool shows in the Parameters tab can be completely customized using PyQt, including the use of signals and slots to create callbacks based on user actions. To help with this, we have a special arrangement with Riverbank Computing - the creators of PyQt - allowing us to give user access to the same PyQt that Foundry uses internally in Katana.

Many of Katana’s common user level nodes, such as the Importomatic, GafferThree, and LookFileManager, are actually SuperTools created out of more atomic nodes. It can be useful to look inside existing SuperTool nodes and macros to get a better understanding of how they work. If you Ctrl+middle-click on a suitable node, you open up its internal Node Graph.

In general, SuperTools consist of:

• A Python script written using the Katana NodegraphAPI that declares how the SuperTool creates its internal network.

• A Python script using PyQt that declares how the SuperTool creates its UI in the Parameters tab.

• A third Python script (typically) for common shared utility functions needed by both the nodes and UI scripts.