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120 Chapter 11: Space Warps and Particle Systems
w i ll be primarily controlled by the test, in general,
even if the operator comes after the test. However,
theoperator’ssettingswillstillhavesomeinfluence
over part icle behavior, part icularly if its Speed
value is significantly higher than that of the test.
For a list of actions’ effective time frames, see
Act ion Time Frames (page 2–137) .
Also, if you’re testing for a specific condition that
canbeaffectedbyotheractionsinanevent,besure
to place the test
after the actions. For example, in
an event with a
Force operator (page 2–200) and a
Collision test (page 2–208) , place the Collision test
after the Force operator. This avoids the possibility
of the force pushing particles past the deflector
beforethesoftwarecantestforthecollision,which
wouldallowtheparticlestopenetratethedeflector.
In genera l, place tests at the end of the event.
How can I tell which particles are in a certain
event?
One way is to set the Type option for the
Display
operator (page 2–198)
in each event to a different
choice. For example, the first event could use
Ticks, the second Circles, and the third Lines.
This way the p a rticles change appearance in the
viewports as they move from event to event.
You can also use the Display operator to change
particle colors, to further distinguish them.
Another way is to select all particles in a certain
event.SelecttheParticleFlowsourceicon,and
then go to the Modify panel > Select ion rollout
and click the Ev ent icon. You can then click an
event in the Select By Event list to highlig ht all of
its particles in the viewports.
Whydomyparticleslosetheirmaterialwhen
they move to another event?
A material is a static property of an event. It do es
not travel along with the particles from event
to event. A particle’s material ID does, but its
material does not. If you want particles always
to use the same material, define the material in
the
global event (page 3–1043) with a Material
operator (page 2–182)
or a Shape Instance
operator (page 2–174)
. Otherwise, you need to
define it in each local event.
Can I have an event receive input from multiple
events?
P article Flow lets you wire any number of tests to
asingleevent.
I changed an operator setting, but it doesn’t
seem to have any effect on the particle system.
A similar operator in the global event might be
overriding your local operator. By default, Particle
Flow evaluates local operators first, and then
global operators. If a g lobal operator affects the
same property, such as speed, as a local one, the
particle system w ill use the value set by the global
operator. You can set local operators to override
global ones by choosing Part icle View > Opt ions
menu > Action Order > Globals First.
Can an event be isolated in Particle View and
not connected to anything?
Yes,butitwon’taffecttheparticlesystematall.