Technical notes index
Long-form technical notes about rendering, procedural systems, shaders, production tooling, and the decisions behind real-time work.
Foundations
5 RECORDSHow data becomes a rendered frame: hardware, graphics pipelines, memory, shaders, and engines.
From File to Pixel
5 records2025.04ARTICLEFrom File to Pixel · Part 05: The EngineForward and deferred rendering across Unity URP, HDRP, and Unreal Engine.2025.03ARTICLEFrom File to Pixel · Part 04: The ShaderShader compilation, instancing, compute work, and runtime execution.2025.03ARTICLEFrom File to Pixel · Part 03: The DataAlignment, packing, CPU–GPU transfer, and the cost of data representation.2025.03ARTICLEFrom File to Pixel · Part 02: The PipelineHow authored data becomes commands, buffers, and work for the graphics pipeline.2025.03ARTICLEFrom File to Pixel · Part 01: The MachineCPU, GPU, memory, draw calls, and the hardware path behind a rendered frame.
Procedural systems
4 RECORDSRule-driven environments, lighting, and spatial systems built with Houdini and Unreal Engine.
Address & travel resolution
2 records2026.10ARTICLEProcedural Travel Resolution — From World Coordinates to Loaded InteriorsProcedural portals in Houdini and Unreal Engine: address-aware travel, seeded interior variants, streamed levels, arrival anchors and reliable return routes.2026.10ARTICLEProcedural Address Resolution — From Placement Identity to World CoordinatesDeterministic building, entrance and apartment addresses from procedural placement identity, ordered relationships and preset JSON summaries in Houdini and Unreal Engine.
Level generation & lighting
2 records2026.09ARTICLEThe Light System — Randomized and Synchronized Lighting on Generated GeometryHow lights on windows and streetlights attach to procedurally placed instances in Unreal — sockets, stable selection, a material mask, and data that survives a rebuild.2026.09ARTICLEControlled Procedurality — How a Maze Generator Became a Level Design SystemProcedural environment generation and level design in Houdini and Unreal: modular structures, prop scatter, lighting, and gameplay placement driven by authored rules.
Shaders
7 RECORDSShader references and practical studies in materials, HLSL, and GPU compute.
Compute shaders
2 recordsShader fundamentals
1 recordUnity ShaderLab Cheatsheet
4 recordsREFERENCEUnity ShaderLab Cheatsheet — Fundamentals & PropertiesShaderLab fundamentals: file anatomy, CG and HLSL execution, shader identity, Properties syntax, data types, and Inspector drawers.REFERENCEUnity ShaderLab Cheatsheet — Tags & Render StatesA practical ShaderLab reference for SubShader tags, render queues, blending, AlphaToMask, and ColorMask across Unity pipelines.REFERENCEUnity ShaderLab Cheatsheet — Depth, Stencil & PassesShaderLab depth and visibility controls: Cull, ZWrite, ZTest, stencil masking, render order, and multi-pass rendering.REFERENCEUnity ShaderLab Cheatsheet — HLSL, Pipelines & OptimizationUnity shader program architecture: HLSL stages, semantics, precision, intrinsic functions, render pipelines, optimization, and adaptation.
VFX & simulations
2 RECORDSProduction breakdowns of procedural effects, simulation, and animation.
Procedural animation
1 recordPipeline
2 RECORDSMoving procedural content between Houdini, Unreal Engine, and USD workflows.
Houdini → Unreal
1 recordTechnical art
4 RECORDSProgramming lessons and mathematical foundations for technical-art work.
C# Variables — Lesson 1
3 records2025.12ARTICLEC# Variables Lesson 1 Part 2C# variables lesson 1 part 2 covering advanced variable usage and practical examples. Structured introduction for beginners and technical artists.2025.12ARTICLEC# Variables Lesson 1 Part 3C# variables lesson 1 part 3 covering advanced variable usage and practical examples. Structured introduction for beginners and technical artists.2025.11ARTICLEC# Variables Lesson 1 Part 1C# variables lesson 1 part 1 covering advanced variable usage and practical examples. Structured introduction for beginners and technical artists.
Houdini
3 RECORDSHoudini studies in simulation, procedural animation, and environment creation.
Simulation & animation
2 records2026.02ARTICLESoft-Body Simulation of Many Objects — Controlled Chaos as a Procedural Camera Transition (Houdini)How a Houdini camera transition simulates a large number of soft bodies: camera-frustum layout, velocity-field trajectories, Vellum, and staggered stick-and-release.2024.10ARTICLEFX Flame simulation vertex animationFX flame simulation vertex animation using Houdini VAT workflow for Unreal Engine and Unity real-time pipelines.
Tools
8 RECORDSReusable production utilities for image processing, documentation, and Houdini workflows.
Image & texture tools
2 recordsCLI & documentation
1 recordHoudini tools
5 records2024.09TOOLProcedural Skeleton GeneratorGenerate reusable rig-bone structures from procedural Houdini geometry.2024.07TOOLHoudini Folder-Based File ImporterDirectory-driven geometry import and repeatable Houdini scene assembly.2024.06TOOLProcedural Tire GeneratorParametric tire construction, tread systems, and reusable Houdini workflows.2024.05TOOLHoudini Material Path ManagerBuild and maintain shop_materialpath values from structured string attributes.2024.03TOOLHoudini to After Effects Data ExportStructured camera, object, and animation transfer from Houdini into After Effects.
Python tools
1 RECORDSLocal Python utilities and command-line workflows for production tasks.
Assets
5 RECORDSReusable 3D models for real-time scenes, visualization, and rendering.
Real-time 3D assets
5 records2025.01ASSETLow-Poly DumpsterLow-poly dumpster with clean geometry and UV-mapped textures for real-time urban environments.2025.01ASSETModular Market ShelfHigh-detail modular market shelf asset for retail visualization, rendering, and reusable scene layouts.2025.01ASSETLow-Poly Piggy Bank 3D ModelPiggy bank asset with low- and mid-poly variants for games, VR/AR, rendering, and visualization.2025.01ASSETLow Poly Slot Machine 3D ModelGame-ready low-poly slot machine with a mechanical rig, spinning animation, clean UVs, and PBR textures.2025.01ASSETWater Cooler 3D ModelLow-poly water cooler with clean geometry, UV-mapped textures, and FBX/Cinema 4D delivery for real-time scenes.
Archive
1 RECORDSEarlier development notes on gameplay systems and their integration.