Software Alternatives & Startups

Houdini VS ShellNewHandler

Compare Houdini VS ShellNewHandler and see what are their differences

Houdini

Houdini covers all the major areas of 3D production, including:

Rating
0 reviews
ShellNewHandler

SourceForge.net: ShellNewHandler details page

Rating
0 reviews
Note: These products don't have any matching categories. If you think this is a mistake, please edit the details of one of the products and suggest appropriate categories.

Which is more popular?

Based on our record, Houdini should be more popular than ShellNewHandler. It has been mentioned 4 times since March 2021.

social mentions
4 vs 2
3D Modeling popularity
100% vs 0%

Base details

Website, pricing, platforms and company facts side by side.

Houdini
ShellNewHandler
Website sidefx.com sourceforge.net
Listed in

Features and specs

What each product offers, as listed by its team.

Houdini 6 features
ShellNewHandler 0 features
  • Procedural Workflow
    Houdini's node-based procedural approach allows for highly flexible and non-destructive workflows, enabling artists to make broad changes to a scene without requiring significant rework.
  • Versatility
    Houdini is known for its extensive capabilities across various domains including VFX, animation, modeling, and rendering. This makes it suitable for a wide range of projects.
  • VFX and Simulation
    Houdini excels at visual effects and simulations, offering industry-leading tools for particle effects, fluid dynamics, cloth simulation, and more, making it a preferred choice for high-end VFX work.
  • Integration
    Houdini has strong integration capabilities with other software and pipelines, allowing for smooth workflows that can combine the strengths of multiple tools.
  • Extensibility
    Artists and developers can extend Houdini's functionality through its robust support for scripting via Python and VEX, as well as custom nodes and tools.
  • Frequent Updates
    SideFX regularly updates Houdini with new features and improvements, ensuring that users have access to the latest advancements in 3D and VFX technology.

Possible disadvantages

  • Steep Learning Curve
    Houdini's complex node-based system can be intimidating for beginners, requiring a significant investment of time and effort to master.
  • Resource Intensive
    Houdini can be very demanding in terms of hardware resources, particularly when handling complex simulations or high-poly models, necessitating powerful workstations to run smoothly.
  • Cost
    While Houdini offers a free version for non-commercial use, the full commercial licenses can be quite expensive, which might be prohibitive for small studios or independent artists.
  • User Interface
    Some users find Houdini's interface to be less intuitive compared to other 3D software, which can slow down the workflow until users become fully accustomed to it.
  • Specialized Focus
    While Houdini is extremely powerful for VFX and procedural workflows, it may not be as user-friendly or efficient for traditional polygon modeling and character animation compared to other specialized software.

No features have been listed yet.

Analysis

An editorial look at what each product does well and who it suits.

Houdini
ShellNewHandler

Overall verdict

  • Houdini is considered an excellent choice for professionals involved in high-end visual effects, animation, and game development. Its steep learning curve may be challenging for beginners, but the depth and capabilities it offers make it a valuable tool for complex projects.

Why this product is good

  • Houdini by SideFX is widely regarded as a powerful and versatile 3D animation and visual effects software. Its strength lies in its node-based procedural approach that allows for highly customizable workflows and intricate simulations. It excels in creating complex particle systems, fluid dynamics, and volumetric effects, making it a staple in the VFX industry.

Recommended for

  • Visual effects artists
  • 3D animators
  • Game developers
  • Studios working on feature films
  • Advanced users seeking procedural generation capabilities

Overall verdict

  • ShellNewHandler is a niche, lightweight utility hosted on SourceForge designed to give users more control over the Windows 'New' context menu (the ShellNew menu). It can be considered good for its specific narrow use case, but it is an older, minimally maintained tool that may not suit all users, especially those on modern Windows versions.

Why this product is good

  • Provides direct control over customizing the Windows right-click 'New' menu, allowing users to add or remove file type entries
  • Lightweight and free, without bundled bloatware typical of some other free utilities
  • Simple and focused in scope, making it easy to understand for its specific purpose
  • Open distribution via SourceForge allows transparency and no-cost access

Recommended for

  • Power users who want to declutter or customize the Windows New context menu
  • IT administrators managing standardized desktop environments across multiple machines
  • Users comfortable with older utility-style tools and Windows registry-related tweaks
  • Not recommended for casual users seeking modern, actively supported software with regular updates

Videos

Walkthroughs and reviews on video.

Houdini 3 videos + Add
ShellNewHandler 0 videos + Add

What is Houdini Used For?

More videos

  • - Top 5 Reasons To Learn Houdini Today!
  • - Ultra Running Vlog: Patagonia Houdini shell review

No ShellNewHandler videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

Category popularity

How often each product is chosen within a category, 0–100% relative to the other.

Score bands 0–20 21–40 41–50 51–60 61–100
Houdini
ShellNewHandler
100% 100%
0% 0%
0% 0%
100% 100%
100% 100%
3D
0% 0%
0% 0%
100% 100%

User comments

Share your experience with using Houdini and ShellNewHandler. For example, how are they different and which one is better?

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Reviews and articles

External articles and on-site reviews we used to compare the two products.

Houdini no reviews yet
ShellNewHandler no reviews yet

We have no reviews of ShellNewHandler yet. Be the first one to post

Social recommendations and mentions

Recommendations tracked on public social media and blogs since March 2021.

Houdini 4 mentions
ShellNewHandler 2 mentions
  • Book or courses recomendations?
    Otherwise, Unity (3D) has tutorials for Unity, Houdini (vfx) has tutorials on their site (sidefx.com). Blender (3D) has a good community on reddit. For 2D animation the book "The Animator’s Survival Kit" is a common book people read in... Source: almost 4 years ago
  • Coming from Cinema4D + octane
    Houdini is (a little) hard to learn, so the best you can do is focus on one area at the same time: Modeling, Vellum, Fluids, Particles, KineFx ... You can find a lot of free tutorials on sidefx.com. Source: over 4 years ago
  • Newbie question: Which software would I use to create the interactive, animated 3D model project I have in mind?
    It sounds like you would need a lot of procedural geometry, which is done best with Houdini. But it does not do interactive web. Source: over 4 years ago

View more

  • I recently got libreoffice, but now the new option in right click looks like a mess. Can someone help me get rid of them please?
    Use Shell New Handler. Run the portable app and simply untick the items you don't want to appear in your new context menu. Source: about 4 years ago
  • This menu should be easy to add/remove programs to... Who is really creating Access Databases from this menu often enough to keep it here? (Not me!) Is there an easy way to edit this?
    I've always used ShellNewHandler for this. It's a really simple portable utility that allows you to remove most of the items from that menu. Tested it out on Windows 11 and it's still compatible. Source: over 5 years ago

Alternatives to Houdini and ShellNewHandler

When comparing Houdini and ShellNewHandler, you can also consider the following products.