Publish effects as graphs

You can publish an entire effect as a graph that appears in the Bifrost Browser. Published graphs are different than published compounds: while a published compound is a reusable subgraph that can be included inside a graph, a published graph includes the top level of the graph and its connections to the host scene.

Published graphs can also include supporting files, such as a thumbnail image and an example scene.

Tip:

If a graph has a scene geometry input such as a mesh, and the scene that you import the graph into has an object with the same name, it gets automatically connected.

To publish a graph:

  1. At the top level of the graph, choose Create > Publish Graph.

  2. Enter the information as desired:

    • Graph name: The name of the graph as it will appear in the Bifrost Browser. This will also be used as the default name of the Bifrost graph node in the host scene when the graph is imported.
    • Graph namespace: All graphs require a namespace.
    • Browser category: The category in which the graph will appear in the Bifrost Browser. Graphs without a category are not listed.
    • Author: An optional author's name. This is shown when you click the info icon in the Bifrost Browser.
    • Description: An optional description. This is also shown when you click the info icon.

  3. Select optional supporting files. These files will be copied to the publishing location for ease of sharing.

    • Thumbnail: An image to display in the Bifrost Browser.
    • Documentation: A Markdown file that you can use to provide further information about the graph. It is displayed when no node is selected at the top level of the graph. Most GitHub-flavor Markdown formatting is supported.
    • Example Scene: A scene that can be opened from the Bifrost Browser.

  4. Set publishing options:

    • Include connected materials: Saves any scene materials referenced in the graph as a separate scene, and automatically reconnects them when the graph is imported.
    • Save sidecar files: The Adjacent to compound option stores all files in a common subfolder, which makes it easier to zip and share. The In Autodesk-default folders puts the graph and other files in separate folders.

  5. Choose the Save file name and directory. Only compounds that are stored in one of the locations listed in the drop-down box will be available in the Bifrost Browser. In addition to your default user location, you can set up additional compound locations. The default user location is:

    • Windows: \Users\username\Autodesk\Bifrost\Compounds
    • macOS: /Users/username/Autodesk/Bifrost/Compounds
    • Linux: /home/username/Autodesk/Bifrost/Compounds
Parent page: Build and modify graphs