Group Input Nodes for All Node Graphs!
Using the group input node in Geometry Nodes is awesome for exposing variables to the properties panel. It lets us be able to pop out/add those windows beside your viewport for super fast, on-the-fly variable editing without having to fish through a sea of nodes all the time.
It would be awesome to get this functionality with Shaders, Lights, and the Compositor. While some people might argue that we already have drivers/custom properties for this, that solution isn't as ideal for a couple reasons:
a.) It takes longer to set up because you have to manually pass drives to the custom properties rather than the automatic pass through that group inputs do
b.) It's less performant because you are having to create object references and utilize the python API at a high level that is having to translate to the system to pass that information through. A native integration is always faster because it speaks to the panel straight away under the hood (more or less)
c.) Workflow-wise, it's a much simpler and easier separation of concerns as well as adding user safety. Drivers set in a custom properties tab can technically be passing data to anywhere in the system. Whereas with group inputs, you have the certainty that the property that you are changing in the menu is changing the datablock that you are contextually working in (changing a material property is directly changing something in the material, changing a light property changes something directly about a light, ect.)
d.) Imho I believe the custom properties section should be reserved for more of the super technical properties that a person would want to set up that they wouldn't be able to do in an ordinary exposed variable from a group input node. And even if you want to keep those controls in the custom properties, you would still have that option
Just a little suggestion that I think would be super awesome workflow-wise that would help people from having to look back and forth between windows that already exists with Geo-Nodes that I think should get parity with its cousins.
1 Comment
I think there is a vocabulary misusage here. You use "group input nodes", but judging by the way you talk about it makes me think you actually mean two things: A the node group system, and B the geometric node's group panel visible in the properties editor:"
And in those terms, I'm not sure what you propose is different from what we already have.
Group nodes are available in materials, light materials and compositing:
As for how the UI exposes them on the properties editor "next to the viewport", this is available in the materials and light data tabs:
This isn't available for compositing nodes, but there isn't a dedicated place to see anything about compositing besides the compositor itself.
And I would argue that, if you want anything from there displayed just next to the viewport: you can customize your areas just as you want. So in term, we got that covered too.