GTO is a tool that stores static geometric data, enabling easy access and manipulation of such data.
The software is used by film, video, and game production companies to streamline their modeling, animation, rendering, and 3-D paint processes. In terms of distribution, GTO comes with various source codes, including a RenderMan Procedural plug-in, a Maya plug-in, several command-line tools, a Wavefront .obj parser, and two Python modules for reading, writing, and editing GTO files.
The GTO library and its included programs have been provided under the GNU Library General Public License, but exceptions for static linking are available, as detailed in the LICENSE file of the source code. Furthermore, if you have extended, repaired, or invented a new protocol for the GTO format and would like it incorporated in the system, you can get in touch with the team through the email address provided.
Some of the latest changes to the software include modifications to the GTO license terms. Though the code is still covered by LGPL, additional exceptions have been included that are similar to those used by the FLTK library. The library is no longer compatible with older Microsoft compilers, but several bug fixes have been made to the C++ Gto::Writer class for output of text GTO files. The class will now perform run-time error checking of the Gto::Writer API and may throw an exception if the API is used in an undocumented manner.
Finally, the GTO source code distribution comes with Maya and Houdini plugins for cached deforming geometry and particle export and display. Overall, GTO is an excellent software choice for those in the film, video, and game production industry.
Version 3.4: N/A