there is 2 ways to use ode with panda3d
if you code in c++ the ODE is part of the source so its part of panda.
if you code in python the pyODE is not part of the panda at all.
Unfortunately there is no way to use the included ode form python yet i think some one is working on it. I wonder way i think it would be easy to just figure out why interrogate does not generate it … some one explain please?
So the internal ODE will require the headers from source while pyODE will not.
Back the lighting library, it looks like its closed source which makes doing any thing with it pretty hard. There is tons of papers on how to simulate fantastic lighting on modern cards i would suggest start at the “bleeding edge.” If they had enough time to write a library for it and try to sell it means their tech is obsolete now. I would suggest try to get the geometry shaders working in panda and read up what are the new hot lighting techniques - they almost change every month. Start small build big.