On Sunday, December 26, 2021 1:30:42 PM EST John Dammeyer wrote: > Hi Mark, > I'll summarize your basic premise here that all machines are different. > That's true! > > And MACH2/3/4 has a huge user base without ever needing a command line > editor. So if it can be done for Windows then certainly it can be done > for LCNC. > > Having said that I'm also not suggesting we do away with the underbelly of > what is LCNC. Please recall my original post in this subject. The > ACORN based system cannot run an old iron system with existing servo > drives. It's likely it can't even run a system with a STMBL drive that > faults on low power supply voltage which mine does because I have a soft > start delay on mine so ENABLE shows up before the Voltage is there. > Doesn't look like it can even do step/dir for the spindle (which MACH3 > can). So there is a place for the 'raw' LinuxCNC install and HAL/INI > file model. > > But that user I mentioned wasn't interested in learning a new OS and the > ACORN was a one stop shop for the Ethernet controlled step/dir/VFD/IO > board and windows CNC software. He went with Clearpath Servos so he > wasn't adverse to spending money. He could just as easily have installed > LCNC 2.8.2 and the MESA board with terminal strips and used the config > screens in AXIS and I suspect for less money. But the LinuxOS itself > appeared to also scare him away so he likely would never be a user. > > I think everyone who likes using an editor for configuration and issuing > multiple commands with a command line interface has already been brought > over to the dark side so to speak. They aren't the market for expanding > the LCNC user base. > > I've attached a screen shot of something I've been playing with. Took > about an hour to write using a modern GUI based software development > tool; in this case Lazarus Free Pascal. The TCanvas Property has all > sorts of drawing tools so I thought I'd take a quick look at the Axis > source code. To see how easy it would be to port over the Preview screen > to Pascal. > > I was immediately reminded of something I written many years ago by > Nicholas Wirth the author of Pascal. "Those who learn Fortran as their > first language are brain damaged for life". Rather harsh actually and > taken out of context appears elitist . OTOH, 4195 lines of essentially > undocumented python code does look like a lot of the Fortran code the > Electrical Engineers were writing in University while we in the Comp Sci. > stream were writing in structured languages Algol-68. And those were not > for GUI type interfaces which add to complexity. > > For example: > if o.canon: > x = (o.canon.min_extents[0] + o.canon.max_extents[0])/2 > y = (o.canon.min_extents[1] + o.canon.max_extents[1])/2 > z = (o.canon.min_extents[2] + o.canon.max_extents[2])/2 > o.set_centerpoint(x, y, z) > > If you go searching for o.cannon you find: > o.canon = canon = AxisCanon(o, widgets.text, i, progress, arcdivision) > > Search for AxisCAnon and we find the object definition: > class AxisCanon(GLCanon, StatMixin): > > Now we're into the include side of things where the rs274 library is > needed: from rs274.interpret import StatMixin > from rs274.glcanon import GLCanon, GlCanonDraw > > which takes us to here: > https://github.com/LinuxCNC/linuxcnc/blob/master/lib/python/rs274/ glcanon. > py which is another 1886 lines of undocumented code. > > The excuses that will be made for no documentation will be the same ones > given for command line operation of Linux and LCNC. It's much better > than windows or it's self documenting. You just have to learn a few > commands and you can do so much more than with windows........ > > I believe we need to step outside the box and ask ourselves this question. > How can we attract more people who just want simple CNC (maybe without > limit switches even), a VFD and encoder on the spindle and possibly > coolant or a few other outputs. > > One really simple way is that the companies (or people) building the > intelligent CNC controls like the MESA change their web sites to have at > least one menu choice for "SimpleCNC". > > I went here: > http://wiki.linuxcnc.org/cgi-bin/wiki.pl?LinuxCNC_Supported_Hardware > > Eventually with more Google searching I ended up here: > http://store.mesanet.com/index.php?route=product/ product&product_id=290&se > arch=7i76e
That is a very nice board, I use 2 of them myself, but not in the E version. I use the much cheaper parport version. Why? I refuse to give up my only ethernet port just to carve metal. The net access is much much more useful to me. > That link to the page I think would be best right at the top of the MESA > site. And on that page should be a link to a page with a pictorial > connection diagram like: > https://www.centroidcnc.com/centroid_diy/acorn_cnc_controller.html For the basic, get you hooked, system that's not a bad price. But some of the accessories clearly have a 10,000% markup. Why should a conductive touch probe cost $800 when I can make one with 50 cents worth of wire, a 1/2" square piece of PCB material worth a dime and 1/4" of solder? And its repeatable to .0002" or better. Boggles my mind. > And a link to a version of LinuxCNC 2.8.2 (or latest) with a HAL/INI file > specifically set up for that hardware. Literally install OS from .iso > and there's a desktop ICON to run LCNC for that hardware. > > But going back up to the LCNC supported hardware link it turns out there's > almost nothing available for LCNC Ethernet control other than the MESA > boards. So maybe that's also why MACH3/4 and the ACORN are so > successful. > > Anyway, something to think about for the new year. > John Cheers, Gene Heskett. -- "There are four boxes to be used in defense of liberty: soap, ballot, jury, and ammo. Please use in that order." -Ed Howdershelt (Author, 1940) If we desire respect for the law, we must first make the law respectable. - Louis D. Brandeis Genes Web page <http://geneslinuxbox.net:6309/gene> _______________________________________________ Emc-users mailing list Emc-users@lists.sourceforge.net https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/emc-users
