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Mach3 under Vista / Re: Will MACH3 ever support 64-bit systems? Officially? FYI, it's 2010
« on: April 08, 2011, 09:51:22 AM »
Well, virtualization is probably going to remain an option. Especially if Microsoft improves their Virtual PC software. I still have to see if I can get Mach3 running in VMWare Player. That'd provide a free option for 64 bit Windows 7 Pro users and hopefully Windows 8 Pro users going forward.
I think external controllers with Ethernet / wifi support might be the future even more than USB ones. Something like a Beagleboard or a future version of Arduino should easily have enough horsepower for 4-6 axis CNC. Networking support would be pretty great for controlling and monitoring from a laptop and would easily let people switching controller PCs with a software install, not even requiring drivers. I'd bet you could even run a CNC rig off of a modern smartphone now that they're pushing 1Ghz with dual core processors.
I think external controllers with Ethernet / wifi support might be the future even more than USB ones. Something like a Beagleboard or a future version of Arduino should easily have enough horsepower for 4-6 axis CNC. Networking support would be pretty great for controlling and monitoring from a laptop and would easily let people switching controller PCs with a software install, not even requiring drivers. I'd bet you could even run a CNC rig off of a modern smartphone now that they're pushing 1Ghz with dual core processors.