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Re: Using a button script to set jog increments etc
« Reply #80 on: May 29, 2018, 06:34:09 PM »
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I hope I'm not being seen as a pain in the arse for pursuing these things doggedly.

Well you're still getting replies to your post so I guess not.

I would say that I am more inclined to accept Mach4 as is and find a way around any issues as far as I am able. But the more Mach4 can be made bullet proof the better for all of us.

Allan
Re: Using a button script to set jog increments etc
« Reply #81 on: May 30, 2018, 03:34:19 AM »
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I hope I'm not being seen as a pain in the arse for pursuing these things doggedly.

Well you're still getting replies to your post so I guess not.

I would say that I am more inclined to accept Mach4 as is and find a way around any issues as far as I am able. But the more Mach4 can be made bullet proof the better for all of us.

Allan

We all had that mindset with Mach3, because that was a lost cause. Mach4 brings a new opportunity to get it right, and it's a remarkable piece of code.

All we need to do now it convince those who wrote it to go the extra mile and fully document what's there. That way we wouldn't have to keep asking them things and trawling through forums and YouTube  videos in the hope of finding out what we need.

The MDI is a classic example of that. If there is documentation about how to clear and read the text or how to do something after the MDI has been executed then I apologise. I've looked everywhere I could think of an found nothing.
Re: Using a button script to set jog increments etc
« Reply #82 on: May 30, 2018, 04:27:33 AM »
Hi striplar,
I suspect the reason that has not been documented is that maybe as few as half a dozen people on the planet have ever thought about it let alone done
something with the idea.

Much of what is in Mach4 is there because that's what the developers wanted for their machines and by and large that is entirely adequate. If you want some
other behavior that is indeed possible but it does take some thinking about to implement it. For every CNC enthusiast there is a different conception of what is required
and desirable.

The next few years promise to be very interesting as all those enthusiasts implement all their ideas, all in all I think its exciting.

Craig
'I enjoy sex at 73.....I live at 71 so its not too far to walk.'
Re: Using a button script to set jog increments etc
« Reply #83 on: May 30, 2018, 04:56:15 AM »
Hi striplar,
I suspect the reason that has not been documented is that maybe as few as half a dozen people on the planet have ever thought about it let alone done
something with the idea.

Much of what is in Mach4 is there because that's what the developers wanted for their machines and by and large that is entirely adequate. If you want some
other behavior that is indeed possible but it does take some thinking about to implement it. For every CNC enthusiast there is a different conception of what is required
and desirable.

The next few years promise to be very interesting as all those enthusiasts implement all their ideas, all in all I think its exciting.

Craig

Hi Craig,
I think it's more like a shop saying it doesn't sell many eggs,,,, but they keep the eggs under the counter and don't tell anyone they sell them.

Users won't even know what's possible unless they're told what all of the components and services Mach4 offer do. The's very frustrating. It feels like it's all a big secret and that you have to be an insider to get access to this stuff when it ought to be out there for everyone to see. It would not only let users customise Mach4 more easily, but it would ultimately be less work for those who don't document it because they aren't having to field questions like mine.

I would urge the developers to roll up their sleeves and document this stuff so we can all get the most from Mach4. It takes a bit of self discipline to document things when it's much more interesting to just write new stuff (and leave that undocumented too). At the moment, it's a struggle every time we want to modify the behaviour of a component, or find out what internal variables are exposed to the user and what they do.

I suspect that most users just give up on anything but the most basic customisation unless they're very determined, because it takes too much time to find the information they need. As you say, every CNC enthusiast has a different conception of what's required, so making that easy to achieve makes sense.

The future is certainly exciting, the promise of Mach 4 is enormous.

Roger
Re: Using a button script to set jog increments etc
« Reply #84 on: May 30, 2018, 05:59:10 AM »
Hi striplar,

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Users won't even know what's possible unless they're told what all of the components and services Mach4 offer do
The scripting manual does a fair job introducing the basics, but just the basics. Were it complete there would be so much information that the
vast majority of users would be lost.

Years ago when at University we had a VAX11-70 in the Department. The reference manuals were a rack of ring binders that covered half a wall.
As a newbie it was daunting. What various undergrads had done was condense the manuals down to a single ring binder, the basics. From there you could
get a feel for what it was you needed to know and then search the manufacturers reference as required. By the end of my four years I'd added a page or two
to the basics.

Mach4 documentation is at best the basics only, the detailed reference is some way off. Steve is our reference at this point in time....he has the time and energy to
develop new stuff but obviously loathes documenting things which are already done. That's just who he is....but I think you are coming to see the true genius
of what he is building and its truly awesome. If his inclination is to develop new stuff then I reckon 'go get'em Steve'.

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It feels like it's all a big secret and that you have to be an insider to get access to this stuff when it ought to be out there for everyone to see
I agree, although its not a deliberate strategy, its just the way things have worked out. Whether you know it or not you are becoming one of the insiders!

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I suspect that most users just give up on anything but the most basic customisation unless they're very determined, because it takes too much time to find the information they need.
Yes, you have to be determined. Even were there much better documentation it still requires imagination and determination to master it all.

Craig
'I enjoy sex at 73.....I live at 71 so its not too far to walk.'
Re: Using a button script to set jog increments etc
« Reply #85 on: May 30, 2018, 09:16:32 AM »
Hi Craig,
I'm very impressed by the quality of the documentation that is supplied, and the new videos by Mach Support are very clear and useful, as are those by third parties.

I certainly can appreciate that you couldn't realistically put all of the information in one source, it would be indigestible and way too much for many users. It's not easy to find the right balance between not scaring people off, yet giving them the information they need to achieve what they're trying to do.

Maybe a three pronged approach would work. I think most people would be able to move buttons about and change their colours and assign different actions to them, given the information currently available.

What's needed is an 'Intermediate guide' for doing things that quite a few users would like to do, and an 'Advanced guide' that assumes you know the other stuff and takes you to another level.

Sometimes you have to tame the genius to get the most out of him, and this may well be one case where that might bear fruit. Maybe he can co-opt someone else who he can liaise with who is more of the mind to explain these things, someone who likes doing this stuff?

Personally, I have no need to master all of it, life's too short, and in the end Mach4 is a tool to get another job done. It's easy to get carried away creating the perfect machine and never make anything with it! However, I don't mind spending time and effort to make my life more pleasant by tailoring the machine to my taste. If that helps someone else along the way then all the better.

Roger