ai2mpc GUI

[Cavallo]

So, in about an hour I banged together a simple GUI for Jeffrey Litz's wonderful ai2mpc Windows command line utility. I don't normally do Windows, but this was dead easy. It will allow you to select multiple Adobe Illustrator files and convert them to MPC files in a batch without having to use the command line. Only tested on WinXP, and even then it was not tested extensively, so there may be bugs.

Thing is, I can't let it off my computer because I haven't yet gotten permission from him. If/when I do, I'll post a link and anyone who wishes may have it for free.

[CNC Carver]

I'll be interested if you get permission.

[Cavallo]

I've messaged him on this forum and emailed him. No response as yet. If and when I get a positive response, I'll post a link.

[CarverJerry]

That will be nice, I'm interested as well.

[Cavallo]

Ok, still no word from the author of ai2mpc. I think I've figured a way around the problem, however. First, download ai2mpc v0.3 from here;
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ai2mpc_v0.30.zip‎

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Unzip the file. In this zip file, you'll find the executable: ai2mpc.exe. Read the documentation! Parts of it are relevant - particularly the bit about what kinds of files are supported!

Next, download this;
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https://dl.dropbox.com/u/28082075/AIConvert.zip

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Unzip, and place the resulting folder somewhere logical. Inside the main folder, you'll see several things including the application itself (AIConvert) and a folder called "Resources." Copy the "ai2mpc.exe" file you downloaded above into this folder. Voila. The AIConvert application should now run. It's completely self-explanatory. Click Open, and it's all obvious from there. Note that when you click open, you can select as many files as you like.

This should skirt the licensing restrictions on ai2mpc, since I'm not distributing it - someone else is, and you're getting it yourself. If I ever get permission, I'll repost with everything in one package. In the meantime, this should get you by.

I make no warranties. This was something I hacked together in literally an hour. I only tested it on WinXP. There may be bugs, and it may cause all manner of mayhem. (I doubt it, though.)

[CNC Carver]

Thanks for sharing. I'm sure you will add great value to this forum as you still are doing all this without a machine. I wish I had your talent!

[Cavallo]

I'll admit to a smidgen of talent, but mostly it's a combination of a small amount of OCD and a highly analytical brain. Thanks all the same.

[CNC Carver]

If you need something else to work on while you wait for your machine, a viewer for mpc and ptn files would be great? Irfan View works on some but not all. Haven't been able to figure out why. I'm also IT geek.

[Cavallo]

Heh. The last thing I need is one more project. I went down this road with industrial embroidery awhile ago, and the result is a viewer for embroidery files (and IMHO, a darned good one) in the Mac App Store. It's eaten a ton of my attention, though. As a result, I've reached a mental state where I'd sooner eat glass than reverse-engineer one more freaking file format. It's a nightmarish job. If someone had already done it for mpc files, or if the specs were published somewhere, I might consider it, but I suspect LHR wants very much to keep that sort of thing proprietary.

I won't slam the door on the idea, but I'm not gonna go there any time soon. I'd likely focus my efforts on the Mac anyway. Windows doesn't interest me in the slightest. The only reason I did this is because ai2mpc is Win only.

[CNC Carver]

I really didn't think you would as you are right a very large undertaking. We don't want you to choke on anything before you get to play with your new machine.