One of these days ... maybe!
Bob
One of these days ... maybe!
Bob
I think it would be pretty cool to have local or reginal seminars. Maybe LHR could even pay some of you seasoned pros to conduct them with having some factory reps there as well. I know I would love to go to one even if it was on a national scale. You guys are helping CW to become a better company just with your input and great ideas.
Dude, the software is CRAP. You can't easily draw up and down/left-right without turning on the grid, and you can't draw any more precise than 1/8".
Trust me on this; I've been using AutoCAD for over 10 years and the Carvewright drawing software is for kiddies. You're better off exploring the small CNC machines available on eBay; some of them come with actual professional-grade (but still very easy to learn/use) drawing software that won't handcuff you with Draconian limitations like you'll get with the Carvewright program.
neeboy,
The software is actually quite remarkable, and I sense that future versions of it will improve dramatically. Yes, it has nowhere near the capabilities of CAD or other vector software programs, but there are ways to bring those very vectors into the program.
To make this machine sing, you must exercise patience, determination, curiosity and tolerance for a steep learning curve.
Think of it as a musical instrument, providing you with rewards for sticking with it -- and many opportunities for personal growth.
As my Italian brick-laying father-in-law says: "It ain't easy."
dom
ver 1.162
-If it ain't broke, don't fix it. If it is jammed, force it. If it breaks, it needed replacing anyway.
-If it moves and it shouldn't, duct tape it. If it doesn't move and it should, Boeshield T-9
This may have been mentioned before, infact it may already be there and I just haven't found it.
Twisting my head sideways to design something that runs the length of the board is a pain in the neck! LOL
We have the Front and Rear View, how about one to stand the board on end for designing patterns that go with the length rather than the width?
I just got off the phone with CW customer support. I was asking them why I couldn't find the "copy offset" tool even though it's explained in detail in the help file that comes with the software. Apparently the software doesn't contain that function anymore. Lame.
I've had my machine for a couple of months and it's finally working right (knock on wood) after I installed a new Z-axis motor and shipped it to Texas for a board sensor. I love it despite the hardware difficulties. I'm a product designer and I understand that early adopters are often part of the R&D process. The CarveWright is a great machine at a fantastic price. In my opinion it's the beginning of the desktop manufacturing revolution that I've been dreaming about since I started playing with Legos.
My biggest frustration is the software. I've been using all kinds of 3D CAD software since the late 1990's and my expectations for the CarveWright software were probably pretty high. I'm disappointed. It's slow, counterintuitive, and it's functional bias toward users who make primarily artistic carvings seriously limits the system's appeal.
Here's what I want:
1. the ability to import 2D data in .dxf and .ai formats (maybe some kind of Google Sketchup format too http://sketchup.google.com/)
2. the ability to scale/rotate/etc. the above data in the CarveWright software
3. the ability to assign operations to imported data (i.e. convert an imported point to a drill hole
4. GIVE ME THE COPY OFFSET FUNCTION. Please. I'll be in the AARP before I get finished manually laying out the 28 holes I need to drill in the project I'm working on today.
By the way, what's the deal with the advanced software? I guess it's part of the CarveWright business plan to add another revenue stream by selling the advanced version. I already own thousands of dollars worth of design software, though, and I don't have room in the budget for a advanced version of software that gives me a headache to use. Let me import CAD data from software that I've already invested in.
I would consider buying the advanced software if it allowed me to import and manipulate 3D geometry.
Some excellent points, Roscoe. I would love to see some .ai support, it's my primary program for designing and that would be amazing.
Start with a board 12" wide X 12" X 3/4" deep. Place an arc on the lower left hand corner of a rectangular board. You make a cut path and remove the corner. Remove the corner with the "Cut Path" tool. Now you wish to route the edge of the arc with the same bit (say 1/2 inch roundover) as used on the straight edges.
If you do so it will leave a lip on the arc. The same thing happens when you cut a slot or circle in the middle or edge of the board.
It would seem a simple software "fix" to allow the arc route to follow the cut path so that a lip would not remain.
Norm
Last edited by Norm; 10-03-2007 at 02:05 PM.
I wish there was a way to download a design from the memory card to the computer. There has been times where I have forgotten to save a design and just uploaded it to the memory card and taken it to the machine to carve. When I come back to the computer, someone has closed the program and I have lost the information of the design. However, the design is still in the memory card and if there was a way to download it from the memory card, it would be helpful...
Any Commits, or ideas on how to do this?
Thanks,
John Hammett