Step Jog question

[Robertspark]

Yeah, link to this discussion thread.

It gives them a way to guage the interest in them getting their plugin working (no company likes bad publicity..
Although there is a train of thought that when you get big enough no publicity is bad publicity... Just free advertising!)

Yes source code files are the full complement of files that are written in human understandable code

You then compile the files and create a full which is a single file containing all the code in machine understandable language.

If you look in plugins, then I think it is example plugin (or something to that effect) then c sharp (c#) it provides an example that when the project file is opened in visual studio all the files are imported and you get to read the code in visual studio.

Once compiled in visual studio it creates a full which when you add it to the plugin folder and load it to run in uccnc (following a restart of uccnc) you will be able to load a small floating window with a few simple buttons on to if I remember jog the machine around

I will walk you through it later in a new thread as it may be helpful to others (I am by no means at all an expert just a learning hack but it may be useful as others may pipe up with different bits)

[1JUMPER10]

I've got the same pendant and I'm quite happy with it but I have noticed the behavior Spumco describes. When I need higher positioning resolution I change modes from velocity to step. The documentation for UCCNC is almost a useless copy of what was probably their manual for MACH3. I had to learn a couple things on my own and there was a couple frustrating days. I've since learned a couple things and I'll post them here for anybody else who may have the Vista Pendant:

I don't double tap the button at all. I know in the videos on YouTube show it but I just don't see a need for it in normal usage.
As far as I've been able to figure out, you cannot configure anything. It has 3 user configurable function buttons but no way to set them.
The default DRO display in the plugin is 4 decimal places. If you have UCCNC configured to show 3 decimal places in the DRO, the Vista Pendant will be blind. The display will default to "UCCNC - - - " Change your decimal places in UCCNC to 4 and it works. You can change the setting in the pendant to match UCCNC but without an instruction manual it takes some luck to get to the change window. And it defaults back to 4 upon power up.
If your cursor is in the MDI field the pendant doesn't work.
If Windows focus is on a different window than UCCNC, the pendant wont work.

Aside from those shortcomings, I've really grown to like it. The FRO and the SRO functions are a nice feature.

[cncdrive]

Jumper,

The things you describe are basicly normal operations, I mean most of them and viewing from the UCCNC side.

The pendant is blind is basicly nothing to do with the UCCNC, it is how the developers coded the plugin.
I mean if you set the decimal places to 3 or 4 digits does not matters for the UCCNC or the plugin interface, it still sending the numbers to the plugin,
but what I think have happened is the developers did not want to spend too much time handling all possible decimal places number formats and so they just show a "change it ..." message if the user changes the decimal places settings. At least I would do it like that if I did not want to spend too much time on the development.

When the cursor is engaged in the MDI or in any DROs then not only the pendants doesn't work, but the jog is also disabled, this is for safety.
When you switch Window from UCCNC to another software then it is assumed that you not using the UCCNC, but doing stuff in another software where you can press keys and do things, so is why then the jog and everything else are all disabled until the UCCNC window gets focus again. For example what if you forget that you still have the UCCNC opened, because there is another Window in focus on your screen and accidentally move the keys or rotate the pendant, it would be kind of dangerous to leave the pendant on always even if the UCCNC is not in focus and assumed that something else is used on the computer.
So, these 2 things are made on purpose, for safety.

[1JUMPER10]

I assumed these were probably intentional safety features after I'd had time to think about it. It just would have saved me some frustration if their instruction manual would have mentioned it. I was just commenting on it to possibly help someone else who might have been trying to figure out why his pendant was working great a second ago but now isnt .
Once I got things figured out, I was really happy with how it worked.

[cncdrive]

It's a hard thing to write a really good instruction manual. I know, because I wrote the UCCNC manual and it takes hours and hours just to figure out how to best construct the topics and after spending those long hours it is still very far from complete and perfect.
For me it is easier to write code than to make a manual and I guess the Vistacnc guys feel similar.

[1JUMPER10]

Yes, I thought the same thing so I didnt make too much of it. Also, there is the language barrier. I only speak my native english. I have a lot of respect for someone who can write a software program and then write a manual for it in another language. I cant write software nor can I speak another language. I have a lot of respect for those who can.

[spumco]

***UPDATE***

VistaCNC has sent me a beta version of an upgraded plugin file. Short version - it now works perfectly.

They indicated they didn't know about the available command CNCDrive mentioned earlier in the thread, and that there seems to be a difference in how UCCNC handles step jog commands after version 1.2038. Whatever they did, it's working exactly as an MPG should now. Very responsive step commands, even at fast dial speeds. Feels like a hard-wired encoder MPG.

In addition, they changed the available step increments to 0.1, 0.01, 0.001, and 0.0001. These are selected normally by pressing the enable button in step mode and dialing the desired increment in. Step response and UCCNC worked very well at 0.0001" steps. Nice and repeatable on my machine with a 0.00005" indicator. For those using metric (mm) units, you probably won't need the 0.0001 units, but you might ask Vista if they can have 5 increments (to include 1.0) or perhaps a metric plugin version.

I suspect they'll be publishing the new plugin shortly on their web site. There still aren't any user-configurable options in the plugin, but all other functions & options editable on the pendant remain intact.

SO... hats off to VistaCNC and CNCDrive (and everyone else here) for this big win. I can now recommend the VistaCNC pendant without reservation. (I have the P4-S model).

-Spumco

[Robertspark]

Change the dro decimal places from 4 to 2 on the general configuration tab, does it still work?
....
I work in metric (mm) and on a plasma cutter 4 digits is a bit overkill, especially if my 1 step = 0.05mm.... no point having 4 decimal places.

I would suggest if their plugin requires 4 decimal places to correctly send the data to the mpg in the correct format, they use the math.round method to round the data to 4 decimal places after they have got the field dro value and converted it from a string value.

This will pack out the extra decimal places.... Plus thin out the decimal places should there be a user requiring more decimal places (maybe a presidio mill or lathe running air bearings)

[Robertspark]

As far as I've been able to figure out, you cannot configure anything. It has 3 user configurable function buttons but no way to set them.

This one is quite easy, just ask if VistaCNC can assign these to three pre-defined macro numbers, then the users can just programmer whatever they want into the defined macros and you can call / toggle anything from them. If they are empty macros they will do nothing.

They can then also provide some demo-macros which can be got from the toolbox section of this forum and just placed along with the plugin update.

[CT63]

FYI: Visacnc has posted the updated pendant files on their website.