STOP writing plugins!!!

[lloydsp]

I now think I know why Andy hasn't yet released the newest beta. 

You guys keep writing IMPORTANT plugins, and I think Andy is trying to add those functions to CB in a rational way.

If you just STOP, he won't have anything more to add, and we'll see the new code sooner!

PLEASE STOP BEING USEFUL, and just go back to being 'users' for a while!

 

Lloyd

[EddyCurrent]

Noooooooo !

Andy will have to stop trying to add them, there's nothing wrong with leaving them as plugins.  

Having said that, I'm getting grief from the missus again  to, "GET OFF YOUR ARSE AND DO SOMETHING USEFUL !"

[grzgrz]

I think that the coders among us write their plugins to speed up the CamBam's development process. I wonder who's going to add a 4th axis feature first... 

Grzegorz

[Garyhlucas]

I can't help but think it might even go faster if there was a mechanism to reward peoples efforts. Writing code may be fun, but some of us use programs like CamBam to make a buck.  Years ago I paid a young guy to write me a Rhino plugin and it was worth a lot to me. We use a program called AllOrders to manage Work Orders, Sales Orders, Purchase Orders, Bills of materials etc. We paid a guy $500 for a custom Excel Macro used to import BOMs from SolidWorks into AllOrders. We paid the AllOrders vendor $1000 for a program to print Sub-Asssembly bin labels. This has made us hugely efficient, at way less cost than one of the big programs. CamBam works the same way for us.

I get that this is Andy's product and forum, maybe a yearly user fee for professional users could work. Everyone else does that. For us it is thousands of dollars a year.

Just thinking out loud here.

[dh42]

Hello,

I wonder who's going to add a 4th axis feature first...

Andy I think ; there is at least a way to to the same as Wrapper in the alpha version.

You guys keep writing IMPORTANT plugins

Impossible is an addiction 

++
David

[grzgrz]

Hi there,

@David
What I had in mind was an automated rotary machining solution that wouldn't involve wrapping. Also, I know it's already possible to hand-code CamBam for indexed rotary milling, but it's a little tedious.

@Gary
I've heard of the so-called bounties for completing coding tasks. However, I do hope CB won't become cloud-based software, or something you have to buy once and then pay its annual 'maintenance' fees or it stops working.

Grzegorz

[Bob La Londe]

I've heard of the so-called bounties for completing coding tasks. However, I do hope CB won't become cloud-based software, or something you have to buy once and then pay its annual 'maintenance' fees or it stops working.

I agree.  I don't mind paying for an upgrade that adds real functionality (I have four versions of ViaCad), but renting software galls like stainless on stainless.  I also think bug fixes should be free.  Not only available incorporated in the next paid upgrade.  

[annuello]

Also thinking out loud...

As a hobby machinist who may one day want to have the hobby pay for itself the "one off purchase price" with free upgrades approach is very attractive, and was a large consideration in my original purchase.  Cash flow (and available time) is low and finds subscription-based software a daunting commitment.

Rewarding plugin developers could be complex, considering the amount of idea/code sharing that occurs between developers.  Potentially an intellectual property web of mess.  I see the enthusiastic plugin development and sharing as a "value add" to the base product.  I hope that the extensibility of plugins brings more customers to Andy.  As it currently stands, the plugins bring extra value to us all.

In another hobby of mine I pay $5 per year for a forum subscription to a user group.  This modest "cup of coffee" price gives extra access to subscriber-only content.  It is up to the forum individual as to whether they want to upload contributions to the public or subscriber-only area, and there are a few restrictions on non-subscribers, like monthly download limits.  The community still remains friendly to non-subscribers and helps each other out regardless of subscription status.  If "the answer" is in the subscription-only section a gentle nudge is offered to the non-subscriber.  A modest fee of this amount is achievable for most small time hobby folk.  And it's a subscription to the forum, not the product - lack of ongoing subscription does not jeapodise their main investment.  Given the continual proliferation of CamBamplugins, there would be value in having such access year-in year-out.

Annuello.

[Bubba]

Noooooooo !

Andy will have to stop trying to add them, there's nothing wrong with leaving them as plugins.  Grin
********************************
I for one, use CB as hobby user exclusively, never make a dime with it because I don't want to. Yes, I make ton of  different things for my entertainment and as gifts to my fiends and family. I have offers to make things for sale but refused, I retired for a reason, don't need nor want commitments.. Personally, I don't have a problem with commercial version (plugins and scripts incorporated) and/or hobby version with plugins and scripts as they are right now.. So because the commercial version takes longer Andy should release the hobby version now..

[EddyCurrent]

A subscription system would totally ruin it for me, and just because other vendors use that idea, it doesn't make it right.
I'm not into 'the cloud', streaming of music etc. I like to buy something and own it, then keep using it until it's either knackered or I choose to replace it.

Here's an example, I use a DAW (digital audio workstation) called Reaper, you buy it and it's extremely cheap compared to other similar products but is very powerful too, a bit like CamBam. Updates are free until a major update occurs where the version number changes from say, 3 to 4 then you get an upgrade discount if a previous owner or a full purchase price if not.

But if you don't want to upgrade, it keeps on working without any restrictions other than there will be no further updates for that version.

I vote to leave the CamBam model just as it is 

[onekk]

The most important add-on to CamBam, IMHO.

- a "stable" and WELL documented API
- some feature in the CAD section "like dashed and dotted lines" to improve the design phase.
- 3D CAM improvements (the core of CamBam is the CAM part)
- a mechanism like "autocad" console to input some operations by hand, when drawing "precisely" the mouse is not enough, if i wanto to do a 4,124x4,125 cm  square (sorry I'm Italian so , is the decimal point) is most easy to "write" "Rec 0,100 4,125,4,125" than create a dummy rectangle and then adjust the properties as needed.

Regards

[Bubba]

I vote to leave the CamBam model just as it is 
*********************************
+1 ! 

[kvom]

I have not found any part I've wanted to make on my mill that I can't do with CB as-is.  I do 99% of my CAD outside either with Draftsight or Solidworks.  For me bug fixes are more important that new features, and the plugin building community seems to be coming up with good stuff. 

That said, the lathe functionality would probably be my preference for major improvement, even though I already bought another CAM product for that. 

[dh42]

Hello,

- a mechanism like "autocad" console to input some operations by hand, when drawing "precisely" the mouse is not enough, if i wanto to do a 4,124x4,125 cm  square (sorry I'm Italian so , is the decimal point) is most easy to "write" "Rec 0,100 4,125,4,125" than create a dummy rectangle and then adjust the properties as needed.

http://www.atelier-des-fougeres.fr/Cambam/Aide/Plugins/Numeric%20Polyline.html

++
David

[onekk]

Hello,

- a mechanism like "autocad" console to input some operations by hand, when drawing "precisely" the mouse is not enough, if i wanto to do a 4,124x4,125 cm  square (sorry I'm Italian so , is the decimal point) is most easy to "write" "Rec 0,100 4,125,4,125" than create a dummy rectangle and then adjust the properties as needed.

http://www.atelier-des-fougeres.fr/Cambam/Aide/Plugins/Numeric%20Polyline.html

++
David

David, I know of the existence of this plugin, but my thinking is to have a similar approach built in CamBam. (and Working with Linux)

The stable and well documented API is for having the possibility to write the plugins in a more stable manner, there is some features in the interface, youo can ave Arc2F in a polyline, but apparently you can't create them (or at least i caouldn't find a manner to to so).

very soon I will "publish" my new version of the BoxAuto Plugin (totally driven by angles) and you will appreciate some curved feature of some sides (the reduced).

My intention is to draw exagonal and octagonal, or even more poligonal shapes and all the logic has to be driven by starting point, length and angle (plus some embedded logic to create the tenons), all has to be driven by the angle of the reference line (in a square is simple, but in a hexagon is a little different), some functions in Cambam maybe could do the math, but I have opted to use the logic outside usign only Point2F (Or Point3F), Line2F and Polyline.Add() line or point  hopiing to avoid future API change.