NativeCam on LinuxCNC 2.9.3

A weird thing:
In the Value field there's 'change to gcode', this is the behaviour:
feature is Circle by Center, Diameter defaults to 38.1
right-click Diameter value and choose 'change to gcode'
value changes to 45
right-click menu now shows 'revert to original type', choose that
value changes to 1143
after this, 'change to gcode' and 'revert..' make the value swap from 45 to 1143 and back.

putting a different start value in e.g. 700 or 70 - change to gcode still puts the value to 45, revert to original puts it to 1143 and so on.

another test:
while the Value field is 'changed to gcode' the calculator style input field doesn't appear and this value doesn't change. 'revert to original type' allows the calculator to appear again.

A

Hello,
I am happy to ear that my little fixes are useful to someone.
To me is useful your feedback and I think it would be useful to test NativeCAM on various computers.
I have a question for you real users: if you input numbers in the fields by doing calculations, is the result correct or a huge number is given?

I ask you that because I am testing NativeCAM on two machines: standalone on a iMac and embedded in LinuxCNC on a Raspberry Pi (the real LinuxCNC machine).
Calculations on the Mac are correct, but on Raspberry Pi are wrong.

I am not a Python or a NativeCAM expert (I am learning Python while trying to fix Native CAM), but I hope to be able to fix some problem.

Regards
Giovanni

So useful! A working nativecam on a python3 system would make a lot of people here very happy, I suspect. Thank you for your efforts.

My test system is a Dell 7150 Laptop running Debian12 as it was installed by the Linuxcnc 2.9 iso (I'm fairly sure, it was a little while ago).

Inputting numbers by doing calculations: the results are correct for +, -, * and /, the only strange large number thing I've seen so far is the 'change to gcode' thing I mentioned above.

I can only do the most basic stuff in Python and usually only by reading someone else's simple code and modifying it. I've spent a good few tens of hours using NativeCAM though, so I might be some help there.

@ freemoore
I have seen the problem, but I have never used the Change to Gcode function.
Please could you describe the function and the correct behaviour (if you used it before)?

Huh. I realise now that I've never used that before, and that on an existing install of NativeCAM it does the same thing. It changes whatever value is in the field, to a default, and then back to 25.4 x that default.
So whatever is in e.g. the Diameter field, it'll change to 45, then to 1143, then back to 45 etc. as if doing an imperial to metric conversion and vice versa.

I'm not sure what the original authors intended here as; I don't know why you would want to enter gcode instead of a numeric value in what I understand to be a numeric-value-only field. If it said 'change to imperial' rather than 'to gcode' it would make sense, but it'd be broken, as it doesn't preserve whatever value you enter when it does the conversion.

So I suppose if you feel like it, you could change the wording to imperial/metric as appropriate and see if you can make it work! That seems like a rather low priority thing though.

I've now added a 2nd hard drive to my mill PC, installed Linuxcnc 2.9.3, verser's probe screen, and this version of NativeCAM on it (with Giovanni's ncam.py file in place of Bogdan's).

Have just done a test circle and had the mill move exactly as it should to cut that circle, toolchanges, coolant etc. working fine. A fair few obvious rough edges, e.g. no integration into lcnc as a tab yet, errors appearing in the terminal window where ncam's launched, but this appears to be usable at least with a basic program.

Brilliant.

Hello,
can't you use as a LinuxCNC tab? It should work. (On my Raspberry it works)
The original script does not work completly.
There are some setting to do by hand. Actually I have set all by writing in the terminal.

There is the last "version"  attached.
The input field after the "Change to GCode" now pop-up. But there are still many hidden errors and depracations to fix.

I have not understood the mean of that function.
I see (and I see in the code too) that changes the input mode from number to text and back.
When shows-up the calculator you can input only numbers, when pop-up the input field you can input letters and numbers.

Regards
Giovanni

 

When you say you have done the settings by writing in the terminal - do you mean using the -t switch after ncam command to put it in a tab, or are you doing more?

If so please will you share what you're writing in the terminal for your settings?

I'm away from my machines now but will try your latest version tomorrow if I can.

thanks,
Andy

It is not only a command.
I followed part of an "inspiring" doc and I typed other commands and edits on my own.
Actually, in my opinion, my installation is not completly correct, but it, after many experiments, works.

I have to create (and translate) a clean document with the procedure I followed to make NativeCAM run as a LinuxCNC tab.
When the doc will be ready I'll share it for sure.

Ok, thank you. I've just finished running a toolpath generated by your updated nativecam and it's gone without problems.

Another difference I just noticed:
when you add a new feature to the feature tree, all visible fields e.g. subfields of features like array->item->polyline->start collapse to the minimum view; I'm used to them staying visible.

Under the 'view' menu, 'Hide All Fields' is greyed out for me and in the right-click menu in the tree view window, 'Show All Fields' is also greyed out. I don't remember using these in the past, since the default behaviour (of not collapsing feature sub-menus) was good/what I got used to.

Let me know if there's anything particular you want me to try out.