[Shel]

Hi Ian…

   I’m not associated with evilmadscientist.com, but I can suggest a couple of ways to store notes inside a drawing:

1.  Make a new layer with no vectors on it, and put your notes as the layer name.

2.  Put your desired note text on a new layer, and do NOT convert it to paths.  Now when you perform the plot, it will plot all the layers that you do want printed, and will complain – but only when it’s finished plotting – that it can’t plot your text.  You can just press OK on its warning, cuz that’s what you wanted.

[Shel]

Here’s the link to 2.40.01.07.  The changes which fix the minor bug are at lines 641 and 706.  But, I hope you have a little time to try out my additional controls, in conjunction with using the pause button before control fiddlage.

[Shel]

The version I put in dropbox does not have the GUI fix – I have to scoot out the door this instant, but will upload my 2.40.01.07 with GUI fix in about five hours.

[Shel]

Yes indeed, I’ve been having fun tweaking the code.  (Sometimes I think that coding is more fun than actually using the code.)

I really like the spirals that can be drawn in your newer version.  I especially like your clever use of a spiral turning into a circle as fill.  I still wanted a way to visualize the effect of pen width plotting without having to leave the StippleGen environment.  I think I have achieved that, plus a few other things, in the file StippleGen2_4_1_5.pde

I haven’t actually printed from the new version, but in just fooling around with it I think my workflow will be substantially smoother.

Previous workflow:

1.  Use StippleGen2, adjusting # of dots, min.size, size range for best possible appearance.  This is not the appearance which will be created when a finite-width pen plots the result, so “best appearance” is really a guess.  Save .svg.

2.  Import .svg into Inkscape.  Do a long complicated process to account for pen width stroked onto my target object.  Evaluate (guess) where the density or contrast of the image needs adjusting to give a better result.

3.  Open image again in Photoshop, and apply the results of the evaluation.

4.  Go back to number 1 above.

New workflow:

1.  Use StippleGen2+.  Select “filled circles on output” (woohoo!).  Select “add pen width to display circles”.  In addition to the original three controls, also modify contrast by using the “dot gain” slider and the “scaling by area/diameter” toggle.  Adjust til it looks good.  This is the way it will look on the egg.

2.  If results of 1 can’t be made good, go to Photoshop with a very clear idea of where to make changes, then go to 1 again.

 Change Log:

 

 v 2.40.01.05

 * Cleaned up by removing test cases, etc.

 * In general, uses “///” to mark areas that need attention.

 

 v 2.40.01.03

 * GUI controls to save and load control values for next time, using named saves.

   (if this feature stays in, it really needs a dropdown selection list)

   (Actually, it might really be better to store the values in the svg file if this is feasible, no need for save/load)

 * Add gamma (aka “dot gain”) control to modify dot size modulation i.e. local_contrast = f(brightness).

   (Computation is at back end, so needs no restart-on-change.)

 

 v 2.40.01.01

 * Compiling in Processing 3.3

 * Increased vertical extent of GUI back to 800, for more accurate visualization of typical eggbot print area.

     (did this on the theory that v 2.0 reduced extent for typical screen sizes of the day, but that screen sizes have typically increased since then.

      Ref https://medium.com/@somospostpc/a-comprehensive-look-at-smartphone-screen-size-statistics-and-trends-e61d77001ebe#.sh3la5tvf)

 * Increased control area by two rows, for additional controls

 * Add GUI option to make StippleGen display visually match the results of plotting with specified pen width.  (Add pen stroke width to display of filled circles) 

 * Minimize spiral path lengths in output, iff pen width being used in display,

     when generating filled circle.

 * Decrease default # of stipples in order to make the interface more responsive when first loaded.

     (should/can we save and restore when shutdown???)

[Shel]

Wow!!  Thanks for the very useful response.

Tavmjong Bah’s blog looks like a really good resource, thank you for pointing me toward it – dunno how I’ve missed it, I guess ’cause I had only looked at his tutorials.

I certainly agree that your change to StippleGen is the “right” fix…realtime feedback for sure is ideal.  I’m delighted that you have continued development of StippleGen.  Woohoo!!  Because you have gone to that much effort, I guess I will be “forced” to go to the much lesser effort of compiling it – and thus I thank you very much for the download pointers.

[Shel]

Brilliant!!

[Shel]

Ooooh, that’s a great idea, thanks!  And yes, I do have a polarizing filter I think (I’ll have to check the “stockroom”).

[Shel]

The diffuser box looks like a really great idea for solid, non-reflective objects.  I’ve just now tried to rig up a diffuser somewhat similar to your suggestion, but I just ended up with even more bad reflections.  8^(  Have you had success with your use of the diffuser and an engraved transparent sphere?  Is there some trick to it?

Oh, that gives me an idea – maybe I could infiltrate some kind of black stuff, like black yarn or cloth or something, into the ornament, thru the neck.  Hmmm, I’ll report back, but in the meantime any further input will be appreciated.

[Shel]

Oh, I guess I’ve been lax – sorry!  Welcome to the group, I know you’ll have fun with your eggbot!  Which model is it?

[Shel]

Does this mean that future versions of the EBB software will not support B0 as an external pause button?  I hope this is not the case, since I find B0 very useful – much quicker to access a conveniently mounted switch than the eensy-weensy EBB switch.

[Shel]

Coolness, thanks!!

[Shel]

Additional notes on the process:

To do the hatch fill, you’ll first have to turn the text into paths.  Do this by selecting all the text, then do Path=>Object to Path.

Now you can select all the paths, and then do Extensions=>Eggbot=>Hatch fill

Before you do the hatch fill, use Inkscape’s Fill and Stroke dialog box to make Inkscape not fill.  The “fill” Inkscape does is not made from any paths, and therefore will not show up in your plot.  This is why you have to do the hatch fill…it makes actual paths to do the filling!  8^)

Good luck, and if you have problems then come back here and we’ll see if we can walk you through it.

[Shel]

The only other one I found is Eggers Egg-Bot Group, and I joined it some time ago.  Turns out it’s really more about decorating ostrich eggs with rhinestones and lace and such.  Do you know of a different one?

[Shel]

Anyone?

[Shel]

Probably nobody else needs the adjustable feature, but for me adjustability was the reason for making the tool.

The reason I need it adjustable is because I use an adapter which provides a stop near the tapered pen tip.  Not all pen varieties will stop with their tips at the identical length, so I wanted an adjustable probe.

This might make more sense if I show you my setup, and what I mean by a pen stop:

[Author]

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