But that’s not a machine manual.
I mean a manual produced by a machine manufacturer. A software manual (eg RDWorks) would satisfy me as well.
The reason I would like to see this phrase written by a machine manufacturer is because their manuals are probably more likely to go through an editing process. That editing process would include attempts to keep the nomenclature coherent with the rest of their written material.
Since when have manuals been the definition of words? Dictionaries define what words mean.
You can find “raster engrave” and “vector engrave” in use on the internet, so it isn’t just coined by me.
Here is an interesting video titled "Raster vs Vector Engraving " showing vector engraving doing zig-zag fills and outlines, just like a 3D printer except infill first. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5g4HeYXfNwA. So that muddies the water even more.
Manuals have never been used to define words, but they do try to keep the definitions of the words they’re using consistent.
I can find the phrase “fart propelled plane” on the internet.
I think I agree with this statement. Unless the fill is created using vectors. Is it? If so, then it works.
I think what’s happening is we’ve got a bunch of engineer types on one side and a bunch of end-users on the other and those of us with an engineering perspective or a familiarity with lasers or other CNC are making it overly complicated by trying to be precise.
The end user doesn’t give a rodent’s patootie about vectors, rasters, fills, etc. They want to cut something. The want to engrave something. And sometimes they just want to mark it. How that magic happens is none of their concern except when technical folks make it something they need to be worried about. They just want some simple rule of thumb guidelines that tell them how to get those things to happen. They really don’t care and they really don’t need to care whether it’s a raster engrave or a vector engrave or a vector fill or any of that. They care that some things are possible when created in certain ways and not in others. Just tell them what those rules are and they’ll be wildly successful. And yeah, it drives engineers nuts because it’s not the precisely correct language.
But, guess what? How a technically oriented person feels about it doesn’t matter. We’re the reason the average user hasn’t been able to utilize the technology so far. All the techno-jargon and language precision is just one more example of high-priests of some technology preventing the great unwashed from not needing their intercession to get something done. Glowforge is changing that.
Agree with this statement ten thousand percent. (Plus or minus a few hundred.) 
I think I may still have my manual…
Agree with you. The word police are worse than the font police here.
I don’t even remember whether it was in this thread or not… The only reason I have ever referred to vector engraves vs. those you create with a bitmap file is that the GF app treats them differently and what looks like the same file on your computer has completely different results. Other than that… It’s just an engrave under the GF definition.
Yep and most users only need to know “if you create it this way, then this is how it will look and if you create it this other way, this is how it will then look”. The why is totally irrelevant to them.
Beautifully said. I have learned a great deal of the how’s and why’s of a lot of technology because I have had to in order to make it work – not out of any intrinsic need to know. Many here are artists seeking the essence of the creation, not the form of the creating. Many here are the techno-mages seeking the making of the form that allows those creations to happen. And some are both…and all make the wholeness of this community. Pretty amazing, all told.
Now, about that “unwashed” comment… 
Cannot tell you how much I like what you said. I still have some wishes to know some of the technical terms, just to broaden my education, but yeah…for the most part, I just want to know what steps to take to create what is in my head. Thank you for this! 
As a reasonably hygienic engineer this is why I’m still excited about the GF. 
Today I have been calling them engraved fill of a closed vector path. This is a simple but crucial issue. The kabuki mask raised this issue for me. I’m almost always engraving the fills of closed vectors because it gives me a lot more control over the image. And I’m much more comfortable with Inkscape than GIMP. Cartoon art I can do. 255 shades of grey or color, not so much.
If we use any technical terms in the UI or manual that we fail to explain, please let us know! We tried to avoid that whenever possible.
I’ll take a look through the manual and see if there’s anything that a real novice might not understand. As has been discussed, even common terms such as vector, bitmap, etc. can really throw people off unless the words are accompanied by a very simple to understand definition. I’ll report anything I think might seem that way to me. Thanks, Dan.
I hear what you’re saying. And I wouldn’t want anybody to have to be… overly-technical about things. But if they try talking about it with anybody they need to know what they’re working with. And you must agree the very first question is going to be “Were you working with a raster or vector image?” Not to mention the fact that the actual usage is rather different. So even laypeople need to know and understand the difference and what each is called. Even the simplest of conversations can involve that knowledge. And it’s not like it’s complicated (once explained properly). It’s only 2 types of images. I think anybody buying a laser can handle that. Especially since it will ultimately only help them to know it.
If I ever get my GF I will be and end user but from an engineering background. I don’t see how not using the correct technical terms and hiding things behind ambiguous alternatives helps anybody. At least if the correct technical terms they will be understood by some people without further explanation.
To use a laser cutter you need to understand the difference between raster images and vector images and the difference between raster engraving and vector engraving. There are four possible combinations i.e.
So describing what these four combinations do on a Glowforge would go a long way to explain what it does.
Especially since users can do their own research more easily if they are given the correct terms and are confused as how to make practical use of what they do. Googling “laserness” doesn’t return as much useful information as does a search on “laser engrave”.
There’s a huge right-brain, left brain thing going on here and I can understand why it’s difficult to satisfy both camps without intimidating one group at the expense of annoying the other group, or vice versa. I have nothing against learning new terminology, but being the ‘type’ of person that I am, I may have a difficult time grasping which term applies to which process, or I may know it and then just forget…not because I’m stupid or unintelligent but because sometimes my brain just doesn’t work that way. There just needs to be a middle of the road approach to all of it…assuring that everyone reading it can understand. Though I love new technology, my eyes tend to glaze over when I have to wade through lots of technical terms and then I have to just learn how to achieve my results by ‘doing’ things on my own. Trial and error helps everyone, but in my case I just review what I did and try a different approach. I don’t say to myself, “Well, I created a vector here when it should have been a bitmap, but the image was too pixelated, so I changed it to a png. so I could make an SVG”…and blah, blah, blah. (don’t read that last thing literally, please).
I don’t believe technical terms need to be hidden at all…I think they need to coexist peacefully with terms made for ‘Glowforge for Dummies’. No insults intended.
Personally I like the term “laserness”. adding “-ness” to any word seems to auto-define it (like adding un- to the beginning). Granted it may not be a given, but for laymen and novices, (and like @Xabbess mentioned above), I think it helps clarify better rather than some of the technical terms (which -by def. - may be more technically correct). Sure, using the term laserness may require the use of air-quotes when speaking, but then selfie wasn’t a word until early 21st century…