GF App annoyances / Bug Fixes / Feedback

Community Support
1

I don’t see a section for feedback or suggestions so I thought I would post it here, especially since some things just seem broken and are VERY frustrating to use if you are trying to do any serious work with the GF. The app has very bad actual UX (user experience) I dont think the developers actually test and use the features they release (college software UI/UX dev here)

Buggy:
-When I add a new file, I have to click it multiple times until it actually selects it to move it. Clicking it once, it actually deselects it, and I cant just click, and drag. VERY frustrating when I am doing this 20 times per project.
-Along with the above, even if I try the new feature with the scale/size box, if I click it to type a number, the box disappears, you click right thru it. Very annoying
-Sometimes the keyboard shortcuts to move files just stops working. and I have to refresh the page to get it back. Clicking and dragging is not a viable option when you are trying to move something a nudge. I use the arrow keys but randomly it will stop working and I cant figure out what makes it do that to replicate the problem. Not sure if it is after I scale the item with the numbers or what.

Feedback/Suggestions
-When adding a file, it would be great if the file was added IN MY CURRENT VIEW and not off screen up in the top left corner. I almost rarely work from that corner. I am usually in the center. Some files, Jigs, products etc, just do not start up there. I hate when I am zoomed in 150% add a file and it is no where to be found. I have to zoom, out, or pan to the corner, try to drag it (in which the above problem happens that I have to click multiple times).
This is also why the 2nd problem above, selecting the Scale box would be helpful if I could just type in the exact X/Y position to put it where I am working then it wouldnt be a huge issue, but that doesn’t work either!

-Add multiple files at once. This machine really feels like it was meant for hobby and not for business. If I am trying to add multiple files at once, I have to click upload 10+ times, but also have to move each item first so they arent over top of each other. Should be able to add multiple files at once, and it should place them next to each other so you can easily select which file you want.

-I should be able to delete a file by selecting the item in the left panel. I should be able to select in the left panel and click the delete key on the keyboard to delete it, or even have a delete layer option (Cut, Score, Engrave, ignore, DELETE) instead of only being able to do so by selecting what is in the camera/bed (see below for more)

-When I select a file in the bed/image, it should ALSO select the layer that is on the left column. I don’t know why it does not do this. If I have a bunch of files open, if I click the file in the bed image, I have NO CLUE where it is in the list and I cannot just simply click it and then edit the settings. This should be so basic. It ties into the problem above. Because I cannot just delete a file from the left column, i have to hover over each one until the one in the bed image highlights. instead of just selecting what I see in the bed image and it also selects the layer in the left.

-Easier Aligning. The box where I can type exact numbers definitely helps now. But would be great to be able to select 2 items, click align (left, center, right, etc) boom. A grid would also help align things to products so you arent guessing where the center of the item is. OR, a line drawing tool where you can drag out the length of what you are engraving on, and center everything to that. I misalign text all the time because some products are not all the same exact sizing, nor are text characters.

**
I wonder if anyone else notices these issues? I can’t be the only one using the GF for lots of daily usage and uploading more than 1 file at a time. These issues probably do not bother someone printing 1 item project once a week or something. But I am creating products with 10+ file requirements every day
thanks!!

2

Most of the creations I make are multi file, but before I upload them to GF I combine them into one file.

3

What browser are you using and have you cleared the cache recently? (I saw what you are describing once, but it was long ago and didn’t repeat so I never reported it.)

4

Some good feedback I’d say. I find that being very deliberate with my highlighting / clicking / selecting really helps. The browser interface experience for me is more “laggy” than “buggy” If I take my time is seems better. I’d love it to be snappier!

5

This is the right place for feature/bug reports.

Some of your UI experience (“buggy”) does not match mine, it would probably help to post your “whatismybrowser” report URL so they can see if those issues are related to your specific system/OS/browser config.

6

i think you need to clarify some things. it took me a while reading through to understand that when you say “add a new file,” you mean (i think) being inside of an uploaded design (not at the home page), and continuing to add additional elements to an already uploaded file.

when i think “adding a file to the UI,” i think uploading a new design.

i’m not saying your workflow is bad or wrong, but this isn’t an issue for me because i’m doing all of those things in my design program (illustrator) and creating the design file layout with a design program created to do this. the GFUI is not a full fledged design program and, at least IMO, you’re trying to make it do more than it’s really designed to do. your vector design program is more capable (and always will be).

fwiw, you don’t get all of that capability in the UI of industrial laser cutters. on the universal, once you “print” a design, all you can do is change settings and move it around the bed. no scaling, rotating, adding additional elements. so yes, this is more of a “hobby” machine in the sense that GF is adding options that the “professional/industrial” company’s interfaces presume you’re going to do in your design software.

1 Like
7

A lot of your “buggy” stuff sounds like browser issues, as others have already noted.

It’s going to appear at the coordinates where you have it in your design program. If you don’t pay attention to where the design program’s workspace is, you can’t predict where it will end up when imported. Set your workspace to 12" x 20" (or the metric equivalent if you prefer) and then keep your design in that space, and it will appear in the GFUI exactly at that same position.

It was. :slight_smile:

5 Likes
8

I use drag and drop all the time as it is much faster, but then each case will have its own layer, If everything is the same I copy/paste in the GFUI so one set of layers covers everything.

9

Heres my URL whatismybrowser.com/w/EPZH3EC

10

That tip about setting inkscape to 10x20 is a great tip I will try that.
The problem (I thought) with adding everything to one file is it will either print all or none. Unless each image is an SVG, but if I am doing it as a JPG or whatever, Will it show up as different layers or print the whole thing or not?
I like to test my printing before committing to printing an entire large project is the problem. When I print 12 bottle openers at once, I want to make sure it is aligned before committing to doing all.
interesting tips.
I did mention some are bugs, and they do fix themselves sometimes if I refresh the browser (like using arrow keys) but the other things not so much

1 Like
11

The GFUI separates vector operations by color. You can manage things really well just by your selection of different vector colors in your design.

You can also move and adjust individual parts in your same-color design, as long as they’re not nested or touching, unless there are so many elements that the whole thing gets “grouped” on import (a “feature” I have griped to them about endlessly!).

Keep in mind that when you first import your design, the entire thing is selected, and you need to click outside the selection to release it. That might be why you’re having trouble working with individual parts.

Also, give Chrome a try – it works really well with the GFUI. Firefox can be a little weird with it sometimes.

1 Like
12

Needs to be 12x20”, or any size but that same aspect ratio. The software checks for that art board ratio on upload. It also helps to eliminate scaling issues if your SVG is using arbitrary units, or units that can be interpreted differently dependent upon program (for example, pixels).

13

I’m sorry for the frustration when using the Glowforge App. It looks like you’ve already received some great advice and information from our other community members. Thanks folks!

The suggestion you made about having a tool to align multiple objects to each other, and an option to select parts of your design from the left column are great ideas for features - thanks for your suggestions! We haven’t announced anything like that yet, but I’m going to send it to our product team with a note that it came from a customer request.

Regarding creating multiple print steps which you can either set to ignore or assign different settings, we now have a detailed guide on our support site which shows how to set up a print with multiple steps, as well as how to configure your designs to automatically load the steps in the order you want. You can find the article here: Setting the Order of Your Print Steps .

Will you please let us know if the app’s behavior seems to improve when using the latest version of Google Chrome? Another thing to try would be to delete your browser’s cache. You can find instructions here: Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge

14

It’s been a little while since I’ve seen any replies on this thread so I’m going to close it. If you still need help with this please either start a new thread or email support@glowforge.com.