I keep scribbling little notes here and there for improvements and figured I might as well put them all in one place for my sanity, but I don’t want support just closing it and throwing it into the dungeon. Here’s my growing list of hopper items to make things snazzier up in here.
Feel free to add your own, critique mine, or ignore this altogether. I’ll probably organize them a bit later when I have more time.
DO THIS FIRST
Fix the bug(s) that prevents large engravings.
App Home Page
Sorting options for the designs I’ve uploaded
Ability to favorite designs and keep them at the top or filter them somehow
Mass select designs for easy multi uploads or deletions
“Show more” sucks, just automatically load more designs as I scroll down, take my continued scrolling as an implied show more.
Design Page
Add simple geometric shapes to the interface to easily throw a cut square etc around something.
Mass select and update settings for multiple layers at once
Option to change color of lines in interface to improve visibility on certain materials
Hovering over a line should highlight the corresponding layer in the interface
When I select a layer the first text input box should automatically be activated
Hold alt and drag in the interface to duplicate what I have selected
Ability to save non-proofgrade settings
Hover states for all interface buttons to show hotkeys
Print from the web interface (I imagine forcing me to hit the button is a safety thing, but having to walk back and forth sucks when everything is setup and I just want to print)
Save entire projects (layers, where they are, settings used, so you just throw material in and hit print)
Make the camera trustworthy. Perhaps the easiest fix here would be an option to run the print with the red laser on and no actual cutting/engraving. This would let you use the camera to eyeball it, then use the red test run to perfect it.
Work with fonts so I don’t have to create outlines to print them.
Create specific colors that correspond to machine settings, allowing designs to include settings in them. For example, make a square filled with #457291 and the GF knows that’s 100% speed, 50% power, or whatever.
Ability to name various layers in the application for complex files. People seem to handle this by using different files for different materials, but I tend to put it all in one file, so being able to name those groups somehow would be useful.
Other Improvements
Show me the current temp in the interface as it gets closer to too hot so I can adjust or plan for it.
Add a counter that shows how many hours i’ve printed for, include a warning when a lens cleaning should be done.
These are all great suggestions. I’ll add a few of my own:
Automatic N-up support. I’d love to be able to load a design and specify that I want 10 copies in a 2x5 grid and have the GFUI take care of everything. Better yet, it could automatically optimize placement on proofgrade materials. Here’s a new piece of cherry hardwood… print as many of this design as will fit.
Time estimates before printing. I don’t mind if these are less accurate than the time given after the print has started; anything would help. “With current settings, this design will take about X:XX to print.” If layer settings were saved with designs, this estimate could also be shown in the design list, too.
More information for each design I’ve loaded. Printed N times on X, Y and Z materials. Last printed September 3 on Proofgrade Cherry Hardwood. Last print took about 15 minutes.
Direct entry of scaling values and/or sizes. If I load a design that’s 2" square, I shouldn’t have to go back to my design software to reprint it at 1"x1".
Support for metric units. I’d love to see this in a “unit agnostic” way, so I don’t have to change a global setting to make it work. Just let me enter 2mm for my material thickness or (combined with the previous item) let me specify that I want this design printed at 4cm x 4cm. Computers are smart, why should my inferior meat brain be responsible for converting units?
First thing isn’t really for the hopper, it comes before the hopper. Finish and perfect everything originally promised.
Next I like everything in the op.
Finally, I’ll add that I’d love to see a grid that could be overlaid for alignment purposes.
Since you do not have to be in the same room to send a file to the machine, I doubt they will eliminate the “Deadman Switch” concept of physically hitting the print button.
People forget that these are not friendly elves off in a hole making things for us.
They are complex machines that require thoughtful safety precautions to prevent damage or injury.
Being in the immediate area to visually see that nothing is amiss prior to launch, probably makes their legal team happy, (or at least willing to frown and move on).
AND, the first time you saw something, like the exhaust not hooked up, etc, you will be glad it was done this way.
I believe the red laser is directed off to the side for triangulation of surface focus.
Maybe an option to fire a preliminary perimeter low power scorch to verify placement.
I’m not even sure what is technically still missing at this point. Is there a list of those somewhere? I’d guess the accuracy of the camera is in there, and the optical alignment for the pro slot.
I’m not sure either, someone starts a list every so often but I can’t point to the latest. With 3d turned on the pro slot and double sided cuts are all I think of right off.
Here’s the latest list. Although it is out of date. 3D engrave is now part of the UI and not over-burning in the corners has been addressed.
It now seems the SDEs are no longer focused exclusively on factory assembly issues and are working on bugs and end-user features. (You can tell by the amount of bugs being introduced, and then fixed, into recent builds, such as machines not calibrating well. )
Overburning in corners is still 1000% a thing, just perhaps not on all material. I work with paper a lot and constantly have circle overburn in corners.
The 3D engrave is not as promised. It is just a PG preset for the vary power engrave mode.
3D high-res engraving
Engrave complex, three dimensional curves with 1,000 DPI resolution. To get perfect detail and sculpt with real depth, Glowforge can carve away material with multiple passes, each one focusing more deeply than the last.
You can do multiple passes but I don’t see any way to vary the focus on each pass. Also each pass is exactly the same whereas I would expect each pass to be a different depth slice.
They haven’t addressed the over-burn in corners. They have just added a PG preset that scores slowly to minimise its effect.
cherry hardwood… print as many of this design as will fit.
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