Part one: User interfaces and slicers
User Interfaces:
Also called platforms or controllers, a user interface is how you communicate with your printer. This can be an onboard display screen right on your printer, or it can be software on your laptop, pc, or tablet with a USB connection. It allows you to move motors, test sensors, start or stop prints, control temperatures, or monitor what the printer is doing. 3D printers can be open source or closed source. If open source, you have many options for what will control or drive your printer. If closed source, you get what you get. My 3D printer (the RoVa3D) is open source. In the RoVa3D setup guide, it gets you set up to use Pronterface. I am very happy with Pronterface to date, but I had some snags along the way. Thankfully each snag I hit in my initial setup was my own fault, and it was all software installation related.
A funny story that would never have happened to you:
Software installation is my Achilles heel. I love tools, hardware, tinkering, and getting into my zone. I love code! I love programs, spreadsheet formulas and design. It makes no sense, but ask me to reformat anything, Hell, ask me to install or extract anything, and you'd think I flunked third grade computer class. I was literally step by stepped through the process (with photos), and I still screwed up the simplest of things (huge shout out to the tech support at ORD Solutions, for getting me up and running with a straight face). I went from not having a custom set of buttons (provided in my setup guide) in my user interface, to skipping the use of the buttons and testing the sensors myself by controlling the motors (because who needs buttons?), to not being able to test one sensor because the bed wouldn't move up to the sensor. Here I was thinking there was a hardware problem somewhere, when in reality, the next step in the setup process was to hit the "home" button, so the printer can get its bearings by using all sensors. You should not hit the home button before testing your sensors, because nothing will tell your 3D printer to STOP if a sensor is not working. There was absolutely nothing wrong with my 3Dprinter. It is a software safety feature to not allow too much movement before it knows what coordinates it is sitting at. All of this happened because I couldn't copy a folder with my special buttons in it, into the correct folder. Eventually I asked for the code for the buttons, and as crazy as it sounds, that is what helped me get it all sorted out. I had buttons, tested my sensors, homed my printer, and conducted my first test print that same night.
A few examples of user interface software:
Autodesk Spark: Autodesk is an established entity in the 3D printing world, so this is intriguing. They very recently announced Spark will be embedded into the Windows 10 platform.
Pronterface: I have limited use, but I find it to be very user friendly, and easily customized.
http://www.pronterface.com/
Octoprint: Controlling and monitoring your 3D printer wirelessly? I may have to look into this a bit more.
http://octoprint.org/
Slicers:
A slicer is a software program that takes your specifications, and turns it into a very long and detailed list of instructions and movements that your printer can carry out step by step. It takes the information you define, (such as speed, wall thickness, bed temperature, hotend temperatures, infill, support structures, and dozens of additional paramenters) and slices your model into each layer, generating code, (called Gcode) for every single movement needed to complete the print from start to finish. I have two different versions of Slic3r, because one of them is specifically for multi-nozzle slicing. I look forward to learning the process, and will get into details as I progress.
A few examples of Slicer software:
Slic3r: I am still new to this program, but it is working well. I would like to be a little more comfortable with it. There is a version for multi-extruder printing, which I am just getting started with.
http://slic3r.org/
Kisslic3r: This intrigues me. I've seen video comparing this to Slic3r, and it showed much less jumping within prints for the same part. It seems to possibly be a cleaner, more organized slice. They have a pro version which supports multi-extruder printing, which is my main focus. I plan to look into this further down the road.
http://www.kisslicer.com/
Cura: So many people seem to have this one, so the wealth of information available may be well worth it. I'm not sure if it is compatible with multi-extruders.
https://ultimaker.com/en/products/software
up next
Part 2: Devices to drive your printer, and the interruptions that ruin everything!
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