quote: Yeah there is still something flakey going on with the WCS manager... and it has been happening since the WCS was first implemented in Mastercam roughly a decade ago. Perhaps by the year 2020 it might finally work right, eh?

http://mastercam.com/Support/Downloads/Mas...X4/Default.aspx Click on the Info button following the link for the download.

I'll believe that when I see it. Can I get a demo of this high speed post processor for X4 MU2?

How fast is high speed? It takes around 5 minutes to post a 1GB program, over the network even, here. What I would like to see is posting able to run in the background like multi-threaded toolpaths do.

I don't toolpath from solids but do work on huge surface models. When Mastercam starts chugging along I simply save out only the geometry in another file and continue toolpathing from there. Mastercam does OK for me performance-wise until MCX file sizes grow to around 1 to 1.5GB. And some of the high speed surface paths take way too long to compute which is OK since the original surface paths are still plenty speedy.

Having to click apply on every toolpath parameter page is a colossal waste of precious time. Somewhere in the last couple versions or updates entered params stopped "sticking" and reverted to their defaults if apply isn't clicked on each page. I'd much rather not have use apply at all like it used to work, but could live much better with using key strokes instead of pointing an clicking all the time.

quote: a flicker that I had when opening certain windows With all the computer problems you've had lately I highly recommend storing yours in an explosion proof box in case they start to grenade on you.

quote: If every thing seems to be working fine is there any benefit to updating the driver?Upgradeitis can be a slippery off camber slope to travel on. If it isn't broke, don't fix it.

My complaint about the Apply and OK buttons is that they don't respond to keyboard inputs ALT-A and ALT-O requiring them to be clicked on. And FWIW, how about replacing the check and cross with real OK and Apply buttons. We (tinw) are professionals and can make do without all the cheesy cartoons thank you very much. IMO if software is going be to written for Windows it ought to conform to Windows standards.

. MILLSTAR .

I never use ram saver. Not with all previous versions of Mastercam, either. Regen Display gets used quite a few times per day, however. I have a hot key assigned for it. I work with wireframes, surfaces, solids created in Mastercam, imported solids, and do some minor drafting all on a regular basis in X4 MU2 and have no display problems other than toolpath icons turning into squares on a random infrequent basis when drag copying toolpaths. Intel Core 2 Duo CPU (x64) NVIDIA FX 1700 display 4GB RAM

quote: Sounds like some FANUC alarmsI hear you! Couple weeks ago. 18i-MB5 on a Fadal. Spindle wouldn't spin. Message: SPINDLE ALARM Thanks Fanuc, the chances of me being able to figure that out all by myself was pretty slim.

Ah yes, the dreaded "Encountered Improper Argument" error. That's quite informative, isn't it? Feh. Does anybody besides myself think it would be better if Mastercam just disappeared from the screen when it crashes instead of insulting you with a totally useless dialog box to click through first. Or how about a better dialog box? Something like, Mastercam Crashed, Do You Want to Continue? [Yes] | [No] | [Help]

If programed arcs in the X-Z or Y-Z plane(s) (revolved toolpath) are leaving steps at the quadrant where the Z axis reverses direction that's a real good indication you've got mechanical issues with the machine.

quote: Is there anything that you miss from past versions? The now defunct fixed bug list! Are you sure you haven't inadvertently selected all chains in the chain manager? I was reversing some chains yesterday and didn't have any problems. I do wish Mastercam wouldn't flip the tool from left to right side in toolpath params when a chain is reversed though.

I never use dynamic xform and haven't had any problems with X4 MU1 or MU2.

+1 on wireframe revolved. Or parallel / raster limiting depths to just do the bottom.

quote: How many software crashes are you supposed to have per day?When did crashing software become a requirement?

quote: How about I send you a screen shot of every time Mastercam crashes on me?Careful with that, man. I believe email bombing / flooding of that magnitude can get you in trouble with your Internet provider.

quote: One thing I have noticed is that alot of people toolpath off surfaces instead of solids here. And those are the same people that have the crashes. I program off nothing but solids and have no problems.I either import to or create solids in Mastercam but machine from wireframes and surfaces exclusively. I'm using X4 MU2 and have yet to encounter any problems outside of the normal bugs which have been lurking around for numerous versions for which there are work arounds. It's hard for me to come up with a reason to complain about X4, X4 MU1, and especially X4 MU2 since the trim preview for noobs and retards is finally gone. And that's quite the bummer too, I LOVE posting inflammatory rants.

Pete, Any chance the installers downloaded from Mastercam's web site could be corrupted in transit? If there were MD5/SHA-1 hashes provided for the installers, I for one would most certainly check them before executing them.

Would now be a good time to start campaigning for a Mac OS X, or even Linux, port of Mastercam?

We're not having this problem. Symantec Endpoint Server / Client. All seats of Mastercam on clients.

As others have said. Or your chained contour is not on a plane. (2D toolroad from 3D chain)

Turning off system restore is the very first thing I do after installing a new Windows operating system. Then turn off and disable indexing, install AV software, then run Windows Update - reboot - ad infinitum, until all Microsoftware is up to date (installing NIC drivers first if needed). Then finally install display drivers and software. As far as I'm concerned system restore isn't necessary unless you're careless. On file / access permissions, the Windows defaults now are are pretty sane. The most efficient thing to do with permissions on the Mcam hierarchy is create a group for Mcam users, put all the users that are going to be using Mastercam it in that group, disable inheriting permissions from parent objects only on the Mcam root folder, then add the Mcam users group and allow it everything but full control on the entire Mcam sub-hierarchy. Full control would mean users can take ownership of and change permission of all objects with that permission and isn't necessary. It would be handy if CNC Software would document where and where not Mastercam when run with user privileges needs to write so sane permissions can be set on the Mcam hierarchy without having to go through experimentation to find out. Or better yet, add a routine to the installer to set sane minimal permissions like say, Unigraphics does.