Center Dot Character in macros

Phaedrux

A simple dash wouldn't suffice?

Adding special characters to a macro seems imprudent.

DonStauffer

@phaedrux This macro is about 150 pages long. I have levels of comments, some differentiated by a line of characters in a comment. Dash is already used for another comment level.

OwenD

I'm pretty sure G Code (which includes macros) must only be ASCII printable characters, so I'd be surprised if the interpreter didn't throw a fit with what you propose.
Perhaps if it was on a commented line it would be ignored, but it is going down a slippery slope.

dc42

@donstauffer said in Center Dot Character in macros:

Fairly trivial question, but maybe easily answered:

I created a macro file in Windows that includes the center dot character (Alt-0183). When I uploaded the macro it shows that character in the editor on the web interface as a diamond with a question mark in it. But in the editor, I can type Alt-0183 and it puts a center-dot character in just fine.

EDIT: I was only using it as a comment divider.

Is there a way to get the center dot character to transfer correctly via the web interface?

Thanks!

It should work if you make sure that your editor saves the file in UTF8 format.

DonStauffer

@owend It's just a number in any case, and part of a comment. And the editor allows it. Only the upload does something special with it.

DonStauffer

@dc42 It's written by VBA, not an editor. I'll see if there's an option.

DonStauffer

@dc42 Perfect, thanks! This worked:

Private Const CENTER_DOT_CHAR As String = "·"

Public Sub Test()
Dim sFilename As String
sFilename = "C:\Users\Don\3D Printing\Software\Slicing\FeatureSettings\TestDot"
Dim fsT As Object
Set fsT = CreateObject("ADODB.Stream")
fsT.Type = 2 'Specify stream type - we want To save text/string data.
fsT.Charset = "utf-8" 'Specify charset For the source text data.
fsT.Open 'Open the stream And write binary data To the object
fsT.WriteText ";special characters: " & String(10, CENTER_DOT_CHAR)
fsT.SaveToFile sFilename, 2 'Save binary data To disk

End Sub

Phaedrux

@donstauffer said in Center Dot Character in macros:

@phaedrux This macro is about 150 pages long. I have levels of comments, some differentiated by a line of characters in a comment. Dash is already used for another comment level.

Now i'm curious to see the macro.

DonStauffer

@phaedrux Macro:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1xkiiMbsnKcUBRHepfGuDxpLkeH_PS8OA/view?usp=sharing

DonStauffer

@phaedrux The macro creates a few hundred short macros which support a system I developed to control printer settings on a feature level (solid fill, infill, supports, etc.) rather than just a layer level. So, you can set your outer perimeter to use a different fan setting than solid fill, for example.

Phaedrux

@donstauffer said in Center Dot Character in macros:

I developed to control printer settings on a feature level (solid fill, infill, supports, etc.) rather than just a layer level.

That sounds amazing. That was the killer feature of the E3D slicer for me. Fine grained control over settings per feature.

Do you have any more details out there anywhere?

DonStauffer

@phaedrux I just finished it the day before yesterday and the documentation isn't done yet. So this is really new. It's intended for use with Simplify3D but I think any slicer that has a Layer Change script and the ability to insert before each feature would work. I'll post something when I have it documented and maybe tested a little more.

As for the center dot, I distilled it down to this: In VBA, if you make a 2-character string with character codes 194 and 183, outputting it the usual way works:

Private Const CENTER_DOT_CHAR As String = "Â·"
or
Private Const CENTER_DOT_CHAR As String = Chr(194); Chr(183)

EDIT: The second one won't work unless you remove the "Const" and break it into a declaration and an assignment, I just realized.

Print #1, ";"; CENTER_DOT_CHAR

But you can't use the VBA String() function to duplicate it because it will only duplicate the first character of a string, so you have to use a loop. That's it.

DonStauffer

@phaedrux This took me forever because it's been through several complete rewrites.

The concept is tested, but the latest rewrite is not yet, although I did go through the macro it generates and checked that it's doing what I wanted. So in theory, this should work. I'll post more information when I have updates.

There is a Word document with it. The first 4 pages of it are reasonably good. The rest is garbage that includes false starts at documentation and old stuff that has changed. But the first 4 pages should give you an idea what this does and how it works.

The guts is in the Excel spreadsheet in the form of a VBA macro that writes one HUGE GCode macro for you to upload to your printer and run. That macro creates all the other GCode macros which are needed.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Jh4fO95Y5pp5moa_8uJQQ0AG0cifJVMD/view?usp=sharing

oliof

@donstauffer this is great! Reminds me of some of the capabilities of FullControl and it's web based spiritual successor GCode Designer ...

oliof

@donstauffer that file with no file extension, what is it? I tried renaming it to .zip but that didn't work.

DonStauffer

@oliof I'm not sure. There are 4 files, and 2 of them are inside a folder named "Programs". Could it be the folder you're looking at?

FeatureSettings.docx
FeaturesSettings.xlsm

Inside Programs folder:

ReplaceWithQuotes.BAT
sed-4.2.1-setup.exe

All that is zipped up into FeatureSettings.zip. Security should be set to "anyone with link can view." So you should be able to get everything.

DonStauffer

@oliof Maybe you were trying to look at the single file I uploaded a couple months ago. It's been deleted, but the Excel spreadsheet has a VBA macro called WriteMacros that will recreate it on your hard drive.

oliof

@donstauffer it worked now. No idea what Google Drive was up to.

DonStauffer

@phaedrux Demo video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVjab77Dpgw