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Please, report even the smallest annoyance

jpcaram
Fri, 14 Nov 2014 19:30:32 GMT

Hi everybody, I've been having time to work on version 8 and have added some cool features, but it is really important that you report the little details, problems of whatever would improve your experience. Thanks for using FlatCAM! JP

jpcaram
Mon, 30 Nov 2015 18:03:19 GMT

Hi, Sounds reasonable. Please open an issue in the issue tracker for this. Thanks, JP

chrisbezuidenhout
Thu, 17 Nov 2016 09:33:52 GMT

Every thing is working smooth until I create the CNC Job, It move my board away from the 0 axes, way off my machine bed.

jpcaram
Thu, 17 Nov 2016 14:43:45 GMT

Your gerbers must have been far away from the origin in the first place.

chrisbezuidenhout
Fri, 18 Nov 2016 06:19:04 GMT

When I lay out a PCB I always set my origin to the left bottom corner, I use PCB Mill and then it do it correct but it mess up my drill file. in Flatcam my drill file show up correct but way off my machine bed after I generate the CNC Job. I use Protel99SE for my layouts.

chrisbezuidenhout
Fri, 18 Nov 2016 06:28:03 GMT

Can I send you the file so you can test it on your side? it is a small board for a digitizing probe.

chrisbezuidenhout
Sun, 20 Nov 2016 20:55:15 GMT

Thanks, I figured it out, how to move it back to zero by changing the offset. I only have one problem, that is on my XP PC [error] Failed to parse defaults file. How can I fix that.

jeroen123
Wed, 23 Nov 2016 22:39:29 GMT

Some problems I've been having: Board cutouts are square only. It would be nice to be able to make round cutouts or cutouts with rounded corners. KiCad exports the edge.cuts layer as a regular gerber so FlatCAM interprets it as a contour, making it impossible to use KiCad's native cutout layer in FlatCAM. Excellon slots don't work. I recently needed a slot in a footprint, which I created. Sadly, the only way I was able to do this in KiCad was by creating a non-circular drill, which exports to excellon. FlatCAM then interprets the excellon as a single round drill instead of the slot it is supposed to be. I found the native drawing tools a bit difficult to use for slightly more complex shapes, specifically I had trouble exactly defining lines and arc lengths. EDIT: Thanks for all your work on FlatCAM!

jeroen123
Thu, 24 Nov 2016 19:25:19 GMT

Just found out you documented how to follow lines in a gerber. Would still be nice to have something faster in the GUI, though. Link for anyone who ran into the same problem: http://caram.cl/software/flatcam/tracing-the-silkscreen-with-flatcam/

ebc16
Fri, 16 Dec 2016 16:19:21 GMT

Support for international decimal separators I woud appretiate if FlatCAM would support the decimal separator settings of the operating. In germany for example the official decimal separator is the "," - it is hard to input all the numbers without mixing up between "," and "." . This is especially painful, as FlatCAM doesnt warn you, if the number is wrong because you put in the wrong decimal separator. regards, Josh

zulfqaralibhatti
Wed, 28 Dec 2016 22:38:06 GMT

If I may add a wish list then an option to select multiple object in one go instead of now you have to click ctrl+mouse click on every line or trace would be great.

roschan
Fri, 13 Jan 2017 12:00:03 GMT

Hi and thank you very much for providing a very helpful software which I just started to use!! Because I do not have the time to read all other postings please excuse me if I repeat something. Here are my remarks: - Checkbox for either relative vector offset or absolute positioning. Or an option to automatically transfer the drawing closest to the XY origin (zero). - Grouped files accordingly to the type in the file tree. - Possibility to write a very short remark behind each file for different versions. - Option to automatically detect and eliminate (by milling) left over copper tracks which are between two circuit paths and so thin that they will loosen and do a short circuit. - The register “Tools” is empty no matter what I do. So, either it is faulty or not intuitive operable. - “Paint area” sounds weird. I tried to remove small left over copper tracks by adding a polygon and then “paint” it. It did not work. - Ctrl+Z for undo! - The blue dot at the tip of the mouse arrow disturbs me. - The exported code contains a command my machine cannot handle: “G4 P1” What is “ P1”. I would like to deselect it. - I tried to mill a very thin text, but even when I reduce the tool dia to almost zero no path will be generated.

roschan
Fri, 13 Jan 2017 12:15:25 GMT

One remark to the thin left over copper which I read about in other postings. I already tried multiple passes, but it does not solve every problem (removing left overs). Sometimes the routing avoids some areas, because the second pass does not follow parallel the contour like the first one, even when there is obviously enough space.

roschan
Fri, 13 Jan 2017 12:30:04 GMT

- "New" does not empty the drawing area. I still see the circuit paths from the project before. Maybe a bug!? I would like to frame-select all paths and delete them at once. - After using a tool like "delete" I would like to keep it active and not jump back to "select".

Rafal P
Sat, 14 Jan 2017 21:46:50 GMT

Hi! I would like to propose feature for 2sided PCBs. I of course use CNC and what ideally I would like to do would be to just flip my board without any drills etc to mill the bottom layer. Idea which I have would be to generate a square outline around the board ( with customisable distance ). This would allow to cutout perfect square and just flip it when doing mirror bottom side. I hope I have not complicated this idea :) Let me know if thats something doable

alanrothenbush
Tue, 01 Aug 2017 19:21:54 GMT

OK, smallest annoyance .. here goes. I would like the Cutout to be able to create an outline in a single pass. That is, right now, where the "Gaps" options are 2 (T/B) 2 (L/R) 4 it would be REALLY nice if there was a fourth option, 0 I can fake out a "0" option by setting tool diameter to .050" (because I uses a 50 thou routing bit for the cutout) and setting the gaps to -.050". This gives me geometry around the entire outline of the board, as desired, but does NOT a single, rectangular tool path; the ends of the lines are not joined. So, if "4" was selected for the number of gaps, FlatCAM would cut an "L", move and cut another "L", move and cut the third "L" and finally move and cut the final "L". This is extra (needless) movement, made worse by the fact that I do not cut the entire depth of the board in one pass, I cut in multiple passes .. easier on the bearings in the spindle. My solution is to go back to my CAM package and use that to create a cutout GCode file. This is hardly a problem, but a "0" options for gaps sure would be nice.

konstantin_n
Tue, 05 Sep 2017 21:22:12 GMT

Hello. First of all - THANK YOU! I am newbie, have to say. I have 0.5 mm tool and a layout with 0.5mm distance bw the lines. when i set in the FlatCam a tool diameter as 0.5mm, it cannot generate the pass for the places where the distance bw lines is exactly equal to 0.5mm.

konstantin_n
Sun, 17 Sep 2017 09:10:41 GMT

Hello. One thing really annoys - local language file or folder names prevent FlatCam to open gerber files... Can you please put it to the development becklog with a descent priority?

fernandoaime
Fri, 23 Mar 2018 03:59:25 GMT

Gracias Juan Pablo, excelente trabajo, felicitaciones!! muchas gracias gran ayuda para mí.

alanrothenbush
Sat, 24 Mar 2018 21:17:43 GMT

Small annoyance? As reported above in more detail, pass overlap when milling is .. unusual .. and doesn't really work.

williamleggett
Tue, 27 Mar 2018 17:21:09 GMT

I am trying to import a .SVG image to FlatCAM and can only bring in very simple circles and such. I have tried converting .jpg. gif, .png and others to .SVG with no success. Any suggestions??

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