I am Very Very new to Mach 3 and Have completely gotten myself lost on wanting to customize a screen layout for a CNC project. Would appreciate any helpful hints and or direction to go. The wife said that being dumb sometimes is a god given talent. I didn't think so until now
racerar

How about more specific questions?

Also, there are some screen design videos at the www.machsupport.com forum.

Is it possible to add my business logo and customize the screen to show one or three axis. For the one axis machine, will need to show z axis only but want to show where I start at & how far I travel, but want to try to dress it up a bit. Yeah I know I want too much but I can dream, right. Sure want to learn more.
You have helped me before and I appreciate it. Thanks
raceart

If you have no idea at all where to start, you should probably watch the video(s). You can do pretty much anything you want. The screen background is just a .bmp image, and you can add as many or few buttons or DRO's as you want. The possibilities are endless.

ger21
Will watch all videos tonight. Anything else that I need too review or look at. I luv to learn but the woman says I am to damn old to learn. Must be talking about a dog and new tricks
racear

ger21
just went to the video tutorials and check all 4 videos and said on al 4 that the page could not be found. am I looking in wrong place.
racear

Use this link, then go to videos, and look at Screen4.swf
ftp://anonymous:guest@machsupport.com/

I'll see if I can find Benny's other videos later.

Gerry
Will look at this tonight. The other video you are speaking of would be nice for me to learn from also. I thank you for your help and for looking up one from Benny.
racear

OK, I got a chance to watch the videos last night but I must have missed how to assign G code to the buttons. Love screen4. I learned a lot (I think). The lady of the house said that cant be because I was only working for 3 hours. I fooled her. I fell asleep and had a hell of a hangover
racerar

With the new versions of Mach3, you add the vb script to the buttons in Mach3. Find the menu item "Edit button script", select the button, and I think you put in something like this:

code "G1 Xx Yx Zx"


I can double check later.

Gerry or whom ever
Went thru the screen 4 knowlege base with video and tried to learn as much as I could but apparently missing a large piece. Is there a place to go thru from start to finish on screen designing using bit maps and all and a place to do nothi9ng but practice or I would even be open to someone that just walk me thru the process. Need help in the worst kind of way. Live in Tenn right outside Nashville.
thanks for any and all inputs
racear

I will keep showing my ignorance and I know that but in my zeal to learn I must take that chance. I keep running across Scren designer. Is ther a copy of this program or can I download or?
racear

http://www.machsupport.com/Downloads/Screen4.zip

Unzip into your mach3 folder.

Ger21 or?
Went thru the screen4 video probably 4 times and learned how to assign selection to the button. I have to be overlooking or just plain making something easy very hard for this old man. Trying to apply bitmap buttons and or design custom screen using bitmap. Have read and listened to videos until I am blind and am missing "how to". Am I overlooking video, documentation or just plain dumb. Dont worry, I can take criticism(lady want agree), but dang I want to do this.
thanks for any help from anyone
racear

You need to create the bitmaps in another program, then assign them to the buttons. Make sure they are stored in the \Mach3\bitmaps\millbitmaps\ folder.

The first thing you should do, in Screen4, is go to the "defaults" menu, and set the location of Mach3. Select "new to start a new screen set. Then, on the left side, click on image, then click in the screen area. Then right click to bring up the properties an assign the image.

Gerry
Thanks for your help. Have learned a lot from your comments. My freaking head hurts from this. But have one more question. I designed a large screen in bitmap and stored in mill folder and downloaded it to screen4. Apparently still doing something wrong as I cannot get the buttons, leds and image buttons to be applied to my screen. I know it is simple but am missing something. Man thanks for your help. I appreciate people like you thant take the time to help novices (dummies) like me. Also having problems sizing my screem bitmap. Can I read more elsewhere
racear

Should have asked one more question. Really getting senile now. What is the easiest program to make a bitmap screen layout and transpose it to screen4 I have solid works. What others can I use that is accurate enough and easy enough to work with.
thanks
reed

Most use a graphics program, Photoshop, Corel. A good inexpensive one is RealDraw Pro. You can get a 30 day demo to try it. You'll want to use a program that let's you choose the reolution of the image. Also, you can resize the image in Screen 4 by selecting it and right clicking.

One way to learn is to open an existing screen and look at all the buttons and LED's and see how they work. Also, you can copy and paste items from one screen to another.

Gerry
Let me explain what I tried to do. I made just a simple border for and entire screen just to see what to do for practice. I saved it to Mill bitmap folder. I went to screen4 and opened it as a image and then tried to appy buttons. I also wanted to install DRO inside that sheet but was toatally unable to do so. I know that I must be applying the original screen wrong. Help
reed

Upload the image here, and I'll add it to a screen and post the screen file here. Also, what size screen are creating. 1024x768? or ??

Should have asked one more question. Really getting senile now. What is the easiest program to make a bitmap screen layout and transpose it to screen4 I have solid works. What others can I use that is accurate enough and easy enough to work with.
thanks
reed


Try "Microsoft Paint", can't get much easier than that. :)

If you want to dress it up later then go with a higher end software.


.

gerry
i up loaded as reed.jpg. I want to add button and dro's on top of my screen

Gerry
this is nothing but a simple screen that I want to add the control buttons, spindle rpm and other needs from screen4. I will be using 1068x ?I just want to know how to load the buutons, dro over a nother screen that I built elsewhere. I surely hope the wife doesn't know how dumb me are. I did as was suggested, I used paint. Ive used cut and paste before but was unable to do here. Again my inexpierience is showing. Sorry you are having to baby step me thru, but I do thanks you and any one else that chimes in.
thanks man
reed

I think you may be in over your head here. But start with this and see if you can get started.

First, if you're using paint for your background image, go to the image menu, and choos attributes. Set the image size to 1024 x 768. You want to draw your background the actual size it will be.

In Screen 4, choose File>New, and choose 1024 x 768. In the Controls toolbar on the left, click image, then click once in the screen area. You should see a button that says offline. Right click on that, and a window opens that lets you choose the image, and set the image size and location.

Start with that and see if you can do it.

Gerry
No doubt I am over my head, but indoctrination by fire is a great teacher especially if there are great minds such as yourself to keep me on the straight and narrow. Am I trying to learn too fast: absolutely, as I have tackled a project to help a friend who has zero PC skills. I have good PC skills but not in this arena, but most definitely want to learn. Trying to get ready for a seminar 2nd week in Dec. Will I make it? Dont know until it gets here, but I will do all within my power to do so. I know I am leaning on this forumn for help. I have helped many individuals in my area in the past and thorougly enjoyed showing my skills to people that WANT to learn. Im sure, in your past, you tackled projects outside your scope of comfort. This is what I have done; no doubt. Can I learn? Sure. Question is, can I learn quickly enough? I know what I want, but the road to get there does not have a GPS(except people like you). I am trying desperately to help a fleching friend. As I have gotten older, things dont come as quickly as they used to. And a surgery for a brain tumor hasnt made it that much easier. Although they could not get all the tumor, life goes on. But now my suspicion is, that they removed the brain and left the tumor. So I got to teach the tumor new tricks. Been an engineer for 30 + years and I AINT giving up now. So bear with me and please lend me some of your knowledge and skills. I may prove to be a very worthy student. Or at least my seven grandson's may think that.
Rome wasn't built in a day(Probably took a week). I try to do this with ever spare moment I have. 4 hours sleep is a norm lately, but geez I love this. I'm sure I could pay someone to design a screen layout(and may have to) but what happiness is in doing that. What would I learn? Ok I gots to get off this soap box.
Gerry, I do appreciate people with your knowledge that take the time to share
thanks
reed

Ger21
Yes I had already performed that. My problem comes when I go to the control button and dro and try to place them on that image screem that I just created.
Sorry for the disertation upstairs there. My bad.
thanks
reed

What happens when you try to add the DRO, for example?

If you don't mind, upload your .set file along with the background image. You'll probably need to zip the .set file first.

Ger
Thanks for chiming in. The problem I am having at the present time is that I created an image in paint and named it .jpg and saved it to mill bitmap. I went to screen 4, opened new and sized it 1024 x 768 same as it had in paint. I then went to image under control and placed that image on screen. Came up fine. Then I tried to apply a Dro on top of the image screen. I also tried a button and a label. None will afix to my screen. I even tried to open the backgroundmain image and it opened fine, but again I tried to apply a dro in the slot alocated and could not. I'm sure I am just missing something simple other than my simple mind. Sorry for taking your time
reed

Post your screen (with background only) and I'll see if there's a problem with it.

Gerry
I have included the simplest image that I can learn from. I have an ouline to place two dro's in and a place to record ROM for spindle. I want to attach dro in the rectangles and rpm in the small rectangle. Image file is saved in mill bitmap as jpg
Carry it from there.

I need the full size image, and the .set file you save from Screen4.

Gerry
I realize that I am wasting your valuable time. This is the instruction that I am trying to follow: http://www.machsupport.com/MachCustomizeWiki/index.php?title=Main_Page.
I am only getting to do this in between jobs, so bear with me. Just did this, went to screen4, opened new at 1024x 768. Placed image background main.jpg on screen from mill bitmap and tried to place dro and buttons on top of this. This is my area of problem. I was unable to place the buttons on this screen. Without a doubt it is easy but am missing a key link. If you got the time, walk me from this back ground image to applying the button and dro. I know how to assign the valve to the buttons with Oem code and or gcode or? but lost on putting those buttons on a bitmap image. If you do not have the time, I totalyy understand and I appreciate what you have done thus far. I went to the 1024 set and tried to figure out how each part was made but ???
reed

I think I see where you're having the problem. Once you have the background image, click the DRO control on the left, then click in the right side **outside** the background image. Then click and drag it into place. It doesn't want to let you place it over the image. Same thing for buttons. I attached a sample using your image. Make sure the attached .jpg that you uploaded is in the millbitmaps folder.

Gerry
Man, you are fine. So cut, paste, or drag and drop has to be done outside the image and pulled on the image. Holy smokes, how simple for me dummy not see. Now I can progress and probably have 200 more questions, but man I love this crap
Thanks
Your friend
reed