Newbie linux CAD?

[40fordcoupe]

OK I'm not even a Newbie yet. I havn't been able to download EMC2, but I have made a personal committment to migrate from Windows to LINUX.
Anyway I have tons of stuff to convert so I want to do this well enough to survive the process.
I hate to give up Mach3, but EMC2 looks pretty good.

Anyway Question; What is a good LINUX CAD package to use with EMC2? 3D is not an immediate concern.

BTW A friend is downloading EMC2/UBUNTU for me, my server blocks me when I try to download a file that large.
Thanks,
Bob B.

[lumberjack_jeff]

I do cad on my windows machine then transfer it to the machine controller.

I was a complete CNC noob too, and now that I have most of the bugs worked out (I hope) I really like emc.

Sheetcam does have a linux distribution and it's a free download, provided your parts don't require more than 160 lines of g code.

[40fordcoupe]

Originally Posted by lumberjack_jeff I do cad on my windows machine then transfer it to the machine controller. I was a complete CNC noob too, and now that I have most of the bugs worked out (I hope) I really like emc. Sheetcam does have a linux distribution and it's a free download, provided your parts don't require more than 160 lines of g code.

Thanks Jeff,
After doing more research that is what I decided to do.
Establish a dual boot Windows/Linux system.
Also I will check out sheetcam after I get to a stable EMC2 system.
If there are too many things on my plate it usually falls on the floor.

Bob B.

[40fordcoupe]

Just an update for anybody that might be thinking about Linux CNC.
After my past experiences installing software I try to avoid it if possible.
Installing Linux from UBUNTU was very easy and it runs a lot faster than XP.
My wife has decided that she can do without Windows too.

I should have my copy of EMC2 within a few days.
More later,
Bob B.

[svenakela]

Welcome to the open minded side of the world.
I've been working with Unix/Linux since ages and I do as much as I can to stay there. And it wasn't very hard to get my wife going for Linux either, she's been using it for a long time now. Unfortunately there isn't any decent CAD/CAM for Linux except some simple Python apps. They do the work for most hobby people, but I need to run advanced modelling and got stuck in the M$ world.

I suggest you read the PDF's that are included in the EMC ubuntu release, you'll find them in the CNC menu. They will get you up and running. If you have any of the standard/hoppyist step and dir drives you are good to go.

[40fordcoupe]

Originally Posted by svenakela I suggest you read the PDF's that are included in the EMC ubuntu release, you'll find them in the CNC menu. They will get you up and running. If you have any of the standard/hoppyist step and dir drives you are good to go.

Thanks Sven,
I did go to page you suggest and have downloaded several pdf manuals. At the moment I am reading the Integrators Manual. I can see it will be a big help in getting me up and running.

Too bad you are stuck with windoze for design. I still have my cad programs on XP, but have no plans to even try windows 7. IMHO Software decisions should not be driven by some gigantic company's business plan.
Thanks,
Bob B.

For me insanity is not a problem, I enjoy parts of it.

[outofoperation]

Originally Posted by 40fordcoupe Anyway Question; What is a good LINUX CAD package to use with EMC2? 3D is not an immediate concern.

Hello Bob,

if 2D is good enough for you, have you tried "Qcad"? It´s available in the Ubuntu repositories.

[40fordcoupe]

Originally Posted by outofoperation Hello Bob, if 2D is good enough for you, have you tried "Qcad"? It´s available in the Ubuntu repositories.

Thanks, I know just about enough to get myself into trouble.
I tried installing what I thought was the correct package and got this message;
"Error Dependency is not satisifiable:libqcad0"
I don't have a clue what to do next.
Bob B.

[40fordcoupe]

Originally Posted by 40fordcoupe I don't have a clue what to do next. Bob B.

OK - Me Bad - I went back and tried the synaptic package manager and installed Qcad along with the documentation. I have it open now.
Bob B.

[svenakela]

Last time I tried QCad it didn't work very well. It's a long time ago and hopefully it got better. I need 3D though, and therefore I'm stuck on the dark side.

EDIT: On the other hand, the apps I use for 3D modeling is just fantastic.

[chester88]

may be helpful:
http://wiki.linuxcnc.org/cgi-bin/emcinfo.pl?Cam
synergy has a 30 day free trial:
http://www.webersys.com/

I haven't used it. Just trying to help

[epineh]

I don't know if this will be helpful but here is a link to using Vcarve in Linux...

http://www.vectric.com/forum/viewtop...31c7c772f6c46c

Cheers.

Russell.