NCPlot v2.06 is now available for download!

For a download link and the list of changes please go to www.ncplot.com/ncplotv2/download.htm

Here are a few of the changes in this version:


Bug Fixes
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The animate slider, fade slider and tool list would disappear when the close "X" button was clicked on the NCPlot titlebar. If the shutdown was canceled, these items did not reappear. This has been fixed.

On the address color setup dialog, if the selected color was black then the color box actually showed white.

Some fixes to the toolbars were made. Mostly issues with menu items not being shown in the correct check state on startup.

The "Step Forward" and "Step Backward" buttons on the plot toolbar were set to auto-repeat when held down, this has been changed back to 1-click equals 1-step.

Fixed a problem with running NCPlot on accounts without Admin privaleges. On shutting down NCPlot an error was being generated: "Run-time error 2000: Application defined or object defined error". This error is being caused by the system not allowing NCPlot to save it's toolbar layout file. The fix was to save this file under the user application data folder. An added benefit to this is that each user can now have their own toolbar layout.

The milling canned cycles now properly support G18/G19 plane selection.

Fixed a bug in the DXF conversion setup window. NCPlot was reporting an error when using saved layers.


General
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External subprogram files no longer need to have filenames that begin with the letter "O". NCPlot will now find subprogram files in either format, ie. "O1234.nc" or "1234.nc" is acceptable. The file extension is ignored and can be anything you like.

Added the ability to select and backplot any program in the loaded edit file. There is a new status bar panel that can be used whenever you have multiple programs in your file. When the panel is clicked a popup menu appears that contains a list of all the programs in your file. Clicking a program on the menu jumps to the selected program and selects it for backplotting. This allows you to backplot any program in your file without the need to rearrange the programs.

Added a tool list toolbar which contains a list of the tool numbers used in the program. This list is populated any time the backplot is refreshed. Clicking on a tool number in the list causes the editor to highlight the line in the program where the tool change was commanded. This creates a convenient way to navigate to the beginning of each tool in the program.

Added a system variable for requesting user input. The variable number is #3009 and it's format is:
#3009=100(Enter Pocket Diameter)
When this block is encountered a user input box appears with the message "Enter Pocket Diameter" and the current value for variable #100. A new value entered into this box is then copied to variable #100.

When saving DXF files the geometry is now saved on separate layers by tool number.

Added support for 3Dconnexion's SpaceNavigator. When present, NCPlot will use this device for dynamic Pan, Rotate and Zoom. All current mouse and keyboard controls still work the same.

NCPlot will now ignore "$" symbols if present at the end of the block.


Network License Manager
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There is now support for a network license manager. There are three new menu selections on the "Help" menu:
- Enable Network License Server
Checking this menu item will enable communications to the license manager.

- Check Out License
This will request a license transfer from the license manager. If successful, the license is stored on the client computer so that NCPlot may be run while disconnected from the network. While checked out the license will not be available for other users.

- Check In License
This will return a stored license back to the license manager.

The network license manager is a free download from the NCPlot web site at www.ncplot.com.

The addition of the license manager required changing the location of the license file. This just means that you will have to re-enter your product key after updating to this version of NCPlot.

A third button has been added to the "Help / About" window. This button enables checking for a license server so that this function can be enabled even after the trial period has expired.


Macro Translator
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Changed the layout of the macro translator window. Also, this window can now be resized and will remember it's size as well as the last selected macro folder between uses.

Improved the data entry on the macro translator window. After pressing the "Enter" key to accept a new value, the data entry box moves to the next item in the list. After reaching the last item it will move back to the top of the list. Pressing the up or down arrow keys moves the data entry box up or down the list of variables.

Updated the macro translator to allow non-motion and comment blocks to be output.

Added a method to allow the translator to output a string literal. To do this, add a comment line to the macro being translated in this format:
("O1234(TEST)")
The text between the quotes will be output by the translator as-is. This allows adding special characters or any program code that would not normally be output by the translator.

The macro translator will now remember each macro's parameter settings between uses.


Machine Configuration
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The machine configuration option to reverse lathe arc direction has been moved to the control options page so that it will also be available for mills.


Address Colors

Added another setting to the Address Color configuration dialog. This setting is labeled "Other" and is a color setting for any characters not covered by the other settings.


DNC
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Added some new settings to the Communications Setup page. There are two new settings on the "Transmit" tab:

"Wait for XXX seconds before transmitting" - This setting enables a timed delay before transmitting begins. This is a check box that will then enable the second setting where the actual delay time may be entered.

There are also two new tabs labeled "TX Header" and "TX Footer". These tabs contain text settings where header and footer text may be entered. The header text will automatically be sent before the file to send and the footer text will be sent after.


Enjoy!

Scott