[mike sr1]

I have a Tormach and use Mach 3 and Windows on it, and it glitches on rare occasions. I was wondering if anyone on this forum has the Dual boot CD that they have advertised Windows Mach3 / Linux? I called Tormach today and was told that they had one but discontinued it due to lack of interest??
I was wondering if someone on the Linux forum has one of these, as I would like to purchase a copy.
I would like to try Linux on the machine as it is reported to be a more bulletproof operating system ,there are so many hoops to jump thru to get Mach and Windows to theoretically operate properly 100% of the time.

If anyone has a copy of the dual boot CD from Tormach and is not using it, I would like to purchase it.

[Gerry Sweetland]

Hi Mike,
I have not tried this yet on my Tormach controller but I have been playing around with it on another older computer I dragged out of the closet. I am looking into converting my lathe into CNC and wanted to check out LinuxCNC.

-Be sure to back up any files you want to keep on the Tormach box to a thumb drive or something.

-Do the following with care and caution, read every dialog box that comes up carefully before proceeding.

-Be aware that you could make your Tormach controller unusable.

-Be sure to wait for the install to do it's thing, especially as it re-partitions your hard drive to make the Ubuntu partition.

-If you power off or something before it is done it could knacker your HDD.

You can put the Ubuntu 10.04/ Linux CNC Live CD in the CD drive and boot from that CD (you may have to go into the BIOS and change the boot priority) on your Tormach controller and choose install. In the install process there will be a dialog box that will show that you have an existing operating system on the hard drive (MachOS or Windows XP or something?) and will ask if you want to install Ubuntu along side and dual boot or erase the partition and use the whole drive for Ubuntu. You want to choose install along side, not sure exactly what the terminology is, I'm just going by memory.
When you are done and re-boot you will get a menu that will ask you what OS you want to boot in to.

Maybe you have a old computer with windows on it that you can practice on and not be too worried about doing something wrong .

Good Luck,
Gerry

[mike sr1]

I do have Ubuntu 10.04 and Linux on an older computer, I had to put more memory in it as it was so slow, works OK now though. I cant get it to run the code generated in Sprutcam7 without errors so I was wanting to get the boot disc from Tormach to possibly get past this problem as it should be configured to run on this machine.
They advertise it but dont sell it according to Matt, I talked to him yesterday about buying the CD. This isnt something I have to have, I would like to play with it on the old computer to try and get the "feel" of it.
Mach is a nice program but it doesnt operate in Windows without a few problems from time to time, so I was trying to get past that possibly with Linux. At my age I need things as simple and bulletproof as possible ha!

I think I will have to connect the old computer to the machine to get it to work, It seems to need input from the machine to start the program, read xy position etc.

Thanks for posting and your invaluable help with Sprut.........

[Gerry Sweetland]

I do have Ubuntu 10.04 and Linux on an older computer, I had to put more memory in it as it was so slow, works OK now though. I cant get it to run the code generated in Sprutcam7 without errors so I was wanting to get the boot disc from Tormach to possibly get past this problem as it should be configured to run on this machine.
They advertise it but dont sell it according to Matt, I talked to him yesterday about buying the CD. This isnt something I have to have, I would like to play with it on the old computer to try and get the "feel" of it.
Mach is a nice program but it doesnt operate in Windows without a few problems from time to time, so I was trying to get past that possibly with Linux. At my age I need things as simple and bulletproof as possible ha!

I think I will have to connect the old computer to the machine to get it to work, It seems to need input from the machine to start the program, read xy position etc.

Thanks for posting and your invaluable help with Sprut.........

You're welcome.
Let us know how you get on.
Gerry

[SCzEngrgGroup]

I have a Tormach and use Mach 3 and Windows on it, and it glitches on rare occasions. I was wondering if anyone on this forum has the Dual boot CD that they have advertised Windows Mach3 / Linux? I called Tormach today and was told that they had one but discontinued it due to lack of interest??
I was wondering if someone on the Linux forum has one of these, as I would like to purchase a copy.
I would like to try Linux on the machine as it is reported to be a more bulletproof operating system ,there are so many hoops to jump thru to get Mach and Windows to theoretically operate properly 100% of the time.

If anyone has a copy of the dual boot CD from Tormach and is not using it, I would like to purchase it.

If you just want to try LinuxCNC, you can download an ISO image, burn it to a CD, and boot it. All you need to know is the important I/Os for the Tormach, and you can build your own configuration in minutes. Took me 5 minutes to get a machine running that way a few years ago. Getting ALL the I/O and controls working can take some time, but getting basic axis motion, enough to get a feel for LinuxCNC, takes a few minutes.

Regards,
Ray L.

[Gerry Sweetland]

Well I got curious so I tried what I described in my 1st post above, about 1-1/2 hours ago. The Tormach controller was still chewing on the live cd when I gave up and ejected the cd and rebooted. Don't know what the problem was, CD drive too slow, HDD to slow, not enough memory? I have installed the cd on two other older computers I have in the last couple of days and that went much faster. Although the LinuxCNC latency test on those two was pretty bad.
I have played around with Linux on and off for the last 8-10 years, way back when Mandrake was one of the bet distros to use. But I never really been happy with Linux, too much terminal typing and setting perimeters. Internet connection would be a ***** to set up along with network printing and graphics. Get them running the way I wanted to one day and the next day I wouldn't be able to print or connect to the internet. I'm still playing around with Ubuntu and LinuxCNC on those other two computers. But I think once I get around to needing a controller for my lathe I will just re-install Windows XP on of those computers and buy Mach3 or maybe 4 if it is out.
Gerry

[mike sr1]

I didnt try the iso image thing, I installed it on an old Dell 8200, I had to add memory to it to get any speed out of it, it had 256 mb, I installed 2 gb and it works much faster. I tried installing ubuntu with xp on the same drive and it wont let me run xp, says there is some kind of fatal error, it will run ubuntu though.
I am beginning to think I need to stick with Mach and Windows, just have to sit and watch it as I cant trust the power line around here, and i think thats where the problems are coming from, at least part of them.

Thank goodness its all a hobby with me, I am a much better tig welder than a cnc operator, it just isnt as much fun ha!

[TurboStep]

Mike
I PM'd you about a possible alternative.
Step

[RTP_Burnsville]

Hi,

I have been wanting to try LinuxCNC as well. After purchasing a CNC router with WinCNC as the control system using MACH3 is really painful..... I downloaded the live CD and recently found a PC to use, now just need some time to mess with it all.

FWIW: Several months back someone on the internet posted a configuration file for the Tormach. I forgot all about it until I read this post..... now where is it hiding???

Robert

[Gerry Sweetland]

Hi,

I have been wanting to try LinuxCNC as well. After purchasing a CNC router with WinCNC as the control system using MACH3 is really painful..... I downloaded the live CD and recently found a PC to use, now just need some time to mess with it all.

FWIW: Several months back someone on the internet posted a configuration file for the Tormach. I forgot all about it until I read this post..... now where is it hiding???

Robert

LinuxCNC comes with a config file for both the 1100 and the 770. Don't know how well they work though.
Gerry

[cncwelder]

I've been using linuxCNC on my series 3 1100 from the time I purchased it (much more of a unix/linux guy than a windows guy - had a unix consulting/ software development business for 10 years). I've not had any problems attributable to the software. One of the best things, besides the stability, is the extensibility without the need for source recompilation. Visit the linuxCNC site and look at some of the documentation. The vanilla series 3 config file that Tormach provided is conservative, but works very well "as is".
I would simply add that porting the software to a new machine (such as CNC plasma cutter) is very easy once you have a little experience. Don't be afraid to try it. If you're concerned about creaming your Windows install, I'd second the previous recommendation about trying it (even in simulation mode) on a PC other than your controller. Good luck.