Workshop software

[Chris333]

Anyone using the new Anycubic Workshop software?

I'm reading you need to update the Photon software for it to work.

[C855B]

Not here. Do you have links to info or downloads? Curious about what it does.

[Chris333]

I got it from here:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1916Mvl4FlnoG9decjPcBVzLi8Lp1kEkq/view

Screenshot:


Haven't played with it yet.

[C855B]

Oh, looks to be a bare .exe. Not much good on my Mac. I could try it in my Win7 boot, but have normal reservations about an .exe out in the wild and not through official channels.

From your screen shot it appears to be a new slicer, anyway, but to what end? (Better auto support generation, I hope). One concern I have is their previous MacOS slicer requires an OS version greater than what I run, so it's as useful to me as the .exe. If it's a superset of ChiTuBox then I can cross my fingers there's maybe a Linux version somewhere in there.

[narrowminded]

@Chris333   I haven't looked at any of this stuff other than what came with the machine.  It has worked satisfactorily so far.

BUT, if you recall, I had mentioned this before about losing parts that were spindly, hanging down at some distance from the build plate.  Not losing the part attachment to the build plate but losing the part at some distance away from the plate, bending outward and then just ending before the part was completed.  I concluded that it was the result of the viscous resin rushing past the hanging parts and pushing/ flexing them out of alignment therefore losing the alignment at the vat film face during the next Z axis move, therefore losing that and all subsequent cure steps, effectively losing the part buildup past that point.  It seemed to progress outward with the part failures starting at about 2/3's of the distance from the build plate center.  That would coincide with the volume of resin being displaced at each Z axis move, picking up volume and therefore velocity as you moved away from center and with no adjustment for the Z axis speed.  The fix was to just reduce the number of parts, utilizing only the center half of the plate. 

The remark about this is at the end of this post. https://www.therailwire.net/forum/index.php?topic=45736.msg607250#msg607250

All of that to note this.  That new slicer you showed has an adjustment for the Z axis travel and also speed about halfway down the right menu bar (third block).  That might be exactly what I was wishing for and might help with delicate features that are being distorted or damaged for this resin viscosity/ flow turbulence reason, assuming that's even a correct theory of the problem (I'll bet it is).   I may look into that further.

[Chris333]

I'm just wondering about the Photon update part. Like if I slice a file with the Workshop software it will not print unless I update the Photon's software.

[narrowminded]

I'm just wondering about the Photon update part. Like if I slice a file with the Workshop software it will not print unless I update the Photon's software.

It wouldn't surprise me that you need to update both together so that they can accept the additional settings but I don't know any of that. 

[Chris333]

And worried if I update the Photon will any of my old files work on it? Or just new stuff.

[narrowminded]

And worried if I update the Photon will any of my old files work on it? Or just new stuff.

Are the original operating downloads still on their website? 

[C855B]

Are the original operating downloads still on their website? 

It appears so. I downloaded the original Photon version from the Photon page, and the Photon S page has Photon WorkShop Win 1.0.0, 2.0.23 and 2.1.17, and Mac 1.0.0 and 2.0.23 (requires MacOS 10.12 and up).

There is a firmware download on the Photon page (v4.2.19) that I'm not going to mess with. Any tips on checking the installed version? The Photon S firmware vs. slicer software information is headache-inducing.

I see a whole bunch of opportunity to screw things up. Until somebody says otherwise, I'll stick with ChiTuBox and what's loaded in the Photon for the time being.

[Chris333]

I updated the Photon a while back and guess I could always reload the old software.

[Chris333]

OK so I found this elsewhere that is from Anycubic:

Dear Photon Users,

We have noticed concerns over the change of the original Photons motherboard and slicer. We apologize that we have worried you and that we have not shared why and how this change will benefit the 3D printing community in a longer run sooner.

First, and foremost, we want to let you know our Photon S started with the same motherboard, firmware, and slicer that you now see in the original Photon. The Photon S has been a market hit and has a proven record of success since it was launched. From our point of view, we are adapting this success and the advanced mode to the original Photon so it can also have some of those same benefits.

Second, the new slicer, Photon Workshop (download link is below) can be saved and used as either .pws or .photon files. It is compatible with all Anycubic Photon printers and resins, as well as third party resins. We will provide you later on with APIs to do even more! Please do not worry at all about your expertise and talents going nowhere with this change. Anycubic is always with you.

Third, we will provide firmware upgrades for our existing Photon users, or in the worst case, new motherboards for free as well. Photon printers sold before cannot be updated any more? Of course, this is not true. Your needs are always on our minds. If you have any questions about updating, please email James at james@anycubic.com.

Finally, with our own developed motherboard and slicer, we intend to significantly accelerate the process to turn your suggestions into updates on our machine on a regular basis. Working with an outside supplier, this process has always been tedious and slow.

Most importantly, here is the beta version of the Photon slicer for your new board or for updates:
 

https://www.anycubic.com/collections/anycubic-photon-3d-printers/products/anycubic-photon-s

Please feel free to download and try the beta version now.

Any feedback or question is highly welcomed at james@anycubic.com.

Thank you for all of your support along the way. We wish you a pleasant printing experience with Anycubic Photon.

Warm regards,
Anycubic team

[reinhardtjh]

There is a firmware download on the Photon page (v4.2.19) that I'm not going to mess with. Any tips on checking the installed version? The Photon S firmware vs. slicer software information is headache-inducing.

You've probably seen it, but everyone on the Photon Facebook page warns against upgrading to 4.2.19. There are apparently a multitude of little problems with it.   They say stop at 4.2.18 if you must upgrade.  It's on the Photon Git page somewhere.  Here ==> https://github.com/Photonsters/anycubic-photon-docs/tree/master/firmware

[C855B]

Thanks, John. No FB here, so any worthwhile nuggets you might pass along are appreciated.

[reinhardtjh]

Thanks, John. No FB here, so any worthwhile nuggets you might pass along are appreciated.

Well in that case there is a lot to peruse at the GitHub page: https://github.com/Photonsters

As with most enthusiast pages it's somewhat chaotic but there is useful stuff there.

https://github.com/Photonsters/anycubic-photon-docs -- The ReadMe has pointers to lots of helpful documents and other things.  Some are on Facebook in the group so won't be of use.  If you see anything you want checked out, let me know and I can retrieve it.