Re: How do I know if I want Linux

Don,
Linux wasn't really the issue to me. EMC was the program that I wanted.
My reasons for wanting to use EMC are this:
1. It can control servos or steppers. You can run servos if you buy a
Servo to Go card ($800) or steppers from the parallel port(free to me).
2. Fred and crew are constantly improving it based on user feedback. I
have heard a lot of bad things about commercial companies completely
ignoring their customers, let alone answering email.
3. It is free.
4. Linux seems real stable so far. No crashes yet.
5. The source code is open. I am not a programmer, but if Nist dropped it,
things could go on. Dancam can't be improved - no one knows where the
source is or where Dan Hudgins is.
6. It runs in real time, so 22 ipm should really be 22 ipm. Maxnc and
Stepster are real flaky on this point.
7. It runs most of the G-codes that the Fadal at work does. Most of the
commercial PC CNCs run very few G-codes. I need cutter comping. I have a
cam system, but I do need cutter comping. EMC has it.
8. It took me only a couple of hours to install RTlinux and EMC after I
read all the email from the list.
Thanks Matt, Tim, Jon.
9. The other software that I have seems pretty amatuerish after running
EMC. I have bought other software and run a lot of demos for PC CNC.
10. I do a lot of serious machining in my home shop, just like a lot of
you. EMC looks like a system that will grow with you. I plan on
converting everything over to it ASAP. Eventually, my shop will be full of
CNCs with network cards in them going to a CAD/CAM computer.
11. EMC runs in real time. I think that this will prevent other code from
interfering with critical operations.
I shudder to think about a Windows system running with some tsr running in
the backround with the operator unaware. I can see it now- Microsoft
Outlook brings in a new message and the Z-axis crashes into the table!
12. It's free.
13. It's free.
14. It's free.

Just my opinions...

Dan


At 03:08 PM 6/8/99 -0700, you wrote:

>From: Don Hughes <pencad@...>

>My question is, how do I, myself, know and justify the reason that I
>would want to have Linux on my system with a partition for Linux
>exclusively to do other tasks?
>
>I have heard and seen here many messages from the Linux/EMC guru's here,
>and with the amount of controller software for Windows systems, I am
>having a hard time to seek a reason why I would need two O/S's.
>
>Can someone please try to explain to me and any others that might be in
>the same predicament as myself about these decisions.
>
>Thanks to all for a great forum here.
>
>Regards,
>Don Hughes