Hi Wolfgang On Thursday 02 August 2007 14:51, Wolfgang Köbler wrote:

1. What software updates do you plan ? bdi4emc currently has EMC2 V2.0.4, whereas current version is V2.1.7. Are you planing to create and update and if so, when ?

Haven't made a final deccision as to whether to make another release with emc2. There are issues with the code which some of the developers would rather dismiss as FUD, or bury their head in the sand and hope it will go away (more on that below).

Current Debian is Etch, bdi4emc is still Sarge. Are you planing to create and update and if so, when ?

An Etch build is on the cards - One important (all be it, minor) library is missing from the Xorg packages, without it, the installer will not build. I need to look to see if there are any updates or perhaps look at Lenny/Sid for a replacement (don't really want to have to rebuild Xorg just for one small library).

2. What is the current (and/or planned) support for MOTENC-Lite ? How hard is it to get a MOTENC-Lite up and running with bdi4emc ? Can I just copy the the config files from the sample-configs directory to the right places, do minor adjustments and it works ? Are these configs tested or just lying around for a while and noone knows if they still work ? Or do I need to recompile driver stuff, etc. ?

The driver and configs are intended for the eight axis card - Looking at the manuals, the register maps are the same except for digital IO and encoders. Writing to non-existant encoder/IO registers may cause the PCI bus to hang. Unfortunately, I only have a MOTENC-100 card available for testing.. If you are willing to be a guinea pig, I can provide modified sources and/or access to a test repository.

3. Has the Issue from the Mail

...

Subject: [Bdi4emc-help] BDI - Motenc-Lite Issue? Date: Sun, 10 Dec 2006 14:10:41 -0800

been fixed in bdi4emc by now ?

The issue was with vsitest.c from Vital Systems - A fresh download shows the same bug exists. This is something I can't do anything about beyond informing Abdul of the error. However, there is a chance I can include a revised version with the next build (subject to Abdul's approval). --- Currently running a 2.6.20 kernel with a recent RTAI patch on a Debian Etch box, this will probably be upgraded to a 2.6.22 before too long. In the process of migrating to Etch, I found a couple of small problems with the hooks that the kernel package uses when installing it's self - This needs to be addressed before building a new CD so that anyone upgrading doesn't land in trouble. (It's a silly little problem with the grub menu not being updated). If I use a 2.6.20 or later kernel, the emc2 sources need some small bug fixes that would otherwise send the build tits up. Other emc2 issues include the inability to build and run for multiple kernels, a requirement for parallel port modules to be unloaded (if running stepper motors) - The developers would have you break printer support so they don't have to address the issue. There is also a problem with common library & file names which throw up package conflicts when installing both emc2 and EMC along with any supporting packages (python-axis springs to mind). Perhaps once they have had their "board" elections, some dialogue can take place to resolve the worst of these issues. Side note: Did manage to get emc2-2.1.6 to compile, but found it used around 20% more CPU resources for a simple stepper driven Sherline - Made for a very sluggish computer... Regards, Paul.