Call for topics (was Re: July Meeting Topics )

[Shawn T. Rutledge]

On Tue, Jul 03, 2001 at 06:00:52PM -0700, John (EBo) David wrote:
> Lucas Vogel wrote:
> > 
> > (thanks for the reminder, Jim!)
> > 
> > We are fresh out of topics and presenters for this month on for both PLUG
> > meeting locations(sequoia and GCC). If you have a particular Linux-related
> > talent and wish to show it off to the group please contact me at this email
> > address and let me know when you are available to present yourself :)
> 
> Something I would like to see (and could possibly talk a little about)
> is the Enhanced Machine Control (EMC) project produced by NIST.  It is
> realtime kenamatic software to drive computer controlled equiptment like
> milling machines, etc.  I would be interested in finding out if anyone
> else is playing with retrofitting conventional equiptment or building
> new CNC laths, mills, etc.  EMC compiles on both Win* and a real-time
> version of Linux called RT-Linux...

Now _this_ sounds like serious fun... enough to bother going to Mesa for
a PLUG meeting, even.  

I have the low-end Light Machines milling machine
http://www.lightmachines.com/productcenter/spectralight-0200-page1.html
(got it used at a hamfest, good deal too)
but it didn't come with the controller box.  I want to build one of 
those parallel-port stepper drivers for it, but it'll be my first
project of that sort.  Do you happen to know where I could get a kit
for one, beefy enough to run the motors?  The kits I've seen top out
at 1 or 1.25 amps, and I think these motors might require more like 2 amps.
And, I haven't figured out which kind of steppers these are yet, bipolar
or unipolar.

I would want to run it with Linux, of course, and I think I stumbled 
across this NIST software when I was looking for such things... made
a Netscape bookmark... and now Netscape won't run for me anymore.  Why
can't all the browser-folks just agree on some way to store bookmarks
on a server... they don't belong on the client anyway, because doesn't
everyone browse the web from more than one place?  Speaking of which...
setting up such a solution would be another very good PLUG presentation, 
if it's possible.

-- 
  _______                   Shawn T. Rutledge / KB7PWD  ecloud@bigfoot.com
 (_  | |_)          http://www.bigfoot.com/~ecloud  kb7pwd@kb7pwd.ampr.org
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