Occ Slicer 0.3 is available

I have started a new thread for comments about my step slicer script. I had posted on the skeinforge powwow thread, but moving to a separate one is probably better.

The attached script will slice stl or step files, and then export an svg file that can be imported into skeinforge for filling.

The script slices quite fast-- and can handle step files for those using commercial software. Slicing based on step files is much faster and more accurate than triangulating with STL-- and, no more weird problem meshes!

All Versions, version 0.3 is the latest, and now includes an install guide.

[home.bluedirt.org]

Hi Dave

How do you install Cheetah?

I know next to nothing about python.

OCC installed OK and passed the test in the readme but I don't know what to do with the Cheetah download.

---

Regards

Ian

Hi, Ian:

Thanks for trying it out.

Cheetah is an "old school" python module-- they install like perl modules-- you download it, and then run a setup.py file using python itself. This makes sure to install it in the python you use to run the installer.

(1) install python first.

(2) go here [sourceforge.net] and download the latest version. The file is a tar.gz file

(3) open the file and extract it to to a temp directory, preserving folders. I use winzip for this. The archive contains a folder called Cheetah-2.2.0

(4) using a command prompt, change into the directory you created in step 3, and type this command: python setup.py install

When you are done with these steps, Cheetah will be installed in the python version you used to execute the command above.

HTH
Dave

Hi Dave

OK Cheetah now working and I am getting slicing. I now get this message:-

c:\python25\lib\site-packages\Cheetah\Compiler.py:1520: UserWarning:
You don't have the C version of NameMapper installed! I'm disabling Cheetah's us
eStackFrames option as it is painfully slow with the Python version of NameMappe
r. You should get a copy of Cheetah with the compiled C version of NameMapper.
"\nYou don't have the C version of NameMapper installed! "

The command window then hangs but I do see the object and the slices windows.

---

Regards

Ian

Hi, Ian:

Good news-- you are up and running! That error message is just some weird Cheetah thing i dont know how to get rid of, but all worked fine if you get it.

The program will end when you close those windows.

if you check the same folder where the file you opened is, you should see the _sliced.svg file.

In my next big version i hope to drive verything from the gui, so there will be a 'slice' button you click to do the slicing.