-
Notifications
You must be signed in to change notification settings - Fork 101
V0.4 Request A New Feature
Octolapse has a ton of features, but there is always room for improvement. If you have a great idea for a new feature, let me know by creating a new feature request.
Let's pretend that you just got a brand new Acme mark 2 printer, but you can't figure out how to get it configured (you did read all of the help and troubleshooting guides first right?). You might consider asking to have this profile added to the list of printers that are supported out of the box.
This one seems pretty obvious, but Octolapse is a big program with a lot of features. Make sure you search through the documentation and the existing profiles before submitting a feature request. I also recommend reading the release notes to make sure that the feature you're looking for doesn't exist in a beta version. Finally, search through the issues to see if something similar exists.
If your feature does exist, and you create a request for this feature, don't sweat it too much. I'll just let you know and close the issue out.
You can submit a feature request by creating a new issue within the Github repository. When you name the issue add the prefix [Request]
in the title. Adding this will let users know at a glance that the issue is a feature request.
The title of your issue is very important. Users often search issues by title, so try to think of a title you'd be able to find with a simple search.
This would be a Bad request title: [Request] Create a profile for my printer
Someone would have to open up the issue to see what the request really is. Here is an example of a good feature request title: [Request] Create an Acme Mark 2 Printer Profile
You can create a new issue here.
When creating a feature request, it is very important that you completely and accurately describe exactly what feature you'd like to see. Make sure you include all of the information you have that might make implementing the feature. The following would be a good description for our hypothetical feature request:
I would like a new printer profile profile added to Octolapse for the Acme Mark 2 printer.
I have followed all of the guides, but I'm having trouble getting my printer to work.
Specifically I'm unable to figure out the extruder offsets, since it is a dual extruder
printer. I'm also having some trouble with the firmware settings.
Here is the official manufacturer page for this printer:
http://acme3dprinters.com/mark3
The source code for the latest firmware can be found here:
http://github.com/acme3dprinters/mark3/
The printer area is 200x200x200mm.
Here is the start and end gcode for the printer that is recommended by the MFG:
; Start Gcode
G90; set to absolute xyz
M83; set to relative e
G28; home xyz
... (more gcode here)
; End Gcode
... (more gcode here)
Here is a gist containing working gcode for a small calibration cube that I sliced
in Cura with the recommended profile for this printer:
http://gist.github.com/{the rest of the url here}
I have uploaded the profile I'm working on to gist.github.com, which can be
found here:
http://gist.github.com/{the rest of the url here}
Let me know if you need help testing the new profile!
If this were a real feature request, I'd be pretty happy. It contains a lot of information that I would need to create a new profile, including links to the manufacturer's official page for the printer, a link to the firmware source page, start and end gcode, as well as a link to a sliced gcode file and a partially created (though incorrect) printer profile. It probably wouldn't take me much time at all to fulfill this request. Additionally, the user (me!) offers to help test the profile, which will be 100% necessary before it is added to the repository.
I cannot implement every request, but I will definitely read and consider all thoughtful and complete feature requests.
Octolapse is provided without warranties of any kind. By installing Octolapse you agree to accept all liability for any damage caused directly or indirectly by Octolapse.
Use caution and never leave your printer unattended.
If you have a great new guide, see a typo, or have other suggestions for improving the existing documentation, please let me know! You can either submit a feature request or submit a pull request. I would appreciate it greatly!
Consider supporting Octolapse by becoming a Patron, a Github Sponsor, or by sending some coffee/beer money, I would REALLY appreciate it. Almost all of the donations go towards offsetting the cost of development, which are substantial. Plus it always makes my day!
If you cannot afford to leave a tip or just don't want to, that is fine too! Octolapse is free and open source after all. There are other ways you can help ensure that Octolapse continues to be updated and improved:
- Share your Octolapse videos, and be sure to leave a link and explain that the timelapses were captured with Octolapse and OctoPrint (you will be asked how you made the timelapse, so this will also save you some time answering questions). This is not necessary, but it is greatly appreciated.
- Subscribe to my youtube channel.
- Post any bugs you find to the Issues Page. I would like to eliminate as many bugs as possible!
- Participate in the OctoPrint Community Forums, and help all the noobs get OctoPrint and Octolapse working and help expand the hobby. The more people use OctoPrint and Octolapse, the better the software will become!
- If you've created a working and tested printer profile for any printers that aren't in the make/model list, please send it to me! I want to make it as easy as possible for new users to get their printers configured quickly.
- Help me make this documentation better! Octolapse has a LOT of documentation, guides, tips, etc., both here in the Wiki and integrated with the Octolapse plugin. If you find inaccuracies, typos, gaps, or have ideas for improvement, I'd love to hear about them.
- If you have any special talents that could be applied to Octolapse development, like graphic design, video production (think tutorials), programming, etc., maybe you'd like to participate more directly in Octolapse development/documentation?