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Setting up your Plotter with VinylMaster Pro |
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What you must know - Important! |
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Specific Brands of Plotters Troubleshooting Sheets |
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How can I get around my plotters maximum length restriction?
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When I try to cut something, it does not begin at the plotters origin |
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When I try to cut something it is rotated the wrong way |
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When I cut out a job, unwanted lines appear, going to the edge of the vinyl |
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When I try to cut, the plotter cuts out everything in a very small area
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My plotter was working fine, but now it doesn't work anymore? |
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My plotter's cutting lines all through my jobs?
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My plotter's just cutting out letters and numbers, not the Cut File? |
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My plotter says Error 1, Instruction Not Recognized? |
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My plotter's cutting out text sideways?
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My plotter uses an unlisted plotter language, and won't cut from VinylMaster Pro? |
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My plotter keeps cutting the tops off letters? |
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My plotter says Error, off the page? |
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My plotter keeps spitting out the vinyl at the end of its cut? |
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My plotter suddenly goes to a point away from the Cut File, ruining it? |
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My Plotter's still cutting out sideways, even though I've clicked on Rotate in the Plotter Setup? |
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I tried to cut out a gradient fill, and my plotter only cut out a square? |
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How do I use a computer as a cutting slave? |
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How do I cut out scraps of vinyl? |
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My plotter just won't cut, even though I've tried absolutely everything? |
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Do I need a driver for VinylMaster Pro to work with my plotter? |
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What if my plotter is not in the set up utility list? |
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Can I use VinylMaster Pro to cut over a network? |
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Can I use VinylMaster Pro with two plotters connected to the same computer? |
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What tiling options do I have with VinylMaster Pro? |
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What is the difference between relative and absolute mode? |
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What is the best way to transfer and cut artwork designed on another computer? |
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What is the difference between quick squash and good squash? |
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What is the quickest way to cut out something? |
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Setting
up your Plotter with VinylMaster Pro
VinylMaster Pro comes with a special
Plotter Setup Utility that initiates the first time you attempt to setup your plotter. This utility guides you right the way through to get your plotter working with VinylMaster Pro in the least amount of time. There is also an advanced section for setting specific commands.
See also Plotter Setup
Quick-Guide and Plotter
Schematic Setup Guide - for a quick step
by step guide to setting up your
plotter.
What you must know
- Important! when setting up a plotter connected via a serial (communications or COM) port to your computer. There are a large number of variables that need to be set correctly, in order for your plotter to work with VinylMaster Pro. Therefore you must have your plotter’s manual available and/or the settings it currently uses, from an existing software package currently communicating with your plotter. the reason why is because a plotter can have its settings changed on the plotter itself, at any time and one incorrect setting can be the difference between a 5 minute set up or a 5 hour legacy.
Note, If you are completely unfamiliar with the terminology used here and/or your plotter and other hardware you are recommended to call on expert advice or help from someone familiar with your equipment. There are simply too many factors at play and you will find it very frustrating if you don’t have a foundation of general knowledge.
Specific Brands of Plotters Troubleshooting Sheets
- As there are so many brands of plotters and models, all with their own specifications and peculiarities we have compiled help sheets on
the most popular brands of plotters. These sheets are available
here on-line and from the last window of the Plotter Setup
Utility and in the VMP Help Topics. They are in a standard
PDF format and discuss known issues with various plotters.
Allen
Datagraph
Anagraph
Aristomat
CSR
Gerber
Graphtec
Houston
Instruments
Ioline
Lynx
Mimaki
New
Star
Omega
Roland
Summagraphics
Serial
Port Communications
How can I get around my plotters maximum
length restriction?
See this Help File: Overcoming
Plotter Length Restrictions
When I try to cut something, it does not begin at the plotters origin?
When you create a cutfile, objects are positioned relative to the bottom left corner of each strip. Therefore if your object is not near the edge of the vinyl strip, it will be cut further in on the vinyl. If you want to cut out a group of objects at the plotters origin, consider using the
'Auto Cut Selected' feature (Alt+P).
When I try to cut something it is rotated the wrong way?
If your plotter has a rotate option, if it is on, turn it off, or vice versa.
When I cut out a job, unwanted lines appear, going to the edge of the vinyl?
This may suggest that you are experiencing a transmission problem. If your plotter is using the serial port, try using a generic text only printer driver, as demonstrated in VinylMaster Academy's Vinyl cutting section.
When I try to cut, the plotter cuts out everything in a very small area?
This usually suggests that the parallel port settings in your computers BIOS are set too fast for your plotter. When you start your computer enter BIOS (usually by pressing the Delete key). Look for your Parallel port setting, if it is set to ECP, EPP, ECP +EPP, change it to SPP (standard parallel port) or Normal and the problem should be resolved.
My plotter was working fine, but now it doesn't work anymore?
You may have rubbed over the settings. Simply complete the plotter setup utility again.
My plotter's cutting lines all through my jobs?
Refer to the lesson in VinylMaster academy relating to
'Generic Printer' in the vinyl cutting section.
My plotter's just cutting out letters and numbers, not the Cut File?
Chances are your plotter is set to Mode 1, instead of Mode 2. From your plotters menu, change the emulation setting to Mode 2.
My plotter says Error 1, Instruction Not Recognized?
This message can usually be ignored, as it usually has no effect on the result.
My plotter's cutting out text sideways?
You may find that your plotter has a rotate option. Simply alternate it from its current state
(i.e. if it's on, turn if off and so on)
My plotter uses an unlisted plotter language, and won't cut from VinylMaster Pro?
Read the trouble shooting section of the Plotter
Setup Utility.
My plotter keeps cutting the tops off letters?
In VinylMaster Pro, you may have set a page size that is larger than your actual piece of vinyl. Correct this and try again.
My plotter says Error, off the page?
You are probably trying to cut out something larger than the available piece of vinyl. If you are using the cutfile, ensure that you understand how the objects are positioned on the
vinyl - see Cutting in the VMP manual.
My plotter keeps spitting out the vinyl at the end of its cut?
This is a setting in the configure plotter section of the vinyl spooler module (click on Advanced). If you change the
'End Feed' amount to zero, the vinyl will no longer be feed out for easy trimming.
My plotter suddenly goes to a point away from the Cut File, ruining it?
Ensure that you understand how objects in the cutfile are positioned. Try using the Auto-Cut selected
option (Alt+P).
My Plotter's still cutting out sideways, even though I've clicked on Rotate in the Plotter Setup?
This is because the plotter may have it's own rotate setting. Change the setting on the plotter.
I tried to cut out a gradient fill, and my plotter only cut out a square?
Gradient fills can not be cut out as they are a bitmap image which contains no cutable information.
How do I use a computer as a cutting slave?
Simply transfer spooled cutfiles from the designing computers into the cutting computer using the vinyl spooler module.
How do I cut out scraps of vinyl?
Easy. Just use the Auto Cut Selected feature in VinylMaster Pro, or press Alt+P, set your plotters origin to where you want the cut to start from, and click on Cut Now from the Vinyl Spooler.
My plotter just won't cut, even though I've tried absolutely everything?
Refer to the trouble shooting section of the plotter setup utility. If all else fails, send an email to
plotterhelp@future-1.com
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FAQ
Do I need a driver for VinylMaster Pro to work with my plotter?
No. VinylMaster Pro contains its own internal drivers for most plotters.
What if my plotter is not in the set up utility list?
Simply select either the next closest of the same brand, or choose the
'Unlisted Plotter'. If you choose the unlisted plotter, you may need to manually set the correct emulation mode (usually HPGL -absolute).
Can I use VinylMaster Pro to cut over a network?
Yes. The best way to do this is install a generic text only printer through windows (shown in VinylMaster Academy Vinyl Cutting Section).
The only difference is that the generic printer can be installed on the remote computer, and shared using windows built in file/printer sharing.
Can I use VinylMaster Pro with two plotters connected to the same computer?
You can, but it involves going to the
'Configure Plotter' screen in the Vinyl Spooler module and changing the settings manually to switch from one plotter to another. Usually this is simply a matter of changing the Port, ie from LPT1 to LPT2, etc.
What tiling options do I have with VinylMaster Pro?
There are several convenient tiling options built into VinylMaster Pro. The best way to learn what they are is to complete the Vinyl Cutting lessons in VinylMaster Academy.
What is the difference between relative and absolute mode?
If you have your plotter emulate set to "Absolute", all jobs sent to the cutter are positioned relative to the origin point of the plotter. Cutting the same job twice would result in the file being cut out in exactly the same place on the second go.
When the emulation is set to 'relative' mode, the job begins cutting at the current pen position of the plotter. Cutting the same job twice would result with the second job beginning where the first job ended.
What is the best way to transfer and cut artwork designed on another computer?
If you simply intend to cut out the file, send it to the spooler on the computer that it was designed on, and then from the Vinyl Spooler module, click on the spooled cutfiles, and then click on the little disk button to transfer the select cutfiles onto a disk. These transportable cutfiles are designed to be portable, allowing you to cut them out on any computer using the Vinyl Spooler module on that particular computer.
If you need to edit the files on the destination computer, use a package file.
What is the difference between quick squash and good squash?
Quick squash treats every group of objects as a box. Super squash uses the shape of the objects. If you had two horse shoe shapes, super squash may interlock them, while quick squash would not. Use super squash for greater vinyl savings.
What is the quickest way to cut out something?
The quickest way to send a group of
objects to the cutter is by selecting
them and then pressing
Alt+ P. The objects are color separated, automatically rotated to minimize vinyl usage, a weeding box is applied and the spooler is launched, ready to send directly to the cutter.
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