Where is V6?

Moderators: Jason Susnjara, Larry Epplin, Clint Buechlein, Scott G Vaal

Kerry Fullington
Wizard Member
Posts: 4718
Joined: Mon, May 09 2005, 7:33PM
Company Name: Double E Cabinets
Country: UNITED STATES
Location: Amarillo, TX

Re: Where is V6?

Post by Kerry Fullington »

Dan is correct,

First of all remember this is just me talking not Thermwood but my thoughts are based on what the Thermwood folks have been posting about Version 6.

Version 6 will be the first version of eCabinets that will not include the member store. I think just about every aspect of eCabinets was tied to the member store. Removing the store is going to be a major change in the software. I think this change is going to open a lot of doors for us as users. It should allow us to enter out own hardware using any vendor which will be a great improvement. This in turn will eventually improve job costing etc. Hopefully it will also open up the door to be able to associate hole patterns to any of this hardware we add etc. also hope that it will eventually allow us to print out purchase orders to various vendors using information from our individual hardware lists.
My point is that this is a major re-write of the software and judging from what Thermwood has said, I wouldn't expect Version 6 to have every item we all have on our wish lists. Version 6 is just going to head eCabinets in the right direction so that they can add all of those requests. (I could be wrong, Version 6 may be jam packed with new features)

Another thing, any time you have a major re-write of any software you risk the possibility of breaking things so I wouldn't want the programmers to rush too much and I think beta testing, when it starts, might need to be a lengthy process also. This is just my warning to expect some new bugs in Version 6 and probably expect some old bugs to re-appear. If these bugs do happen, don't criticize, work with the programmers to fix them.

I am sure when Thermwood gets close to beta testing they will tease us with some of the features that are going to be in the software.

Gary,

Remember that Ken stated in a thread on Vista that he thought Vista would be gone before eCabinets was compatible with Vista.

Kerry
DanEpps
Wizard Member
Posts: 5852
Joined: Thu, Jul 28 2005, 10:18AM
Company Name: Dan Epps
Country: UNITED STATES
Location: Rocky Face GA

Re: Where is V6?

Post by DanEpps »

I am 100% in agreement with Kerry's perspective on version 6.

Take particular note of his use of the word "eventually." I think that is important for all of us to remember--the uncoupling of the store from eCabinets will eventually provide greater flexibility in the software, but probably not immediately.

As for Vista compatibility, Windows 7 is built on the Vista core so anything Windows 7-compatible should be Vista-compatible.
Ken Susnjara
Thermwood Team
Posts: 208
Joined: Wed, May 18 2005, 7:45AM
Location: Thermwood

Re: Where is V6?

Post by Ken Susnjara »

We are working on Version 6 but with the recession we have had to move some resources around and that has slowed development. It is difficult to say exactly when it will be out but I think we are looking at late spring or early summer. Sorry for the delay but that is reality. We are also working on a new effort to offer a large selection of free libraries as well as free carving programs that you can just download and use. We are also working on connecting with panel saws plus possibly one other machine. These should be released within the next week or so, so there will be some new stuff shortly.
JohnLashuay
Guru Member
Posts: 645
Joined: Mon, Nov 20 2006, 3:39PM
Company Name: Rylex Custom Cabinetry-Close
Country: UNITED STATES
Location: Pine Island, New York
Contact:

Re: Where is V6?

Post by JohnLashuay »

Ken,

So will this do away with design sharing?

-John
Rylex Custom Cabinetry & Closets
http://www.rylexonline.com
Thermwood CS 43
Ken Susnjara
Thermwood Team
Posts: 208
Joined: Wed, May 18 2005, 7:45AM
Location: Thermwood

Re: Where is V6?

Post by Ken Susnjara »

Yes, we are eliminating design sharing, the professional furniture design program and the carving rental program. All these, plus some additional libraries, will be free for download as we reintroduce the eCabinet Systems program. With the new approach to eCabinet Systems, you will be able to access a lot of designs for free. We are hoping this will make the software a lot easier to use and a lot easier to learn. We hope to release these changes along with an all new eCabinet Systems web site in the next week or two. We are also well along on a comprehensive web based training program for the software. We will begin accepting pre-release orders for this service when we launch the new web site and expect it to be fully operational within a month to six weeks. There are other kind of exciting things we will add but we are not quite ready to announce them yet.
DanEpps
Wizard Member
Posts: 5852
Joined: Thu, Jul 28 2005, 10:18AM
Company Name: Dan Epps
Country: UNITED STATES
Location: Rocky Face GA

Re: Where is V6?

Post by DanEpps »

Ken Susnjara wrote:...There are other kind of exciting things we will add but we are not quite ready to announce them yet.
Uh-oh Ken, now you've set yourself up to really get pestered about new features for eCabinets. :joker:
Ken Susnjara
Thermwood Team
Posts: 208
Joined: Wed, May 18 2005, 7:45AM
Location: Thermwood

Re: Where is V6?

Post by Ken Susnjara »

Bring it on! If I am strong enough to watch the news each night I am strong enough for about anything.
DanEpps
Wizard Member
Posts: 5852
Joined: Thu, Jul 28 2005, 10:18AM
Company Name: Dan Epps
Country: UNITED STATES
Location: Rocky Face GA

Re: Where is V6?

Post by DanEpps »

Ken Susnjara wrote:Bring it on! If I am strong enough to watch the news each night I am strong enough for about anything.
You're a brave man...watching the nightly news. I think the news media is a large part of the problems the global economy is facing. The only stories that see airtime are those full of doom and gloom. Joe Public watches the story, gets scared and calls his congressman. The congressman, seeing an opportunity to score points with his constituency, fans the flames. The news media then reports on the newer, more terrifying version of the story, ad nauseum, until the pygmalian effect is in full swing.

Ah, for the good old days when the news was simply reported as-is and the reporter didn't tell us how we were to interpret the story. I don't know how we ever survived without someone on TV telling us how to think. :beer:
Dean Fehribach
Site Admin
Posts: 482
Joined: Mon, May 09 2005, 2:10PM
Company Name: Thermwood Corporation
Country: UNITED STATES
Location: Thermwood

Re: Where is V6?

Post by Dean Fehribach »

Careful, Dan, don't take the topic on a side street. We'd like to see this one stay on topic. :wink:
Dean Fehribach
I.S. Mgr., Thermwood
Dell Workstation T1650 / XEON E3 / 8GB RAM / 1GB nVidia Quadro 600 / Windows 8 Pro x64
Jason Susnjara
Thermwood Team
Posts: 1721
Joined: Tue, May 10 2005, 1:26PM
Location: Thermwood
Contact:

Re: Where is V6?

Post by Jason Susnjara »

Here is a posting that I posted a few weeks back.

http://www.thermwood.com/forums/viewtop ... f=3&t=8846


Besides the list from the posting above, there are also behind the scenes updating of the different softwares that we license. This needed to be done as we were behind in this department. Once beta testing is ready, I will inform everyone of this.

thanks and have a great weekend. :beer:
Jason Susnjara
V.P., Marketing
Thermwood Corp.

On YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/ThermwoodCNC
Thermwood Blog:
http://blog.thermwood.com
Neville Bastian
Guru Member
Posts: 622
Joined: Fri, May 20 2005, 6:48PM
Company Name: Classic Cabinetry
Location: Albany Western Australia
Contact:

Re: Where is V6?

Post by Neville Bastian »

Hi everyone,Ken and Jason,
I think everyone is glad you still have the resources to move Ecabinets onto version 6. I just wonder if you would be better served by breaking down the new features into smaller chunks if the programming staff is reduced or has been assigned to other paying projects.
I don't think any would begrudge you reducing or delaying the features. Maybe we should have version 5.3 in late spring with 6.0 coming out late summer. The shop side of things that is causing a lot of programming time could stay there but maybe have a open database so we can adjust the costs to suit our pricing?

There are a lot of people using Ecabinets who either have a Thermwood or one to two man shows who can't see themselves buying a Thermwood but like using the program. I'm sure some would like to give something back to you who would like to sponser a programmer at Dale. This could be made a fun thing with newsletters from him and what he is working on and the problems he is encounting etc. It could be 400 ecabinet sponsers at $10 a month could really help support a programmer that may be on your goodbye list if things don't improve?

Just a idea to kick around.

Regards

Neville
Neville Australia
Ken Susnjara
Thermwood Team
Posts: 208
Joined: Wed, May 18 2005, 7:45AM
Location: Thermwood

Re: Where is V6?

Post by Ken Susnjara »

Not a bad idea, Neville, however I am not sure how many folks would be willing. Times are tough for everyone and not too many folks want to send money in for something they can get for free. As for interim releases, it won’t really work right now. Uncoupling the store and becoming Vista compatible represent major bites that we have to chew and swallow before we can move on and these things can’t be done partially. After that we hope to provide releases with fewer new features but more often.

As for funding, we are restructuring the program to fund it using other means. We are adding the ability to send files to other machines (exciting news right around the corner). The software modules that allow this will be sold and offer a new source of income. Also, any company whose machines will be able to use the software will be required to pay some of the ongoing costs. We are adding huge design library resources which should make the software much easier to use at a base level. We are hoping that many who have given up will come back and more companies will join the program and that a reasonable portion of them will sign up for our new web training, offering another source of income to help pay for software development. This training program has everything that is covered in our week long training class at Thermwood. A year long subscription costs a little more than the current training class but there are no travel expenses, making it a whole lot less expensive. Also, everyone in your company can view the training content and at any time you want. You can also go back and review things which you can’t do with the live class. We will have about an hour long introduction as an example of this course on the new eCabinet Systems web site which we hope to launch in the next couple of weeks.

As with many of you, things here have been kind of tough but we are seeing some signs of improvement. If things improve from here on we will be alright and the program should continue on in the current configuration. If they keep getting worse, then everything is up in the air and it is almost impossible to tell where things will end up. If that happens, we all have a lot more to worry about than a free software program. We do, however, have a very large cooperative of likeminded companies which may offer some directions not available to others. Let’s keep our fingers crossed.
Jean G Voyer
Guru Member
Posts: 527
Joined: Tue, May 17 2005, 1:38PM
Company Name: Janot Interiors Ltd
Location: Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Contact:

Re: Where is V6?

Post by Jean G Voyer »

Ken,
You are one of the few I enjoy reading the long posts. Your determination and your imagination amaze me.
Since you already have abandoned the store have you thought adding advertising to the program? I would limit it to the potential suppliers that can be usefull for the members. They could be regionalised to answer the needs of the different member's locations. Maybe it's not feasible but I look at the most successful internet businesses and a lot of them is because of advertising. I see it like in my area when I do a design and I could click to the one I need some supplies from to place the order related to the job at hand.
Maybe....
Jean-Gabriel Voyer
Janot Interiors Ltd
www.customcabinetscalgary.com
Dell Precision PWS490, Intel Xeon CPU,3.00 GB Ram, Window XP Pro, Quadro Fx 3500
Neville Bastian
Guru Member
Posts: 622
Joined: Fri, May 20 2005, 6:48PM
Company Name: Classic Cabinetry
Location: Albany Western Australia
Contact:

Re: Where is V6?

Post by Neville Bastian »

Jean,
I think that's a great idea. For one the adverts can be restricted to our country or State. I would be inclined to support that advertiser as I know he is supporting Thermwood thus supporting Ecabinets. The adverts need to be trade suppliers if possible but I would put up with other suppliers if I knew the financial benefit to Thermwood. If trade suppliers it would be good if the advert focused on new release products rather than a awareness advert as I would benefit from increased product knowledge. If you could click the banner and a web page opens that takes you to that highlighted product, that would be neat.

I'm sure most Ecabinet users would accept that as a small price to pay for Ecabinet updates.


Regards

Neville
Neville Australia
Michael Kowalczyk
eCabinets Beta Tester
Posts: 284
Joined: Tue, May 10 2005, 11:35AM
Location: Houston, Texas

Re: Where is V6?

Post by Michael Kowalczyk »

I would respectfully disagree with the advertising. If I remember correctly many people have complained about it be too slow and there are many who probably haven't upgraded to the newest computers. That being said Internet advertising through Ecabs might take up more resources and slow it down. I think in a Jason's or Ken's previous post there was mention about the improvements that are being made will help speed it up.

I personally like the idea of having modules made so that it can be used on other machines but NON-THERMWOOD owners will have to pay to connect. That alone will stave off the multitude of online naysayers while Thermwood owners will still keep the advantage of a seamless direct connection. Ken I think your heading in the right direction and advertising inside Ecab will only clutter it up. Somebody more technical may agree or disagree but that's just my humble opinion.
Michael Kowalczyk, GM

HP-Elite Quad Core Q6700-4 MB ram, Nvidia GeForce 512 MB Dual HP 22" flat panels, Windows 7 ultimate 64bit SP1
Post Reply