Got it! I love raspberry pi and we will port a plugin to octoprint for this functionality before we get around to using a cheap esp type wireless device.
Cool!
Erick and his bunch make some good machines but I wouldn’t call the workflow “easiest”. Certainly the configuration issues have largely been eliminated but I’d expect that from a machine in this class. (it’s US$4k) Right now there are plenty of solutions where you don’t need to leave the desktop and some bening developed where it’s on the machine or in an app.
@Brook_Drumm I looked on your site and didnt’ see anything about your control software project. When will that be something you’ll show publically?
I don’t understand the need to go out to the network for basic or even mid level manipulation and processing. Most of the models people use are pretty basic though I could see some instances where having more resources could be advantageous. In this instance I see the cloud being used more for marketing than for any sort of utility. App and cloud sound good but what is it doing that can’t be done locally for most users?
I think it’s good to be able to have the devices talk on the network but don’t see the need to tether those features to the network when with SoC it’s cheap and easy to do locally and phone home when needed.
Printrbot software beta testers needed:
First this: https://t.co/yuTdu6h4ZV
Then this: http://t.co/fEjXhm2BvV
Very early beta. 
@dstevens_lv . The cloud has nothing to do with marketing. Maybe we will offer premium services at some point but not anytime soon. Free for all. It has nothing to do with power either.
The cloud software can improve rapidly without versions and downloads. It works on anything, even phones (not model upload yet). Cross platform is the goal. Lots of compatibility issues melt away. It also has far less overhead for programming. Program once, update servers… Done.
I believe mobile is where it’s at so this ticks all the boxes. We are focussed on better ux. It’s just the beginning so stay tuned.
@Brook_Drumm You still haven’t made a technical case for why you need to go out on the network to print to a local machine. Updates can be done with a push, no need to go out on the network to use the device in everyday context. S3D works like this, it phones home, makes sure I’m not stealing it and tells me when I need an update. As does Inventor or Autocad or the Adobe Suite I use. A cloud is a scalable, virtual array of services. In this context the topology of the backend doesn’t matter the user. They don’t call Facebook or Twitter socializing clouds nor is Amazon a shopping cloud.
I agree that not only UX needs improvement, but workflow and integration need improvement as well. That has nothing to do with “being on the cloud”.
Using remote resources, or “cloud” in the case of using a local printer seems like a solution in search of a problem. Is there an offline mode? How do I use my machine if I lose connectivity and how is my continued use of the machine impacted if I lose connectivity during a print? Your IaaS provider, for example AWS (I noticed some AWS URIs on your site a couple months back)is robust but what happens if your app falls over?
My perspective is having been involved in Internet and Web businesses since they first started appearing in the mid/late 90s. I exited the last company some years back but still keep up on things particularly in this space. A good UX and workflow are needed but sending users out on the network to use something as simple as an entry level 3D printer that is located across the room is a poor use of resources.
any quad core arm 32 bits have enough power to handle anything to print in 3d without cloud.
High powered electronics are more than capable to even slice onboard but we are trying to squeeze the most functionality out of the cheapest electronics. A board with wifi could be made under $40. That’s the goal. Handling connection to the Internet is all we need.
@Brook_Drumm
you can have Chinese phones with quad core arm 32 bit for less than $40
so as you don’t need a 3d printer to do all a phone do it should cost less …
wifi is more easy to hack and less solid to use with all the devices that use wifi
i can’t even use wifi on my modem without be hacked
i start to believe that you want to ruin your company