Prusa Slicer Suggestion - Variable Infill
Items that have mounting holes or other structurally important areas may need a higher infill than others. For example a shelf bracket. The area surrounding the mounting hole needs to be a bit stronger where the screw is compressing the print, and where the load on the item may pull the screw entirely through the object.
I suggest a few options, the first should be fairly easy to implement.
1. Set a variable for infill for the first X layers. For example 100% infill for 20 layers, then normal 10% or 20% for the rest of the print. Lots of items could be printed with the mounting face down and have the extra strength.
2. Have a paintable infill area, similar to how the paintable supports work in the latest Alpha version. Paint an area and then use some method to determine how deep that area is from the surface of the object, and select an infill rate for that area.
3. Come up with a Mounting Hole or similar designation, select a hole through the object and set a wall thickness for that area only that is thicker.
4. Other ideas?
RE: Prusa Slicer Suggestion - Variable Infill
Oh look, there's a thing called a height range modifier, it seems to allow you to configure different settings for the height range. Gosh it lets you set infill percentage too.
Oh look there's there things called modifier meshes. They seem to also allow you to change settings in localised areas of the model. Gee, they can also do infill or perimeters. Wow.
On a more serious note, this is a user to user forum. If you have actual suggestions then the correct place to add them is the Prusa Slicer github. That is located here https://github.com/prusa3d/PrusaSlicer/issues
Before adding anything though PLEASE search both OPEN and CLOSED issues as with there being close to 2.9 thousand Open issues and 6.7k Closed issues its quite likely that a relevant one already exists. There are far far too many people adding spurious and duplicate issues since PS became more popular.
For example a feature request for Paint on modifiers was opened recently https://github.com/prusa3d/PrusaSlicer/issues/8357 and then closed again just as quickly as its a duplicate of https://github.com/prusa3d/PrusaSlicer/issues/6988 in effect. This is basically your suggestion form above.
I also recall a feature for a variable infill that was smart and worked a bit like the structure nature uses in bones. In a way adaptive cubic can be used in a similar fashion but only in the z height axis with it getting denser as it goes upwards if it has stuff to support. Same with lightning infill. Set a high value and it will get denser as it gets towards areas that it is supporting. Found this one https://github.com/prusa3d/PrusaSlicer/issues/3513 , not sure if its the same one I remember seeing though.
If you want to learn how to use the software, pick up tips etc then this is the place to ask first. Posting a example project with 'how do I do x?' gets you far more help in a shorter span of time.
RE: Prusa Slicer Suggestion - Variable Infill
Thank you for the douchebaggery. Its always amusing when members of a forum are this condescending to new members.
On a more serious note, this is a user to user forum. If you have actual suggestions then the correct place to add them is the Prusa Slicer github. That is located here https://github.com/prusa3d/PrusaSlicer/issues
Prusa owns the forum, if they choose not to read suggestions here that is their choice. Personally I think ignoring one of the lines of communication you have with your users is a bit foolish, but they can do what they want. In my rather extensive experience issues on Github rarely even get read much less ticked for any specific action. If you want proof of this look at the repository for Prusa itself, and go to page 116 (the oldest) and you will see that every single item on that page is still marked as Open and they date all the way back to 2017. Like I said, ignored. In a few of them one of the developers has added a comment that its "being worked on" or something similar, and maybe it has even been implemented, but there is nothing in the Github thread to suggest that even if there has been a code change to address it. It's a simple matter to mark those issues as resolved one way or another, but again they choose not to which leads to the impression that not much attention is paid there.
So I come here hoping they read this more, and run into an asshat. Par for the course I guess. You obviously spend a little bit of time here, and probably get tired of answering the same questions over and over. It's too bad you aren't smart enough to realize that if you and some others around here posted a Tips and Tricks thread and asked someone to sticky it you would knock the amount of repetitive questions WAY down. You could have one for Tutorials and one for FAQ's and whatever else you run into a lot of from new users. Instead you choose to mock them.
Regarding your specific technical comments:
Oh look, there's a thing called a height range modifier, it seems to allow you to configure different settings for the height range. Gosh it lets you set infill percentage too.
Searching the term "height range" gives 0 results inside the Prusa Slicer search box. Searching the term "mesh" gives 0 results.
The Infill section does have a "Solid infill every:" but that isn't nearly the same as my suggestion.
I did find the Height Range Modifier, but its not documented in the Help files, you can only find it by right clicking the object in Editor view. Why the hell would anyone look there for Infill settings when the other major slicers out there only use the right click function for moving and copying items or other arrangement functions on the build plate? Anyone migrating from say Cura probably isn't looking for other features there. It's certainly not a very intuitive place for it, which is why it should be documented.
There's an idea for you. Why don't you download an open source CHM builder and document some of the things the devs haven't made time for yet. Maybe make it a community project so the word "community" actually means something here other than experienced users throwing sarcasm (the lowest form of wit btw) at new users. I am sure Prusa would appreciate that more than they do you driving people off their boards.
RE: Prusa Slicer Suggestion - Variable Infill
Yeah sorry, I do get tired of the same questions time after time. Guess you caught me in a jocular mood. Btw 'your' is a bit out of scope, the is a user to user forum, there are VERY few actual prusa staff people here. Even most of the mods are volunteers. All us unpaid long term users do try and help where we can. However dropping to personal insults will generally get you less help. Maybe I should of used some emoji's or something previously like the kids use nowadays but hey I'm an old fart.
As for some of your other points (in no particular order). Its GitHub or nothing. That's Prusa choice, Go complain to them. Just don't do it on the forum as it wont be seen. Yeah its a dumping ground but at least everything there is tracked and sometimes gets fixed. Your complaint about the settings locations have been made there, several times iirc. Sort of proves your point. Unfortunately that's the only avenue Prusa use.
Your point about PS doing it differently from Cura though, well who cares. PS isn't Cura and the locations and methods of doing things shouldn't have to be the same. There are a lot of functions accessible via the right click method. Get used to it or stop using the software. Or you could fork it and change it to make it work like you want. Seems like a lot of effort though to avoid learning how it works at the moment.
We have asked multiple times for tips and tricks threads to be stickied. No joy there either.
CHM, never heard of it. Not my job to create content either. I'm not paid to do so.
There's the Prusa Slicer Knowledge base, sounds a bit like the content /help advice thing you mentioned. Run by Prusa. Not kept up to date quickly enough but its there. Unfortunately Prusa don't seem to promote it either. Although I try and link it when its obvious someone doesn't know any basics. I'll assume you can google it and don't need a direct link. <sorry more of my base level sarcasm coming though>
I'm not a comedian either so lowest form of wit will have to be my level. Then again I've been told I don't have a sense of humour so I guess that's also par for the course.
RE: Prusa Slicer Suggestion - Variable Infill
Yeah sorry, I do get tired of the same questions time after time. Guess you caught me in a jocular mood. Btw 'your' is a bit out of scope, the is a user to user forum, there are VERY few actual prusa staff people here. Even most of the mods are volunteers. All us unpaid long term users do try and help where we can.
I forgive you.
Unpaid is how most forums work. That doesn't mean they should never have a staff presence though.
Maybe I should of used some emoji's or something previously like the kids use nowadays but hey I'm an old fart.
Me too. Lots of stuff I print is for my grandkids.
As for some of your other points (in no particular order). Its GitHub or nothing. That's Prusa choice, Go complain to them. Just don't do it on the forum as it wont be seen. Yeah its a dumping ground but at least everything there is tracked and sometimes gets fixed. Your complaint about the settings locations have been made there, several times iirc. Sort of proves your point. Unfortunately that's the only avenue Prusa use.
That is their choice, foolish though it may be. It definitely will cost them some sales on printers.
We have asked multiple times for tips and tricks threads to be stickied. No joy there either.
That is just plain ridiculous. If someone is volunteering their time to make their product easier to use the least they can do is create a sticky thread. I own a rather largish forum myself (600,000+ users and 15 million posts), and I couldn't begin to tell you how much content has been added by volunteers doing stuff like that. I am not nearly as active on my own site as I should be, but there are numerous users that have the ability to do damned near anything they want to the site that isn't of a technical nature.
Your point about PS doing it differently from Cura though, well who cares. PS isn't Cura and the locations and methods of doing things shouldn't have to be the same. There are a lot of functions accessible via the right click method. Get used to it or stop using the software.
That is valid up to a point. I have no problem with them adding features on a right click, I just wasn't expecting it and it is totally undocumented.
However when you build something new, you still should use some common methods and basic best practices. For instance you wouldn't put the hood release for a car inside the glove box, its always on the steering wheel side of the car. You also wouldn't put the turn signals on the other side of the column. Just because you can doesn't mean you should.
In terms of software, the right click is traditionally a context and properties function. Properties of the object selected, not properties of a post processing function. When I was looking for Infill options, I looked in the Infill section of the slicer. Silly me. The fact that the Height range Modifier (bad use of Caps there to match the software) has an Infill option is not readily apparent. So its not a single right click. You have to right click the object, then set the height, then right click the new Range and there you find that it has a separate Infill option.
Like I said before, not very intuitive and I wouldn't be surprised if most people looking for an Infill option miss that. It could very easily be an added option in Infill, or have it in both since the Height range Modifier also has additional functions. Now that is well beyond the control of either one of us, however it does lead up to you seeing the same old questions all the time, which leads back to how they could run the forum differently. A vicious circle.
CHM, never heard of it.
Basically it stands for Compiled HTML. It's what most help files are built on, especially in the Windows world, but some are also built using XML or a few other things. The idea is that you have one guy (or team) building the program and someone else building the help file, then you can add the help file as a module or even leave it as a standalone, without having to change any actual code.
For a basic example look inside your Prusa folder, resources > data > hints
Open it with Notepadd ++ or similar
Not my job to create content either. I'm not paid to do so.
Yet here you are, creating content. The difference is that a handful of people will read a particular thread, and hundreds or even thousands would read a sticky thread or an actual help file created by community members. That is why it is so absurd to me that they won't sticky a thread like that. It actually baffles me, and for that reason I won't be participating much if at all on this forum.
That isn't your fault, its Prusa's.