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Robo-tank suggestions/requests:
#1
Robo-tank is in my opinion the best, most customizable, and nerdy (that’s a good thing) aquarium controller out there! That being said the software license seems very contrary to the spirit of the Robo-tank. I would love to see you put the software under something like GNU and setup a github account so that Robo-tank users can help to find and fix any potential bugs and to bring about new features which may not ever happen without community help (you only have so much time after all).

  Similar to a more open license I think converting the user manual into a wiki would help keep information up to date and bring about more of a community dedicated to improving the Robo-tank.

  I believe a metal case for the Robo-tank power bar would be much safer. This is the site which brought me to this conclusion: http://www.beananimal.com/articles/outlet-strips.aspx. Another option (but not as safe as a metal case) could be to use fire resistant plastic. Using fire resistant plastic would allow you to still use your 3d printer to make the power bar cases. I have not put a lot of time into researching plastics but here is a youtube video which shows 3 different materials being torched: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bg-fEp_BMFo

  Make the Robo-tank wireless…because everything’s wireless now! Who wants wires running everywhere?
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#2
Hi Jeremy, thanks for the compliments, I don't think its the best yet but it will be. :) One day I might make the software license GNU for now the full code is there so anything can be done with it if you can program. I like the idea of making a wiki manual, if anything it would probably make editing easier for me.

I agree a metal power bar would be best but that's not really an option right now as cost is too high as I don't mass produce. Anyone who buys a kit can certainly get one made as I have CAD files available. I'm printing in PLA, a little safer than ABS. I looked at comparison burn videos before and was surprised to see how that ABS lights up light a torch, it certainly makes the PLA look good. :)  I do plan to offer different filaments later but I need a better extruder as they typically require higher melting temperature. With that said I do think the power bars I'm assembling are safe, I take my time and make sure all connections are clean and tight. I think they're safer than a lot of power bars you can buy but yes around water anything can happen. They do have a quick blow 10amp fuse so hopefully that would cut power if anything started heating up. Here's an image of the inside of one.

I actually plan to make some things be optionally wireless but that's probably 6 months away till I get going. I want to start with power bars, lights and sensors.

[Image: cases14.JPG]
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#3
It's not my software, but I think it would be a good idea to have more people involved in the software development...

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#4
You can development software even now :) Example i added energy meter functions, and it is almost ready. Maybe tomorrow i can post "addon" here. If it is ok with Rob :)
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#5
Exactly, nothing saying you can't contribute, I just don't want it "open source" for the world to have. Niksu also contributed a nice internet keep alive feature. For some reason his controller was always dropping the internet connection randomly so he added something that pings google (I think) every 5 minutes or so and if no answer it repairs the connection. :) He told me it was ok to put in the software so I'll be adding that as well. Thanks Niksu! :)
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#6
I don't think a lot of "homebrew" versions will bring this project forward.
In case Rob wants to stay in control, sharing ideas and solutions with him is a good idea.
You have to keep track of the software versions, that's often the problem...

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#7
(01-23-2017, 04:54 AM)Arne Wrote: That simply is NOT going to work !!!!
Make it open source or keep it with the developer who started the project.
How on earth are you going to keep track of software versions this way?
And... how is Rob doing solving bugs other people introduce... 

Actually open source would be a major problem, anyone could make changes, how would I track that? This way only I'm adding code and there's only one version available.
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#8
Regarding
"Actually open source would be a major problem, anyone could make changes, how would I track that?"
and
"You have to keep track of the software versions, that's often the problem... "
I would like to respectfully disagree!

I think Git+Github would be a great solution. "Git is a version control system (VCS) for tracking changes in computer files and coordinating work on those files among multiple people." -https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Git
Learning to work with git and github would require some effort on your part. I saw an amazing video explaining the basics but am failing to find it now. Sorry. However I did find and watch this short video and it was decent: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUuTYDg9XoI (it apparently has follow ups too). Another useful resource is https://try.github.io/levels/1/challenges/1

You could maintain full control of your source while still getting contributions from the community and while being very aware of what changes are being made to various pieces of code. Basically you would control a master branch, people could push other branches (your code + changes) which you could either merge, modify, remove, whatever.

Git is amazing =P
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#9
Yeah I'm sure it can be fairly easy but its not something I want. Then if there's things I don't like its hard to change back and other parts of the code could be messed up from someone else. I like how it is now.
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