That is awesome! Just ordered my RPi4B8G today!!
Cheers, RobW

On 16 June 2020 8:06:43 am AEST, Torsten Paul Torsten.Paul@gmx.de wrote:

Ooops key slip, 4G 😡
Cheers, RobW

On 16 June 2020 9:25:27 am AEST, lar3ry lar3ry@sasktel.net wrote:

On 2020-06-16 00:06, Torsten Paul wrote:

Thanks for the information!

Although the news about 64bit Raspbian is indeed very interesting (I do
have a Rasberry Pi 4), I wonder why one would attempt to run OpenSCAD on
it? What is the benefit compared to running OpenSCAD on a regular PC,
considering that OpensCAD is taxing the CPU heavily?

I recently created a system for automatic configuration of a cross
compiler for Raspberry PI, so I imagine it will be possible to use it
for the new 64bit OS once it is released, see
https://github.com/arnholm/cross-pi . Then I guess you can cross-compile
OpenSCAD or AngelCAD to create native executables for Raspberry PI 64,
but I still don't see why you would run CPU heavy applications on that
hardware.

Some background info: I also have the original Raspberry PI Model B (now
5 years old) controlling my 3d Printer using OctoPrint. I run KISSlicer
on Linux or Windows to create gcode files that are uploaded to OctoPrint
on the old Raspberry PI. This works great so I am curious as to why
there is a need for OpenSCAD to run on a Raspberry PI (any model/OS).

Carsten Arnholm

Yes I was wondering the same thing. My PC is a few years old now but
OpenSCAD is the only program I wish it was faster for. I do have a faster
Linux machine but I develop using a database on Google Drive and Google
don't do a Linux version.

On Tue, 16 Jun 2020 at 11:06, arnholm@arnholm.org wrote:

cacb wrote

I think that running OpenSCAD on a PI would make it possible to develop a
machine that can print simple thing on demand, by using the PI as a
controller of a 3d printer, and having a design with a few parameters. Off
course you would need the design to remain small (in print size) and not too
complex (for the PI), but it would be a nice geeky machine to use on, for
example, festivals.

The print time would suggest that you would then build a few of these
machines, so cheap and small  computers like the PI would be excellent for
the job.

--
Sent from: http://forum.openscad.org/

The Pi4 with 4gb should be able handle a pretty good sized model.
OpenSCAD can run under Windows which eats up most of the CPU anyway so
it should run fine on Linux on a Pi!!!

The Pi4 has a modern chip with multiple cores and has a solid state sd
card for file access so it should be quick.

I am not sure how small is "small" or why it should matter but a Pi
should be able to drive a 3D printer without breaking a sweat.

It does give someone a dedicated CAD station for a very low price.

I would be tempted to use it the other way - as a dedicated processor
with no screen or a shared monitor for rendering big models and freeing
up a main cad station for design work.
If you are really productive, get 2 Pi4s and keep them busy. With a
shared screen that can handle multiple hdmi inputs, a USB switch for the
mouse and keyboard and an NSF server for shared disk access one could
work very quickly and never wait for a long render.
Might even be possible to write a script that tells the Pis to look in a
directory for new updated files and automatically start the render.

They are so powerful and so cheap and compact that you can do a lot with
them.

I have been at the software business for so long that I remember
supporting engineers doing full parametric 3D CAD on workstations where
memory was measured in megabytes not gigabytes and CPU speeds were
measures in thousands of floating point operations per second.

Ron

On 2020-06-16 8:04 a.m., MathLover wrote:

--
Ron Wheeler
Artifact Software
438-345-3369
rwheeler@artifact-software.com

On Tue, Jun 16, 2020, at 10:06 AM, arnholm@arnholm.org wrote:

The Raspberry Pi 4 is super cheap, and super hackable.
It is very popular in makerspaces and in STEM education.
3D printers are also very popular in makerspaces and STEM.

OpenSCAD on Pi makes no sense if you are an industrial CAD designer,
but it makes a lot of sense in a school makerspace.

Windows-based desktops and laptops are a liability in a school
environment, because each machine is used by many students,
and managing the software environment (so that it can't be
corrupted or made unusable) is a heavy burden for teachers
and school IT people. In my school district, they use chromebooks.

A locked-down school chromebook will only allow you to use
CAD programs that run in a web browser. OpenSCAD doesn't
run in a web browser (but there are many alternatives that do).

I haven't tried running a Raspberry Pi based makerspace for kids.
But, I imagine that you can just give each student their own Pi,
and swap out the SD card if the OS gets corrupted.
The benefit of the Pi is full hackability (the opposite of a Chromebook).

Check out this Pi based laptop: https://www.pi-top.com/products/pi-top-3
This is how I imagine you'd use OpenSCAD for Pi.