Alphalite problems.

[Diachi]

Sorry to bring an old thread back from the dead!

I'm having an issue with Alphalite too, in that it does not detect the DAC. I'm putting this down to the fact that I'm running windows 7 and that I'm also running the exe. According to the manual the exe should only be used if you are running a windows 98 machine ( that would explain the priveledge errors).

It also says that if you are running XP ( I have an XP laptop on the way ) that you should run the software from the batch file, however the disk I have doesn't have the batch file on it. Does anyone know where I could get the whole package with batch file and exe + tester and all of that stuff?

Cheers,

Adam

[stanwax]

Adam
see attached - my v2.9 Alphalite folder contains all the files for the prog and frames etc - 10meg in total
Rob

alpha29.zip

[Diachi]

Excellent Rob, thank you!

[Diachi]

Hey,Still having issues after building an XP machine and putting it on that - now I'm getting a file error: ILDATEST.ild issue. What could be causing this?

[TechnoCrafter]

Hi guys!
Rick here. Sorry to hear about any problems with the Alpha. I wanted the software to be flawless and really provide a good low cost system for those who couldn't afford the higher prices. I had so many ideas and I was really hyped about getting them all going, but business dropped, this and that.., then I went to renew the LaserIllusions site and found somebody else owns it, that would be now. I have the same computer I had back in 2003, 2 HD's crashed so I'm still not quite up to par. I'll try to find a fix for any problems anybody has though. Not sure if leaving an email addr breaks protocol here or not, I have a habit of doing that. Anyway you can write me at RickGebhardt at bresnan do t net
if I can help with anything.
Quick note-
Alpha uses any xfmr or wall adapter 10..16VAC 100..1000ma. These are often< $5. All we need is +-12V.
Ildatest.ild that won't work- bad file. Delete it. Get another.
Printer cable needs to have all wires wired straight through.
X and Y outputs have matching -X and -Y outputs, but they have no floating ground, so don't ground the neg outputs.
Tremor issues, bummer. If the neg outputs aren't grounded, then I'm not sure.
I only use single ended method- XY and gnd.
Somebody just said this- Set XY output voltage with the Options menu- also X/Y invert. Click 'Save Configuration' when done (1st page options menu)
Yes, DrawSpeed = Scanspeed. I would've used Scan speed instead of drawspeed, just never thought of it then.
Windows 7- gotta check on that one, Paul from oregon got that working, not sure how he did it.
Privileged instruction error, you're trying to run Alpha.exe with XP instead of Alpha.bat.
Alpha.bat has one line in it, you can type this using notepad.
allowio 0x378 alpha.exe
obviously the only port that works with Alpha is 0x378 which is 888 decimal (usually LPT1)
The other 2 files needed: allowio.exe and porttalk.sys
Thanks Ihor for letting me in on this, I don't get on the computer much nowdays.
PS I never forgot the people who helped me get the site back up a few years ago...
Rick

[stanwax]

Hey Rick
Great to see you are still keeping an ear to the ground in the laser world.
I hope all is well in your world
Rob

[Lasermad]

Hey Rick

Great to see you around ! Guess you gave up on the USB version ? I had many many hours of fun learning your software and overcoming its small issues .... I remmeber you saying you wrote all 50,000 lines of code PHEW ..must be admired ( cant find appropriate "we are not worthy " smiley ) ... always been an admirer of your work as a one stop software solution ..simply had so much in it at a time when all other softwares were so incredibly expensive ...so thanks for the FUN

>> at adam > ignoring the ildatest file are you getting anything at all ? if so dont stress over the bits that dont work ..just work with the great bits that do .... and using the alpha.bat solutuion with get rid of those pesky Priveledge instruction errors instantly and make it a whole lot easier .... if you have trouble with that give me a call

PAUL

[Diachi]

Hey Rick

Great to see you around ! Guess you gave up on the USB version ? I had many many hours of fun learning your software and overcoming its small issues .... I remmeber you saying you wrote all 50,000 lines of code PHEW ..must be admired ( cant find appropriate "we are not worthy " smiley ) ... always been an admirer of your work as a one stop software solution ..simply had so much in it at a time when all other softwares were so incredibly expensive ...so thanks for the FUN

>> at adam > ignoring the ildatest file are you getting anything at all ? if so dont stress over the bits that dont work ..just work with the great bits that do .... and using the alpha.bat solutuion with get rid of those pesky Priveledge instruction errors instantly and make it a whole lot easier .... if you have trouble with that give me a call

PAUL

Hey Paul,

Deleted all of the .ILD files and it worked - so I'll just copy those files and keep them in a different folder from the .exe, that should work. Still not able to detect the DAC - I blame the cable I'm using, will probably make a new cable up at some point soon, need to get into town to buy connectors.

Got it running on Windows 7 in compatibility mode for windows 98 ( using the .exe ). Still no DAC, so I still blame the cable for this.

Thanks for chiming in Rick!

Regards, will post back soon,

Adam.

[TechnoCrafter]

Hey,
Rob, thanks. It's good to hear from everybody.
OK, a few more things- the ilda file probably doesn't have 'ILDA' as the first 4 bytes, like it should. I was working on a program that would let you change the various parameters of an ilda file, like the company name, frame name, etc, it was a work in progress.
The problem with not detecting the board- first click the secret button that bypasses the ID check, the one that nobody knows about.. There's one on the text page- just look for the words 'Total Frames' and it's just to the right of the word 'Total'. You'll see it with the mouse over it. When you click this, the program will assume ID is checked and valid. Forgot where I put some others.. anyway, if the board still won't output, then consider that the program will only output at address 0x378 which is LPT1 on almost all computers. You might go into bios to look for the lpt1 output address. SPP, ECP and EPP mode will all work with the Alpha cause they all mimic SPP (standard parallel port).
If anyone has a projector that doesn't see when Alpha is connected to it, check to see if pins 4 and 17 on the output connector (female) are shorted, they should be.
Rob- thanks for putting those files up. I'll do the same here if I can figure out how to do it. I'm not real good with those kind of things.
The USB version- I am absolutely determined to make that system, I just need to figure out how to generate a small income here so I don't have to do the 12 hour days with the paint crew- that one's not really my forte'.
Also I would very much like to get back in the swing of things here and get this program upped to version 3 with options of using either Alpha, EzLase, or RIYA systems.
So many ideas, but then you have to wake up to reality, that annoying time between dreams.
Rick

[vjkevlar]

Been trying to get in touch with you Rick so using some Googling I luckily found this thread.

I have your controller and software. I had originally purchased it with a melles griot from NuSalt. The original controller Tim sold me had a problem controlling the X axis scanner. It would always wiggle.

I got in touch with you and as the awesome person you are, you sent me a new one to replace it! It worked perfectly! I didn't actually do that many shows...mostly a few art installations but when I did your software/hardware combination was really great and fun to use.

I finally got some new scanners as one of mine got fried but I cannot tune them correct and I realize that its the same issue I had previously.

Any suggestions or ideas? I would love to get this bad boy running again!

Best Regards Always!

Kevlar