On-demand builds of different versions

[rwb27]

Currently the project is built using a Makefile generated by a Python script generate_makefile, which simply builds every sensible version of every part of the microscope. It would be nice if you could specify which version you want (e.g. the stage size, motors, feet height, condenser, camera, and optics) and build only the necessary components. This is probaby best done using the makefile.

It would be good if the same process was able to put together the documentation for said version, and then bundle it all up as a nice zip file.

At an estimate, there are 3 stage versions, motors/no motors, tall/short feet, condenser/not, 3 cameras, and ~3 optics options for each camera. That's nearly 450 configurations!! This could all be neatly separated into the microscope body, the motors, and the optics module - which makes it more manageable. However, it would still be nice to have customisable documentation (which could be done without too much hassle with some sort of active thingy on the server).

[rwb27]

This should incorporate #24 as well, because it will build the instructions too.

[rwb27]

I have a server at Bath that could run this - just need to figure out the code to do it! I think what's needed is:

• A web form allowing someone to pick the relevant options (bonus points for elegantly handling options that are mutually incompatible).
• A preprocessor for the DocuBricks instructions to customise them for the particular microscope version (e.g. include the high or low res optics module, pick the right illumination, and select the right STL files).
• A simple page with hyperlinks to everything that needs to be printed
• [optional] a generated zip file that makes it easy to download them all
• [optional] integration with plater to create a single STL file you can "just print"
• ideally, generate custom images for each version (computer-generated images for instructions #36) so that the pictures match the printed parts exactly.

[rwb27]

As a quick-and-dirty fix for now, it would be possible to make the form and act on it using javascript, perhaps generating a list of STL filenames in a box. You could then use AJAX requests to retrieve those files and zip.js to combine them into an easily-downloaded zip file.

[rwb27]

The repository is moving to GitLab, and this issue has been migrated. I'll close all the issues here in due course, but am leaving notices on all the currently-open ones. If you head over to the other repository, this issue will be updated there.