Makerbot new printers

They are very nice printers, I can see a lot of stratasys influence

I've heard that what you download are pre-sliced files.  Makes a kind of de facto DRM since you can't edit the object or print it on other machines.

Yes, but is it in absolute? Relative? You could figure out the start and end code to insert your own, but: Are the units in mm? inches? steps? They can do all kinds of things where the g-code they provide is completely incompatible to what open-source designs use.

SOmeone would have to buy one to see whats inside.

They have assembly instructions for each set available in a pdf, so I'd assume they print in pieces.  I noticed that in their filament store the fine print states that their 1Kg spools of PLA are not compatible with any of the fifth generation printers... It sounds like they will be switching to cartridges or some other form of spool.  I only hope they don't make it require an odd diameter of filament.  How will they handle support also, as I only see a single extruder even on the $6500 z18?

huh, haven't heard of .x3g before.

Ah.  How dumb..

To explain, x3g is in effect gcode compiled by your (fast) computer to a specific printer, so your fast computer does more of the work, which lets an Arduino 8-bit CPU print much faster because it doesn't have to parse gcode, etc., just execute low level instructions (e.g. steps to X/Y/Z/E steppers, set temperature, etc.). So on its own, it's a reasonable performance optimization.

On the 'plus' side, giving consumers x3g files means that they don't have to do anything but copy a file onto the printer and it prints, so they don't need to understanding slicing, etc. That's great for expanding 3D printing to normal people who don't want to understand the details of 3D printing, just print stuff. But it's also very limiting, because you can't do anything but print exactly what they gave you to print.

My hope is that it serves only as an entry for noobs, and that everyone ends up graduating to being able to at least customize, and hopefully design their own stuff.

The other 'plus' is that since x3g can be generated by an open source tool, any slicer should be able to drive a Makerbot. And, of course, you can still slice and print any STL or OBJ, so you're not locked into the store at all. Whew.