20 · Preview

G-code, Log and Console tabs

The program text, the generation log and the machine console.

The G-code tab following playback: the current line is highlighted.
The G-code tab following playback: the current line is highlighted.

The tabs above the preview switch the main area:

  • Toolpath — the 2D/3D preview described above.
  • G-code — the text of the selected program (the File menu at the top picks any generated program). During playback and while a program is streamed, the current line is highlighted and kept in view. Files over 8 MB show their first 8 MB.
  • Log — everything pcb2gcode and the native engine printed, one step at a time with timings; warnings start with WARNING:, failures with ERROR: and the error is at the bottom. The pcb2gcode version and the auto-detected files are logged when a project opens. When a preview fails, the preview pane offers Show Log and Try Again.
  • Console — the machine console: every line sent to and received from the controller. Show status reports includes the ? polls and <…> reports (several per second — useful for diagnosing, noisy otherwise); Clear empties the view. The command field sends a line as typed on Return ($G, G0 X10, $/axes/x/max_travel_mm…); a single character such as !, ~ or ? is sent as a real-time byte; ↑ and ↓ recall earlier commands. The field is locked while a program runs.