How does calypso save progress in programs and then lose ALL of it from a crash?

[[Ti...]]

i just lost like 2 hours of work on a program i'm updating from one of the infamous "subscript out of bounds" errors from trying to adjust a polyline/plane (silly me, i guess i just have to let the poly algo make a path that will crash and leave it alone), the kind that forces you to end task it from the task manager

then i re-open it and _ALL_ of the changes i had made previous to the crash are gone, i have to start all over

the instability of this program has put me in the habit of ctrl+s CONSTANTLY while doing stuff like this, i know for a fact i had saved my progress at least a dozen times before it crashed, and now all that previous progress that i had been saving is just gone? where did it go?! how does this program save anything?!

why does all industrial software have to be this busted and infuriating

[[Ni...]]

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are you sure you were saving constantly before the crash? it shouldn't delete your data after a crash.
If it did then theres another issue going on.
I've worked on calypso on many different computers and laptops and only 1 has been giving me a lot of crash errors and its this current pc I am using.
I'm sure doing a reinstallation of windows and calypso would solve many of your issues. But reinstalling calypso might help too.

[[Mi...]]

While I do occasionally have software crashes while programming it's very rare.

Now that I have a new PC that meets (exceeds) the software requirements

I also find a tend to have less errors if I import my CAD model from .stp or whatever format, then save the model with calypso, then import that .sab file and work from that one.

If you're constantly having crashes, I would bet the PC you're using is the main issue.

[[Ro...]]

I don't remember ever saving a program, and the save didnt work.

But i have had Calypso do strange things, some features become glitchy where i need to restart my PC for it to fix itself. Possibly your software was not saving for some reason when it should be. I do agree with Michael though, having a lot of memory installed means my PC doesnt crash or glitch out nearly as much as it did in the past. especially when running Calypso + Solidworks + Chrome + all the standard microsoft office programs. I've found the factory Zeiss computers are very much underpowered. i currently have 16G memory, i would consider that a minimum.

[[No...]]

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Are you sure it really saved every time you pressed ctrl-s? While working in some of the dialog windows, Calypso ignores any other menu commands. Make sure to check the inspection/inspset file date after a save to see if they were actually updated.

[[Ro...]]

[[Ke...]]

I picked up a habit from "back in the day" when Zeiss' software developed a frowned upon nickname (that I will not mention)... when I'm developing a large & complicated measurement plan, I use "Save As" (rev1, rev2, rev3, etc) at least 3 times a day; so that If an error occurs and my progress is lost, I don't have to go back too far. I also did not have much luck using "autosave" back then, either.

[[Je...]]

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Timothy,

I overly appreciate your comments here. I've shared the same frustration for years, not just about crashes and instability, but the lackadaisical approach that Zeiss takes towards modernizing and stabilizing Calypso. The user interface is decades outdated, and many of the improvements act more like a clunky retrofit than a seamless iteration. I love Calypso for its feature-oriented behavior, metrological intelligence, and efficient handshake with the cmm, but it needs rejuvenation. The quantity of seats in use and subsequent licensing revenue warrants better supervision from Zeiss.

Lost programming time from software crashes = $$$. Also, the backup option native to Calypso is insufficient, as it does not save all of the relevant info. The fix that I implemented was to use Windows' native File History and save to a separate storage drive. I have File History save every 15 minutes and keep versions for 1 month. It's worth the extra storage drive.

[[Ti...]]

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Before working in my current shop, I used a much much older version of Calypso on an old cobbled-together frankenstein Zeiss machine that was still rolling windows XP and could barely handle that. Get to the new job around 2020, and was surprised to find that the most current version looked almost exactly the same. There's clearly more focus on the hardware than there is of making Calypso into something that people can use and not be terrified of. Instead I get questions about the custom reports and me having to give them a software history lesson on why it can't be done because it depends on some oddball iteration of CorelDraw that you have very little control over. "Just buy PiWeb Plus!" says the 200 year old optics company.

Especially considering that they charge premiums on some of its functions that are clearly already there in the software and just need some arbitrary license trigger. Unfortunately PC-DMIS is a bit messier so Zeiss just sees it as unnecessary without pressure from competition.

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Thanks, I'll try out the auto-save but I'll look into this if i feel like i'm getting too adventurous with polylines again

[[Je...]]

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Unfortunately, the focus from corporate Zeiss seems to have shifted towards Marketing Myopia and Growth Hacking instead of truly listening to the voice of the customer. This plays out through practices like feature gating (making a function that was formerly available repackaged as an additional add-on). The people on the front lines at Zeiss, the applications specialists and hardware technicians, are still amazing, earnest, talent-laden individuals. However, I see less of a focus on innovation and customer satisfaction. Zeiss squeezes their own personnel as tightly as they do the customer.

Calypso's feature-based architecture is still a powerful advantage. The user interface, graphics kernel, and other aspects needs attention.
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Don't get me started. PiWeb is a failure and a clear example of a Product-Market Misfit that was birthed from the marketing myopia culture. "We'll make an extra product that has it's own tier licensing system but make it the ONLY reporting choice for Calypso users." As a metrologist and CMM Programmer, I don't want Calypso to be a Minitab or QC-Calc. I don't want it to originate as an SPC software that treats fundamental needs like user interface, custom report templating, and CAD-image reporting an afterthought. They tried to one-up Microsoft and Google in a weekend with interns rather than making CMM reporting cooperate and integrate with the existing Windows environment.

When customers lamented PiWeb's cumbersome user interface and many shortcomings, Zeiss doubled down on their hubris.

Fortunately, there are lessons to be learned from these failures, and I'm hopeful Zeiss can right the ship.

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