I took an old MiniForums Z83-F with windows 10 and loaded Octoprint per the website's instructions. It was underwhelming. The web pages I used to control Octoprint were exactly the same, but the interface to start Octoprint as a service in a command prompt window (Think DOS Window) were terrible. It wouldn't autostart and if the window was closed it stopped, so at best it's a clumsy app running in windows. The functionality was exactly the same. It's like the android emulators people run under windows. It is really not a native windows application running in Windows, it's a python app running in a windows program. , so it's never going to be a good as running it in linux or Octopi. I still have the box loaded and have on occasion played, but it's not anywhere near as useful or easy to manage.
According to the OctoPrint usage statistics, there are between 50,000 and 60,000 unique instances of OctoPrint in use today. That's either a lot of masochists or "painfull experience at best" isn't an opinion shared by most.
Of course, not all of those OctoPrint instances are running on a Raspberry Pi but I'm sure quite a few are using OctoPi on an RPi and are as happy as I am with the performance, ease of use, and cost benefit ratio.
I'm not trying to say that there aren't problems out there and we see a lot of them here in these forums. If you aren't happy with the OctoPi / OctoPrint solution then there are other alternatives available. I don't expect you will get specific details on each of those other solutions in this forum, however.
This is quality entertainment.
I guess you could try something like this: SD Card + ESP8266 = OctoPrint Alternative? - YouTube
That said, I've been running Octoprint on a $40 Pi 3b+ for years. It's been moved from printer to printer, updated and upgraded OctoPi versions… with no issues. No crashes, no lost prints, no connection drops. Seamless uploads over wifi and ethernet from Cura first, now PrusaSlicer. It's the single largest improvement I made to my 3d printing system.
Not saying your (or other's) issues aren't real, but they're the minority.
So everyone is saying that there is no other way to send gcode to a printer unless you use linux or a raspberry pi, and in both you still have to use Octoprint/pi. How do these printers that come with wifi do it? Do they just hide a Pi in the printer somewhere and give instructions on how to install it? Running direct from usb is not a good idea unless you are using a computer that is set up to never sleep and will not be interrupted by ANYTHING! The slightest interruption to the usb signal and the print is lost. Then of course it matters which printer or mainboard you are trying to communicate with. My meltzi 8 bit ender won't make it thru a 5 minute print without losing connection. My U20 Alfawise is the energizer bunny on usb. They are both Marlin machines. I am just a little tired of throwing money at things instead of knowledge. So I am asking if there is a better way. I am apparently the only person out here that can not make any sense of Octoprint so I run SD cards back and forth to my 4 printers. I guess at this rate the only way I am going to have a machine with WiFi is to buy one with it allready on board. Thanks everybody for the suggestions. I had the sd card esp826 idea and checked it out. It has another whole set of problems so it is not an efficient way to go either. Guess I'm stuck moving SD cards back and forth.
I'll get it figured out eventually and when I do I will probably feel real silly for not getting it right away​:grinning:
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Printers that come with Wifi installed on them do it themselves. Believe it or not manufacturers can custom design things themselves, write their own firmware and don't have to use consumer products such as a Raspberry Pi. But, I'm assuming you haven't spent that much on a printer, since you complain about your printer not having WiFi.
Print hosts like OctoPrint are the solution to cheaper printers that don't have this. Not just OctoPrint, but you can use Cura on your desktop, Klipper firmware has its own web UI now, or things like repetier host. There's plenty of solutions. Or you can get something like a Duet WiFi board and replace the motherboard on your printer.
But, as always if you want the best of the best you have to pay for it. Take an Ultimaker S5 - highly reliable printer, connects to the network built in, but it will set you back a few thousand.
I think this guys trying (and succeeding in my case) to wind us up. He's basically asking the community to defend the use of a Pi instead of a PC, which is pretty easy Windows being a non RTOS os which makes it a bad candidate for streaming high speed data. I also ran Octoprint on an old laptop, kindda OK but took up too much space.
I have Octoprint running on a thinclient I could get for the same price of a new pi4.
The reason I replaced the pi3 I had was because the more capable of the two uarts died, leaving me only with the mini uart. I got weird buffer and communication problems, resulting in blobs on the surface.
The thinclient im using now has a really capable uart, and even tough it only has a 2.2 ghz dualcore cpu it runs Ubuntu 20 with gui just fine. Now, I have a monitor attached, but i really prefer to have my phone with an app open to control the printer instead, which is why I keep it off most of the time. The system is a fair bit more power hungry at about 12w when printing, but this way I can have both a large SSD and PCIe card installed.
My printer would have the capability to easily have wifi added to the mks tft28, but instead of doing that, I went to disable the screen altogether, because octoprint is just so much more capable and - thanks to a large number of already existing plugins as well as being open source - much more customizable.
@Charlie_Powell says: "Small edit: Also, OctoPrint is not the only print host."
@b-morgan says: "there are other alternatives available"
The official website for OctoPrint has instructions for setting up on Linux, Windows, and MacOS (again @Charlie_Powell)
You have made it clear, @Sillywan, that you don't like OctoPrint or Raspberry Pi. Not sure how you feel about Python but here's one alternative for you, https://www.pronterface.com/. There are other alternatives but you will have to spend some effort to find them.
I am sorry that I am not a software engineer or computer nerd guys, I can see that you are all proud of the fact that it has worked for you. You all seem ready to defend the software even if it does have issues. Some of you act like you are getting royalties.
I am not here because I want to trash octoprint. I am here because I can not get it to do anything the way the tutorials say it will. I am frustrated and trying to figure out why I can not get this to work. I am having the same kind of problem with marlin guys, I have to get a handle on this programming syntax. Its like I am dyslexic when it comes to this stuff. I have had several accidental successes installing things I hope I never have to fix. So don't take offense anyone I am just looking for the answer to my problem and wondering why it is a problem. Pronterface works great with my Afawise U20. Not so much with my Ender3. So I know that the printer mainboards are the cause of some of the issues posted here. Each AI is going to read the code and have its own way of getting it done to a point. My issue is getting past stick the card in the reader and change these lines to say this and save it. put the chip in the pi and turn it on. Now what? Sorry but I don't get it! Somebody has got to know what idiot stick thing I am not seeing. Help me please! 
Asking questions is a great way to learn. Your initial posts come across quite negative, bashing the very project this forum is about. No wonder you got people trying to defend it...
Anyway, the next step is for you to try and open the OctoPrint UI in your browser. Once you have the Pi booted up, with the wifi config in (which you sound like you have done) try browsing to http://octopi.local to get to the web UI. Depending on your network (octopi.local works for most) you may have to use the actual IP address instead.
If you have further questions, I suggest opening a new topic in the 'Get Help' category, or asking around on the discord server. That way helping you is not overshadowed by the rest of the post in the beginning.
Just thought of another solution that doesn't involve Pi or Octoprint, Wifi enabled SD card (but it may end up costing more than the Pi)
I have decided that I am giving it another try. I have a PI 3B+ on its way now and will be trying to connect it up as soon as it gets here. I have my Zero, but since I am hearing mixed debates on a Zero being capable, I just bought one that will. As I stated earlier I have 4 machines, 2 eight bit boards and 2 32 bit boards. Anet A8, Ender3 for 8 bit and Geeetech A10M and Alfawise U20 are the 32 bit. If I was to try connecting the Zero to a machine. Which do you feel would be the best chance of working? If I connect the Zero and all is good, say on the 8 bit Ender3; will there be a problem when I change out the Zero for the 3B+ PI? Since the Zero is not so dependable for this kind of work, What are some things I may be able to use it for? What could I build with it? Thanks for all of the help and suggestions. When the PI gets here I will try to complete the connection and if there is a problem I will post a new request to get right to it. Thanks again.
None. Use it for some other project that won't involve throwing out something because it lagged. I've seen people use them for security cameras.
Not on this board. Gina has made it perfectly clear that the zero is no longer fit for purpose.
In fact, I have made it perfectly clear that the Zero never was fit for purpose, right from the moment I got my hands on one, it's just that certain parts of the community don't want to listen, including one particular popular 3d printer vendor.
Thank you so much, I wish this was the first thing I saw when I started thinking about using one. I have a qualified model on the way and will probably be a much happier maker when it works. With my luck as it is I was doomed from the start trying to use the zero and get "LUCKY". On a good note ; I do believe the flash of the chip and connecting to the unit will be much easier as I now have gone through the procedure several times. Hopefully in the next few days all will be good with the printerverse.
I am about to give up on Octopi. I have upgraded to a 3B Pi as instructed, I have replaced the power supply due to throttling as instructed. It works and then it doesn't. Now presently, it will not print an uploaded file, sometimes it throws and error upon starting an upload, then it will load it but when I try to print it does and says nothing. I have tried reslicing - nada. It will upload the same gcode to the SD card and that gcode will print from the printer. I can print old uploads from Octoprrint.
open a new thread
I stuck with it. I did complete re-install except for a Plug-in I suspected. I also had a bad serial cable. Everything is presently working except print time. When it works it works well. The end-of print shut down is what I am striving for.
If I had not already invested 1/3 the cost of the printer in Pi stuff, I would have just used a LANMU Micro SD to SD Card Extension Cable Adapter Flexible Extender. It is much easier to sneaker-net a SD card. But if you try it, make sure it clicks in, mine didn't so I had to use 4 layers of electrical tape to wedge it in. Good luck.