Would it be possible for you to add an option that will automatically re-display the serial monitor window after an upload if it was previously displayed? I find every time I upload to the board I have to go click on the button again.
I actually implemented this at one point, but I didn't like it so I took it out again. I know it's annoying to reopen the serial monitor manually, but I find it surprising to have it reopen automatically. I also don't want to have the serial monitor window open if the serial monitoring isn't active. So I was left with making you manually reopen the monitor after the upload.
mellis:
I actually implemented this at one point, but I didn't like it so I took it out again. I know it's annoying to reopen the serial monitor manually, but I find it surprising to have it reopen automatically. I also don't want to have the serial monitor window open if the serial monitoring isn't active. So I was left with making you manually reopen the monitor after the upload.
pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeease put it back
you could always have a checkbox - re-open serial monitor
I'd like to see it remain open if I close a sketch and open another, but I wouldn't want it to open automatically when I started the IDE simply because it was open when I last closed the IDE.
Or possibly implement some sketch metadata, such that when a sketch is opened the IDE reverts to the state it was in when a sketch was last closed? That would be nice, and would mean that if the sketch does't use serial communication the monitor will remain closed. Best of both worlds, IMHO.
Closing / opening the serial window should be independent of whether there's a current USB serial connection. There should be a visual indication of whether the window is currently connected to the Arduino which greys out when uploading or when the board is unplugged.
Its so annoying to lose the window and its state just because I've unplugged the board to change things!!
It might be nice to have visual indication of the boundary between individual serial 'sessions' in the window too.
The detail I find annoying about the serial monitor window is how it interacts with the upload process.
While the upload is in progress, the "open serial monitor" button is a no-op.
You have to watch the status bar to detect when the upload is done, then re-open the serial monitor window. That, in turn, will reset the (already) running program on the board, causing more delay. Some of the first bytes sent by arduino are also lost. So to catch them you have to hit the reset button on the board while the serial monitor window is open.
I'd like to have an option to tell the arduino IDE to open the serial monitor right after the upload and avoid the double-reset of the board.
My vote goes to a second "open serial monitor" button, near the current one, which would cause the serial monitor to open automatically after the upload. As an alternative, a togglable menu option could also work IMHO (something like Tools=> Open SM after upload).
I agree completely with Reply #9.
When you do an upload to the board, it closes the serial monitor, and in order to catch the first few bytes that may be sent on startup of the Arduino on the Serial Monitor, I have to reset the board while the serial monitor is open. Its quite annoying.
Whether the serial monitor stays open during the upload process, or reopens after it but before the arduino kicks into life, I dont mind - but I would really like to see the first few bytes sent from the serial port captured after an upload without having to manually reset the board again.
Trying to add this to: http://arduino.cc/forum/index.php/topic,118440.0.html I ended allowing the user to "queue" the serial monitor opening if it clicks it while the upload is in progress. Forcing this always on is also a function thru "preferences.txt" but "click to schedule the opening of the monitor" for me is not annoying at all.
Use a serial monitor that allows you to connect to / disonnect from the serial port. Disconnect, upload, reconnect. Serial monitor stays open all the time, and has far more functionality than the Arduino IDE one.
The reason the serial monitor disappears is probably because it's easier to close an application than make that application relinquish control of the com port to which it is attached, which has to happen to upload another sketch.
There are two options here: Currently, when the Serial Monitor is running and you click 'Upload,' it closes, and stays closed. This is annoying, as my sketch obviously required it to be open. Having it either a) stay open and just clear the window like it does when you select any baud rate (including the one you're already using or b) reopen once the sketch has been uploaded gets my vote as a no-brainer. The other option is to have it open automatically no matter what, per the user preference. That one doesn't make quite as much sense to me.
This is annoying, as my sketch obviously required it to be open.
Why? Just so that you can see the output is not a sufficient reason. There is no reason for having to have the Serial Monitor application running to make the Arduino perform correctly.