[Rockhounds] Faceting computer

[Michael Schmidt]

experts schmexperts...what do Germans know about faceting gemstones?

especially ones from some tiny little town like Idar Oberstein???

:-)

Michael
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Juergen Wachsmuth" <JWachsmuth at gmx.de>
To: "Rockhounds at drizzle.com: A mailing list for rock and gem collectors" 
<rockhounds at lists.drizzle.com>
Sent: Tuesday, April 15, 2008 11:00 AM
Subject: Re: [Rockhounds] Faceting computer


> Hello group,
> most of your comments did not sound convinced of the idea. Maybe you are 
> right.
> Nevertheless let me say that these people of the Wild company in 
> Idar-Oberstein
> are experts. They know what they are doing in the business of stone 
> cutting. So
> I would say they probably have answers to the questions mentioned here, or 
> they
> are working at them.
>
> Regards,
> Jürgen Wachsmuth
>
>
> Rock Currier schrieb:
>
>> Don's right, that computer faceting outfit would make a hash out of most
>> natural gem rough. I think the guys that designed it were obviously 
>> machine
>> tool guys that didn't know anything much about mineralogy. The system 
>> would
>> work great for isotropic stones that were all of uniform color intensity 
>> and
>> without flaws, which is so rarely the case with natural gem rough, that 
>> it
>> isn't worth talking about. It is however the first step in what may be in 
>> a
>> generation or two a system that might be useful in cutting stones. Now 
>> they
>> have to work on the hard part, to somehow create a program that is smart
>> enough to know all about cleavage, refractive index, dichroism, 
>> dispersion,
>> inclusions, color zoning etc and to be able to take all this and to make
>> reasonable judgements about how to get the most valuable stone out of the
>> rough. Oh, and don't forget the demands of the market place and fashion 
>> that
>> influince the kinds of stontes that are in fashion this year. I think 
>> this
>> device will start to replace skilled stone cutters about the time they 
>> learn
>> to cure the common cold which does not appear to be any time soon.
>> Rock
>>
>> --
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