Which improvements work automatically, with no setting to switch on? (pocket retracts, peck drilling preview, toolpath status, WebP)

Why this entry exists

Several 12.5 features appear on the official What's New list but have no checkbox anywhere. People search the forms for a control that does not exist. These are behavior changes that are simply on once you run 12.5.

The automatic changes

• Optimized pocketing for fewer retracts. The What's New page says that instead of retracting between all passes, a Pocket toolpath now proceeds to the next pass depth where it can. Expect fewer lifts to Safe Z inside a multi-pass pocket and a slightly shorter run time. The Pocket Toolpath form has no option for it. If you recalculate an older job in 12.5 and the pocket moves look different from before, this is the reason.
• Peck drilling visualization. The toolpath preview now shows the peck cycle of a Drilling toolpath, so you can watch the plunge and retract pattern before cutting. The peck settings themselves are unchanged: Use Peck Drilling, the Retract Gap, and the choice between retracting above the cutting start or above the previous pass.
• Visual toolpath status. The toolpath tree marks toolpaths that still need calculating, so an edited or out-of-date toolpath is easier to spot before saving.
• Tool inclusive naming. Operations that use more than one tool include the tool name in each resulting toolpath name.
• WebP import. Images in .webp format can be brought in through the normal bitmap import, alongside BMP, JPG, TIF, GIF and PNG.
• Color preserving bitmap fading. A faded bitmap keeps its original colors instead of washing out.
• Resizable dropdowns. Dropdown lists in the interface can be resized to show more items.

What to do

1. Recalculate older pocket toolpaths in 12.5 if you want the reduced retracts. A toolpath calculated in an earlier version keeps its old moves until it is recalculated.
2. Preview with Preview Toolpaths and watch the retract behavior before sending the file to the machine.
3. Right-click a toolpath and use Recalculate, Recalculate Visible or Recalculate All to clear any that are flagged as needing calculation.

Pro tips

• The official documentation does not publish how much time the pocketing change saves. Compare the estimate before and after recalculating your own job.
• Fewer retracts means the bit stays in the pocket longer. Keep chip clearing and dust collection in mind on deep pockets in resinous wood.
• See the entries on the Pocket Toolpath and on the Drilling Toolpath for the settings you do control.