What I ended up doing was grabbing the updateDashboard method from the Dashboard Example, and copying and pasting it into a new class. I then spun off a thread of that class to keep the dashboard constantly updated.
Dstation station;
robotInit() {
station = new Dstation();
new Thread(station).start();
}
That in the main class. Then create a new class Dstation. I’m using that class to consolidate all the dashboard and driver station commands into more simplified forms (please ignore my sarcastic comments in the code 
:
package edu.wpi.first.wpilibj.templates;
/**
* @author William Dell
* @author Team 647
* @version v5, January 26, 2011
* @version FRC Java version 2011.4
import edu.wpi.first.wpilibj.DriverStation;
import edu.wpi.first.wpilibj.DriverStationLCD;
import edu.wpi.first.wpilibj.Dashboard;
import edu.wpi.first.wpilibj.AnalogModule;
import edu.wpi.first.wpilibj.DigitalModule;
import edu.wpi.first.wpilibj.Solenoid;
/**
* The routines for dealing with the driver station are ridiculously complicated
* and cryptic. Hopefully this class will simplify the process by replacing them
* with shorter, more obvious methods.
*/
public class DStation implements Runnable {
// going to treat the LCD as a stack, in reverse here because
// new lines appear on the bottom and scroll upwards (mostly)
DriverStationLCD.Line] lcdLines = {
DriverStationLCD.Line.kUser6, // bottom line
DriverStationLCD.Line.kUser5,
DriverStationLCD.Line.kUser4,
DriverStationLCD.Line.kUser3,
DriverStationLCD.Line.kUser2,
DriverStationLCD.Line.kMain6 // top line
};
String] lcdHistory = new String[6]; // array to scroll lcd display
String clearLine = " "; // 21 spaces to clear a line
// empty constructor
public DStation() {
} // end constructor
/**
* When run, the class starts a continuous loop to update the dashboard
* constantly. This is probably a bad way to do it.
*/
public void run() {
// caution, infinite loop, this could be bad....
while (1 == 1) {
updateDashboard();
} // end while
// but it actually works!
} // end method run()
/**
* Messages to the LCD must be 21 characters long or you get artifacts
* from previous lines. This should pad the desired message out to
* the proper length.
*
* @param msg the message to be padded out
* @return line the message line padded out to 21 characters
*/
private String padMsg(String msg) {
String line = msg;
if (line.length() < 21) { // if the message is already 21 or more do nothing
// otherwise tack on however many spaces we are short
for (int i = msg.length() + 1; i <= 21; i++) {
line += " ";
} // end for
} // end if
line = line.substring(0, 21); // make sure we are only 21 long
return line; // and return the new, padded out line
} // end method padMsg()
/**
* Does just what it says, clears the driver station LCD.
*/
public void clearLCD() {
for (int i = 0; i < 6; i++) {
lcdHistory* = clearLine; // clear the lcd "memory"
// and then use the cleared memory to clear the actual display
DriverStationLCD.getInstance().println(lcdLines*, 1, lcdHistory*);
} // end for
DriverStationLCD.getInstance().updateLCD(); // display the screen
} // end method clearLCD()
/**
* Simplified messages to the LCD, with scrolling; new messages appear at
* the bottom of the screen and scroll up.
*
* @param msg the message to be sent to the screen
*/
public void sendToLCD(String msg) {
// scroll down the history; iterate backwards!
for (int i = 5; i > 0; i--) {
lcdHistory* = clearLine;
lcdHistory* = lcdHistory*;
} // end for
lcdHistory[0] = clearLine; // clear the bottom line of the screen
lcdHistory[0] = padMsg(msg); // insert new line at the bottom, padded out to 21 chars
// set up updated screen by rewriting all lines
for (int i = 0; i < 6; i++) {
DriverStationLCD.getInstance().println(lcdLines*, 1, lcdHistory*);
} // end for
DriverStationLCD.getInstance().updateLCD(); // display the screen
} // end method sendToLCD()
/**
* This makes it easier to send message to a specific line. Takes the
* desired line number (top to bottom, 1-6) and the message to print as
* arguments.
*
* @param line which line of the LCD the message should be displayed on
* @param msg the message to be displayed
*/
public void toLCDLine(int line, String msg) {
int index = 6 - line; // array is set up bottom to top, this reverses it
DriverStationLCD.getInstance().println(lcdLines[index], 1, padMsg(msg));
DriverStationLCD.getInstance().updateLCD(); // keep forgetting this, d'oh!
} // end method toLCDLine()
/*
* From here down it's stolen from DashboardExampleProject, and I'm not
* sure how it works. Looks like this mess should be replaceable with
* SmartDashboard, but as usual the documentation sucks. I've started
* deciphering what all this means, but for now it just works.
*/
void updateDashboard() {
Dashboard lowDashData = DriverStation.getInstance().getDashboardPackerLow();
// add the overall container for the data
lowDashData.addCluster(); // overall container
{
// add the cluster containing the analog modules
lowDashData.addCluster();
{
// analog module 0
lowDashData.addCluster();
{
for (int i = 1; i <= 8; i++) {
lowDashData.addFloat((float) AnalogModule.getInstance(1).getAverageVoltage(i));
}
}
lowDashData.finalizeCluster();
// analog module 1
lowDashData.addCluster();
{
for (int i = 1; i <= 8; i++) {
lowDashData.addFloat((float) AnalogModule.getInstance(2).getAverageVoltage(i));
}
}
lowDashData.finalizeCluster();
}
lowDashData.finalizeCluster();
// add the cluster containing the digital modules
lowDashData.addCluster();
{
// digital cluster 1
lowDashData.addCluster();
{
// digital module 0
lowDashData.addCluster();
{
int module = 4;
lowDashData.addByte(DigitalModule.getInstance(module).getRelayForward());
lowDashData.addByte(DigitalModule.getInstance(module).getRelayForward());
lowDashData.addShort(DigitalModule.getInstance(module).getAllDIO());
lowDashData.addShort(DigitalModule.getInstance(module).getDIODirection());
// PWM cluster 1
lowDashData.addCluster();
{
for (int i = 1; i <= 10; i++) {
lowDashData.addByte((byte) DigitalModule.getInstance(module).getPWM(i));
}
}
lowDashData.finalizeCluster();
}
lowDashData.finalizeCluster();
}
lowDashData.finalizeCluster();
// digital cluster 2
lowDashData.addCluster();
{
// digital module 1
lowDashData.addCluster();
{
int module = 6;
lowDashData.addByte(DigitalModule.getInstance(module).getRelayForward());
lowDashData.addByte(DigitalModule.getInstance(module).getRelayReverse());
lowDashData.addShort(DigitalModule.getInstance(module).getAllDIO());
lowDashData.addShort(DigitalModule.getInstance(module).getDIODirection());
// PWM cluster 2
lowDashData.addCluster();
{
for (int i = 1; i <= 10; i++) {
lowDashData.addByte((byte) DigitalModule.getInstance(module).getPWM(i));
}
}
lowDashData.finalizeCluster();
}
lowDashData.finalizeCluster();
}
lowDashData.finalizeCluster();
}
lowDashData.finalizeCluster();
// add the solenoid cluster
lowDashData.addByte(Solenoid.getAll());
}
lowDashData.finalizeCluster();
// send the new data array to the dashboard
lowDashData.commit();
} // end method updateDashboard()
} // end class DStation
That makes the dashboard work (still working on the camera), and also lets you send messages to the driver station by just doing
station.sendToLCD("This is a message");
Personal gripe: the “examples” are hardly commented at all, making them extremely difficult to decipher. Please people, use clear variable names (maximumDistance instead of m_maxDist1) and comment your code heavily. You’ll make life much better for those who come after you.********
