That aside, I appreciate the documentation about things that were tried and didn't work during this process. I often find myself adding those kinds of details to documentation to prevent others going down dead ends.
There is good open source cutter plotting software available, but Cricut sues everyone who bypasses their app. I suspect their hardware is being subsidized by these asinine paywalls to monopolize the consumer cutter market.
Getting your hands on some of the old train-station split flap units is pretty tough. They can go upwards of $300 a character on ebay...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Split-flap_display
https://www.oatfoundry.com/split-flap/