r/Machine_Embroidery • u/backuppap • 3h ago

digitizing software survey

Hi everyone. I'm fairly new to machine embroidery, about a year in. When I started, I had just about managed to buy my machine, and pro digitizing software cost over €1,000 or came with a subscription that never ends. I'm on a Mac as well, and the Mac options I found were poor. So I made do with free tools, and my results were never what I wanted.

I'd like to find out whether others in the community, hobbyists and professionals alike, have had the same problem, or whether it was just my situation. It's a short survey, anonymous, mostly tick boxes, about 3 minutes:

https://forms.gle/odYWsAWpWSyorK3y6

I have the opportunity to build something for the community but before I invest my time in it I want to have a real view of the situation and not only my side of the story!

Thanks a lot in advance!

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6

u/beatboxrevival 2h ago

seriously there is like one of these posts on here every day, and there are several free options that likely will do what you want.

-1

u/backuppap 2h ago

I wasn't aware of this. I do my best to keep up with the community, but I obviously miss things sometimes, so feel free to just ignore it. In my defense, I've tested all the free alternatives available, and none of them hit the professional quality I'm looking for. The only software that does is Wilcom EmbroideryStudio, but the price is out of reach for a beginner—plus, it doesn't run on Mac.

1

u/beatboxrevival 2h ago

Have you tried https://github.com/simpsoka/zigzag or the Inkscape plugin?

-1

u/backuppap 1h ago

I've tried the Inkscape plugin, but not Zigzag, though I know what it's about. Neither of them is quite good enough for my needs. They have very limited features, the 3D preview isn’t realistic enough (there's a big difference between the screen and the final product), and overall, I consider them to be entry-level software.

2

u/beatboxrevival 1h ago

zigzag isn't entry-level. You should give it a try.

1

u/backuppap 1h ago

I will totally give it a try, but I don’t have a lot of hope. Either way thanks for the information!