Messages

1

Quilt Assistant / Re: Printing-has glue edge when not needed

« on: 08 May 2016, 13:00:44 »

This may be a bug, or I may have put a limit on the maximum size of each template. In any case, this is something the software does automatically, there is no built-in control to manually override it or switch it off altogether.

As a "hack" you might try to change the size of the design (shrink by say 50%) and then use a magnification at printout (depending on the possibilities of your printer driver or using an in between PDF printout).

If you want me to look into it further, please send the design (.qa2 file) to me by email.

Arnout

2

Quilt Assistant / Re: Adding color to printed pattern pieces?

« on: 08 May 2016, 12:53:58 »

Hi,

Unfortunately it is not currently possible to do this, only the little "color indicators" are available. I had similar requests before, so it is on the wish list to add to the software at some point.

Can't make any promises on a time frame though...

Arnout

3

Quilt Assistant / Re: Printing final design? Print piecing order?

« on: 04 May 2015, 21:25:37 »

Hi,

To print an image of the full picture with pattern lines, use the "Design" tab on the print dialog. There are several settings there, to make the design fit on a single page and to choose between showing the original image or the colored pattern pieces.

The naming/labeling of pieces can be done with menu "Edit" -> "Name shapes for paper piecing". The software will try to find the best way to piece the pattern, which should work OK for the dolphin. For more complex design, you may need to help the software and manually decide how to label the pieces.

Sewing together: each block uses its on letter (block A, B, C and so on), followed by a number for each piece in the block. The sewing order: sew A1 to A2, then A3 to (A1+A2), then A4 to (A1+A2+A3), and so on. Repeat for every block. You will have to figure out for yourself in which order the pieced blocks should be put together, the software does not tell you that.

Arnout

4

Quilt Assistant / Re: Printing?

« on: 02 April 2015, 08:47:35 »

It is difficult to say what goes wrong in this case, since the print preview seems to show that the design can be printed without problems. I would advice to install a so-called PDF Printer, which is a piece of (free) software that you can download. With that you can "print" your design to a PDF file and see if that produces the correct result.

You can find many free PDF printers through Google, most are free but usually come with some extra unwanted bits that you may want to uncheck during installation.

Regards,
Arnout

5

Quilt Assistant / Re: Sharing patterns created with Quilt Assistant

« on: 30 December 2014, 23:46:53 »

Hi Janettx,

I do not know of any Facebook group to do this, but it sounds like a good idea, so maybe you should start one. I would be happy to put up a link to it on the QuiltAssistant download page so people can find it.

Arnout

6

Quilt Assistant / Re: Shape Tree

« on: 01 December 2014, 21:59:07 »

There are several ways to find out. You can click on a line/shape to select it, and it should show in the design window with a red dotted line.

Also, you can move your mouse over the design window and look at the line at the bottom of the main window. It should tell you over which shape the mouse pointer is hovering.

Arnout

7

Quilt Assistant / Re: Quilt Assistant - Question, saving files

« on: 22 September 2014, 20:43:23 »

Hi Carlie,

Quilt Assistant does not save images (unless you specifically export your design to an image), but it does save information about the pattern you created in a file ending with extension .qa2 .

Also, if you save your project (which the software will always ask you to do before closing), it should appear on the list of projects shown right after starting the program again.

Hope this helps.

Arnout

8

Quilt Assistant / Re: Fabric Usage

« on: 07 August 2014, 07:45:22 »

Hi,

Here is how to read this: fabric #5 (= the fifth most used fabric in the design) is used in 19 different patches/pieces. When using 43" wide fabric, a single strip of 2" should suffice to cut all those pieces from.

So maybe your design has 19 square patches of less than 2"x2", that would match the description.

Usage is estimated based on the size of the largest piece and the total area of fabric needed (including seam allowance).

Best regards,
Arnout

9

Quilt Assistant / Re: android tablet

« on: 27 February 2014, 20:50:15 »

Sorry, that will not work. You need a Windows-based computer to run QuiltAssistant (and the .NET Framework for that matter).

Arnout

10

General Discussion / Re: Thanks for this Program because...

« on: 29 January 2014, 08:24:41 »

Wow, impressive! A result to be proud of 
Arnout

11

Quilt Assistant / Re: Unique shape labeling

« on: 30 October 2013, 20:13:50 »

It's hard to say: the software only groups shapes together that are exactly the same. That is, you can match them up by rotating them. Maybe there are slight imperceivable differences between the shapes, or maybe the software is a bit too strict about comparing shapes.

In any case, I can't give specific directions on how to make the shapes equal. If you want me to take a look at the design to find out more, please send the .qa2 file to me by email.

Arnout

12

Quilt Assistant / Re: Experiences using the program.

« on: 29 October 2013, 21:51:52 »

Of course the software has some idea of ppi internally, it's just that this information isn't included in the exported image. I use an existing library function to create the exported file, and I am not even sure whether or not it includes ppi information in that. If it does, it is some sort of default value; out of thin air, as you say.

The relation between actual size and exported image size also depends on the current zoom level in the software; the further you zoom in, the larger the exported image becomes. So that may explain the varying sizes.

13

Quilt Assistant / Re: Experiences using the program.

« on: 27 October 2013, 13:13:43 »

The software doesn't really look at the ppi information as it is stored in images. When you import an image (create a new design based on it), you specify the size of the design, from which the ppi-value follows. You can change the size of the design later from the "Edit" -> "Change Image/Size" menu.

When you export an image, no specific ppi setting is saved, so you would need to manually correct that in e.g. Photoshop before printing. The idea of the exported image for me was just to have some sort of printable sample, but not to any specific scale.

Clicking an merging points: there are some rules and constraints in the software itself which may make it impossible to merge some points, so this could be causing merges with points further away.

The red circles usually indicate line segments that have a close to zero angle (extend each other), but are slightly off. This may cause problems with the automatic "name shapes for paper piecing" function, since the software would conclude that the shapes involved are not properly paper piecable.

As it is, it is tricky to fix those issues. Better to either accept them, if they cause no harm, or try to avoid them from the start. The "Snap to Corner" and "Snap to Angle" functions should help to avoid most issues, if the design isn't too complex.

Again I see some useful suggestions for improvements, however my spare time is limited at the moment, so for now they end up on the wish list.

Thanks again for your feedback,
Arnout

14

Quilt Assistant / Re: Problem spacing points in a ring

« on: 17 October 2013, 19:16:34 »

Hi Madhu,

If you want to draw a compass or other shape with radial symmetry, the easiest way is to use the "Symmetry Settings..." in the "Display" menu. There you can switch on "Rotational Symmetry" and specify how many lines (64 in your example) you want.
With rotational symmetry, if you draw one line, the other ones are drawn automatically. Just experiment to get a feel for it.

When naming pieces for paper piecing, two things are important:
1. All pieces in the entire design must be named, before the software can print the sections. This is because the software will re-group the shapes internally before printing them.
2. The pieces must be suitable for paper piecing. If not, the software may still print them as separate pieces even if you manually assigned them to the same named group.
Again, it is best to experiment first with a small test design.

The mirroring option in the print menu is there mostly for paper piecing: when you sew onto the printed paper, the completed patchwork will be a mirror image of the design. So by printing the paper piece sections mirrored, the final result will match the on-screen design.

Hope this helps.
Arnout

15

Quilt Assistant / Re: Experiences using the program.

« on: 02 September 2013, 08:17:25 »

Thank you for the extensive feedback. I am not a Photoshop user myself, but there are definitely some interesting workflow suggestions in there. It might take a while for me to be able to process them, but meanwhile: enjoy your design work!

Regards,
Arnout

P.S. Yes, the "Don't Panic" comes from Douglas Adams, the dolphin is coincidence.