Images to cuttable plotter files

[Joe Goodson]

I am learning how to use my plotter....the hard way. I was wondering if any of you out there knows how to convert a picture to a cuttable file and get crisp lines on the finished product? I am trying to make sand blast stencils out of vinyl. I know....that's cheating.

I'll be glad to send you a sample pic if anyone is interested in educating me.

Thanks!
Joe

[Sarah King]

Joe,

No one else answered so I thought I'd stick my neck out and then other folks can jump in and tell us how they do it - what programs they use and why.

I learned to design stained glass patterns on the computer with Generic CADD 6.0 about 20 years ago. When I finally got a plotter I was thrilled to find that it could actually use Generic CADD without translating it. Amazing, since Generic CADD is so old that its a DOS based program - not Windows.

To get a drawing into the computer I have to trace it using a digitizer tablet to convert all those little dots into geometric lines, arcs and circles that the computer can understand. There may be programs that can turn bitmaps into vector files but I don't know what they are. With my program, at least, I'm the one who has to decide - and tell the computer -exactly where one line ends and another one begins - a process for the human eye and brain.

The problem you are trying to solve is not simple or easy. You'll need to spend more time than you want to learning whichever computer design program you chose. Because I'm used to it, I am very fond of Generic CADD and I'm hoping to upgrade to it's new version - General CADD - which is a Windows based program. http://www.generalcadd.com/ It's not hard to learn and you might want to take a look at it.

The one thing that makes the sweat and frustration worth while is sitting there watching the plotter buzz through all these tiny fine lines that would be almost impossible to cut by hand - and know that the left side of my design will come out exactly the same as the right side.

I just love my plotter - and I bet most people who have them love theirs. I bet that Rawson and Evans would have loved to have a tool like that. They would have loved vinyl too. And portable sandblasters and CNC routers as well.

This isn't a very specific answer but I hope it helps.

[Joe Goodson]

Thank you very much for your reply Sarah. Since my previous post, I have made some strides in figuring out what makes my plotter tick.

I currently have Flexi Starter (which is a chopped up version of Flexi that came with the plotter), Corel Graphics Suite 11, and Paint Shop Pro. I am not very savvy with the softwares as of yet, but I am working on it. I have considered paying a tutor to walk me through some image conversion processes (or whatever it is called). I guess this might be God's way of teaching me patience.

I know that with time, patience and practice I'll learn how to get what I need out of the software. I consider myself a fairly determined man (my wife calls it bull headed).

I have worked at a glass company for 11 years now and have dabbled here and there with glass art. I enjoy it as a hobby and am always trying to broaden my horizons. I am more of a mechanic than an artist though (if that makes sense).

One day I will have to purchase a few kits off of your website. I have been itching to try angel guilding (and gold leafing) for a while now. *sigh* So many projects...so little time.

Anyway...thanks again for the reply.
Joe

[Kelly Thorson]

Hi Joe,
If you check out this link
http://movielibrary.lynda.com/html/modPage.asp?ID=51
you will find little movies on learning the different aspects of Corel 11. I highly recommend you subscribe for a month and give it a try. Nothing
and nobody will make the learning curve as painless. You should be able to get a pretty good grasp on the program with a few evenings spent with the tutorials.
I was encouraged to give them a try by both Mike and Danny as well as a number of others and I can honestly say it has been some of the most valuable advice I have been given. I think they have a few free movies you can watch to get the idea of how it works.

[Joe Goodson]

Thanks for the tip on the website. I just might have to break down and subscribe for a few months. WHo knows, I might actually learn something.

I have tinkered around with the bezier path tool and have figured out how to trace over a picture. HOWEVER, I have not learned how to do it well and am not sure how to weld the individual segments together so that the plotter doesn't "skip" around so much. You see, I can bend the lines to match a shape on the photo, but I have to hit "enter" and end the segment there and then start a new segment right on top of the old line. I really would liket o figure out how to edit out the breaks and eliminate all of those extra nodes.

I'll get there one day.

L0(
JOe