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About
X-Stitch and Computers
Whereas cross stitch has existed as a pastime,
arguably as far back as Norman times, (if not earlier), it has
only been within the last 10 years that technology has
improved to a degree where a device in the home can lend a
hand. Yes - we are talking about the computer, (no stranger to
a Web browser) but until only very recently, even the mention
of the word would have been enough to cause many a talented
stitcher to vanish into the distance. Times have
changed, however, and, every day, more households are becoming
home to machines many times more powerful than those that sent
the Apollo missions into space. The main use of these
computers in the home, however, is all too often only to play
games or type letters, and far too many are used only by the
men or children in the family. No-one now doubts that the Age
of Computers has arrived in the world of cross stitch and
needlecraft, because, armed with the computer programs that
are now available, you can use a computer to save enormous
amounts of time and effort when designing new charts of your
own.
How
can a computer help?
Conventionally, cross stitch design work is
carried out on graph paper, with coloured pencils. You colour
in the squares, making the odd mistake here and there, rubbing
out, copying, and making sure not to spill coffee over your
masterpieces. After some time, the design is complete. Next,
it needs to be 'converted' into black & white symbols, in
a grid, where each symbol uniquely represents a colour. So,
its back to pen and paper, rubbing out, carefully drawing,
outlining, and so on, until the chart is done. This is
followed by a stitching session, possibly followed by another
drawing bout, to correct some minor problems. All of this
takes time, and for most people, it is only the design of the
original colour pattern that counts as 'fun'. The process of
converting to symbols is boring, takes ages, and is prone to
mistakes, adding possibly weeks to the job.
Ursa
Software's Programs
The
Stitch
Simplicity (now
Cross Stitch Made Simple) , MacStitch ,Stitch 2008,
and X-Stitch Studio
computer programs, by
Ursa Software, handle most of the donkey work for you, leaving
you to concentrate upon the creative aspects, and letting the
computer do the drudge. To maintain a familiar analogy, the
computer screen is presented as a grid, exactly as if you were
working on graph paper. Instead of coloured pencils, a
selection of colours, representing DMC or other thread
colours, is shown on screen, and you can 'pick up' a colour
for drawing with the computer's mouse, just as you would pick
up a pencil.
Using the mouse as your drawing
tool, you then start filling in squares, drawing full, or half
stitches, and changing colour when you need to. On graph
paper, you might lean closer for a tricky area - on the
computer, you can 'zoom in' or 'zoom out' to make the
on-screen squares larger or smaller - great if your eyes
aren't what they once were!
Of course, it would not be much of
an advantage if it stopped there. Using the computer, you can
quickly copy areas, and stamp them back down elsewhere, to
build up borders and the like. You can rotate areas, draw
boxes, circles, and fill large areas with colour in a few
seconds. You can add outlining stitches, and a clever
automatic outliner will go round the edges of a shape, adding
outlining for you.
The real time saver, however, is when it
is time to create the symbolic chart for others to work from.
Instead of spending a week or two doing it by hand, a simple
click or two of the mouse kicks the computer into action, and
in just a few minutes, you have a clear, easy to read chart,
with no mistakes, and all the stitches counted,
too!
Can't
Draw?
People who
can't draw need not despair - it is amazing what can be
achieved with a piece of clear plastic and a felt tipped
pen! Place
the clear plastic over an image, and trace the main outlines
in black felt tip. Then sticky tape the plastic to the front
of your computer screen, and use the mouse to copy BEHIND the
plastic and recreate the outline. Then colour it
in!
For the more technically 'with-it', however, the
X-Stitch Studio & Master programs allow easy 'import' of
scanned pictures. X-Stitch Studio actually drives the scanner
directly, and has it's own mini 'image editor' which allows
you to crop, flip, and adjust the contrast & brightness of
the image, before converting it into a unique chart for you in
seconds. (Scanners are a device like a photocopier, which,
instead of creating a new piece of paper, place an image
digitally into your computer. The scanned image is made up of
thousands of coloured dots, which the X-Stitch programs shrink
down to a smaller size, and turn into a cross stitch chart for
you!)
Today, although alternatives such as Linux are
available (a Linux version is coming soon!) , there are 2 key
types of computers in the home: those which use Windows, and
those which are Macs
Naturally,
Ursa Software have programs to work with both! The
Stitch Simplicity program, designed for Windows, is
designed to appeal most to the newcomer to computers- it is
arguably the easiest to use X-Stitch design program available
today! The X-Stitch Studio program is it's 'big brother' (or
sister - take your pick!), and whilst retaining the
'simplicity', it adds so much more, neatly sectioning off the
creative process into 3 stages - Design Studio, Import Studio,
and Print Studio. MacStitch is our equivalent program for the
Mac. The programs will import a variety of scanned picture
types, and come with unlimited, unparalleled free telephone
support, for those occasions when you need a little extra
help.
What
do I need to get started?
You need a computer, a mouse, a colour screen,
and a printer.
Hardware
requirements:
PC compatible running WINDOWS ('Studio' or
'Simplicity' for Windows) - requires Windows Vista, 2003, NT,
98, Me, XP,2000, or Windows 95, (20 Meg or more of computer
memory on Windows 95/98), and can print to any graphic printer
supported by Windows, in black & white or colour, stitched
view, or symbol. Requires 10Mb disc space for the program, and
a hi-colour display.
Mac running any version of OSX. Minimum 128Mb
(eg OSX10.1 on an iMac) but like all programs, it likes more.
About
the programs in general...
· All of our programs have these main functions in
common: They...
· Allow you to create a x-stitch design by
'drawing' on the screen with the mouse.
· Allow you to re-use parts of one design in a new
one.
· Allow you to print these designs as an easy to
follow chart, on your own printer
· Allow you to import pictures from other sources,
and use these as designs.
The program does away with the need to design on
paper with coloured pencils (avoiding much of the associated
time, effort, and rubbing-out involved), and then takes away
the tedious job of turning coloured squares into clear,
accurate, symbols, producing your chart in minutes instead of
days.
Is
it easy to use?
We believe so. Our free telephone support line
is testimony to this - it is rare that anyone needs to call
for help!
If you, or someone helping you, can use a
computer to some degree, then the time taken to 'learn' our
program will be short. No program can honestly claim to be
usable by people with 'no computer experience' . However, we
write our programs with the novice user in mind, and we listen
to customer's opinions for improvements.
"Thanks
ever so much for updating your program
..
so quickly .. the printout is fantastic, as is the program.
Many
congratulations on creating such a great
program
for such a small amount of money." -
Sarah
Doe
How
do you draw on a computer?
All our programs are 'driven' by using a mouse.
We have found this to be the most natural way of working with
a program such as ours, as it mimics your hand movements on
screen. (We have avoided the use of the keyboard as much as
possible.) Under the control of the mouse, you move a pointer
around the screen, and you can 'draw' by pressing a button on
the mouse whilst you move. Wherever the mouse button is
pressed, while working on the magnified grid - the screen
equivalent of graph paper - a coloured square appears. The
drawing area of all of our programs is greater than a piece of
chart paper 255 x 255 squares in size - up to 1000 x 1000 in
studio!
For those who feel less than artistic, sample
pictures are supplied on the discs, and you can always use a
favourite piece of clip-art!
"...thank
you for the help you gave me in getting started ..
it
has given me many hours of pleasure and I really enjoy using
it ...
I
can't draw to save my life.. very pleased with the results.
The
only problem is now I have to find time to sew them..."
-
Carolyn Hollet
So
how would I create a new design?
· Start with a blank screen or grid.
· Define the colour of the threads you want to
use.
· Assign symbols to each colour - a blank is used
for cloth areas.
· Draw your design on screen , using the mouse, or
import a picture from elsewhere.
· Choose a chart area.
· Print the chart.
"...Neil,
who knows a great deal about computers,
thought
it an excellent program. I, who am a complete computer dummy,
found
it very easy to use, and absolutely fascinating.
All
I need now is the time!"
-Mrs
B Goulder
Can
I scan pictures or use digital photos?
All our programs are designed to allow you
to use standard pictures for whichever machine you are
using(Studio scans directly using your scanner), and also
imports BMP, PCX, TGA, DIB, PNG, JPG images
Digital pictures, tend to be over-large, or have
too many colours, to be used unchanged in the programs.
For instance,
1000 pixels translated directly into stitches would give you a
chart the size of a wall! But digital photos are usually much
bigger than even this. In such cases, you usually need to
'process' the images to make them smaller, or less colourful
(16 or 32 colours instead of 256 for instance). This
processing is done in the import stage of the programs.
Reducing colour and size to get the image down to (e.g.) 100 x
100 dots (about 7 inches square on 14HPI),and using (e.g.) 30
colours, must
lose detail from the
original, and this can disappoint some people. Especially when
a carefully scanned picture of 14 people outside a church
turns into a Mr. Blobby convention!
The fact is, in order to reduce a scanned
picture that is merely 1000 pixels across, down to a cross
stitch pattern which has only 100 stitches across, you need to
effectively 'throw away' 99 out of every 100 pixels from the
original.
Our programs
import scanned pictures with a clarity and speed equal to,
and
often better than,
programs costing many times
more! |
