DSPro+9 and Monitor Question

[Rod or Sharon]

Aaaaah GF, ya beat me to it....very good information here!!

Rod Springer
Amaya Tech & Trainer

[GF]

You can't be first at everything Rod! Glad I finally found something to contribute. [img]smile.gif[/img]

[Impressive Threads]

Well, since I do all my work on a laptop looks like I will not be purchasing the new version for awhile as I do not want to invest in a new computer at this time. To bad as the video showed some nice features.

Cindy in Phoenix

[Steve]

Marcelle,
I have experience running 6 monitors at about half of the computers at my full time job. One even has 8 monitors and an another card for the 20 foot projector on the wall (I have to see the weather radar all day on a 20 foot screen.) The larger the monitor, the better. Once you get over 24", they tend to get very expensive. As far as dual monitors, you need 2 video cards or one that supports dual monitors. I would suggest one that is over 256mb. You don't need the fancy expensive 756mb card but a 256 or 512 would be fine for embroidery and graphics. Yes, you can mix and match monitors so if you want a 21" monitor and a 17" monitor, you can do that.
Once it is all set up, go to monitor settings, set a primary and secondary monitor and the screen resolutions. It is pretty easy to set up.

[Marcelle]

In DSPro+9 I cannot see a preview of DST format designs. The preview block remains blank just as before.

I have not been able to find a way to toggle between the work area and properties box since it does not minimize. I currently have to close it or move it to the absolute bottom of my screen just so I can get hold of the top bar to slide it back up when needed.

To Steve:

The 26" monitor that a person I know purchased sounds wonderful and I have room to push it back to the back of my desktop so it isn't so close. My concern is that if I purchase a 26" and everything is just bigger I might still have the same problem with the properties box because it will be bigger as well. I appreciate your advice on the video cards. I don't know anything about them. If I go with dual monitors, how hard is it to move the cursor to the other screen? Does it require clicking something to get over there or what?

[Steve]

If you use the extend the windows desktop setting, all you have to do is move the mouse to the other monitor so the right side of monitor 1 becomes the left side of monitor 2

[Mike Doe]

Marcelle
On your question about not being able to see a preveiw .dst file.
You need to turn on the "Write icon files at save" feature. This is under tools/options/file options in DesignShop. Any .dst file that were previously saved without this feature on will not show the preview. To get a preview of the previously saved .dst (prior to the write icon files at save being enabled) you must open them and resave them out. Or, if you have Windows Vista all of the .dst files (even without the "Write icon files at save" feature off). What the "Write icon files at save" feature does is creates a shadow file with the extension .dsts. This is what creates the icon of the .dst.
Hope this helps
Mike Doe
Melco

[Marcelle]

To: GF & Mike

I tested Mike's message and found that my icon preference was turned on. I tried opening a dst file and saved it as a dst. Mike is correct, when I went back to view and open the new dst file I could see the icon beside the file and a preview in the window. It was perfectly. This may not be good news to GF since the file has to be opened and saved to view the icon and preview. I haven't had a need for dst format for myself so I had never tried this method. Mike, does this also work with DS7 as well so everyone on the list will know?

[Marcelle]

To: Scot

For the 27 inch monitor you are using, can you place the DS9 properties box in a place that doesn't block your other important digitizing window tools? Or, are you having to move it around. Can you send me a screen shot of your DS9 with the properties box open

[Mike Doe]

Marcelle

This works in DS7 also.

If you have a folder full of .dst's that you need to create the preview files you could use the batch converter to do so. This is located: tools/batch converter. Take and set the folder of designs you want to create the preview for in the source folder and then create a destination folder on your desktop. Select input and output type to .dst and click on convert. Make sure that the "Write icon files at save" is enabled. If you need more information about the batch converter go into the help manual and look up batch converter.

thanks,
Mike Doe
Melco

[Marcelle]

Mike, that is great information. I haven't used that feature before. Will make quick work of writing icons for all dst files without having to open each one and resaving.

I have used the icon generator and it is great but I am not sure that it worked with dst files. Your batch converter sounds quick and easy.

Many thanks for your information.

[Body Cover]

Just as a FYI thing,
if your willing to look around and no enough about computers to change a card or know someone who will. I am including a link to a place I buy parts form but there are many places out there.
We use 2 19" widescreens I bought matching monitors so that all my settings and sizes would be equal. I paid $129 each at staples before Christmas at the good sale time and here is a video card with 256MB of memory, for under $40.
http://www.directron.com/2600pro256pe.html
anyway your PC has to have a PCI express video card port. which most in the last 3 or 4 years do. and it's a matter of taking out one screw
unlatching the card holder snapping out the old and inserting the new then reversing the process.

It can be intimidating for newbies but it relly is very easy, then you have to install new drivers and set it up like Steve mentioned.
but for under $300 you could be running a cool dual monitor setup. or if you already have on monitor you can get a similiar size and pay even less. and this day and age go with an LCD if you were thinking of the old style CRT, it will give much more desktop real estate and you.ll be glad you did.

You can always change the resolution to a higher DPI and get much more viewable area on any monitor but everythin gets smaller and more detailed so if you ahve trouble with the eyes this might not be a great choice. but it will help.

Good Luck
Ron

Oh and welcome back everyone!!

[Steve I]

As far as the problem with the properties box being too big when you leave it open, why don't you just resize the box? You can grab the edge and make is smaller or larger.

Steve I.
Trinity Embroidery

[Marcelle]

I do that a lot but it often is still in the way. Right now I either close it or move it almost off the bottom of the screen so I can quickly drag it back up.

One problem with resizing the box is that several of the items in the box have numerous options that then require scrolling down the box which pretty much defeats the purposes of having the box open all the time. I have found that I prefer sizing the box to show all the options in the longest page of options and leaving it at that size. I particularly don't like having to scroll down the box. That takes more time than you might think. At first I didn't realize I had left the box resized smaller and didn't change an option that I should have changed. Perhaps in this case as well "practice makes perfect".

Thanks for the suggestion as it may work well for some people but it hasn't so far for me. You have given all the other users an additional option that I had not mentioned either.

I would really like to find a way if possible to move the tools on the left side over to the left side of the right screen options. Then it would not require moving back and forth across the full screen. Does anyone know how to do this?

To: Steve, Rod, Mike

At a previous job I used a 23" Samsung monitor and found that the optical mouse did not work properly. It required replacing it with a mouse made specifically for large monitors. The difference seemed to be that the optical mouse for a 20" screen moved too slow across the screen and needed more desktop real estate to get there. The mouse for large monitors moved quickly across the screen with minimal movement on the desktop. I am not sure I have described this situation correctly but hopefully one of you has experienced this. My main question is that if I use 2 monitors will I run into this same thing and have to get a new mouse for large screen monitors?

[The Embroidery Authority - OLD]

Marcelle,
I believe you can go into the Mouse Properties in the "Control Panel" and make an adjustment to this setting.
Look for "Pointer Speed" under the heading "Motion". It's a slider bar adjustement.

Ed Orantes