At the beginning of my longarm experience, I pinned; next, moved on to floating; finally discovered "Loading Lori's Way" and Leader Grips. (If interested search Youtube for "Loading Lori's Way"). I use a bungee cord with toggles mounted across the front to keep everything straight and centered as I advance the project while loading. This has been my preferred loading method since I discovered it about three years back! If I need to unload and turn the quilt for borders or sashings this method makes it much easier for me. Zone space: my machine has about 15 inches of usable space. I seldom set panto size above 10 or 11 inches which gives me enough room to adjust zones as I advance, if needed.